7 minute read
The home as atrium
—SOFIA CAVELLETTI
The New Atrium The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd in the Sacred Home
By Allison Seay An overview of the Montessori-based approach to the religious formation of young children
WHAT IT IS
The Catechesis (kat-i-KEE-sis) of the Good Shepherd is a religious formation approach for children ages 3 to 12. Based on scripture, liturgy and the educational and pedagogical principles of Dr. Maria Montessori, CGS began in Italy in 1954 under the guidance of noted theologians and educators Sofia Cavelletti and Gianna Gobbi. This manner of Christian education is not primarily academic but instead seeks to be a religious experience rooted in celebration, contemplation and joy. It depends on a gentle entrance to, and witnessing of, the child’s often-silent encounter with the Divine. Montessori advised that we must “quit our roles as jailers and instead take care to prepare an environment in which we do as little as possible to exhaust the child with our surveillance and instruction.” Children, even from the earliest age, have an enormous capacity for wonder and a deep and vital desire to develop a conscious and intimate relationship with God. The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd seeks to nourish what is already present and indwelling.
WHERE IT HAPPENS
Traditionally, the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd takes place in an atrium—a carefully prepared, sacred space for children where they may meet and be grounded in the love of the Good Shepherd who knows his sheep by name. We say that everything we do in the atrium is a prayer and, likewise, every material in the atrium is meant as a means for pondering the mysteries and riches of our faith; just as the life and work of a monk centers on prayer, so the child’s engagement and experience in an atrium is considered prayerful work. Among the work the children are invited to explore are models of church architecture, vessels, and garments. Other materials relate to the proclamations of our faith, our liturgy, and our communal sacramental life.
Though the atria are closed while we shelter in place, we are steady in our belief that the principles of our shared life in the atrium can translate to an environment at home where adults and children can live a common religious experience in what some call the Domestic Church. After all, it is in the home that the child’s moral and spiritual development is first formed by the nurturing she receives from those who love her. Just as in the atrium, home can be a place of exploration, creation, joy, prayer, and mystery.
HOW IT HAPPENS
The word catechesis means oral religious instruction and a catechist (KAT-i-kist) is the one who shares presentations (not lessons) and scripture with the child— parables and prophecies, geography, history, and the life of Christ. Importantly, the catechist is not a teacher but a cowonderer, a listener and facilitator who has prayerfully prepared the space and who has undergone formation and study herself in order to better understand ways that biblical and liturgical themes correspond to the developmental stages of children in her (or his) care. Every catechist works under the assumption that Christ is the only “teacher” and that all the wisdom one needs is already in the room.
While this year children may not be receiving these presentations as we wish they could, parents still have the unique responsibility and distinct honor of being the first heralds of faith in the development of their children, the primary catechists. Because it is within the life of the family at home that Christian community is first
experienced, the Domestic Church or Sacred Home is one of the most important and privileged places for the faithful to gather. We believe that some of the greatest gifts a parent can offer are those of prayer, contemplation, wonder and joy. In this time of pandemic, parents’ roles as principal ministers have never been clearer.
WHERE WE GO FROM HERE
To begin, one simple but important ritual that many observe is the use of a prayer space at home. You might identify a central place to gather, such as the kitchen table or a corner in your family room, that is your sacred space for prayer. You might set a prayer table, even a primitive one— you can use a box, the seat of a chair (as shown in the photo), a coffee table—and include significant items such as a candle, a cross, a Bible, and perhaps a cloth or a scarf the color of the liturgical season (green for the season after Pentecost, purple for Advent, and so on). You might pick flowers from the yard, find a pinecone or rock, and place objects like these on the prayer table. Often, simply lighting a candle and remembering aloud that “God is with us,” then observing a little silence, is a perfect nightly blessing.
It might be that, at this prayer table, one shares the parables we present in the atrium—of the Good Shepherd, the mustard seed, the found coin, etc. Here can be a place of song and worship, silence and prayer. The catechists at St. Stephen’s are prepared to support you however they can.
Other work that children are drawn to in the atrium, and which certainly translates at home, is in caring for their environment. Even very young children are capable of—and enjoy—dusting, pouring, folding, watering a plant. These tasks are meant to exercise focus, to satisfy a love of order, and to provide for control of error. As the poet Mary Oliver put it, “Attention is the beginning of devotion.” Every work in the atrium—even those tasks for practical life and caretaking—is a prayer. Maria Montessori reminds us, “The child is much more spiritually elevated than is usually supposed. He often suffers, not from too much work, but from work that is unworthy of him.”
Depending on the age and development of a particular child, tasks like these—from washing dishes to polishing silver—do indeed tend fertile ground and inspire adults and children alike to honor the sacred in the ordinary.
The notes below are taken from guides we use at St. Stephen’s Church to better prepare parents and visitors for our practices in the atria. Though originally intended specifically for our Sunday morning catechesis, they may inspire preparations for “the new atrium” at home. ✤
IN THE ATRIUM, WE…
Speak softly, but do not whisper; we avoid chit-chat and small talk. Walk slowly and carefully, making sure never to step in the workspace—the rug or mat—of a child. Do not disturb or interrupt a child at work; we are careful to resist unnecessary intervention. Use good manners; we do not eat or drink in the sacred space; we make eye contact; we say “please,” “thank you” and “excuse me.” Respect the dignity of the child at work; we avoid child-talk, pat answers, and exaggerated or false responses. Model respect for beautiful material; we handle objects carefully, even reverently. Do one thing at a time; we do not talk and move at the same time; we avoid false hurry and multi-tasking. Take great care with language: • Specifically, we deliberately avoid the term “play” as it suggests recreation; while we do hope the children enjoy time in a sacred space, their work is beyond entertainment or amusement. The work of the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is to attend to the silent plea of the child, “Help me draw close to God by myself.” We take seriously, not playfully, their religious experience. • Avoid “cleaning up.” Rather, we “restore” or “make it beautiful for next time.” Messes are to be cleaned; work is to be restored. • Articulate what should happen rather than what should not. For example, instead of “don’t run,” we say “please walk.” • Avoid giving “the answer” and allow children time and space for wonder and contemplation. For example, we do not tell the children that we are the sheep and Jesus is the Good Shepherd; we allow them to discover this good news for themselves. • Do not pretend to know what we cannot know. When a child asks something difficult or unanswerable, we respond with utmost respect for the child and for the question. We might say, simply, “I do not know. And I wonder about that, too.” • Value listening and discovery over “learning” or “fun.” Out of respect for the child’s capacity for religious experience, we suggest that rather than asking, “What did you learn today?,” ask instead, “What did you hear today?” Instead of “Did you have fun today?,” ask, “What was it like for you today?” • W e do not exaggerate our affirmation or approval. Rather than, “Good job!” or “This is the most amazing drawing I have ever seen!” we say instead, “Thank you for sharing this! Please tell me about it…” Recommended reading: Listening to God with Children by Gianna Gobbi; The Religious Potential of the Child: Experiencing Scripture and Liturgy with Young Children by Sofia Cavelletti, Patricia Coulter and Julie Coulter; The Good Shepherd and the Child: A Joyful Journey by Sofia Cavalletti, Patricia Coulter, Silvana Quattrocchi Montanaro and Gianna Gobbi
