Youth Catechesis Question

[Richard Johnson]

I was very happy to see, when I accepted my first (and only) call to what was then an ALC congregation, that the congregation's constitution specifically stated that the pastor should not participate in any ceremonies of--I forget the verbiage, but it clearly meant Masonic organizations. When we had to make amendments to bring us into conformity with the new ELCA model constitution, I made sure that the anti-Masonic paragraph remained untouched.

Given the context, that it's in the congregation's constitution, I"m not following. Why would any Masonic lodge even contemplate a pastor participating in a Masonic ceremony? Why would they even allow him into any ceremony if not a Mason?

Sorry if I wasn't clear. The point was that the language of the constitution made it clear both that there were to be no Masonic ceremonies in the church, and that the pastor was not to "participate" (i.e., be present at) any Masonic ceremony. It anticipated that the Masons might request to do their thing before or after the funeral service at the church or at a funeral chapel and/or at the gravesite. The constitution made clear that the Masonic ceremony was not to take place in the church, before, during or after the funeral; and that the pastor was not to be present if there was going to be any involvement by the Masons anywhere along the line--not just in the church, but at a funeral home or cemetery.

Oh, and most Masons I know hadn't actually read the congregation's constitution . . .   

[Pr. Don Kirchner]

OK, gotcha. Thanks.

[James J Eivan]

After numerous searches, I have not found YouTube catechism resources that I could adopt for working with youth. Everything seems aimed at adults. So I've started to build a channel for my second year catechism students. There are two lessons on the Person and Work of the Holy Spirit, some memory work aids, and a basic video on how to find things in the Bible, catechism explanation, and our hymnal.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLF4FiQgfKr48eyLQt9QRwQ/

If anyone comes across such resources specifically designed for youth, please let me know.

I am also considering an adult Bible Study adaptation of the lessons that would add Bible readings and accompanying Q & A.

While they may not be professionally produced, shouldn’t catechism training be a time to establish a relationship with a pastor/local congregation?  If so, then catechism videos if necessary should feature the local pastor teaching the class ... rather than hiring the job out to some professional video production studio.

Our pastor just began the fall pastor’s class via zoom ... recorded if review is needed or a class is missed. In years past, I attended in person pastor’s classes. In addition to catechetical review, it was a great opportunity to get to know the new members.

Thanks for your note, James. I'm not sure I fully understand the comment. The videos I'm sharing are not professionally produced as should be readily noticed. I agree that catechesis is a time for building bonds with pastor and congregation. Unfortunately, Covid is keeping people apart. That's why I'm exploring distance learning. Like your pastor, I will probably have a zoom call with students when we review the answers they give in their workbooks. That will also allow us time to share highs and lows and pray together. Putting some of the instruction in video format seemed like a good way to quickly communicate content. It also has the advantage of letting the learners explore the content at their pace.

I imagine this will all go away in a year and we can return to face to face discipleship and study.

Rev E: Reviewing my response, perhaps I my response for some reason was more to these comments in your initial post to this thread when you posted

“  I have been exploring available videos on YouTube and found some good content. However, much of it seems oriented to older users. Does anyone know whether a congregation has created video content for Exploring Luther's Small Catechism: A Workbook for Luther's Small Catechism with Explanation, prepared by Robert C. Sauer, edited by Rodney L. Rathmann?”

Your request for video material on the Robert Sauer was misinterpreted as the desire for a turn key solution rather than video material to augment your personally created videos. 

I have a friend with a dual parish in the rural America heartland ... actually having members who do not have reliable internet available ... and live miles from the church. He has to distribute his catechetical videos via thumb drive.  It’s rather difficult to think of the possibility of a confirm and being confirmed with minimal face to face contact with the pastor.

May God bless you as you minister and catechize during these difficult times.

[Rev. Edward Engelbrecht]

After numerous searches, I have not found YouTube catechism resources that I could adopt for working with youth. Everything seems aimed at adults. So I've started to build a channel for my second year catechism students. There are two lessons on the Person and Work of the Holy Spirit, some memory work aids, and a basic video on how to find things in the Bible, catechism explanation, and our hymnal.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLF4FiQgfKr48eyLQt9QRwQ/

If anyone comes across such resources specifically designed for youth, please let me know.

I am also considering an adult Bible Study adaptation of the lessons that would add Bible readings and accompanying Q & A.

While they may not be professionally produced, shouldn’t catechism training be a time to establish a relationship with a pastor/local congregation?  If so, then catechism videos if necessary should feature the local pastor teaching the class ... rather than hiring the job out to some professional video production studio.

