Catholic Fire

In the Bible, God presents himself as a teacher. “I myself taught Ephraim to walk, I myself took them by the arm,” it says. A believer is obliged to raise his children. Every man and every woman has a right to educate their children in their religious values. When a government deprives children of this formation, it can lead to cases like Nazism, when children were indoctrinated with values which were alien to the ones held by their parents. Totalitarianism tends to take over education to feather its own nest… ~ Pope Francis Via Tim Drake at the Cardinal Newman Society. Read his entire article here.

 Another great reason to homeschool:

I have discovered a wonderful new website called Amazing Cathechists which is a free resource for all of you who teach CCD or RCIA classes or homeschool your children in the faith. It's so new, that a few parts are still under construction, but stop by for a visit and meet some talented catechists who offer their insights on a wide variety of topics. New columns will be added monthly, and they hope to offer a wealth of free resources for you to use with your students. Two talented writers are the Amazing Catechists : Leticia, at cause of our joy , causa nostrae laetitiae , and Catholic Media Review and Lisa Mlandinich, whose story, "Acting Up" is featured in this month's "Faith and Family"magazine is the webmistress and originator of Amazing Catechists. Her puppet scripts can be found at Catholic Puppet Show Ministry at Catholic Mom.com I will be adding Amazing Cathechists to my list of Catholic sites. I just finished checking it out and it is fantastic!

YouTube is hosting a video contest of homeschooled kids on this theme. Video entries will be accepted until Jan 8, 2007. H/T to Leticia.

Homeschoolers For Life is pleased to announce the 2007 Homeschoolers For Life Essay Contest. This contest is designed for homeschooled students between the ages of 8 and 17. The contest has three different categories arranged by age. Older students will write an essay on the following topic: "When presented with a field of imperfect candidates, what factors, moral and political, should prolifers take into consideration before voting in order to not violate their consciences?" The topic for the two younger categories is: "God gives each person many gifts. How can you live your life in a way that honors the gifts God gave you? " For details, deadlines, prizes and rules, please go to www.HomeschoolersForLife.com H/T: Prolife Blogs

Do you like sales? Do you like books? Maureen Wittmann is having a big book sale. These aren't just any books; they're various books she's written. She's autographing them, too. You can check it out here . Via Margaret Mary Myers.

Here is the latest development from Lifesite News o n the story of the 15-year-old girl who was taken from her home in Germany because she was home schooled: The parents of a 15-year-old school girl taken from her home by authorities in a battle over home schooling have been asked to give up custody of their other five children, as part of a resolution to the situation offered by German officials. The latest development in the ongoing battle between the Busekros family and the German authorities was reported by the Home Schooling Legal Defense Fund, a U.S.-based organization that has been tracking an accelerating crackdown against home schooling families in Germany. Melissa Busekros was removed from her family home on Feb.1 by social workers accompanied by 15 police officers, under a court order to use force if necessary. The girl was placed in a psychiatric ward for evaluation and determined to be “school phobic,” according to authorities. Without her parents’ knowledge or consent s...