CV NEWS FEED // As the sacraments season ramps up, it is important to offer resources to newly confirmed members of the Church. Working with Ascension, Mark Hart, chief innovation officer for Life Teen International, has put together the “Encounter: The Bible Timeline for Middle School” curriculum, designed to help millions of young Catholics re-engage with the Bible in a new way.
Hart is a master catechist, a speaker, and a research fellow for the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology. CatholicVote asked Hart for recommendations on how best to present the Bible to young people, especially middle schoolers who may think Scripture is confusing or only meant for older people.
“I begin by calling out the elephant in the room and admitting, ‘Yep, the Bible can be confusing… very confusing,’” Hart responded:
Sure it seems and sounds like it’s an out-of-date, out-of-touch book, but that’s only when you don’t know where to look or how to read it. If you stick with me you’ll be amazed at how many incredible stories are inside of it and you’ll see in time that this isn’t a book for old people, it’s a gift to all people.
Hart went on to speak about the importance of making the Bible relevant to the experiences of middle schoolers.
“The minute a soul — young or old — can begin to see themselves in the story of Scripture, everything in life changes,” he said. “We have to look past viewing these stories as a spectator and see ourselves in each and every character. Once someone realizes that God is the author of life and we are the characters being breathed and written into existence, our approach to life, vocation, mission, and the future all change.”
“The toughest part of the Bible for middle schoolers to understand is how to read and react to different types and genres of writing,” Hart pointed out. But once “you take them by the hand … teach them to navigate this huge, intimidating text” and “help them to connect to themes and characters that make sense to their thirteen-year-old existence, they gain the trust and confidence needed to go deeper.”
“The witness of parents is crucial to the spiritual health and formation of their middle school kids,” Hart said. He believes the best thing parents can do for their kids is to teach by example.
“If the kids see their parents opening the Bible, praying (and not just before meals), and talking about God as though He is a living, active part of their lives and not merely a ‘divine rule-giver,’” that witness will “open young minds, hearts, and souls.”
“Relevance comes from a lived experience,” Hart said, “filled with joy and intrigue” and “made present and possible by the example of others.”
The importance of scripture cannot be overstated, according to Hart, and fostering reverence for the Mass is key.
“Reverence begins with relevance,” Hart explained. The more we can do ahead of Sunday Mass to prepare young hearts and minds to receive all the Lord wishes to give us, the more they will get out of Mass.
Hart emphasized the importance of helping young people to engage with their faith outside the one hour they are at Mass.
“There are 167 hours a week our young people are not in Sunday Mass,” he said.
What are we proactively doing to help them to engage? Do we read the readings ahead of time with them to better prepare them for the Liturgy of the Word? Do we go to greater lengths to help them dress appropriately? Do they head into Church with personal and familial intentions to pray for? Do we process the liturgy once we leave Mass beyond comments on the homily? Do we sit in a seat that’s advantageous to them paying closer attention? Do we ever take them to the church during the week when it’s empty and help them become more comfortable in the sacred space?
“There are endless things we can do to proactively help our kids and grandkids to embrace the Catholic faith and the liturgy more fully;” Hart said. “It just requires time and sacrifice on our part as adults.”
Reader’s can find Hart’s trailer here.
