Peer RE Book 2 Handbook€¦ · Do you agree? What things can you identify with yourself that you...

PEER RE 2 COURSE HANDBOOK

Paul HigginsonPaul HigginsonPaul HigginsonPaul Higginson Peer R.E. PublishingPeer R.E. PublishingPeer R.E. PublishingPeer R.E. Publishing

St Dominic’s Sixth Form CollegeSt Dominic’s Sixth Form CollegeSt Dominic’s Sixth Form CollegeSt Dominic’s Sixth Form College Mount Park AvenueMount Park AvenueMount Park AvenueMount Park Avenue Harrow on the HillHarrow on the HillHarrow on the HillHarrow on the Hill Middlesex HA1 3HX

PEER RE Course Handbook

1

Introduction

Peer RE 2 uses the same principles as Peer RE 1. However, there is a greater emphasis on working in small groups of 5 or 6. Ideally, 4 student teachers should run the sessions, each one taking a small group of 6 and then feeding back to the whole class. This course contains 6 lessons of 45 minutes, although each session can easily be extended to an hour. Unlike Peer RE 1, this course is designed for all types of students, not just those from a Christian background.

Contents

1. Session One: What’s Wrong? P.2

2. Session Two: I’ll Be Happy If … P.8

3. Session Three: Jesus P.11

4. Session Four: The Promise of the Spiritual Path P.15

5. Session Five: Who is My Neighbour? P.20

6. Session Six: Let Us Pray P.22


2

PEER RE

Session One : What’s Wrong? Preparation:-

• Copy and cut out the animals for the icebreaker.

• Photocopy Holocaust extracts for each student. 1. Icebreaker – Animal Kingdom exercise (groups of 5/6).

If God wanted to get rid of one group (because of over-population in the

Animal kingdom) which should he choose. Each group has to give three reasons why they should remain.

[7 min] 2. What is Peer RE?

• Explain concept of small groups of 5/6.

• Not trying to ‘convert’ you from one Faith to another.

• Aim: to improve your lives, to make you more contented, to increase your self-confidence and self-belief, to make you feel good about yourself – ‘feel good factor’.

• This may change your life – I hope so. [1 min]

3. Read through the Holocaust extracts (in small groups). In groups:

Task 1 : How did this happen? (What caused this?) Does this prove there is no God? [In groups] [10 min] Task 2 : What is wrong with the world today? List top 5 things that most make you

angry/want to cry. Report back to whole group. (Teachers list on board) [15 min]

4. In groups: “Bad things are caused by people, not countries”. Do you agree?

What things can you identify with yourself that you think are wrong – what things in you would you like to change for the better? Draw a human outline on a poster and fill in. Report back. [10 min]

5. Most of us often have an emptiness inside. We sometimes know that something is

missing but we often don’t know what it is. In the next session we’ll be looking at what might be missing.

[2 min]

6. Our final prayer is from the Hindu Scriptures, The Upanishads.

“From the unreal lead me to the real, from the darkness lead me to the light, from death lead me to immortality”.


3

ELEPHANT

LION

ZEBRA

ANTELOPE

HYENA

TIGER


4

SHARK

WHALE

MACKEREL

COD

TUNA

HADDOCK


5

ANT

BEETLE

WORM

FLY

BEE

HEAD LOUSE


6

DOG

GUINEA PIG

GOLDFISH

CANARY

CAT

RABBIT


7

PEER RE – The Holocaust

Six million Jewish people were murdered during the Holocaust, along with millions of individuals from other groups whom the Nazis considered “asocial” or racially inferior, including Gypsies, Slavs, people with disabilities and gays.

When Hitler came to power he wanted to drive Jews out of Germany. By 1940 he wanted to force Jews out of Europe. By 1942 death camps were being built in Poland to murder every Jewish person the Nazis could lay their hands on. How did blind hatred turn to planned extermination?

As people were made to undress they were told to tie their shoelaces together and to remember the number on their clothes-pegs so that they could find their clothes again when they returned from the showers. Then they were led into the gas chambers and the sealed doors were locked behind them.

