Holy Preacher Batman I Am Doing A Sermon Tomorrow!

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Our school requires some of the seniors to give sermons as part of their Pastoral Leadership project. I am bound by this rule. I applied the concept of myself leading a protestant worship service, and got permission to not lead the service with the music and there will be no communion served. Basically I will just be speaking.

But, being the only catholic in the school I do not want to preach something *completely* polemic. What issue or topic would you suggest?

-What problem should I work on? What are my objectives, my strategy?

I know this is a good opportunity to expose the students at my school to catholicism.

[Thy Geekdom Come]

You should give them a catechetical lecture on the athropological aspects of salvation...that is, talk about human dignity, the human soul, etc., and how our nature predisposes us to the way God saves us. It's not too partisan, it's interesting, and I don't think anyone could really disagree.

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tell me more..you have better letters after your name than I do.

[Thy Geekdom Come]

[quote name='Revprodeji' post='1113232' date='Nov 6 2006, 09:23 PM']
tell me more..you have better letters after your name than I do.
[/quote]
Actually, I don't have any letters after my name.

Anyway, I suggest this topic because I think it's one of the best springboards for Catholic theology (I think that looking at man's anthropology, you can see how the Catholic faith is really relevant), yet it is far enough from being distinctly Catholic that even most anti-Catholics I think would accept it.

If I were to talk on it, I would address man.

What is man?

Man is the nature of human persons made in the image and likeness of God. Adam and his wife were the special creatures of God because they were not created out of nothing in an immediate sense (although they were ultimately), but out of dirt and they were given the breath of God for souls and they were made for God and for communion with Him (they walked with Him in the cool of the evening) and this is the source of their dignity.

What is man's function?

Man is made to know, love, and serve God. Man's mind is made to know God's truth. Man's will is made to love God's beauty. Man's body is made to serve God's glory.

How did man fall?

Man fell because he freely chose not to trust his Creator. He turned his mind inward to know himself, he turned his will toward acquiring himself, and he turned his body toward pleasing himself. Thus he no longer relied on God. He did this because he wished to be like God.

How is man saved?

Man is saved because God became man in order to represent man to God as man was supposed to be: intimately knowing God, passionately loving God, and courageously serving God, even to His death. Christ the Mediator represents humanity to God as a burnt offering and was saved by His perfect fulfillment of what man was made to be. Man, likewise, is saved by joined to Christ. As we know, when we use our minds, they grow smarter, when we use our wills, they grow more resolute, and when we use our bodies, they grow stronger. When we use our humanity in service of Christ and as He used His, all in union with Him, we exercise mind, will, and body, and God makes them worthy and durable by joining them more and more perfectly to Christ so that they may make it through life and death and may enter heaven and be glorified, inasmuch as our minds, wills, and bodies are joined to Christ's own, so that we truly share in Him, in His mind, His will, and His body.

*the last part of the above may be too Catholic*

Anyway...that's really just a part of it, but it's the best way I know to ground salvation in what man needs and what God gives...God wants to restore man to His image, but man's image is God's image, and so it can be said that God wants to restore man not only to His image, but to his image. Thus, "God became man in order to reveal man to himself."

BTW, I recommend Frank Sheed's [u]A Map of Life[/u]...it's full of theology approached from this kind of reasoning and it really shows just how full the faith is.

[Era Might]

Give a talk on spirituality! Talk about prayer, about negation of the will, incorporate some Carmelite ideas and the complete poverty of St. Francis. You don't even have to mention anything specifically Catholic, just by taking those principles and getting them out there, you're doing something positive, and giving them something that they may be able to use in their own spiritual lives without being afraid that it's icky Catholic stuff.

[shortnun]

[quote name='Revprodeji' post='1113217' date='Nov 6 2006, 08:03 PM']
Our school requires some of the seniors to give sermons as part of their Pastoral Leadership project. I am bound by this rule. I applied the concept of myself leading a protestant worship service, and got permission to not lead the service with the music and there will be no communion served. Basically I will just be speaking.

But, being the only catholic in the school I do not want to preach something *completely* polemic. What issue or topic would you suggest?

-What problem should I work on? What are my objectives, my strategy?

