May Jesus Christ Be Praised!

Fr. Thomas M. Pastorius's website is a great resource! 

Resources for you to grow in your faith and also a place to go for many cool resources!  

He has so many suggestions for Ice breaker games, Retreats and Faith Formation programs!

Be sure to check out the Spiritual Ponderings if you are working on the    Mary, the First Disciple Program!  October 30, 2011  Spiritual Ponderings  Blessed Virgin Mary In Art & Theology

Check out his Spiritual Ponderings section and sign up to get them emailed to you!

The mission and purpose of his website is to attempt to answer the call of Pope Benedict XVI to use the internet to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. http://mayjesuschristbepraised.com/index.cfm?active=1

WWW.MAYJESUSCHRISTBEPRAISED.COM

MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE BENEDICT XVI FOR THE 45th WORLD COMMUNICATIONS DAY

Truth, Proclamation and Authenticity of Life in the Digital Age

Read the message from Benedict XVI for the 45th World Communications Day issued by the Vatican on January 24, 2011

http://www.nfcym.org/documents/BenedictXVI_45thWorldCommunicationsDay_20110124.pdf

Theology of the Body for Teens

An exciting new way to discover God's plan for love and life for teenagers. Download a PDF with more information, and visit the Theology of the Body for Teens website.

Serra International

The Serra International Clubs hope to:

• Educate and inform our members, collaborators, and the Catholic Community of our commitment to promote the ordained priesthood and religious life.
• Encourage and affirm the ordained priesthood and vowed religious life as a positive lifestyle.
• Inspire and call forth a well-trained and dedicated corps of leaders at all levels of Serra by spiritual and practical formation.

Therefore, that by our works, we will be recognized and sought after as the organization that actively works and promotes vocations to the ordained priesthood and vowed religious life.

Link: Venturing and Serra International

Knights of Columbus

Members of St. Louis Council 453 helped the council-sponsored Boy Scout troop collect 1,300 donated food cans and deliver them to the St. Vincent de Paul Society food pantry at St. Mary Magdalen Church. The Scouts performed the project to earn the Catholic Ad Altare Dei award.

Link: Knights of Columbus - Midwestern News

PDF: Supporting the Troop - Knights, Scouts celebrate a long history of collaboration

The Year of Saint Paul

Pope Benedict opened the Year of Saint Paul on the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul in the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside-the-Walls. For more information and resources, see the following websites:

• The Papal Basilica of Saint Paul Outside-the-Walls
• The Pauline Year
• The Year of Saint Paul
• USCCB - Year of Saint Paul
• National Conference of Catechetical Leadership - Year of St. Paul [Word Document]
• The Pauline Spirit [Blog]

General Scouting Links

• Greater St. Louis Area Boy Scouts of America Website
• Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri
• National Catholic Committee on Scouting
• National Catholic Committee for Girl Scouts

NCCS Endowment

The International Catholic Committee on Scouting (not the International Committee of the NCCS) - Americas Region (North and South America) covers Catholic Scouting committees in North and Scout America. The ICCS - Americas Region secretary is Roberto Linn.

• More information on the NCCS Fund for the International Committee

Reading Room

• Sacraments Today: Belief and Practice Among U.S. Catholics [PDF]
• U.S. Religious Landscape Survey
• Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship: A Call to Political Responsibility from the USCCB [PDF]
• A Look at Pope Benedict's Encyclical, Christ Our Hope [Catholic Update]
• Doctrinal Elements of a Curriculum Framework for the Development of Catechetical Materials for Young People of High School Age [PDF]
• Executive Summary of the 2007 National Symposium on Lay Ecclesial Ministry
• Stewardship and Teenagers: The Challenge of Being a Disciple [PDF]

Abstinence Education for Teens

The following links are provided to further assist youth ministry leaders in their efforts to catechize youth on the topic of Human Sexuality.

• Humanae Vitae (1968 Encyclical)
• Human Sexuality [USCCB]
• Human Sexuality, Wonderful Gift and Awesome Responsibility [Catholic Update]
• True Love Waits

Catechetical Materials for Youth

• Horizons 9-10th grade
• Sexuality: A Gift With Strings Attached [Youth Update]
• Abstinence: Dating but Waiting [Youth Update]
• NFCYM's True Love Waits Revised Abstinence Resource [PDF]
• Other NFCYM True Love Waits Resources

Pastoral Letters from U.S. Bishops

• Instruction on Chastity (Bishop James Timlin, 1990)
• Learning to Love in the Lord: Bishop Joseph Dialogues with Young People about the Christian Meaning of Sex (Bishop Gerry Joseph, 2001)
• Love and Sexuality: A Pastoral Letter to the Young People of the Diocese of Pittsburgh (Bishop Donald Wuerl, 1992)
• Of Human Life: A Pastoral Letter to the People of God of Northern Colorado on the Truth and Meaning of Married Love (Archbishop Charles Chaput, 1998)
• Pastoral Statement on Marriage, Sexuality, and Chastity (Cardinal William Keeler, 2000)

Other Links of Interest

• USA Today: Leaders Need Scouts' Qualities
• Catholic Answers Online
• Great Scouting Stuff: ScoutingBooks.com
• Religious Emblems of Other Faiths:
  • PRAY [Programs of Religious Activities with Youth – Information on religious emblems for most faiths.]
  • Promoting Duty to God (Religious Emblems) – Video developed by PRAY and BSA.