I installed showerheads in the gas chambers. The nozzles were not connected to any water pipes; they would serve as camouflage for the gas chamber. For the Jews who were gassed it would seem as if they were being taken to baths and for disinfection

In the largest gas chambers of Auschwitz II-Birkenau two thousand people could be killed at one time.

SS Corporal Erich Fuchs, who helped build the gas chambers at Belzec, Sobibor and Treblinka II

Tens of thousands of Jews could be killed in a few days by the SS murder squads. But the Nazis realised that shooting people into mass graves was too slow to be used for the murder of every Jew in Europe. They also wanted a method of killing that would cause less distress to the killers.

When all the Jews were inside the door was bolted. The driver then switched on the engine, crawled under the van and connected a pipe from the exhaust to the inside of the van. The exhaust fumes now poured into the inside of the truck so that the people inside were suffocated. After about ten minutes, when there were no further signs of life from the Jews, the van set off towards the camp in the wood where the bodies were then burnt …. Theodor Malzmuller

The Nazis were determined to murder every Jew in Europe. Trains from every country under Hitler’s control were crowded with men, woman and children. They rolled slowly across the continent to the death camps in occupied Poland. This final journey could take days, with the trucks so crowded that often there was not enough room to sit down.

We stepped outside. We just didn’t know where we were. There were all kinds of things happening. There were people in striped uniforms, shaven heads. It looked like an actual madhouse…. And the people who were working there, we asked them, “Where are we? Where are we?” And they said “You don’t know where you are? You’re in Auschwitz”. “And what is Auschwitz? What’s Auschwitz”? “Well, you come here, but very few go out of here”. And they actually pointed to sort of smoke belching, chimneys. And said, “That’s what happens to people. That’s what happens”. Esther Brunstein

This sin will haunt humanity to the end of time. Jan Karski


8

Session Two : I’ll Be Happy If … Preparation:-

• Photocopy one I’ll Be Happy If … worksheet for each small group 1. Get in groups – complete the ‘I’ll be happy if …’ worksheet. Discuss and choose the

single most important thing to feed-back to the whole group. [15 min]

2. Teacher puts on white board and distinguishes between spiritual/material. Talk about what makes a person truly contented/happy.

Freddie Mercury of Queen who died at the end of 1991 wrote in one of his last songs, “Does anybody know what we are living for? [10 min]

3.

Paths Diagram and explanation.

Say that at the age of 16-18 most people come to a fork in their lives and there are two possible paths to go down - one is the spiritual path, the other is the material. You can draw this on the board. Which path are they going to go down? (Just pose the question, don’t necessarily have a discussion on it!) [5 min]

4. Say that all the money in the world will never make you happy. Read extracts below:

The more material possessions people have, they more they have to lose. The more they have to lose, the more fearful they become. The more fearful they become, the more defensive they get, the more they cut themselves off. The more they cut themselves off, the more closed they get. The result is that they end up with a withered heart. And it’s impossible to breathe life into a withered heart. To close one’s heart is to begin to die. To open one’s heart is to begin to live. At the end of the day it’s not what we carry in our purses or bank accounts that matters. It’s what we carry in our hearts.

Sheryl Crowe (pop singer) said, ‘I can do what I want musically: I can buy a house. But these things don’t add up when your relationships have waned and you’ve been isolated. I am completely lonely. I am at this point in time lonelier than I’ve ever been in my entire life.’ Freddie Mercury just before his death said, ‘You can have everything in the world and still be the loneliest man, and that is the most bitter type of loneliness. Success has brought me world idolisation and millions of pounds, but it’s prevented me from having the one thing we all need - a loving, ongoing relationship.’ [5 min] 5. Key to happiness is the spiritual path. Try not to read this bit, it is better if you can speak it from the heart.


9

Say, this course has been put together to get people thinking about what they really believe. We four (or however many you are) believe that God exists, that he made us, and that he loves us and takes care of us. We believe that God created each of us, a unique person with special gifts and talents that we have to use if we are to live life to the full.

You might not be sure if God is really there, or you may feel that God is distant from you, or religion may have little relevance for you. The important part is, whatever your views, we all need to try to make CONTACT with God - he isn’t going to force himself upon us - we need to start seeing if God is really there, we need to talk to him.

