| Year Levels Focus: | The many forms of prayer facilitate the movement of the Holy Spirit in our relationship with God. (TCREK030) |
| Aims: |
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| Content Statement: |
Students will deepen their understandings about the place of prayer in their Christian lives through:
They will investigate the Scriptures as sources of and prompts for both personal and communal prayer. They will consider some key liturgical feasts, including a feast of Mary under one of her titles (e.g., Our Lady, Help of Christians), as prayerful celebrations in the life of the Christian community. They will engage with Jesus as a model of prayer, as expressed within his prayer, the 'Our Father'. They will prayerfully examine how within his prayer, the Our Father, Jesus models seven steps about what to ask for. They will be supported to recognise the action of the Holy Spirit in prayer. |
Prayer is to Christianity what water is to the ocean, what breath is to life, what love is to life’s meaning. Prayer simply is our relationship with God become conscious, deliberate and concrete. It is more a way of being than something we do.
That is why prayer needs to permeate the entire Catholic curriculum; and function in the RE curriculum the way RE functions in the Catholic curriculum overall. Why? Because unless there is a lived experience of encounter with God on God’s terms—and that is what Christian prayer is—then it is simply impossible to talk meaningfully about God in a Catholic educational context.
Prayer is vital. That is why God wants us to pray: because God desires to draw us into a fuller relationship; and praying is simply how that is done consciously, deliberately and concretely in and for us.
At its most basic and essential, the word pray means “to ask”. Learning to ask for what we truly need, when we are ready to receive it, is the key to life and true happiness. Because everything that is, is a free and beautiful gift, grace, learning to ask and receive is the most important lesson we have to learn.
Asking and receiving the gift that is life, being and meaning is the heart of our relationship with God, because grace—God’s gift of himself to us—is the purpose and meaning of life. Prayer therefore points to the deepest truth about human nature itself: we are made for the gift of union with God.
In GNFL this understanding of prayer is developed with emphasis on these theological principles:
- Prayer is about desire—ultimate desire: the desire to become one with God. In prayer we enter into a relationship with the One who intensifies our desire for being. In prayer we find ourselves loved into being in a way that invites us to participate in our own coming-into-being by liberating our desire from all fear, rivalry, selfishness, violence and malice—and therefore, from the power of death itself. Prayer must always be honest if it is to be true prayer, because by praying honestly we discover ever more deeply the ultimate nature of our desire, the desire for God.
- Prayer is our way of participating in God’s work of uniting us with himself. The ultimate expression of that work is the liturgy, “the work of God”, the public act of the Church’s communal prayer as thanks and praise, “the source and summit of the Church’s actions”.
- The central prayer of the Church is the Eucharist. At the most profound level, the Eucharist has to do with Christ alone, who prays for us: he puts his prayer on our lips, for only he can say, “This is my Body … This is my Blood”.
URL link to Theological Conversation chapter (PDF).
Luke 11:1-13 Jesus Teaches Us How to Pray
- Jesus, our model for prayer, shared with us his prayer, the 'Our Father '.
- The Scriptures can support, inspire and nourish our prayer.
- Different types of prayer express the many aspects of our lives and our need for and relationship with God, including: (a) thanks, praise, petition, intercession, sorrow, adoration (b) celebrations of the key liturgical feasts (c) the practices of Marian devotion.
- In prayer the Holy Spirit enables us to repent, experience God’s healing love and live in a new way.
- The liturgical calendar supports the prayerful celebration of feasts within the Church’s seasons.
The many forms of prayer facilitate the movement of the Holy Spirit in our relationship with God. (TCREK030)
Students will deepen their understandings about the place of prayer in their Christian lives through:
- exploring different kinds of prayer (thanks, praise, petition, intercession, sorrow, adoration)
- engaging in a range of prayer experiences
- considering some of the key liturgical feasts
- experiencing the practices of Marian devotion.
They will investigate the Scriptures as sources of and prompts for both personal and communal prayer. They will consider some key liturgical feasts, including a feast of Mary under one of her titles (e.g., Our Lady, Help of Christians), as prayerful celebrations in the life of the Christian community. They will engage with Jesus as a model of prayer, as expressed within his prayer, the 'Our Father'. They will prayerfully examine how within his prayer, the Our Father, Jesus models seven steps about what to ask for. They will be supported to recognise the action of the Holy Spirit in prayer.
