"People of Faith"

The parish where I am a Religious Education Leader is celebrating the saints in a special way during the 2008-09 liturgical year in preparation for a mission on the saints November 1st & 2nd. Hence, I am on the lookout for new-to-me saints resources. The Catholic Connections Handbook for Middle Schoolers published by St. Mary's Press, 2009, is one such source. It contains engaging profiles of "People of Faith" interspersed throughout the book.

Brother John of Taize in Passing on the Faith published by Fordham University Press in 2006, shares the story of the success his community has had among young people for more than sixty years. He focuses on prayer and community, universalism, trust and simplicity. Of these, simplicity and the routine aspect of Taize prayer refer to the "People of Faith" component of The Catholic Connections Handbook.

The prayer at the Taize community happens three times a day every day, when the bells start ringing. This is a routine that the young people can count on. I would draw this parallel to the saints' stories in the Handbook: all of them appear in the same format, which is=> the bottom lower half of two facing pages with a color drawing of each "Person of Faith" on the left hand page. This is a routine the young people can count on, too.

Secondly, Brother John talks about the simplicity of Taize. He says it is simple because that is the only way they can welcome so many people. The stories of the lives of the "People of Faith" are simple, too. Virtually all are two or three paragraphs, again, with a color drawing. Though short and simple, they are engaging, and are well designed to draw in the middle school audience.

I highly recommend The Catholic Connections Handbook for Middle Schoolers "People of Faith" stories for those looking for new resources of the saints to share with the middle school crowd.