This course might change your life: it might change the way you think about God, relationships, yourself, your neighbour. At the end of the day - God is love and everyone has to believe in love.

We’re going to end with a very simple prayer - why not say it silently now in your heart

‘God, if you exist, if you are there, please help me, please show yourself to me, in the days and weeks ahead.’

Try praying this sincerely, every day, for the rest of this Course and see what a difference it can make to your life.

[3 min]


10

I’LL BE HAPPY IF …

Each person completes the sentence (reads it out and writes it down) and passes it on. ‘I’ll be happy if … [Tick if you agree then add your own sentence]

1. e.g. I get a job that pays a very high salary

Tick here if you agree

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

11 PEER RE Course Handbook

Session Three: Jesus

1. Start by saying that today we are looking at the most important man ever to have walked on earth - Jesus Christ.

In groups ask them 2 questions (put on board– see below) which they answer on rough paper.

i. Write down 3 important things about Jesus (what you think is important)

ii. Why did Jesus come on earth and do the things he did? Two or three sentences on this. [5 min]

2. Discuss in groups what they have written about Jesus.

i. Explore Jesus’ humanity (emotions, fears, hunger, temptation etc.)

ii. Explore Jesus’ divinity (miracles, forgave sins, rose from dead) - try to get students to tell you these things - don’t tell them yourselves! Wait for them to tell you. [10 min]

3. Why did he come? Get their ideas. Bring whole class together and put main reasons on board. At end of this slot try to get across these two ideas.

i. The Ant story. Say to students, ‘If you were interested in ants and you wanted, really wanted, to get to know them and relate to them, and have a personal relationship with them, what would you do?’ Answer, ‘You would become an ant!’

ii. People find it difficult to have a loving relationship with an idea, a cloud, a concept, an image of God as an old man sitting on a throne, an angry old king. So God became man - we can have a relationship with a person, the Person of Jesus, we can love God through Jesus, Jesus shows us where God is - He is The Way that humans can reach God. [5 min]

4. During this part of the lesson, you may if there is time, want to share your views on Jesus using the information below. [7 min]

JESUS

1. THREE IMPORTANT THINGS ABOUT JESUS. WHY DID HE COME ON EARTH AND DO THE THINGS HE DID?

2. WHAT’S SO SPECIAL ABOUT JESUS ANYWAY?

3. JESUS WAS BORN 2000 YEARS AGO, 2000 MILES AWAY. HE GREW UP IN AN

ORDINARY HOME. UNTIL HE WAS 30 HE WORKED AS A CARPENTER, THEN FOR ABOUT THREE YEARS HE WALKED AROUND TEACHING AND HEALING. HE HAD NO MONEY. HE WROTE NO BOOKS. HE COMMANDED NO ARMY. HE HAD NO POLITICAL POWER...

4. DURING THE THREE YEARS HE TRAVELLED NO MORE THAN 200 MILES IN ANY

DIRECTION. AT 33 YEARS OLD HE WAS EXECUTED LIKE A CRIMINAL, DISGRACED, PENNILESS AND ALONE...YET...

5. TODAY, OVER 1,500 MILLION PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD WORSHIP HIM AS

GOD. SO HOW COME?


6. QUESTION: ‘DID HE EVEN EXIST?’

FACT: THERE IS A MASS OF EVIDENCE/PROOF FOR THE EXISTENCE OF JESUS

e.g,, Tacitus and Suetonius (Roman historians), Josephus (Jewish historian), 5,000 Greek Manuscripts, 10,000 Latin manuscripts, 36,000 Citings in the writings of the early Church Fathers.

7. OK, SO HE EXISTED... BUT WHAT DID HE DO?

Had to learn Had to work born

tempted HE WAS A HUMAN tired

BEING showed sadness hungry

loved died got angry BUT CHRISTIANS ALSO BELIEVE HE: WORKED MIRACLES GAVE US WISE TEACHING HAD AN EXTRAORDINARY PERSONALITY FULFILLED OLD TESTAMENT PROPHECY ROSE FROM THE DEAD

8 SO WHAT DID HE SAY ABOUT HIMSELF?

I AM THE WAY, THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE.