TCREI010
With guidance, identifying questions about religious ideas, events or rituals, and considering our theories, thoughts and feelings in relation to the Christian worldview (TCREI010)
- developing probing questions about the limits of our understanding of God’s infinite and absolute goodness, truth and beauty
- reflecting on why and how we should respect others and care for our planet
- exploring how the Holy Spirit inspires us to act in our families, society, Church and world
- wondering about the mysterious ways in which God constantly surprises and challenges us
TCREI011
Being familiar with stories of the Old and New Testaments and the many ways they and other media tell stories and use words and symbols to help us discover meaning (TCREI011)
- identifying and defining terms used in Scripture and the Catechism to make a graffiti wall
- comparing and contrasting parallel Gospel narratives (in Matthew, Mark and Luke) to identify how and why they are alike and how and why they are different
- developing glossaries of terms and definitions used when understanding the sacraments
- interpreting Scripture passages (using commentaries) where Jesus teaches his disciples how to pray (i.e., as models of how to pray rather than as formula prayers)
TCREI012
Communicating religious or spiritual ideas and information in a variety of ways: oral, graphic, written, multi-modal (TCREI012)
- discussing issues of social justice, human rights, and personal ethics, and their implications for Christians today
- using critical commentaries, analysing the message and meaning of the Beatitudes, and their implications for our own lives
- creating a Beatitude Calendar for the season of Lent or Advent: for every day, one positive action of wholehearted love for God and neighbour, compassion, mercy, forgiveness, peacemaking, honesty, fairness, nonviolence, justice
- expressing something of the invisible/unknowable mystery of God through one of the arts (musical, visual, performative, etc.)
TCRED010
Making personal or group observations, naming ideas and questions that are important for living as persons and/or communities in a local or global context (TCRED010)
- presenting contrasting views on a global issue, e.g., poverty in the world today, slavery, climate change
- investigating and writing reflectively about the implications of trading fairly for rich countries like Australia and for poor countries like East Timor
- using reputable media, chronicling stories of good news where people demonstrate human kindness and compassion for others
- identifying impoverished communities that need prayerful solidarity, advocacy and material support, e.g., after a natural disaster or war
- exploring how the Exodus story reveals God’s love as something very concrete, practical and even political
TCRED011
Weighing up competing values and choices and making a contribution to dialogue about worthwhile principles for living responsibly locally or globally (TCRED011)
- examining competing values in the classroom, the community or the nation, and dialoguing and naming core principles for a just society
- listening to Scripture, and identifying an imperative to act with compassion towards others
- considering alternative views about the rights of the child, and identifying what it would mean to treat all children (including the unborn) justly and compassionately
TCRED012
Personally and collectively exploring options and commitments that could gain improved outcomes in local or global contexts and, where possible, taking some form of action (TCRED012)
- setting goals and making commitments, personally and collectively (as a class or school)
- addressing bullying in the classroom or the school and implementing strategies to deal with it
- drawing up an agreement (“covenant”) with each other as a class or school by identifying actions, attitudes and beliefs (i.e., “rules”) that give direction, security and protection for everyone
- faithfully observing some simple and helpful spiritual practices, e.g., daily meditation and prayer, periods of silence and stillness, deep and active listening to each other
By the end of Year 6, students can acknowledge the constant goodness of God, reflect on and identify God’s action in their lives in the light of Scripture, and identify ways to respond to his love for all of life. They can explain how Jesus Christ, Son of God, sent by the Father, offers hope to the world and describe how the Church, empowered by the Holy Spirit, is to be a sign of life, hope, reconciliation and service. They can recognise the movement of the Holy Spirit in various forms of Christian prayer and worship, in the seven Sacraments and in the lives of those who witness to the Reign of God. They can identify the Sacrament of Confirmation and describe its symbols and Rite as an outpouring of the Holy Spirit that empowers Christians to witness through ministry and service. They can recognise that the Catholic Church shares in their search for knowledge and understanding about God with other faiths.
Students can develop appropriate questions and, using a range of communication forms, present their ideas and understandings. They can reflect on, discern about, develop and enact courses of action in response to issues that they identify to be important locally or globally.
Pre-unit assessment
Ask students to list reasons for praying, the kinds of prayers we pray, and some practices that can help us pray. List the names of days, events or people celebrated in the Catholic tradition.
Learning Hook
YouTube song, One Call Away, uploaded by Cloud Nine Kids (with Batman vs Superman visuals). Challenge students to note and recall the various calls on Batman and/or Superman for help. Alternatively listen to the YouTube song, Count on Me, by Bruno Mars (buyakga1946). Ask students who they can count on for help.
Surface
(Giving language, facts, and basic concepts structure to lead into deeper learning)
Key Vocabulary: vocal prayer, mental prayer, formal prayer, informal prayer, thanks, praise, petition, intercession, sorrow, adoration, the general intercessions (or the prayer of the faithful)
- Consider events in life: experiences of joy, good news, sadness, loss, need. Share ideas about how people respond/ ideas about how we act, who we contact.
- Who do you call when you have good/bad news to share? What are you hoping for when you call?
Consider the development of friendship and relationships: detail what helps build the connection, what causes gaps. Focus on the importance of contact and the characteristics of real communication.
- Build up a list of ways of communicating (cf. Understanding Faith [UF], Unit 45, Part 1, p. 1, Visual Tool, “Model of Communication”). Confirm that a focus on relationship is at the heart of our human personhood.
Build on discussions about the importance of contact and communication to include consideration of the various effects they have on certain situations: relief, support, practical help, positive (or negative) impacts on how we live.
Why and how do we pray? How are prayers and praying related to what happens in people’s lives?
Consider when, where, why and how we make contact and communicate effectively: in words spoken; in silence together, with words forming inside but not said out loud; in simple phrases; in speeches, etc. Link to relationship with God through prayer in the range of circumstances in life, and identify the kinds of prayer used: vocal, mental, formal, informal.
