Homeschooling is a serious undertaking and many people wonder how it can work on a practical level - particularly for people on tight budgets and those with large families. Although not all of these books specifically address homeschooling, they have some very useful and practical ideas for running a household more effectively, especially in the areas of organization, finances, time management, and family life.
Joshua prayed to the Lord, and said in the presence of Israel, Stand still, O sun, at Gibeon, O moon, in the valley of Aijalon! And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, while the nation took vengeance on its foes. Is this not recorded in the Book of Jashar? The sun halted in the middle of the sky, not for a whole day did it resume its swift course. Never before or since was there a day like this, when the Lord obeyed the voice of a man, for the Lord fought for Israel. Joshua 10: 12-13The passages in the Bible which speak of the sun standing still were traditionally believed by the Church to mean that the sun actually revolved around the earth. Those involved in the Galileo case (most notably St. Robert Bellarmine) stated very clearly that if science proved that the sun did not revolve around the earth that the Church would accept that that particular passage of the Bible should not be understood literally. However, Galileo had not yet proved that the earth did move around the sun and, in fact, still had some serious errors in his scientific facts. There are other important details, including mistakes and silly-sounding quotes from some on the side of the Church all of which can be discovered by reading the following articles on the Galileo incident.
...quite naturally, goes hand-in-hand with homeschooling. Here are some titles that might be encouraging, helpful or entertaining for parents.
Hence every form of pedagogic naturalism which in any way excludes or weakens supernatural Christian formation in the teaching of youth, is false. Every method of education founded, wholly or in part, on the denial or forgetfulness of original sin and of grace, and relying on the sole powers of human nature, is unsound. Such, generally speaking, are those modern systems bearing various names which appeal to a pretended self-government and unrestrained freedom on the part of the child, and which diminish or even suppress the teacher's authority and action, attributing to the child an exclusive primacy of initiative, and an activity independent of any higher law, natural or divine, in the work of his education.
If any of these terms are used, less properly, to denote the necessity of a gradually more active cooperation on the part of the pupil in his own education; if the intention is to banish from education despotism and violence, which, by the way, just punishment is not, this would be correct, but in no way new. It would mean only what has been taught and reduced to practice by the Church in traditional Christian education, in imitation of the method employed by God Himself towards His creatures, of whom He demands active cooperation according to the nature of each; for His Wisdom "reacheth from end to end mightily and ordereth all things sweetly."
-- Pope Pius XI, On Christian Education
In studying nature we have not to inquire how God the Creator may, as He freely wills, use His creatures to work miracles and thereby show forth His power: we have rather to inquire what Nature with its immanent causes can naturally bring to pass. (St. Albert the Great circa 1200 AD)
The first eleven chapters of Genesis, although properly speaking not conforming to the historical method used by the best Greek and Latin writers or by competent authors of our time, do nevertheless pertain to history in a true sense, which however must be further studied and determined by exegetes; the same chapters, (the Letter points out), in simple and metaphorical language adapted to the mentality of a people but little cultured, both state the principal truths which are fundamental for our salvation, and also give a popular description of the origin of the human race and the chosen people. If, however, the ancient sacred writers have taken anything from popular narrations, (and this may be conceded) , it must never be forgotten that they did so with the help of divine inspiration, through which they were rendered immune from any error in selecting and evaluating those documents. (Humani Generis)
Copernicus himself saw his discovery as giving rise to even greater amazement at the Creator of the world and the power of human reason... (yet) many people took it as a means of setting reason against faith. The split between reason and faith was the expression of one of humanity’s great tragedies. It damaged not only religion, but culture. ...Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth. Today we need to work for a reconciliation between faith and reason. Seeking the truth and sharing it with others is an important service to society, a service which scholars in particular are called to render. Remember that reason is God’s gift, a mark of the likeness to God, which every man bears within himself. (Pope John Paul II, from a 1999 address to a Polish university in Copernicus' home town)
Faith and science: Though faith is above reason, there can never be any real discrepancy between faith and reason. Since the same God who reveals mysteries and infuses faith has bestowed the light of reason on the human mind, God cannot deny himself, nor can truth ever contradict truth.' 'Consequently, methodical research in all branches of knowledge, provided it is carried out in a truly scientific manner and does not override moral laws, can never conflict with the faith, because the things of the world and the things of faith derive from the same God. The humble and persevering investigator of the secrets of nature is being led, as it were, by the hand of God in spite of himself, for it is God, the conserver of all things, who made them what they are. (CCC 159)
Darwinism and the theory of evolution are by no means equivalent conceptions. The theory of evolution was propounded before Charles Darwin's time, by Lamarck (1809) and Geoffroy de Saint-Hilaire. Darwin, in 1859, gave it a new form by endeavouring to explain the origin of species by means of natural selection. According to this theory the breeding of new species depends on the survival of the fittest in the struggle for existence. The Darwinian theory of selection is Darwinism–adhering to the narrower, and accurate, sense of the word. As a theory, it is scientifically inadequate, since it does not account for the origin of attributes fitted to the purpose, which must be referred back to the interior, original causes of evolution. Haeckel, with other materialists, has enlarged this selection theory of Darwin's into a philosophical world-idea, by attempting to account for the whole evolution of the cosmos by means of the chance survival of the fittest. This theory is Darwinism in the secondary, and wider, sense of the word. It is that atheistical form of the theory of evolution which was shown above–under (2)–to be untenable. The third signification of the term Darwinism arose from the application of the theory of selection to man, which is likewise impossible of acceptance. In the fourth place, Darwinism frequently stands, in popular usage, for the theory of evolution in general. This use of the word rests on an evident confusion of ideas, and must therefore be set aside. ("Catholics and Evolution" from the Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913)
It is absurd for the Evolutionist to complain that it is unthinkable for an admittedly unthinkable God to make everything out of nothing, and then pretend it is more thinkable that nothing should turn itself into anything. (G.K. Chesterton in St. Thomas Aquinas)
Many people think of "sacrifice" as an old-fashioned word – perhaps pre-Vatican II – that really doesn't have a place in modern life. They may be willing to make New Year's Resolutions or go on a diet, but have no interest in the spiritual idea of sacrifice. Once I heard a homily for the beginning of Lent in which the priest said that you shouldn't worry about giving up your favorite candy bar or soap opera, because it was internal change that mattered.