HUNGER →→→→ I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE.

DARKNESS →→→→ I AM THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD.

DEATH →→→→ I AM THE RESURRECTION AND THE LIFE. WHOEVER BELIEVES IN ME WILL NEVER DIE.

WORRY →→→→ COME TO ME, ALL YOU WHO ARE WEARY...

AND I WILL GIVE YOU REST.

FOLLOW ME.


9. ‘TO HAVE SEEN ME IS TO HAVE SEEN THE FATHER.’

• HE FORGAVE SINS

• HE SAID HE WOULD JUDGE THE WORLD; HE SAID HE COULD GIVE ETERNAL LIFE.

He said He was

GOD 10. THOMAS KNELT DOWN BEFORE JESUS AND SAID,

‘MY LORD AND MY GOD.’

JESUS DIDN’T SAY, ‘NO, NO, DON’T BE DAFT ... I’M NOT GOD!’ HE SAID,‘YOU BELIEVE BECAUSE YOU CAN SEE ME. HAPPY ARE THOSE WHO HAVE NOT SEEN AND YET BELIEVE.’

THE CHOICE

JESUS WAS EITHER

RIGHT ⇐⇐⇐⇐ OR ⇒⇒⇒⇒ WRONG

BAD 1

MAD 2

GOD 3


5. Teacher tells the Mountain story.

THE MOUNTAIN If you have students in the group who are very religious, but not Christian, then it is important that they do not feel uneasy or uncomfortable by any of the input. Therefore at some point in the course it is worth discussing ‘The Mountain’. Draw a picture of a mountain on the board and describe how, when you walk around it, the mountain takes on a different shape (draw another differently shaped picture of the same mountain from another angle). In fact from the side it may not look like the same mountain. From wherever you stand the mountain always looks slightly different. However, there is only one mountain. Similarly, there is only one God. No two people have exactly the same view of God, or relationship with Him, or say the same prayers, or hold the same beliefs. Point out that there are many paths up the mountain, some are long and winding, some are more direct, but ultimately we are all journeying to the same place and if we place our trust in God we will all eventually come together at the summit. When we eventually die and meet God he will not be all that concerned about the path we took up the mountain – he will want to know whether or not we got to the summit, i.e. did we learn to love God and our neighbour as ourselves. You can end by saying that for you Christianity is the path you are taking, for you it is the easiest and best way, however this does not mean that you don’t respect the other major religions like Islam and Judaism. Also point out that there are various cults which often promise to take you up the right path, but ultimately bring you back down again. End with this quote from Gandhi “Religions are different roads converging to the same point. What does it matter that we take different roads as long as we reach the same goal? In reality there are as many different religions as there are individuals”.

Dispel myths about THE ONLY PATH, the one truth path, the best way. We must try and get to the top, but there are may ways to get there. [5 min] 6. Experience of God

(a) In small groups Ask students ‘What experiences of God, if any, have you had?’ Students write down on rough paper. Get students to talk about/share their experience. Gently ask them about their experience (some will have written nothing down, so pick those first who have something down on paper).

(b) Testimony: Give your own personal testimony. Share something from your life

e.g. how God became more real for you through prayer, how you have felt, at times, the closeness of God. [10 min]

Closing Prayer: Almighty God, we know that whatever our colour, gender or faith

background, you love and care for each one of us. We are all your children and we are all special and unique in your eyes. Bless each one of us and help us to appreciate that we are all brothers and sisters, one family united in our belief in the one true God.

[1 min]


Session Four: The Promise of the Spiritual Path Preparation:-

• Copy A Manual For the Spiritual Path handout for each small group 1. In groups complete the sentence (on rough paper) ‘I believe that God …

(write down the most important thing for you about God). Discuss. [10 min] 2. Feedback to whole group most important thing from each group. [5 min] 3. Leader provides input on God’s promises and key points (use OHP).

• God created us all, and the world.

• We are God’s children, he loves us and takes care of us, and he wants us to love him and build a relationship with him. He has promised us that if we turn to him he will help us and provide us with everything we need (there is no need for us to be anxious or troubled).