- Identify prayer used for a variety of reasons: thanks, praise, asking, expressing sorrow (cf. UF, Unit 45, Part 2, p. 4, interactive task, “Thanks, Praise, Petition”). Note prayers of intercession in liturgy (e.g., the prayer of the faithful at Mass).
- Interview a range of people to gain a picture of whether they pray and, if so, when, how and where they pray, what helps them pray, the importance or otherwise they place on prayer, and what they think is the effect that prayer has on their lives.
- Build and discuss a summary of findings.
- Drawing from a range of sources, develop a collection of peoples’ favourite prayers.
Deep
(Learning experiences that lead on from beginning experiences to questioning more deeply and exploring ideas in different ways to lead to making connections between faith and life)
Why and how do we pray together to celebrate feasts?
- Consider special days of celebration in a family, a community, our nation. Discuss the reasons for them, the style of the celebrations, the impact of these events, different opinions held about them.
- Explore the story of chosen solemnities and feasts listed in the liturgical calendar. Discern why these days are highlighted and consider links to life. (Solemnities [solemn feasts] mark significant events in the life of Jesus and of some of the people closest to him in his work, including Mary. Feast days [festes: joy] relate to Mary under certain titles, to apostles, and to other key figures.)
- Group work could enable sharing of information about a number of these celebrations and could support identifying similarities/differences in background stories and in the manner of celebrating.
- Praying the Litany of the Saints could be a relevant prayer experience. (UF, Unit 36, Part 2, “The Saints, Extraordinary People”, contains material from which to draw.)
We celebrate the saints as models, “ordinary people who followed God with all their hearts” (Pope Francis). Some saint-related printables are available from, for example, Catholicicing.com.
- UF, Unit 36, Part 2, slideshow, “Come Be My Light”, is a hymn against the backdrop of quotes from St Teresa of Kolkata (Mother Teresa) that invites both reflection and action in response.
How can Mary, the greatest of saints, be part of how we pray and live?
- Reflect on the way mothers care for, protect, want the best for their children. (Check out on YouTube: Mary [Catholic Central] and/or P & G Thank You Mom Campaign, Rio Olympics—a possible discussion starter.)
- Share stories of going to mum for help, encouragement, advice, support.
- Reflect on Mary’s self-giving, joys and heartache as Jesus’ mother. Examine images showing Mary’s care, anguish, trust.
- Recall Jesus’ message of “Mother, behold your Son; Son, behold your mother”. (View on YouTube: Mary, Mother of Jesus, by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints).
Consider the place of Marian prayer in Christian practice and life: Mary takes to God our needs and requests.
- Discuss the practice of intercession through Marian prayer (and through the saints). Present the Church’s teaching.
- On YouTube, the reflective hymn, O Mary, Mother of God (Christian Youth Channel), could support connection with Mary and deepen awareness that she intercedes on our behalf.
- Brainstorm the many titles given to Mary as ways of honouring Mary and her qualities. Focus on Mary, Help of Christians. (Youtube clips of possible interest: 10 Things to Know about Mary, Help of Christians [4 mins]; Mary, Help of Christians, and John Bosco [8 mins; gives history of this title for Mary, and identifies her as Patroness of Australia].)
- Examine and discuss different images of Mary, Help of Christians. Interpret the messages of the different images. Invite students to design their own images, informed by what they have discussed and learned.
Transfer
(Learning experiences that help students engage with deeper understandings that can be applied in their own lives)
- Invite students to describe various situations in their lives or in the lives of others and to compose kinds of prayer appropriate to those situations—to praise God, thank God, ask for help, or express sorrow. Encourage that some of the prayers of petition be made through Mary.
- Listen to the song, Mary Help of Christians, by John Burland.
- Invite students to enact their prayers in gesture/word/ or through sketches/colour. Consider that the prayerful response in some instances (e.g., in response to the wonder of life) might well be wordless.
Resources
10 Things to Know about Mary, Help of Christians. YouTube.
Burland, John. Mary, Help of Christians. YouTube.
Catholic Central. Mary. YouTube.
Catholic Icing. https://www.catholicicing.com/.
Christian Youth Channel. O Mary, Mother of God. YouTube.
“Come Be My Light”. Slideshow. In Understanding Faith. Unit 36, Part 2. Online Subscription.
Mars, Bruno. Count on Me. buyakga1946. YouTube.
Mary, Help of Christians, and John Bosco. YouTube.
“Model of Communication”. Visual Tool. In Understanding Faith. Unit 45, Part 1, p. 1. Online Subscription.
One Call Away. Cloud Nine Kids. YouTube.
P & G Thank You Mom Campaign, Rio Olympics. YouTube.
“The Saints, Extraordinary People”. In Understanding Faith. Unit 36, Part 2. Online Subscription.
“Thanks, Praise, Petition”. Interactive Task. In Understanding Faith. Unit 45, Part 2, p. 4. Online Subscription.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Mary, Mother of Jesus. YouTube.
* Unless otherwise noted, items listed under “Resources” are books.