May Blog | Keeping the Faith | By Dr. Anne Franklin
We’re going through some strange times, aren’t we? COVID times or not, the road of life is full of peaks and valleys. For some, this time together to slow down as a family is a blessing. For others, the challenges of the financial unknown, sharing bandwidth, working from home, or not working at all can become overwhelming. During these uncertain times, our faith is an anchor and guiding light of hope.
We all chose to give our children the gift of a Catholic education because we want faith to be at the forefront of our children’s lives. Distance learning reminds us of the importance of our role as parents as the first teachers of the faith for our children. The daily faith routines we model today plant seeds that will lay the roots for our children’s faith life long term. These traditions are more important now than ever! Below are some easy ways to build faith into our daily habits not only while staying at home but for a lifetime.
- Prioritize mass. Holy Trinity streams Mass daily and Sunday Mass starting on Saturday at 4:30PM on our website here. The divine liturgy is one of the most important things we do as Catholics. Here are some tips on how to make mass as meaningful as possible when participating digitally.
- Pray daily as a family. Just the simple act of saying grace together before meals brings the family together and anchors everyone in prayer. This is also a great place to start if prayer is new for your family. These seemingly small acts anchor our family life in gratitude to God. Here are some ways to make mealtime prayer more meaningful.
- Give intentions. Our students offer up intentions daily during class prayer. Taking time to offer up intentions as a family can be impactful for many reasons. It encourages students to think outside their own wants and needs and more toward those of others, building empathy and compassion. As a parent, listening to your child’s intentions also shows you what is on their minds and can give you an important glimpse into their current thoughts and even fears during these difficult times.
- Model personal prayer. Whether reading a daily devotional (Jesus Calling is my personal favorite), praying the rosary on your daily walk, taking a few minutes to start your day with a 3 minute retreat, seeing us model these activities leaves a lasting impression on our children and increases the likelihood they, too, will engage. Invite them to join you!
- Make faith fun. We don’t want students to see their faith as a chore or obligation; we want students to see celebrating God’s goodness as a highlight of their day. Check our Father Mark’s bible stories on our Facebook page, pick a saint of the day to learn about together, or find some coloring pages! You can find some great ready to go resources at CatholicMom.com and TheReligionTeacher.com.
We appreciate your partnership as we build disciples of Christ in our children. Want more ideas of how to infuse faith into your family’s daily life? Check out additional resources here from Loyola Press.