• We are brothers and sisters and so we must take care of each other. God lives in each one of us, so we must respect and love our neighbour and build relationships with our neighbour.

• God wants us to be happy, and wants us to act in a way which respects ourselves and others. We must choose to do good and avoid evil.

• We have a body and a spirit. Death is not the end as our soul lives on.

• Wherever you find love you will find God (God is love). Wherever you find hatred, you will find evil.

GOD Creator God

relationship - 2 way relationship – one to another

With God we can be truly happy - we go back to God at death -

Heart – love. God is love. [10 min] 4. Small groups – What do I have to do if I want to go down the spiritual path? Using ‘A

Manual for the Spiritual Path’ handout, devise a Top Tips manual for seekers on the spiritual path. Hand it in at the end. Peer RE Teachers hand in to teacher immediately after session (put Peer RE teachers name on the sheet).

This can then be converted into a manual for the next session as in the example on page 18

[15 min]


Closing Prayer: Dear Lord, here I am, with all my failings, my fears, my current problems, my unfulfilled ambitions and dreams. Please take me, and start to make me what you want me to be. I am deeply sorry for all that has been wrong in my life. Please forgive me. I now turn from everything which I know is wrong. Please help my love for you to grow - and, Lord, I gladly accept your friendship now. I thank you that there is going to be a growing awareness of your love - and that you will be exerting a good influence upon me all the time. Please come into my life and be with me forever.


A MANUAL FOR THE SPIRITUAL PATH Put down your top tips and suggestions for people wanting to set off down the spiritual path. Everyone must try and put down at least one top tip. (These will be compiled into a ‘manual’ for the next session.) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19 20.

Alm

ighty

God, as I jo

urn

ey thro

ugh life,

Help m

e to

make tim

e fo

r you,

For it is only

in you that m

y h

eart w

ill find

true happin

ess

MANUAL F

OR T

HE

SPIR

ITUAL P

ATH

Tips and suggestions for setting off down the spiritual path, compiled by

RME group as part of the Peer RE Programme

Take time to live. It is what life

is fo

r.

Take time for justice. It is the beg

innin

g of pea

ce.

Take time to listen and look afresh.

You w

ill be filled

with surp

rise

s.

Take time to search.

It is th

e se

cret of

per

pet

ual

youth

. Take time to laugh It is m

usic fo

r th

e so

ul.

Take time to pray It is th

e gre

atest p

ower

on earth.

Take time for solitude It re

viv

es the sp

irit.

Take time to sow It giv

es p

ersp

ective on life.

Take time to reap It b

rings gra

titu

de.

Take time to heal It is full of hope.

Take time to love It is the re

aso

n for livin

g.

2


What do I need to do to follow the Spiritual Path?

• Pray regularly

• Be forgiving

• Love one and another

• Go to church or your place of worship

• Share with others

• Believe in God even when times are bad

• Read the Scriptures and your Holy Books

• Be charitable to others

• Don’t be greedy

• Help others in need

• Try to follow in the footsteps of Jesus

• Walk in love

• Take up your Cross and follow God

• Be aware of what is bad in the world

and make sure you turn away from it

• Choose a religion and follow it

• Follow the commandments (of

whatever religion you choose)

• Be honest and truthful with God

• Help other people

• Believe

• If you are lost find the beginning of the

path

• Follow the right direction even if it

makes you unpopular

• Be inspired by other people

• Be open to suggestions (not narrow minded)

• Avoid the material path, “you may get lost”

• Always choose good rather than evil

• Take time for God

• Make a commitment to God

• Resist temptation don’t be swayed by peer

pressure

• Above all, love God


Session Five: Who is My Neighbour? Preparation:-

• Produce Manual for the Spiritual Path (p.18) using the suggestions from the groups. Photocopy and give out to each student at the start of the lesson.

• Photocopy Who Is My Neighbour worksheet (p.21)

1. Give out worksheet of Who is My Neighbour to whole class. In small groups discuss [5 min]

a) How do these make you feel? b) How do you think God wants us to behave in relation to our neighbour? c) ‘Actions speak louder than words.’ – what does this mean? d) ‘You will know someone by their fruits.’ Explain. [Focus on the need for justice, we are all

equal in God’s eyes, all must be treated as we ourselves would like to be treated, God lives in us all, therefore we must treat our neighbour with dignity and love.]

