In the third class we watched clips from the movie “Signs”. This movie is meant to help us ask what kind of person we are – the kind with that believes that life is pure chance, or the kind that believes that there is a depth and a symmetry to life that points to a Creator. Specifically, a Creator God who not only made all things and then “left”, but One who is still there, still in the midst of it all with us. Each and everyone of us have been created in love and then accompanied throughout our life. We are not alone. We are not unknown. God knows our struggles and he is constantly reaching out to us to let us know he is there. We can either live as if life is all chance and we can only count on ourselves to get us through, or we can believe in a God who is near, a God who reaches out to us, not matter how far we stray.
Everyone: Please review the posted material and answer the homework questions. Reflection questions + Homework questions are BOTH on the same Google Form at the end of the page; everyone must complete the Homework questions.
If you missed class: Please watch the following clips (password is: smaconfirmation (no spaces, no punctuation, no capitals), look over the related materials and answer the reflection questions + homework questions. Reflection questions + Homework questions are BOTH on the same Google Form at the end of the page; everyone must complete the Homework questions.
Scripture Passages
Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen. – Hebrews 11:1
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. – Jeremiah 29:11
Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go. – Joshua 1:9
It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed. – Deuteronomy 31:8
Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. And the Pharisees and the scribes murmured, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.” So he told them this parable: “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost.’ – Luke 15: 1-6
Catechism Quotes
With creation, God does not abandon his creatures to themselves. He not only gives them being and existence, but also, and at every moment, upholds and sustains them in being, enables them to act and brings them to their final end. #301
Signs Movie Quote
People break down into two groups. When they experience something lucky, group number one sees it as more than luck, more than coincidence; they see it as a sign. Evidence, that there is someone up there watching out for them. Group number two sees it as just pure luck, a happy turn of chance. I’m sure that people in group two were looking at those 14 lights in a very suspicious way. For them, this situation is a 50/50: could be bad, could be good. But deep down, they feel that whatever happens, they’re on their own, and that fills them with fear. There are those people. But there’s a whole lot of people in the group number one, and when they see those lights, they’re looking at a miracle and deep down, they feel that whatever is going to happen, there will be someone there to help them, and that fills them with hope. So what you have to ask yourself is what type of person are you? Are you the kind that sees signs, miracles, or do you believe that people just get lucky?
Quotes to Ponder
Along the path of life we never walk alone. To remind us of this, God helps us understand that salvation is not a momentary event but a history that unfolds day by day, amid successes and failures, until the final encounter. – Pope Francis April 21, 2016
We may ignore, but we can nowhere evade, the presence of God. The world is crowded with Him. He walks everywhere incognito. – C.S. Lewis, Letters to Malcolm
SMA Confirmation 