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Letters to a Young Catholic
In this small bok, author George Weigel takes us on a journey around the Catholic world, both literally and figuratively. Weigel had the idea to present each different aspect he wanted to discuss with young adult Catholics (and any adult interested in learning a little more about the Faith) by taking his book reading companions on a journey to several noted Catholic destinations, such as Chartres Cathedral in France, the Sistine Chapel in Rome, and various destinations in Poland and America. At each location, Weigel stops to discuss some aspect of Catholic Christianity with his reader.
Weigel begins by telling the reader a little bit about his own upbringing as a Catholic boy in Baltimore. He spends a chapter talking about an energetic parish in South Carolina, and why the pastor, a convert, has succeeded in making the parish dynamically orthodox. Weigel spends time in England with G.K. Chesterton, another convert, and uses a number of Chestertonian quotes to talk about the faith. Flannery O'Connor, too, emerges as one of Weigel's favorite authors, and her quotes are funny, pithy, and speak to the heart.
The author's discussion of redemptive suffering, Theology of the Body, the use of icons and much, much more, make this a book I recommend to all young, and not-so-young Catholics.
You can read a chapter from the book at the Catholic Educator's Resource Center.
Also available in softcover published by Perseus
originally appeared in Heart and Mind Magazine, Spring 2005 - used with permission
Life is a Blessing
Written by his daughter, this book brings us a portrait of a great Christian, loving husband and father, and devoted son who was also one of the greatest scientists of the 20th century.
As a pediatrician, Jérôme Lejeune saw many patients with Down syndrome. Seeking to help these beloved patients and their families, he succeeded in tracing the cause of Down syndrome to an extra 21st chromosome. He could have named the genetic anomaly after himself, but with his characteristic humility, he named the condition "Trisomy-21," meaning three 21st chromosomes (instead of two). While his work did succeed in removing the stigma from Downs (it had previously been thought that maternal syphilis caused it), Lejeune was heartbroken to see his discovery turned into a weapon against the little ones he loved so much.
Further discoveries in the field of genetic medicine followed, including Trisomy-13 and monosomy-9. But despite his pioneering work, which opened up the field of genetically-based diseases, he was never awarded a Nobel Prize, likely due to his unwelcome pro-life views. There was worse to come. Because of his defense of the innocent and defenseless, Lejeune found himself increasingly sidelined. Nevertheless, he continued to bear a hope-filled Christian witness, forgetful of self, a shining example to us all.
Toward the end of his life, Dr. Lejeune worked to found the Pontifical Academy for Life and was (very briefly) its first president. He died on Easter Sunday, a circumstance in which his friend Pope St. John Paul II found a particular significance.
A beautiful book about a great man.
Originally published in French by Criterion, Paris, 1997.
A newer edition of this title has been published by the Catholic University of America Press in 2022 for the National Catholic Bioethics Center and the Jérôme Lejeune Foundation. This edition's ISBN is 9780935372595. It is only $7.95 direct from the publisher, less than half the current Amazon paperback price.
Life is Beautiful
Life of Jesus
We put this poster up in our upstairs hallway thinking that the colorful pictures would be attractive to the little ones and help them develop a better understanding of the Life of Jesus. The full color drawings are attractive but dignified. It's been a big hit so far. I find my six year old reading words here and there, my four year old asking about what happens in different pictures and my two year old pointing to her favorite scenes. The pictures include simple descriptions and dialogue along with Biblical references.
Bernie (age 4) says: "I like Christmas and Easter and Palm Sunday and the Last Supper. And I like when Jesus was baptized. Jesus made water into wine."
Terri (age 6) says: "I think the poster looks pretty. It is about God. I like the pictures of Palm Sunday. It looks like fun."
Gus (age 8) says: "It's sort of like a Picture Bible on one poster."
Four reproducible work sheets cover "the Miracles of Jesus", "the Parables of Jesus", "Who is Jesus" and "Events in the Life of Jesus".
Update March 2024: Ascension Press used to carry these wall charts but no longer does. However, they are still being published (see the box at the top of this review for details).
Light to the Nations
Lightning
Seymour Simon, famous for his children's science books illustrated with stunning photography, hits another home run with Lightning. This fascinating book details facts and fascinating statistics about lightning with lots of the "wow!" effect that helps keep middle-schoolers interested in science. Did you know that scientists have discovered new types of lightning within the past ten years? How long would the electricity from one bolt of lightning power one lightbulb? These and many more fascinating photos and facts await the reader of this very nice science book. I really like to have these kinds of books around my house to help my children get a lot more out of science than I did as a child.
Lingua Angelica
There are several components of this Latin/Music Appreciation Program. Materials may be purchased individually or in sets, depending on where you purchase them from.