[10 min] 2. Teacher : Spiritual path is about having faith in God but it’s also about actions. We can’t be a

spiritual person if we ignore our neighbour. The Muslim scriptures say “He who eats and drinks whilst his brother goes hungry is not one of us “ (Hadith). The Bible says [INSERT James 2:14-17]. [1 min]

3. Give out the manual to each person. Tick the things you are going to try in your own lives, and

discuss in the group. [15 min] 4. Teacher: Communication is essential on the spiritual path. We need to communicate with each

other and with God. Types of prayer: Sorry Thank you Please [5 min] 5. Discuss how you need “Faith, Evidence and Experience in the spiritual life. We believe through

FAITH. Say you can’t prove 100% God’s existence. What do you need to convince you he exists? EVIDENCE (eg Scriptures, miracles etc) are helpful but what would really convince you that he exists? Wait for the answer to come, i.e. you’d need to meet him, get to know him, have a relationship with him - EXPERIENCE his friendship. Write on board FAITH + EVIDENCE + EXPERIENCE. Unless we can encounter God, unless we can experience his love and power in our lives then religion may well be a dull affair. We need Faith and Evidence (Scriptures etc.), but we need to meet God. We don’t really need to know about God, we need to get to know him.

6 Explain the nature of the last session. No-one will feel uncomfortable. We will all pray together

– no-one will have to say anything. Relax and listen. Readings from the Bhagavad Gita, Koran and the Bible. You will find it a wonderful experience.

[1 min]

7. Closing Prayer: Bow heads/close eyes. Let us be quiet for a moment and let’s ask God to give each one of us the gift of His Spirit. Stay silent for about 30 seconds. [1 min]


PEER RE – Who is My Neighbour?

Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack”, he said. “Go sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me”. At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad because he had great wealth. Jesus looked round and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God”.

(Mark 10:21-23)

Those who in charity spend of their goods by night and by day, in secret and in public, have their reward with their Lord.

(Qur’an 2:274)

If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children let us not love with words or tongue, but with actions and in truth.

(1John 3:17,18)

He who eats and drinks whilst his brother goes hungry is not one of us.

(Hadith)

For though the will to do what is good is in me, the power is not: the good thing I want to do, I never do; the evil thing which I do not want – that is what I do.

(Paul’s letter to the Romans 7:19)

What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can his faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go I wish you well; keep warm and well-fed”, but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action is dead.

(James 2:14-17)

(James 2:14-17)

The earth was made for all, rich and poor, in common. Why do you rich claim it as your exclusive right?

(St Ambrose (340-397 AD)


Session Six : Let Us Pray

1. Preparation a. Photocopy Contemplation Made Easy worksheet (p 25) to distribute at the end. b. Arrive early so that you can create the right atmosphere in the room. Have a cassette tape playing

as they arrive, candles if possible. c. Tell everyone they will really enjoy the session - they don’t have to say or do anything - they just

have to relax. It is an opportunity to put into practice everything we have discussed on the course so far, and it is an opportunity to receive the Spirit of God in a special way. Emphasise that the Spirit of God will always come to those who ask.

d. Say that stress is a major problem in our society today. Statistics show that everyone suffers from

stress (and one person in seven in the UK will be hospitalised at some point in their lives for stress related mental illness). So we need to know how to relax, and in order to pray properly we need to know how to get rid of stress from our lives. Say it does not matter whether we are Christian, Hindu, or Muslim, whatever faith we have, we can enjoy this session, because it is an opportunity to glorify God; and experience him in our lives.

NB: It is often better for just one person to lead this meditation - the group will get used to your voice

and different people speaking can be a distraction.

2. Relaxation Get comfortable in the chair, both feet on the ground, hands resting on your lap, eyes closed, head level.

3. Breathing Take 4 or 5 slow deep breaths, holding your breath a little, then breathing out in a slow controlled way. Without forcing it, try to get into a slow, regular rhythm as you become more relaxed.

