Parents Make a Difference: Notre Dame Report on Catholic Religious Parenting
If we want the next generation to experience the joy of the Catholic faith, then it is up to us to show and share that being Catholic has made a difference in our lives and in how we have lived as family and faith community.
“…[Y]oung adults arrive at a sense of their fundamental identify and worldview not by weighting all possible intellectual arguments for and against a proposed way of life, but rather by roughly adopting the worldview of those mentors who left the deepest impression upon them–and who loved them. It should come as no surprise, then, that the emergence of the new generation of dedicated young Catholics will rise and fall with the choices of their parents” (p. 70). These remarks are the concluding statement from a 2018 report by Justin Bartkus and Christian Smith out of Notre Dame: ‘Ask Your father and he will tell you:’ A Report on American Catholic Religious Parenting.”
The report begins with a sad reality, “Most committed Catholics have become aware of the drift of American Catholic youth from the Church and from the practice of their faith as they pass into adulthood” (p. 5) It is now widely known that the drift seems to even occur as young as thirteen years old. It’s probably not so much that youth are making a conscious choice to be in or out; it’s that it just doesn’t seem to matter or it’s just not that big of a deal. What message are we sending when we “move heaven and earth” to make it to the sports’ tournament on the weekend but not to Mass? When the “three things we shouldn’t talk about are money, religion, and politics” and yet we still talk about money and politics, but not our faith? When we sing “They Will Know We are Christians by Our Love,” and yet one has to wonder? (When I was growing up, I remember my sister’s boyfriend asking us how we could argue so much on the way home from church. We must have done something right, though, as he converted anyway!)
The good news from the report is that parents, who are their children’s mentors and who love them, are key: “Of all actors, it is parents who exert overwhelmingly the greatest influence upon the eventual religious views and commitments of American children” (p. 6).
How will you show to your children that your faith matters?
Advent Is a Great Time to Recommit to Mass Attendance
With the start of Advent on December 2nd, it might be a great time to recommit to regular attendance at weekend Masses. Every year the diocese has parishes do Mass counts during the first two weekends in November. OLV’s 2018 count was the lowest level in ten years: an average of 1,193 people (adults and children) were at Masses the first two weekends in November. That low number seems odd as the number of OLV parishioners is at the highest level it’s been at in at least the last seven years. Share the Word and the Eucharist together at OLV!
MobyMax Information
Have your children been on MobyMax yet outside of school? A separate message regarding MobyMax, including log in information, went home in backpack mail (youngest/only) around November 30th. MobyMax is an online tool that we are going to use to supplement math instruction, primarily. It does, however, also have modules for reading, English/language arts, social studies, and science. It can be used both in and outside of school across a variety of platforms. Something to do during that long Christmas break!
November & December Special Dates
There’s so much happening in November and December, I can’t list it all! For a complete list, please check our website calendars. Please also check backpack mail for information that is grade or homeroom specific.
- Dec 10: Civic Oration classroom round. Skate Night. Lego League shirt day.
- Dec 11: Band concert (1:00 @ JFK & 6:30 @ AHS). Blood drive.
- Dec 12: Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe All School Mass in the gym. 2nd round of Civic Oration. AHS Information Knight
- Dec 13: 3 Yr Old PS Family Activity, 8 a.m. (No 3 yr old PS classes)
- Dec 14: 4 Yr Old PS Show and Activity, 7:45 a.m. (Zeimet/Jordan) & 12:00 p.m. (Blocker/Knox) (No 4 yr old PS classes). Band out of uniform. Middle School Youth Night.
- Dec 17: 3rd grade Gingerbread Houses (A tradition you’ll all remember!)
- Dec 18: Civic Oration PC Rnd (which will really be in the gym this year). K-2 Christmas Show, 6 p.m. K-2 out of uniform during the day.
- Dec 19: K-2 Christmas Show for the school after our 7:40 a.m. all school Mass. Red/Green/White/Christmas attire. Special Dismissal at 12:40. No afternoon PS classes.
- Dec 20-Jan 2: Christmas Break
- Jan 3: Classes resume
Middle School Youth Night
Below are the links/urls for volunteering to help with the next middle school youth ministry session on Friday, December 14th. Some jobs were signed up for in advance by parents at JFK meetings have already been added to the sign up. If the slots for adult chaperones are not filled by Wednesday, December 12th, the session will have to be cancelled, which is what happened to the last session. All chaperones must have completed diocesan safe environment training and back ground check. If you do not know you have done so, please contact davolvpa@diodav.org to verify.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0b44ada82da0ff2-middle
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0b44ada82da0ff2-qcstorm
For more information, please contact Evan Brankin, davolvym@diodav.org. We have the youth willing to participate; we need the adults to help now!
Bible Study for Middle School Youth
You’ve never seen a Bible study like this before! OLV’s Faith Formation staff is offering “Encounter: Experiencing God in the Everyday,” for 6th-8th grade students after school beginning in January. Dates are January 24 and 31, February 7, 14, 21, and 28, and March 7 and 21. Each session is 2:45-4:00 in the library. Cost is $13. For more information, or if financial assistance is needed, please contact Jennifer Wemhoff at 563-391-8384 of davolvrek6@diodav.org.
Wellness Policy Implementation Review
We will begin the review of the implementation of our wellness policy in December and/or January. The policy can be found on our website under “For Parents” and “Policies and Forms” or can be accessed HERE. If you (or your child) is interested in helping us review and make recommendations for revisions to our wellness policy, please email me.
Need the Bulletin?
When I don’t get a hard copy bulletin at church, I always think that I’ll just go look it up online. Then, it seems as if I rarely do. Here’s the link: December 9, 2018.
Use Victory Vouchers for Your Holiday Shopping
Victory Vouchers are gift cards that one can purchase for over 7,000 different vendors. You buy the gift card through OLV or online and receive the full face value of the card. The parish, however, ALSO receives a percentage of the face value. You can even direct the parish to use some of its take to help you reduce your own family’s tuition bill! The parish office has a wide variety of gift cards in stock. Stop by before Black Friday! For more information, click here: Victory Vouchers.
Blessing Bags Collection Begins
Have an old backpack? A drawstring sports bag? JFK is teaming with OLV’s Christian Service Ministry to collect new or gently used backpacks or similar bags for adults. During Lent in the spring, the bags will be filled with with non-perishable items for the homeless and distributed. Bags can be sent to school through January 13th.
Vision 2020 Video Contest
Video-making Contest for Youth Grades K-12: As part of the diocese’s Vision 20/20 process, all youth (individuals or groups) of the diocese are invited to create a 30-90 second video to celebrate their Catholic faith. The winning submission will celebrate with Bishop Zinkula. Entries are due by January 15. For contest rules, click HERE or go to https://davenportdiocese.org/vision-2020-video-contest
Chad