It's a strange thing in a world so caught up in superficiality for Catholic ideas on sacrifice to be thought of as shallow. It's kind of like saying that you shouldn't exercise because what you eat is really more critical for bodily health. What this priest didn't realize, of course, is that internal changes don't happen instantly, they usually need help from something external. If you have trouble loving someone, the first step is to act loving to them externally, even if you don't feel it internally. If you work on this enough and ask for God's assistance, your internal struggles will resolve themselves as well. Even so, it takes an internal effort of your will to make an external thing happen. (This same priest also thought that external gestures of respect in church were meaningless and unimportant to God. But external things are helpful in lifting our minds and hearts to God. Beautiful paintings, statues and crucifixes assist our wandering thoughts in focusing on God and the great things he has done for us.) In a nutshell: because we are both body and spirit, internal and external factors work together in our spiritual lives. The greatest example of this concept is that God really came to earth as a small baby and lived life among us in all its gritty reality.
I know a man who runs a Karate school which emphasizes discipline of the mind and body. He encourages his students to occasionally give up a candy bar or sweet that they would otherwise eat. He explains that if they can't say no once in awhile to something little that looks good, how will they ever be able to say no to something more important later on. It's all about training the will (as in "willpower"). Even this simple concept is useful to us as Catholics. If we exercise our will by saying no to little things, we will be better prepared to resist temptation later on. There are other earthly benefits as well, since we often give up things that aren't good for us anyway (I never could understand why the above-mentioned priest didn't realize that giving up soap operas has direct spiritual benefits as well).
One exciting thing to me about understanding the faith is that natural and supernatural benefits go hand in hand. Yes, giving up sweets for Lent might help us lose weight or live a healthier lifestyle and giving up television gives us more time for reading or to spend with our family. These are certainly good things. But as Catholics, we realize that there's another whole level to look at too. When we offer our small sacrifices up to God with love He turns them into something much better and allows us to participate in His plan of good for the world. For more about this concept, you can read up on St. Therese of Lisieux and her "Little Way." I think Mother Teresa of Calcutta is another excellent example of God taking the simple, humble work of one person and turning it into something much greater and bigger.
As a simple way of illustrating this for our children, we have them place a simple dry pinto bean in a jar for each sacrifice or good deed they perform during Lent. They enjoy watching this grow and are certainly proud of their little accomplishments. But when they wake up on Easter morning, the dry beans have been replaced with colorful Jelly Beans. This simple tradition allows them to better understand the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross and his resurrection from the dead. Our little sacrifices are made much more meaningful by his big sacrifice. He allows even the smallest child to participate in "the good" by sharing in his sacrifice.
As a wife and mother I have really come to love and even look forward to Lent because it has become a time in which we clean up our spiritual house as a family and re-focus our energies on God. In the craziness and busy-ness of family life, we can often get carried away with too many sweets and movie-watching and other things which make life a little more comfortable and which are not evil in and of themselves. But we begin to see that these things can also, just by their power of distraction, start turning our family farther from God and the way we want to be. One place we really see God's understanding in our need for external things to help with the internal changes is the happiness he allows us to feel when we do something good. It is this Christian joy that even small children can begin to appreciate by celebrating Lent as a family. In addition, Easter becomes so much more meaningful and joyful when we have prepared for it well during Lent.
Saint Catherine of Siena, the daughter of a humble tradesman, was raised up to be the guide and guardian of the Church in one of the darkest periods of its history, the fourteenth century. As a child, prayer was her delight. She would say the 'Hail Mary' on each step as she mounted the stairs, and was granted in reward a vision of Christ in glory. When but seven years old, she made a vow of virginity, and afterwards endured bitter persecution for refusing to marry. Our Lord gave her His Heart in exchange for her own, communicated her with His own hands, and stamped on her body the print of His wounds. At the age of fifteen she entered the Third Order of St. Dominic, but continued to reside in her father's shop, where she united a life of acive charity with the prayer of a contemplative Saint. From this obscure home the seraphic virgin was summoned to defend the Church's cause. Armed with Papal authority, and accompanied by three confessors, she travelled through Italy, reducing rebellious cities to the obedience of the Holy See, and winning hardened souls to God. In the face well-nigh of the whole world she sought out Gregory XI. at Avignon, brought him back to Rome, and by her letters to the kings and queens of Europe made good the Papal cause. She was the counsellor of Urban VI., and sternly rebuked the disloyal cardinals who had part in electing an antipope. Long had the holy virgin foretold the terrible schism which began ere she died. Day and night she wept and prayed for unity and peace. But the devil excited the Roman people against the Pope, so that some sought the life of Christ's Vicar. With intense earnestness did St. Catherine beg Our Lord to prevent this enormous crime. In spirit she saw the whole city full of demons tempting the people to resist and even slay the Pope. The seditious temper was subdued by Catherine's prayers; but the devils vented their malice by scourging the Saint herself, who gladly endured all for God and His Church. She died at Rome, in 1380, at the age of thirty-three.