May 10, 2017CARFLEO

Catholic Parenting Resources

Parents are the first educators of the children we serve. Some of resources on this site and elsewhere are useful for family faith formation. If you have other resources to add to this list, please let us know. This post is primarily directed to parents of Elementary school children.

Growing in Faith, Growing in Christ is a Religious Education program sponsored by the Catholic Bishops of Ontario, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and the Northwest Territories and developed in collaboration with Catholic educators from across Canada. There are three websites: Teacher, Student/Family, and Parish. Some boards have purchased digital resources. The login information can be obtained from your schools.

Fully Alive is a Family Life Education program sponsored and developed by the Catholic Bishops of Ontario in collaboration with educators and families. Over eight grades, its goal is to help families in their “mission to be the first vital cell of society.”

Assembly of Catholic Bishops of Ontario (ACBO) have a Fully Alive On-line Family Resource

The Catholic Organization for Life and Family Sometimes we are confronted with serious questions about life issues. To find a good source for clear and authoritative Catholic teachings you can turn to COLF. The Catholic Organization for Life and Family (COLF) was co-founded by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) and the Supreme Council of the Knights of Columbus.

COLF’s mission is to build a culture of life and a civilization of love by promoting respect for human life and dignity and the essential role of the family.

COLF’s Objectives are:

  • To promote the teaching of the Catholic Church on the inherent dignity of the human person and on respect for human life in all circumstances and at all stages of development, from conception to natural death;
  • To promote the teaching of the Catholic Church on marriage and the family, along with the fundamental role of the family in society;
  • To educate and support Christian families in their mission in the Church and in the world.

Novalis is the largest bilingual religious publisher in Canada. Founded in Ottawa in 1936 by the Oblates of Mary Immaculate. It publishes periodicals and books, primarily in the spiritual and religious fields, in English and in French. Well known for its missalette Living with Christ, Novalis is also the publisher of other periodicals, as well as around 50 new books every year. See also the Living with Christ app.

In all its publications, Novalis expresses the Christian faith in an accessible and comprehensible manner. Novalis provides original and affordable works that help readers understand their Christian heritage and to better live their faith. Novalis seeks to assist women and men as they face the challenges of today’s world by helping them develop a deeper understanding of who they are. For that reason, Novalis has a mission of service: to create and publish resources that will enable people to better understand their faith and to integrate this faith into their daily life and worship.

Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB)

The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops is the national assembly of the Bishops of Canada. It was founded in 1943 and officially recognized by the Holy See in 1948. After the Second Vatican Council (1962–65), it became part of a worldwide network of Episcopal Conferences, established in 1965, as an integral part of the life of the universal Church. CCCB Publications sell several resources that would be useful to families.

Selected CARFLEO Posts:

Upon this gifted age, in its dark hour,
Rains from the sky a meteoric shower
Of facts . . . they lie unquestioned, uncombined.
Wisdom enough to leech us of our ill
Is daily spun; but there exists no loom
To weave it into fabric …
– Edna St. Vincent Millay

When You Thought I Wasn’t Looking

When you thought I wasn’t looking…
I saw you hang my first painting on the refrigerator,
and I immediately wanted to paint another one.

When you thought I wasn’t looking…
I saw you feed a stray cat,
and I learned that it was good to be kind to animals.

When you thought I wasn’t looking…
I saw you make my favorite cake for me,
and I learned that the little things can be very special in life.

When you thought I wasn’t looking…
I saw you make a meal and take it to a friend who was sick,
and I learned that we all need to help take care of each other.

When you thought I wasn’t looking…
I saw you give your time and money to help people who had nothing,
and I learned that everyone can make a difference.

When you thought I wasn’t looking…
I saw you take care of our house and everyone in it,
and I learned the importance of FAMILY.

When you thought I wasn’t looking…
I saw how you handled your responsibilities, even when you didn’t feel good,
and I learned that I would need to be responsible when I grew up.

When you thought I wasn’t looking…
I sometimes saw tears come from your eyes,
and I learned there are things that can hurt, yet it’s O.K. to cry.

When you thought I wasn’t looking…
I saw that you truly cared about people,
and I wanted to be everything that I could possibly be
to follow in your footsteps.

When you thought I wasn’t looking…
I looked at you and wanted to say,
“Thanks for all the things I saw when you thought I wasn’t looking.”

–original poem by Mary Rita Schilke Korzan;
additions by an unknown author

One comment

  1. As always, thank you. As you can see special emails like this are kept for a long time!

    Peace, Joy, Hope, Charity, Appreciation and Humility, Steve De Quintal Teacher, St. Mary Catholic Academy, 66 Dufferin Park Ave. Toronto, Ontario M6H-1J6. 416-393-5528 ext. 84293 “that they may have life and have it the full.”

    “When we focus on our gratitude, the tide of disappointment goes out and the tide of love rushes in.” – Kristin Armstrong

    ***You can always email but a call or a visit will get a quicker response*** ________________________________

    Reply

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