I teach two sections of Religion 10 (sophomores) at a Catholic High School for a teacher who is out with a knee injury. Today, the students brought to class epistles or letters which they wrote, some read them aloud to the class. Some gave reasons why they wrote, some were minimal with their explanations. I asked them to write with the passion and commitment that Paul was renown for when he was preaching. I did not limit the student epistles to only religious matters, but allowed them to write about “something that was deeply personal to them that they needed to share with people.” The student epistles were remarkable. They were as varied in their literary form, as they were in their delivery. Some wrote poetry, some wrote with scientific analysis, some were simple and direct. There were statements of young people growing up in a world of personal loss, war, terrorism and guilt & confusion over anger with god, at times. They “preached” about global warming, coping with the death of a family member, building one’s future life from the past & every decision you make in the present, and even the World Cup in Soccer, where in the student’s words, “you have the greatest joys and the greatest sadness” all rolled into one.
What I thought… When you give fifteen or sixteen year-olds a chance to speak, and you listen, they have much to say. It was an afternoon of magic and revelation for many in that room. On this Thanksgiving week, I was very grateful for that one hour and fifteen minutes.
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