Our pastor just began the fall pastor’s class via zoom ... recorded if review is needed or a class is missed. In years past, I attended in person pastor’s classes. In addition to catechetical review, it was a great opportunity to get to know the new members.

Thanks for your note, James. I'm not sure I fully understand the comment. The videos I'm sharing are not professionally produced as should be readily noticed. I agree that catechesis is a time for building bonds with pastor and congregation. Unfortunately, Covid is keeping people apart. That's why I'm exploring distance learning. Like your pastor, I will probably have a zoom call with students when we review the answers they give in their workbooks. That will also allow us time to share highs and lows and pray together. Putting some of the instruction in video format seemed like a good way to quickly communicate content. It also has the advantage of letting the learners explore the content at their pace.

I imagine this will all go away in a year and we can return to face to face discipleship and study.

Rev E: Reviewing my response, perhaps I my response for some reason was more to these comments in your initial post to this thread when you posted

“  I have been exploring available videos on YouTube and found some good content. However, much of it seems oriented to older users. Does anyone know whether a congregation has created video content for Exploring Luther's Small Catechism: A Workbook for Luther's Small Catechism with Explanation, prepared by Robert C. Sauer, edited by Rodney L. Rathmann?”

Your request for video material on the Robert Sauer was misinterpreted as the desire for a turn key solution rather than video material to augment your personally created videos. 

I have a friend with a dual parish in the rural America heartland ... actually having members who do not have reliable internet available ... and live miles from the church. He has to distribute his catechetical videos via thumb drive.  It’s rather difficult to think of the possibility of a confirm and being confirmed with minimal face to face contact with the pastor.

May God bless you as you minister and catechize during these difficult times.

The internet reliability issues are another reason I prefer to share content via YouTube, which stays available and can easily be reloaded if there is a disruption. Live streaming and conferencing are always subject to disruptions and require scheduling. So I prefer to depend less on Zoom.

[Pr. Don Kirchner]

Did our first confirmation class via Zoom on Wednesday afternoon. Worked well!

[James J Eivan]

After numerous searches, I have not found YouTube catechism resources that I could adopt for working with youth. Everything seems aimed at adults. So I've started to build a channel for my second year catechism students. There are two lessons on the Person and Work of the Holy Spirit, some memory work aids, and a basic video on how to find things in the Bible, catechism explanation, and our hymnal.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLF4FiQgfKr48eyLQt9QRwQ/

If anyone comes across such resources specifically designed for youth, please let me know.

I am also considering an adult Bible Study adaptation of the lessons that would add Bible readings and accompanying Q & A.

While they may not be professionally produced, shouldn’t catechism training be a time to establish a relationship with a pastor/local congregation?  If so, then catechism videos if necessary should feature the local pastor teaching the class ... rather than hiring the job out to some professional video production studio.

Our pastor just began the fall pastor’s class via zoom ... recorded if review is needed or a class is missed. In years past, I attended in person pastor’s classes. In addition to catechetical review, it was a great opportunity to get to know the new members.

Thanks for your note, James. I'm not sure I fully understand the comment. The videos I'm sharing are not professionally produced as should be readily noticed. I agree that catechesis is a time for building bonds with pastor and congregation. Unfortunately, Covid is keeping people apart. That's why I'm exploring distance learning. Like your pastor, I will probably have a zoom call with students when we review the answers they give in their workbooks. That will also allow us time to share highs and lows and pray together. Putting some of the instruction in video format seemed like a good way to quickly communicate content. It also has the advantage of letting the learners explore the content at their pace.

I imagine this will all go away in a year and we can return to face to face discipleship and study.

Rev E: Reviewing my response, perhaps I my response for some reason was more to these comments in your initial post to this thread when you posted

“  I have been exploring available videos on YouTube and found some good content. However, much of it seems oriented to older users. Does anyone know whether a congregation has created video content for Exploring Luther's Small Catechism: A Workbook for Luther's Small Catechism with Explanation, prepared by Robert C. Sauer, edited by Rodney L. Rathmann?”

Your request for video material on the Robert Sauer was misinterpreted as the desire for a turn key solution rather than video material to augment your personally created videos. 

I have a friend with a dual parish in the rural America heartland ... actually having members who do not have reliable internet available ... and live miles from the church. He has to distribute his catechetical videos via thumb drive.  It’s rather difficult to think of the possibility of a confirm and being confirmed with minimal face to face contact with the pastor.

May God bless you as you minister and catechize during these difficult times.

The internet reliability issues are another reason I prefer to share content via YouTube, which stays available and can easily be reloaded if there is a disruption. Live streaming and conferencing are always subject to disruptions and require scheduling. So I prefer to depend less on Zoom.

