Hello Faith Formation Families!

Last week's lesson was all about St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, a saint who did it all! She cared for the sick, the poor, the orphans, and the uneducated by building hospitals and orphanages, and she became the first United States citizen to become a saint!

This week is our third "Care for the Sick" lesson, and we'll learn about one of the seven sacraments of our church. I bet you can guess which one!

All of the materials you'll need for this month's lessons will be printable or accessible online, so there's no need to pick up a packet in the Parish Center.

"Care for the Sick "

Family Lesson #23

Let's begin our lesson as we begin all things, with the Sign of the Cross.

"In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen."

Then use your own hand to help you pray the Hands of Prayer, a favorite prayer of Pope Francis.

Pinky finger:

Pray for those who are weak: the sick, dying, homeless, and uneducated.

Ring finger:

Pray for those you love the most: your friends and family

Middle finger:

Pray for those who stand tall: people in positions of leadership, like the President, government leaders, principals, and employers

Pointer finger:

Pray for those who point the way: people who are an example of Christian life, like the Pope, Bishops, Priests, teachers, and mentors

Thumb:

Pray for the intentions closest to your heart: Your own concerns, plans, hopes, and fears

Here's a printable version of this prayer along with the opening prayers from October-January. Consider putting them all together in a prayer book!

Oct-Feb prayers.pdf

ANOINTING OF THE SICK

This week, as we wrap up our lessons on the Corporal Work of Mercy "Care for the Sick," let's talk a little bit about the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick. Some people misunderstand this sacrament and think it's only celebrated with people who are about to die. Actually, this beautiful sacrament can be celebrated with people who are going to have surgery, who have a really bad sickness like cancer, who are just really old and weak, or even with people who suffer from a lifelong illness like diabetes or arthritis.

A priest or bishop dips his finger in holy oil and draws the sign of the cross on the sick person's head to remind them of their faith, and on the hands to represent strength and healing of the body. Using holy oil to bless someone in this way is called "anointing."

Instead of listening to me this week, here's a little video of our Holy Father, Pope Francis, talking about this beautiful sacrament.

(Did you know Pope Francis is from the South American country of Argentina and speaks Spanish as his native language? In the video, he's speaking in Spanish, and his words are translated into English below.)

Pope Francis talks about the Anointing of the Sick

Do you know anyone who has received this sacrament? Ask them to tell you their story!

Activities: Masks and Word Games

MASKS

During the past few lessons, we've learned about some ways we can care for the sick. One way that's new for this past year is wearing a mask! When you wear a face mask, it protects both you and the people around you from Covid. Remember when Jesus said "whenever you care for others, you care for me"? Well, wearing a mask is a great way to care for others--which means it's a great way to show Jesus how much we love him! Here's a little story about a girl named Lucy whose mom makes her a new kind of mask.

WORD GAMES

Like I said last week during our lesson about St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, there are SO MANY saints who are good at caring for the sick! Here are a couple fun little word games about two of those saints: St. Clare of Assisi and St. Blaise. Print them out and play them as a family!

St. Clare of Assisi

Oxfordian Kissuth, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

St. Clare Fill in.PDF

St Blaise Fill in.PDF

Special Bible Verse

As a family, read this Bible verse a few times slowly. Take a quiet moment to think about what Jesus is telling us. (A "presbyter" is what the people of the early church called their priests.)

"Is anyone among you sick? He should summon the presbyters of the church, and they should pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord... "

James 5:14

If you wish, you could also write out this Bible verse in fancy letters, or even try to memorize all or part of it!

Closing Song

I have a great closing song for you this week! Watch and listen as dozens of kids who are patients at Cincinnati Children's Hospital sing and play "Heal the World!"

"Heal the World"

And now let's finish our lesson with the Sign of the Cross...

"In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen"

God Sightings

Isn't it great how many folks around the world are finally receiving their Covid vaccines? This week, I heard from a whole bunch of people I love who just received theirs, and I said a thank-you prayer to God for each and every one!

Remember to share your own God Sightings in the "Share your faith work" section below!

Share Your "Faith Work"

Remember that you can share your thoughts, prayer requests, God Sightings, or pictures of the "Faith Work" your family has done together. Click on the top button to keep your comments private and share with just me, or click on the bottom button to have your comments included in next week's Flocknote!

Share with just Mrs. Cathcart

Share in next week's Flocknote

Children's Liturgy of the Word

Click here for this weekend's Children's Liturgy of the Word. Join me to explore this weekend's gospel reading!

CLOW for the 2nd Sunday of Lent, "The Transfiguration!"

Have a blessed week, Faith Formation families!!!

Yours in Christ,

Corinne

corinnec@blessed-midland.org

Faith Formation and Parish News

First Eucharist Preparation

Our First Eucharist preparation program for this year will be mostly virtual, but we'll have some online community-building as part of the program, too. We’ll use various tools including video lessons with Mrs.Cathcart (that's me!) and Father Rob, family lessons using the God’s Gift: First Eucharist book, and a final small-group in-person meeting and practice. Families may choose one of four weekends during the summer to celebrate their child’s First Eucharist at one of our regular Mass times, with our Blessed Sacrament community as witness to the special event. For more information or to register, visit the Sacramental Preparation page on our parish website, or email me at corinnec@blessed-midland.org.

Thankful Hearts Project

Don't forget about our parish-wide "Thankful Hearts Project." If you haven't already, make a heart message for one of our Midland-area healthcare workers!

Virtual Stations of the Cross

If you volunteered to be a part of our first ever Virtual Stations of the Cross project, don't forget that your videos and pictures are due to me before you go to bed Monday night! Thanks for the many who volunteered. It's going to be great!!!

Parish Survey

It's time! Did you see the Disciple Maker Index survey in your Flocknote on Monday? Please take 10-15 minutes to fill out the parish survey! Your time and input is greatly appreciated and will help our parish plan and vision for the future! Thanks so much for your help!

Click here to complete the survey!

Proactive Parenting

Proactive Parenting is a great resource that the Faith Formation team at Blessed Sacrament has organized in recent years. This year, in lieu of an in-person event, these virtual events through Partners in Change are a great way to help us all grow as parents.

In the next few months, you can learn about:

Strength Following Adversity: Exploring Post-Traumatic Growth: March 11
Healing Chronic Pain: The New Science in the Treatment of Pain: April 8
Anxiety and Depression in Youth: May 13

Click on the link for more information or to RSVP for any of their lectures!

Partners in Change

Registration for 2021-2022

In the past, Faith Formation has held a Registration Weekend each March. This year, with Covid still a factor, we're not going to have our registration quite so early. We'll update you with more information soon, but for now, don't worry about March Registration.