Song Book and Audio CD: A lovely, six voice polyphonic choir performs twenty-four Latin songs and hymns a capella (without accompaniment) on this professionally-recorded CD. Not only is this a beautiful way to present this type of music, but it also makes the music easier to learn for children and families. These songs represent some of the most beautiful musical treasures of the Church - from Gregorian Chant ( e.g. Mass of the Angels and Adoro Te ) to classic four-part hymns (e.g. Panis Angelicus and Stabat Mater). Singing can be a great component of your Latin curriculum. It aids pronunciation, provides additional (and fun) practice and helps students make connections to Latin used outside of class.
The CD alone is a wonderful complement to a Catholic education and a simple way to introduce your children to the beauty of our Catholic heritage. I found my two year old singing snatches of the Ave Maria when we had only listened to the CD a few times. The song book includes four part harmonies and extensive verses all written in modern musical notation (if you'd like the Gregorian Chant notation for the appropriate songs, you will find those in the Adoremus Hymnal). In addition to the more "serious" selections, this set also includes some fun-to-sing songs like the traditional German Student Song Gaudeamus Igitur.
Even on their own, the Lingua Angelica CD and Song Book will make an excellent addition your Latin curriculum, a beautiful component of family devotions and an excellent resource for music history and appreciation. The song book also includes historical notes on the songs and offers some related topics for further research. Every Catholic family - even those not yet studying Latin formally - will enjoy and benefit from this musical set.
Student Book and Teacher Manual (Level I): The first level Lingua Angelica text gently guides student and teacher through sixteen Latin prayers and songs through the study of vocabulary and grammar. While this is not intended as a complete Latin program in and of itself, it will reinforce grammar components learned elsewhere and help interconnect Latin studies with related subjects. Ideally, this supplement would be started once the student has completed about three quarters of Latina Christiana I. Each lesson covers a song or a part of a song; offering new vocabulary and practicing noun, verb and adjective endings. The back of the text includes thirteen pages of Grammar Charts for easy reference.
The Introduction to the Teacher's Manual gives a great overview of the reasons why Christian Latin can be so helpful and formational on many levels - both as a foundation of "real" Latin for students to build their later studies upon and as a beautiful and worthy subject matter for our children to memorize and learn to appreciate for their own sake. This manual also includes a detailed schedule (with varying levels of learning activities which are easily adaptable for different abilities) and grammar and vocabulary notes on each song.
The entire Lingua Angelica - the Song Book, audio CD and two levels of Texts (with teacher's manuals) provides a well-planned six-year Latin supplement based on these songs and prayers. These six years are specifically intended to complement the two years of Latina Christiana and four years of Henle.
Lingua Mater
This is a complete English program written for 7th grade, but can easily be adapted for 6th and 8th graders as well. Although it is written to be used in one year, the author has given details of how it can be broken down into a two year program.
Margot Davidson has taken beautiful Literature pieces, paintings and poems, and incorporated them into a program to teach English. By using narration, copy work, Literature analysis, discussion, and grammar, your child will come away with an understanding of how sentences, paragraphs, poems and stories are put together. The approach is gentle yet the writing assignments require higher order thinking than any comparable English program on the market. Lingua Mater would be a wonderful next step for those using Primary Language Lessons, Intermediate Language Lessons or Stories with a View. Lessons are perfect for your Middle School child and the text is a wonderful preparation for the High School years which will require more in-depth analysis and writing.
The student book is broken down into four Units and each Unit has nine weeks. The student book is not meant to be written in, but there is permission for you to photocopy for your own family. (Or you can purchase the supplement from Hillside Education, which has all the work done for you, photocopies would cost you much more.)There are rubrics to help you determine your child's writing abilities and checklists for your child to use himself to evaluate whether he has completed his writing assignments accordingly. The teacher's guide is wonderful and includes examples of the types of answers you are looking for from your child's grammar and discussion work.
Hurray to Mrs. Davidson for putting out a product which will be a treasure to Catholic home school parents for years to come!
Linnea in Monet's Garden
This book is a clever way to introduce children to the works and life of Claude Monet and help them to start appreciating the works of the Impressionists. "Linnea" is a little girl with a love for art and flowers who travels with her friend and neighbor Mr. Bloom (a retired gardener) to France to visit the restored estate of Claude Monet and the museums displaying his art. Besides the illustrations of this story, there are reproductions of some of Monet's paintings, old photographs of him and his family, and photographs of what his estate looks like today. Linnea helps to explain the idea of imporessionism and share her enthusiasm - especially of standing on the Japanese bridge. The book also includes a brief biography, a timeline and Monet Family Tree as well as information about other books on Monet and the Museums and other attractions visited by Linnea in the story. I'm waiting for them to write "Linnea in the Louvre" and "Linnea visits the Sistine Chapel"! : )