Discussions here and elsewhere about Internet reliability has given me a greater thankfulness for the reliability of our Internet. When the pandemic first hit, much was shared in various threads by pastors who had less than ideal Internet service… I’m thankful for their perseverance to get God’smessage out to His people.

[James J Eivan]

Rev E:  Reviewing your thread concerning your YouTube Bible Study, have you considered a hybrid approach ... the presentation or teaching aspects of the class on YouTube as you currently are doing ... augmented with some interaction using a zoom type two way interface for discussion/fellowship/ catching up. 

While zoom like environments with both audio/visual is preferred, if there are technical issues, utilizing the phone as audio minimizes the audio dropouts while providing a bit more community environment than using YouTube alone.

Recently our pastor had to miss a Bible Student at the last minute ... he prepared a YouTube presentation.  For most it was viewed via shared zoom screen ... sound quality was noticeably better than a live zoom presentation... yet the YouTube version was available for those experiencing challenging internet issues.

Naturally in person is the goal ... but having contingencies is not a bad idea.

[Rev. Edward Engelbrecht]

For anyone who would like a break from the political discussion, below are links to some practical resources for catechism. I'm continuing to prepare catechism songs for my congregation, which others may find practical for supporting memory work and learning. The songs are word-for-word from Luther's Small Catechism with Explanation.

Sanctification Song, Third Article of the Creed
https://youtu.be/s7ofxJ3TqR0

Apostles' Creed, strummed version (more upbeat)
https://youtu.be/KX3yIKncMQs

I am currently working on songs for Luther's explanations of the petitions of the Lord's Prayer but have some starts on the Commandments and Second Article.

[Brian Stoffregen]

For anyone who would like a break from the political discussion, below are links to some practical resources for catechism. I'm continuing to prepare catechism songs for my congregation, which others may find practical for supporting memory work and learning. The songs are word-for-word from Luther's Small Catechism with Explanation.

Sanctification Song, Third Article of the Creed
https://youtu.be/s7ofxJ3TqR0

Apostles' Creed, strummed version (more upbeat)
https://youtu.be/KX3yIKncMQs

I am currently working on songs for Luther's explanations of the petitions of the Lord's Prayer but have some starts on the Commandments and Second Article.

John Ylvisaker and John Schultz wrote songs for each of the parts of the catechism: The Singing Catechism, copyright 1971 Augsburg Publishing House.

[Rev. Edward Engelbrecht]

Does anyone know if this is an example from the Ylvisaker book?

https://youtu.be/Dodx1dcLrz4

[Brian Stoffregen]

Does anyone know if this is an example from the Ylvisaker book?

https://youtu.be/Dodx1dcLrz4

No, not from his catechism book. It's part of an Afrikan Spiritual Mass that's in his Borning Cry Songbook. It's based on a South African protest song: "We Shall Not Give Up the Fight."

[Rev. Edward Engelbrecht]

Does anyone know if this is an example from the Ylvisaker book?

https://youtu.be/Dodx1dcLrz4

No, not from his catechism book. It's part of an Afrikan Spiritual Mass that's in his Borning Cry Songbook. It's based on a South African protest song: "We Shall Not Give Up the Fight."

Thanks. I couldn't find anything else that might be catechetical.

[Brian Stoffregen]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Singing-Catechism-A-Musical-Translation-Of-Luthers-Catechism-By-John-Schultz/324062015823?hash=item4b7399f14f:g:3WIAAOSwqwxeN5kU

My old copy cost $0.85 when I bought it new.

[Steven W Bohler]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Singing-Catechism-A-Musical-Translation-Of-Luthers-Catechism-By-John-Schultz/324062015823?hash=item4b7399f14f:g:3WIAAOSwqwxeN5kU

My old copy cost $0.85 when I bought it new.

These is also this: https://www.cph.org/p-3422-sing-the-faith-cd.aspx

[Rev. Edward Engelbrecht]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Singing-Catechism-A-Musical-Translation-Of-Luthers-Catechism-By-John-Schultz/324062015823?hash=item4b7399f14f:g:3WIAAOSwqwxeN5kU

My old copy cost $0.85 when I bought it new.

These is also this: https://www.cph.org/p-3422-sing-the-faith-cd.aspx

It's interesting to hear the different styles and approaches. Sing the Faith seems to be prepared for elementary children and has a more traditional, even classical sound.

The faith inc. songs appear to be for an older audience and have a contemporary worship style. What I've heard seems more thematic than word for word from a catechism but perhaps someone more familiar with the program can fill us in.