4. Awareness - of your body Focus on the forehead, often the centre of stress, let the worry lines disappear, feel the tension ease away. Move onto your jaw muscles (unclench your teeth) relax all the muscles in your head. Then shoulders, upper arms, hands (feel how heavy they become pressing into your lap), upper body, legs, feet (pressing into the floor). Phrases to repeat as you lead this meditation include:

• Other thoughts and ideas will come into your head, don’t worry about them, just gently let them go.

• As you become more and more relaxed continue to breath in a relaxed rhythmic way.

• Feel the tension ease away and enjoy the feeling of being relaxed.

5. Awareness of God’s presence Say these words slowly and softly. Leave gaps between each sentence, don’t gabble! Allow time for each sentence to sink in. Become aware of God’s presence - in Creation, in the room with you, in your neighbour, and in yourself. You don’t need to travel far to find God - he is within us, in our hearts, waiting for us to turn to him. Be aware of the God who created you, who knows every hair on your head, every thought in your mind, who loves you totally and completely. He listens to our prayer, and he fills us with his Spirit. Thank God for being here and for taking care of you.


6. Invitation Invite the Spirit of God to come into your heart and ask him to guide you. As you become aware of the Spirit within you, allow any tension and anxiety to leave you; link this to your breathing - on the inward breath receive the Spirit and on every outward breath release stress and negativity. Ask God to forgive you for any things you feel you may have done wrong in the past (pause for a few moments at this point while students ask for forgiveness). Know that God has listened to your prayer and has forgiven you. On every inward breath experience the healing forgiveness of God.

7. Read slowly the extracts below. Muslims proclaim that:

“God is most great. I bear witness that there is no God but God….. Come to prayer. Prayer is better than sleep”.

Jesus says:

‘I give you a new commandment: love one another; just as I have loved you you also must love one another ...’ ‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God still, and trust in me ...’ ‘Anybody who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I shall love him and show myself to him ...’ Peace I give to you, my own peace I give you, a peace the world cannot give, this is my gift to you Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid ...’ ‘Whoever remains in me, with me in him, bears fruit in plenty. For cut off from me you can do nothing ...’ ‘Do you believe at last? I have told you all this so that you may find peace in me. In the world you will have trouble, but be brave: I have conquered the world.’

The Hindu scriptures say: “This joy supreme comes to the one whose heart is still, whose passions are at peace, who is pure from sin, who is one with God. He sees himself in the heart of all beings and he sees all beings in his heart ….. He who in this oneness of love, loves me in whatever he sees, wherever this man may live, in truth this man lives in me”. (Bhagavad Gita 6:27-31)


8. The Spirit Let us now invite the Spirit of God to come to us in a special way, as he did to the disciples on the day of Pentecost. Be sure that God will send his Spirit to all who ask. After a few minutes of silence, say, ‘Let us now ask the Spirit of God to come on each one of us. As I read out the names of each person here let us pray for that person and ask for them to be filled with the Spirit of God; just silently say a short prayer for each person, asking God to be with them.’ Go around the room gently calling out the names of each student, leaving a gap between each one. Look at each person as you pray for them - make sure you include the other Peer RE teachers and finally yourself. 9. Rest ‘Come to me...and I will give you rest.’ Enjoy being in God’s presence. There is no need for words or thoughts necessarily, pray with your heart, turn your gaze towards God, and simply enjoy being with him. Don’t worry if you get distracted or your mind fills with other thoughts - just gently let such distractions go and focus on wanting to rest here in God’s presence and love him.

7. End Let us thank God for being here with us today and filling us with his peace and love. As we end this course let us take this peace around with us in our hearts for the rest of the day. Let us remember to treat others with respect and dignity. Let us pray that our renewed awareness of God will make a big difference to our lives after this course is over and bring us much happiness and fulfilment in the future. We pray that each day will bring a growing awareness of the love God has for us, and bring us closer to Him and to each other. Amen. Tell everyone to slowly open their eyes, and stretch their muscles . Remind them to continue to pray every day. Thank them for being so enthusiastic, such a good group etc. Tell them that after the course people often want to ask further questions etc and you will hang around after the lesson for a while. Give out ‘Contemplation Made Easy handout. This handout will help the students to develop contemplation at home. Closing remarks. If you’ve been touched by God on this course then continue along this spiritual path – don’t turn

back. It’s a journey, not a march to a destination – all of us are at different parts on the path. Don’t be discouraged by setbacks along the road. Remember that God will always take care of you and remember all the things that he has promised you. Trust in God – he will never let you down.


