Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Anticipating the announcement....



            When Pope John Paul II was elected, I was a toddler.  When Pope Benedict XVI was elected, I had a 6 year old, who was in kindergarten, and a three year old, a two year old, and an eight week old at home with me.  Though I clearly remember Pope JPII’s death and funeral, I remember very little of the papal election that followed.   

          I do remember hearing the names of possible new popes.  And, I remember hoping and praying for Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.  I remember feeling happy and filled with peace that he was the new Pope.  But I don’t remember watching for the white smoke or hearing the announcement “Habemus Papam.” 

            This time, (now that I have come to terms with Pope Benedict’s retirement) I am very anxiously awaiting the exhilaration of hearing the announcement that, “We have a Pope!”  I have spent the last few days learning all that I can about the process and preparing lessons to share it all with my children.    

           We sat down this morning surrounded by things I had printed off from the computer and we talked about the conclave, the College of Cardinals, and the procedures for electing and installing a new pope.  We looked at pictures of St. Peter’s square and I pointed out the Sistine Chapel where the conclave will take place and our new Pope will be chosen.  It is all very exciting and there is so much to learn.  

            Some of the resources we came across were so fabulous I just had to share….  So here is a list of the resources that my children and I found most helpful:


  • How a Pope is elected, an interactive slideshow: 
 http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/the-vatican/come-si-elegge-il-papa/
  • A Papal Unit Study-- found on "Shower of Roses" blog
 http://showerofroses.blogspot.com/2013/02/papal-unit-study.html
  • A diagram of Papal Vestements
http://www.infovisual.info/06/070_en.html
  • 2 articles on Papal elections and history--
    found on "In the Heart of my Home" blog
 http://pflaum.com/jpii/elect.pdf
 http://pflaum.com/jpii/didyou.pdf
  • Super cute crafts and activities for kids of all ages
 http://www.catholicinspired.com/2013/02/learning-about-election-of-new-pope.html
  • Adopt a Cardinal to pray for
 http://adoptacardinal.org/

4 comments:

  1. What wonderful resources! Sharing :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Megan- Thank you. I hope you enjoy checking them otu as much as we have!

      God Bless!

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  2. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I've been so busy "entertaining" (i.e. digging out!) over the past week that I have yet to put any real effort into preparing lessons for my children. I don't want to let this event pass without introducing my children to this rare event.

    I have fond memories of Blessed Pope John Paul II's election. I was 8 and it was super exciting for my family!!! After all, one of "ours" was now pope. (I am 100% Polish-American and this was a hugely exciting time for our family.)

    Putting my trust in God and anxiously awaiting what's ahead!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Val- It seems like there are lots of blog posts floating around with this same theme. I was not sure it was worth chiming in.

      But it can all be so overwhelming and time consuming to go and look at everything that is out there, so I thought I'd share our family-tested favorites! Hope your family enjoys them and learns a lot! We have been!

      I pray our new pope will be as holy and humble as Pope JPII and Pope Benedict XVI have been. We have been very blessed by both of them.

      God Bless, Kari

      Delete

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