Activity 1: Make a Circle Map on Jesus and the Gospel message

Brainstorm, list, and/or draw:

• Information you know, or kind of know, about Jesus and the Gospel message

• Guesses about Jesus and the Gospel message

• Questions you have about Jesus and the Gospel message

• Information you would like to know about Jesus and the Gospel message

• What comes to mind when you think of Jesus and the Gospel message

Activity 2: Scripture to Memory

Pope St. John Paul II strongly encouraged that the faithful memorize important passages of Scripture. In the Apostolic Exhortation Catechesi Tradendae, he wrote: “The blossoms ... of faith and piety do not grow in the desert places of memoryless catechesis.” When you have memorized important Scripture passages, the Word of God resides in your minds and hearts and is at the ready when you need it.

To respond to Pope St. John Paull II’s wish, you should write out and commit to memory some or all of the following Bible verses, which complement all the lessons in this unit. Take a few minutes each day to study them and practice recitation and writing. Before completing this unit, you will write out two or more of these verses, from memory. 

Explore different means of memorization, such as hanging important Scripture verses on your refrigerator at home, or on your bathroom mirror, reciting and discussing Scripture with your parents, using passages in conversation, and other creative means of use and memorization.

• Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love. –1 JOHN 4:8

• Therefore, brothers, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught, either by an oral statement or by a letter of ours.–2 THESSALONIANS 2:15

• All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness.–2 TIMOTHY 3:16

• Know this first of all, that there is no prophecy of scripture that is a matter of personal interpretation, for no prophecy ever came through human will; but rather human beings moved by the holy Spirit spoke under the influence of God.–2 PETER 1:20-21

• And he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are! How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them what referred to him in all the scriptures.–LUKE 24:25-27

• When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them [a scholar of the law] tested him by asking, “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” He said to him, “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.”–MATTHEW 22:34-40

• Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.–PHILIPPIANS 2:7-8

• And if Christ has not been raised, then empty [too] is our preaching; empty, too, your faith. Then we are also false witnesses to God, because we testified against God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, neither has Christ been raised, and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is vain; you are still in your sins.–1 CORINTHIANS 15:14-17

• “This is how you are to pray:Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and do not subject us to the final test, but deliver us from the evil one.”–MATTHEW 6:9-13

• The crowds preceding him and those following kept crying out and saying: “Hosanna to the Son of David; blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord; hosanna in he highest.”–MATTHEW 21:9

• Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”–MARK 1:14-15

• “[T]here will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance.”–LUKE 15:7

• And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth.–JOHN 1:14

•  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be.What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race;the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.–JOHN 1:1-5