Catholic Home Study Service - Free Courses

[Laudem Gloriae]

Catholic Home Study Service at ttp://www.amm.org/chss/chss.htm - free study courses (with optiona donation).

From their site:

"Catholic Home Study Service (CHSS), sponsored by the Vincentian community and the Missouri Knights of Columbus, has been offering free courses on the Catholic Faith for more than seventy years. It is based at Saint Mary's of the Barrens, historic "motherhouse"of the Vincentian Community in America. Father Oscar Lukefahr, C.M. is the Director of Catholic Home Study Service.

Catholic Home Study Service invites you to learn more about our faith by studying at home. Eight free courses, faithful to the teachings of the Church, are available. When you request a course, you will receive a textbook and a workbook with study questions. After reading a section of the book, you can send your workbook answers to us either over the internet or by postal mail. We will make whatever corrections are necessary and answer any questions you want to ask. All who complete the course receive a graduation certificate. There is no charge for the course, and no one will call on you. You may take the course alone or with friends or family members. "


They have various courses to take with them shipping materials to your home and taking tests online or by mail.
Course titles are:

- WE BELIEVE... A SURVEY OF THE CATHOLIC FAITH
An explanation of Catholic teaching, cross-referenced to the Catechism of the Catholic Church and following the same structure as the Catechism: Creed, worship, Christian life, and prayer. The course studies belief in God, the Bible, the life and teaching of Jesus, the Church, Mary, the saints, life after death, the Sacraments, moral living, and Catholic prayer. Foreword by Cardinal Justin Rigali, Archbishop of Philadelphia.

- WE PRAY: LIVING IN GOD'S PRESENCE
This is a "how-to-pray" book for everyone. It explains how God speaks to us and how we should reply. It gives Bible teachings about prayer, spotlighting the prayer of Jesus. It describes the ACTS of prayer (Adoration, Contrition, Thanks, Supplication), and ways of praying (meditation, vocal prayer, etc.). It addresses issues like prayer to the saints, examines difficulties in prayer, and shows how prayer joins us to God now and forever.

- WE WORSHIP: A GUIDE TO THE CATHOLIC MASS
This course tells why Jesus wants us to attend Mass, gives the fascinating history of the Mass, explains Mass ceremonies step by step, shows how to pray the Mass, answers frequently asked questions, and describes how to live the Mass after we leave to "love and serve the Lord." Foreword by Most Rev. Timothy M. Dolan, Archbishop of Milwaukee.

- THE SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS
Everybody wants to be happy, and God wants us to be happy. This course explains the four levels of happiness (body, mind and will, heart, soul) and uses Scripture, stories, and common-sense to help us achieve emotional health, spiritual growth, and real happiness.

- A CATHOLIC GUIDE TO THE BIBLE
Explains Catholic principles of interpreting the Bible. Takes the student through the Bible, offering pertinent information about the historical background, author, and literary style of each book. Selects readable passages from each book of the Bible so that the student can become familiar with the whole Bible and understand it as the Word of God.

- THE PRIVILEGE OF BEING CATHOLIC
Explains the most distinctive beliefs of Catholics and points out how they are based on the goodness of God's creation, our Redemption by Jesus, and the love of the Holy Spirit. Shows what it means to be a Catholic, and why we believe as we do, explaining the reasons for doctrines like the Real Presence, confession, sacramentals, and devotion to the saints.
The Catechism Handbook


- THE CATECHISM HANDBOOK
A summary and study of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Condenses the Catechism into a brief and readable format, and offers explanations of difficult passages. A good way to become familiar with the whole Catechism in a short time.

- CHRIST'S MOTHER AND OURS
This course explains what the Bible says about Mary, what the Church teaches, Mary's apparitions, how Mary relates to us in our daily lives, prayer and liturgy relating to Mary, the meaning of the Rosary, Marian sacramentals, and more. It will help you understand Catholic devotion to Mary and explain it to others.


I am going to try this service and take the course " CHRIST'S MOTHER AND OURS" and see how it is.

Has anyone ever taken these courses before?

[KnewInTheTrinity]

I'm ordering one right now... I'm going to do the Search for Happiness first, then probably some theological teaching ones after that...

Thanks for the heads up!

[DevotedtoHim]

Wow! Laudem Gloriae, thanks! This will definitely help whenever I find the right place!

In Him,
Katherine

[puellapaschalis]

A few weeks ago I asked the same question in Open Mic.

[Stacey]

Yes, I found this a few years ago, have completed two - Catholic guide to the Bible and the one on the Catechism and now have the one about Mary - which i've had for ages and not finished yet. They are great, really well presented, lovely books and work books to go with each that make you think - lots of little details that you will make you read the Bible/Catechism closely - especially the choose the right option ones - one word can make all the difference to the answer - but all the info is given.
You can choose to do them on-line as I did - you then get a student number to log in with and just click your answers - wrong ones are explained so you learn from them - and at the end a very nice certificate comes through the post.
It can also be done by post if you prefer or don't have much computer access.

They do send to the Uk too, no problem they just take about a month to arrive though.
It is a great ministry - oh and they have the Imprimatur too, so all is good. You have to completely finish one before you can apply for another.

Go for it, i would really recommend them, have fun, pax sr marie-therese.

Edited November 4, 2008 by Stacey

[RosaMystica]

Cool! I just registered for a class! Thank you for posting this!

[Maria Faustina]

This service is really neat. I am currently taking the one about prayer. The book is very well written and is very interesting. I would really recommend the one about prayer to anyone who is currently discerning a religious vocation.

[Laudem Gloriae]

I received my first course today, "Christ's Mother and Ours" and it is excellent! I am probably going to be done in a few days - as I have a 4 day weekend now! I am looking forward to taking the rest of these courses!

[HisChildForever]

[quote name='Laudem Gloriae' post='1711899' date='Nov 26 2008, 09:14 PM']I received my first course today, "Christ's Mother and Ours" and it is excellent! I am probably going to be done in a few days - as I have a 4 day weekend now! I am looking forward to taking the rest of these courses![/quote]

I am going to do this one as well! I should get the material just in time for my college break.

[DominicanPhilosophy]

How long do these take, and what's the format? I have so many books and things I want to read, and a course like this would be fun and very beneficial, but even on breaks, we get so much work to "hold us over" (gee, thanks lol!) that I would feel bad ordering it and keeping it, never actually getting around to checking it out. What an awesome way to spread the Good News, though!

Pax.

[Laudem Gloriae]

There is no pressure nor deadline to meet as the course is at your own pace. This book I have, "Christ's Mother and Ours" is 212 pages (counting the index and other pages) and has a small paper booklet of 100 questions that you answer then go online (or mail them in) with a student # they send you and log in your answers so they know you are ready to pick another course.

This book I have is a softcover by Liguori and written by Fr. Oscar Lukefahr, CM.

[she_who_is_not]

I've ordered a course to do over my Christmas break.