REFLECTIONS AND NOTES
CHRISTMAS 2005
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Teacher notes page 2-3
A global celebration of youth
A journey to happiness
Dealing with illness
Hospitality as a vocation
Principal reflections
Prepared by Fr Andrew Hamilton sj
Following the Christmas star
A Prayer
Teacher notes page 2-3
A global celebration of youth
In 'An international affair' (p. 6), Jessica Gadd shares some of the experiences of young Australians attending World Youth Day in Cologne this year. They described what it was like to feel part of a global faith community, an experience that was enhanced by the all-night vigil and celebration of the Eucharist presided over by Pope Benedict XVI.
With the next World Youth Day to be held in Sydney in 2008, it would be good for students to reflect on what it means to be part of a church that encompasses many different cultures around the world.
Students might like to read the article and then discuss the following questions:
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The article reports some of the individual responses to the WYD; what were the responses of the following people:
- Sacha Bermudez-Goldman sj
- Rowan Dignam
- Katie Cook
- Gabriel Gill
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Students might like to discuss the 'universality' of the church. Does it enhance their sense of belonging?
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The practice of going on a pilgrimage is an ancient custom of the church. Why do people go on pilgrimages and in what ways is this practice relevant in today's church?
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Human beings need to feel they belong to groups. What groups do you belong to and does membership of the church give you a true sense of belonging?
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In what ways is the universality of the church reflected in Australian society?
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What did the young people attending WYD gain from their experience? Would you like to be present at the next WYD in Sydney in two or three year's time?
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Some people refer to the church as a 'pilgrim people'. What is meant by this expression?
The discussion could be followed by a group activity in which each group is asked to produce a symbol or logo demonstrating an aspect of the church; for example: universality, pilgrim people, church of many nations, celebration or other related concept.
A
journey to happiness
In 'Mao's last dancer' (p. 8) we are introduced to a remarkable man, Li Cunxin, who began life in severe poverty in a remote Chinese village, before being chosen to travel to Beijing to study ballet at Madame Mao's Dance Academy. He rose to the top of his profession in China until he was finally awarded a scholarship to study briefly in the United States. He fell in love and married, deciding not to return to China. After dealing with a break-up and the end of his career due to injury, he found love again and is now living in Melbourne with his second wife and growing family, content with his new job and his newfound Christian faith.
Students might like to read the article about Li Cunxin by Michele M Gierck.
Li Cunxin began his life in extreme poverty and with apparently limited opportunities and yet his success was founded firmly on his warm family life. His mother was remarkable woman who kept the family together by her care and intelligent use of the meagre resources at her disposal, always managing to save a little so that customary feasts like New Year could be greeted with feasting and celebration.
Students could spend a few minutes reflecting in their journals on the advantages their own families have given them in life.
A class discussion could look at the ambitions they hold for their future and some of the obstacles they might have to overcome to achieve their goals.
What are some of the setbacks Li Cunxin experienced in his life and how did he overcome them?
When he was studying ballet in Beijing, Li felt that he had to continue working at his skills because he did not want to let his family down. What keeps you going in moments of discouragement?
Li said he wrote his autobiography hoping it would inspire others to strive for what they hardly dared believe was possible. Students might like to read extracts from this popular text and, in groups, act out sections of his life.
Others might prefer to research some aspects of Chinese background and history and give an oral presentation of the results to the class. Some topics of interest might include: Village Life in China; Madame Mao Tse Tung; Communist China, a closed society.
Students who manage to read his autobiography might like to write to Li Cunxin and tell him what they thought about his book.
Dealing with illness
In 'A daily exercise in faith' (p.12) Naomi Flanagan tells of her experience of an exhausting and debilitating illness and how the experience of helplessness taught things about praying that she had not known before. Students should begin by reading the article.
Initially, when she first became ill, she prayed 'get me out of here and make me better'. This is probably the most common form of prayer, the prayer of petition.