I know this is a good opportunity to expose the students at my school to catholicism.
[/quote]
Ye gads! Do you have anything scriptural to use as a foundation? Heard any good homilies lately that you could expound upon? This past Sunday's gospel is a good one. But with regard to scripture, might I suggest you shy away from those passages with "Peter" "rock" and "church" all in the same sentance.

On a more "Catholic" note... you could talk about the communion of saints. I could hardly think of a better month than November to do so! And, tomorrow is the feast of All Saints of the Order of Preachers. I trust that their charism of PREACHING will be with you tomorrow as you proclaim TRUTH.

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Apparently I will need to give more than a handful this year..oyoy, good stuff..

Era, I might use your idea next time. But I am gonna use Raphel's right now.

In that, Sir, what other sources do you know that I could research on? Being a protestant sermon I need to sprinkle token verses in various spots..

I have sheeds "Theology for beginners" and "theology and sanity"

[Thy Geekdom Come]

[quote name='Revprodeji' post='1113319' date='Nov 6 2006, 11:07 PM']
Apparently I will need to give more than a handful this year..oyoy, good stuff..

Era, I might use your idea next time. But I am gonna use Raphel's right now.

In that, Sir, what other sources do you know that I could research on? Being a protestant sermon I need to sprinkle token verses in various spots..

I have sheeds "Theology for beginners" and "theology and sanity"
[/quote]

To be honest, I'm not prepared for that request.

Are you looking for references from the Bible, the Catechism...?

"The dignity of man rests above all on the fact that he is called to communion with God. This invitation to converse with God is addressed to man as soon as he comes into being. For if man exists it is because God has created him through love, and through love continues to hold him in existence. He cannot live fully according to truth unless he freely acknowledges that love and entrusts himself to his creator." -Lumen Gentium 19, CCC 27

Read CCC 26-49, 176,306-308, 356-390, 397-409, 705, 772-773, 1476, 1701-1702, 1704, 1878, 2008-2009, 2011, 2566, 2634, 2713, 2809, 2826.

Read from the Baltimore Catechism [url="http://www.intratext.com/IXT/ENG0104/_P1K.HTM"]the first lesson[/url].

Hope that helps. Remember, those Catechism paragraphs should have references to many more original sources.

[Era Might]

Pope John Paul II's first Encyclical Letter "Redemptor Hominis" is a must read:

[url="http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_04031979_redemptor-hominis_en.html"][u]HERE[/u][/url]

[quote]Man cannot live without love. He remains a being that is incomprehensible for himself, his life is senseless, if love is not revealed to him, if he does not encounter love, if he does not experience it and make it his own, if he does not participate intimately in it. This, as has already been said, is why Christ the Redeemer "fully reveals man to himself". If we may use the expression, this is the human dimension of the mystery of the Redemption. In this dimension man finds again the greatness, dignity and value that belong to his humanity. In the mystery of the Redemption man becomes newly "expressed" and, in a way, is newly created. He is newly created! "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus". The man who wishes to understand himself thoroughly-and not just in accordance with immediate, partial, often superficial, and even illusory standards and measures of his being-he must with his unrest, uncertainty and even his weakness and sinfulness, with his life and death, draw near to Christ. He must, so to speak, enter into him with all his own self, he must "appropriate" and assimilate the whole of the reality of the Incarnation and Redemption in order to find himself. If this profound process takes place within him, he then bears fruit not only of adoration of God but also of deep wonder at himself. How precious must man be in the eyes of the Creator, if he "gained so great a Redeemer", and if God "gave his only Son "in order that man "should not perish but have eternal life".[/quote]
Also Papa Ratzi's first Encyclical, "Deus Caritas Est":

[url="http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20051225_deus-caritas-est_en.html"][u]HERE[/u][/url]

[quote]This is due first and foremost to the fact that man is a being made up of body and soul. Man is truly himself when his body and soul are intimately united; the challenge of eros can be said to be truly overcome when this unification is achieved. Should he aspire to be pure spirit and to reject the flesh as pertaining to his animal nature alone, then spirit and body would both lose their dignity. On the other hand, should he deny the spirit and consider matter, the body, as the only reality, he would likewise lose his greatness. The epicure Gassendi used to offer Descartes the humorous greeting: “O Soul!” And Descartes would reply: “O Flesh!”. Yet it is neither the spirit alone nor the body alone that loves: it is man, the person, a unified creature composed of body and soul, who loves. Only when both dimensions are truly united, does man attain his full stature. Only thus is love —eros—able to mature and attain its authentic grandeur.[/quote]

