First Day of "Class"

AMDG

Well, good morning, beautiful class!

On May 2, 2011, the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Social Communications and the Pontifical Council for Culture had a “Blog Meet” with 150 bloggers.  This blog is the fruit of that first meeting.

I was not there, but the meeting encouraged me to launch this site which I am calling “Mr. P.’s Classroom”.

As I launch this, I start with just me, my laptop and my powerful Guardian Angel.  So welcome!  I hope you stay.

I’ve not much in the way of a “course syllabus” or outcomes or handouts for my class, but perhaps the current working description of this blog is all there is to know in a this web-log (blog) course syllabus:

“A blog where the world is my classroom and Jesus is our Teacher”  -- that Jesus is our Teacher; that He is Lord; that He is our Master; that He is the ONLY Master; and that we are all pupils.

And...as for “Mr. P.”

Okay, so you’ve most likely caught on that I’m Mr. P.

This was a nickname first given me many, many moons ago when I taught my first theology class.  I don’t remember how it stuck, but even students that I see many years later still call me this.

Whenever I hear this, it makes me feel like this scene from SW IV when young Luke Skywalker asked Ben about the name “Obi-Wan” to which Master Kenobi replied, “Obi-Wan Kenobi— Now that’s a name I’ve not heard in a long time…A long time.”

So, yup, I’ve resurrected the name that I’ve not heard in a long time, in a galaxy not so far away, kind of like the first few seconds of this scene:

And as we begin with any endeavor for the Gospel, we start with prayer.

So here’s a link to the upcoming liturgical translations for the Third Roman Missal and a bit of my own private prayer: http://old.usccb.org/romanmissal/

Oremus.  Lord Jesus, Master, you are the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through you.  We love you and we follow you.  You said that when two or three are gathered in your name that you will be there in the midst of them.  So even here on cyberspace, we put out in to the deep even after fishing all night without a catch.  We acknowledge that you are Lord of Cyberspace.  We are comforted that you work with weak human beings to accomplish your will.  We turn to your Mother for help in following you.   In your most precious Name we pray.  Amen.

After the Holy Mass, the center, the source and summit of the Christian life, we should learn other liturgical prayers, especially the Liturgy of the Hours.

Then after that, we’ll learn the prayers for Benediction and the rosary.

Then we’ll learn about prayer in general and the need for private prayer and developing devotional prayer life. 

‘Homework for tonight is to say prayers before bed and to learn the Lord’s Prayer if you don’t know it.

Class dismissed!