In this kind of prayer we acknowledge god's power over our lives, but the main focus is on ourselves and what we want. Of course, in Naomi's case, that is understandable as she was facing a truly appalling situation.
Of the second stage of her praying she writes 'I became demoralised and questioned many of my beliefs'. This certainly sounds more heartbreaking, but in a sense it represents an advance on the previous childlike expectation that God would give her anything she demanded. Instead, she is asking questions about God and the meaning of prayer: quite deep questions, seeking to know and understand more deeply.
'My new prayer was to feel alive again- that I existed' Still trying to regain the life she had before her illness, she is reaching out for things she can no longer achieve.
"I was challenged to find value in myself because I exist...to let go of my dreams'
This marks a new start in her relationship both with herself and with her God.
'After some time my experience led me to stop trying to connect with a God outside my world'. At this stage she finds God in her struggle: she has learned to see God in herself, in her daily life.
'I strive towards feeling connected and of value, and I meet the God in people when I find it' Finally, she has completed the journey, finding God in the people she meets and not in dreams of what might have been.
Students might like to look at the different kinds of praying Naomi reveals to us in this article and begin composing a few prayers that move beyond simple petition to prayers of listening and wondering.
Hospitality as a vocation
In 'Where there's a Will' (p.10) Tracey Edstein introduces us to Will Creedon, an Irishman working in the hospitality industry. We learn how a part time job that he began while still at school in his home country revealed to him his true vocation in life and how, ever since, he has enjoyed dispensing joy and happiness to his customers.
As a manager of a large staff, he tells us how he regards them as family thereby making his workplace a happy place to be. Although very busy with his main job, he has found time to help the unemployed in his area by offering a six- week training course to young people who would like to work in the hospitality industry. The majority of graduates from the course have managed to find employment.
Students might like to read the article, taking special note of why Will finds his job so satisfactory. The class might then discuss the following topics:
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Does anyone in the class work in the hospitality industry? What do they find enjoyable about the job? What aspects of the job do they dislike?
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Why is work so important to us in our daily lives? Is it only about money?
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Will Creedon says that a happy workplace is the best way to run a profitable business; why is this so?
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What are the five most necessary things a prospective employee should look for in a job? Name five things an employer looks for in an employee.
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Do you know anyone who has been looking for work for a long time has been unable to find anything as yet?
In groups set up a role-play in which you conduct job interviews. After each interview allow the class as a whole to comment on how realistic the interview was.
Principal reflections
Prepared by Fr Andrew Hamilton sj
Following the Christmas star
In schools, Christmas is the promised land. It cannot come too soon. But the Christmas star shines brightest when we are in the midst of correction, reports, planning for next year, and just plain surviving.
It is the same for the families whom we serve. Christmas is the impossible end to the year's labour, although only if we allow it to be so. Often, Christmas becomes part of the problem, and not its resolution. Another round of shopping, organising, worrying.
Christmas past
The first Christmas was all of that. But its promise was not a public event. It lay only in the hearts of a temporarily homeless couple. The birth in which the promise lay was also an impossible end of labour. They still had to find a shelter, care for the newborn baby, complete the census and continue their journey. If someone had told them that they had now arrived in the promised land, they would have seen the joke.
Nevertheless, for all the activity in heaven as well as around Bethlehem, the first Christmas had a still centre. Everyone else in the Christmas scene sends messages, receives them, enquires, sings, comes and goes, but the family at the centre of it all are just there. Like the traditional ox and ass. They contemplate a promise that touches the baby and irradiates the world.
Christmas present
This is not so different from the challenges of modern Christmas; to snatch a still moment and a space for worship in a harried life; to renew our trust in God's promise that we shall be as blessed as we are loveable; and to renew our hope that in all the busyness and scattiness of our lives we may finally be faithful to the vision we glimpse at Christmas.
So, from everyone here at Australian Catholics, I wish you happiness this Christmas. May the star shine down on you and your loved ones and bring you peace and joy.
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