[cappie]

Don't know how long it's supposed to be.....anyway here's an idea

[i]We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies. (2 Corinthians 4:8-10 [/i])

These verses are what I call the fine print of the Christian life. When you sign up, you sign up for this, but unfortunately, not too many people read that far into the contract, and not enough leaders point it out. So when bad things start happening to us, we think something went wrong with our faith. Not necessarily, in fact, it’s an honor to think that your faith is worthy of being tested.

It’s a reverse spiritual principle that nonetheless is true: we get beaten down so that Christ might rise in us. It’s the whole idea God has of avoiding confusion. See, He doesn’t want people confusing human power and achievement with His power and what He is achieving in and through our lives. If all Christians were super-Christians, people would be impressed with them. As it is, God wants people to be surprised at us, not so much impressed — surprised that we can keep on believing, given what has happened to us. Surprised at us — impressed with God. That’s the way it should go.

It’s important to know this so that the things that happen don’t throw us into a tailspin. Paul wrote in the passage above that troubles, confusions, knock-downs and drag-outs, are all to be expected in a life of faith, and they are not just something to smell of elderberries it up and endure, they are what will actually release the power of God in our lives. We encounter deathlike experiences so that Christ’s lifelike nature may clearly be seen in us, despite what is happening.

Let me try and say this again. This is not just endurance training through tough times. This is God’s strategy for ministry through us. There is no other way for it to be done. His strategy is His power and strength through our weakness — His life through our death. This doesn’t just happen to some Christians; it happens to us all if we desire to be effective in our faith.

So don’t forget the fine print today, and allow the troubles you face to springboard you into finding God’s purposes even in this. He had this planned all along. It’s even in the contract!

Cya All & Praise God For a lovely day!

God Bless Always!..

[jswranch]

[quote name='Era Might' post='1113263' date='Nov 6 2006, 07:50 PM']
Give a talk on spirituality! Talk about prayer, about negation of the will, incorporate some Carmelite ideas and the complete poverty of St. Francis. You don't even have to mention anything specifically Catholic, just by taking those principles and getting them out there, you're doing something positive, and giving them something that they may be able to use in their own spiritual lives without being afraid that it's icky Catholic stuff.
[/quote]

Amen. This is another place Catholicism rocks. I wouldn't give a defense of the Catholic faith outright here, but I would discuss spirituallity. Be positive and enlightening. Let them walk away with new tools for developing their spiritual walk.

Use scripture as much as possible.

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When I want to read from an Encyclical, how would you recommend briefly explaining an Encyclical so that a protestant still finds value and does not just ignore it thinking it is trying to restrict and control their theology.

[Thy Geekdom Come]

[quote name='Revprodeji' post='1113950' date='Nov 7 2006, 02:54 PM']
When I want to read from an Encyclical, how would you recommend briefly explaining an Encyclical so that a protestant still finds value and does not just ignore it thinking it is trying to restrict and control their theology.
[/quote]
I would simply say that an encyclical is a letter meant to advance knowledge of faith among the faithful. Be honest, but not too particular.

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Raphel, my respect level for you is huge right now..hence why i thought u had letters after ur name..

OT--keep me posted on the job search, you will do great things

[Thy Geekdom Come]

[quote name='Revprodeji' post='1113957' date='Nov 7 2006, 03:01 PM']
Raphel, my respect level for you is huge right now..hence why i thought u had letters after ur name..

OT--keep me posted on the job search, you will do great things
[/quote]
I'm not sure about that. I don't know how to keep my big mouth shut. I just have a nice synthesis of the faith in my head, but I don't have the sanctity to do "great things." I suppose if the Lord can bring water from a rock, though...

I find that the best way to study the faith is to treat it as the Church says it should be treated...it's an organic unity, so I train my mind to organize theology in a way that all the issues are seen within the big picture and thus are really relevant.

However, I don't know about the job thing...to teach requires a skill I don't have: oratory.