CONTEMPLATION MADE EASY Opening Exercise 1 Get a book with lots of paintings or photographs in it. Flick through spending just 2 or 3

seconds looking at each picture. After 3 minutes stop and try to remember some of the pictures you have seen.

2 Now, select just one picture and gaze at it for 3 minutes. Take time to appreciate the detail,

colours, style and beauty. What is happening in the picture? Is there a meaning or significance to it, what was the artist or photographer trying to achieve? Get inside the mood of the artist, step into the picture yourself perhaps. Study it with your heart as well as your eyes and mind – contemplate and appreciate what you are seeing.

The more you focus on something the more you get out of it, and you will probably find the second exercise far more satisfying and meaningful. The same is true of prayer, focusing on one simple prayer or phrase, or just one word, can often be far more fulfilling than racing through a long shopping list of prayers – depth is always better than quantity. There are many different types of prayer, but one which is becoming increasingly popular in the West is contemplative prayer. In Eastern religions (especially Zen Buddhism) meditation and contemplation have always been essential to the spiritual life, and there is a rich tradition of contemplative prayer in Christianity. Indeed for most of Christian history, resting in a loving, contemplative awareness of God was an accepted and widespread form of prayer, and it is only in the last 4 or 5 centuries that a more elaborate type of mental prayer took its place. Three types of Prayer 1 Vocal Prayer – words are spoken or sung. This can be formalised or spontaneous. 2 Meditation – no words are spoken but the mind is active, focusing on a mental picture or

reflecting on God in some way. 3 Contemplation – the lips and mind are still while the heart reaches out to God in wordless

prayer; there is an awareness of God’s presence and of his love for us. We can experience our oneness with God and with our fellow men.

The importance of contemplative prayer 1 Jesus practised contemplative prayer by going out into the desert or to the top of a mountain to

rest with his Father in quiet solitude. Strengthened and renewed by this experience he would then come back to teach and serve his people and help build up the community.

2 It allows us to relax in the presence of God, and helps us to get rid of the tension, stress and anger of everyday life.

3 Regular contemplation can alter our whole way of life. As the Spirit rests within us we can become calmer, more contented and more at peace with ourselves and the world.

4 We can discover our true selves – we can see ourselves as we really are and learn to relate more honestly to others.

5 Our prayer life is strengthened and renewed as we get closer to God. 6 We can discover new energy and vitality to improve our relationship with others and to help

build up the community in which we live. Getting started Some people have felt that contemplative prayer must be very difficult and can only be practised in monasteries and convents by very holy people who have received years of spiritual training. This is not true, anyone can get started and no special training is required. It can be done in groups or alone, in church or in your own home, at work or school, on the bus or doing the dishes – anywhere in fact. However the best conditions are probably going to be when you are alone, ‘when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father in secret’ (Matthew 6.6).


Another misconception is that this kind of prayer requires hours of practice every day. Clearly the more you do it, the better it should become, but contemplative prayer can be practised for just 5 minutes a day if that is how you want to start. Similarly there are certain bodily postures that many people use (especially in Eastern prayer), but again these are not essential – feeling comfortable and relaxed is the most important point. The golden rule is not to over-complicate the process; simple methods tend to work best, and once you have found a form of contemplation that suits you then stick with it. Try the following exercise: A Method of Contemplative Prayer 1 Relaxation – Sit in a chair and get yourself comfortable, both feet on the ground, hands resting

on your lap, eyes closed, head level. 2 Breathing – Take 4 or 5 slow deep breaths, through the nose if you can, filling the lungs each

time, hold your breath a little, then breathing out in a slow controlled way. Without forcing it, try to get into a slow regular rhythm as you become more relaxed.

3 Awareness – of God’s Presence. Become aware of God’s presence – in Creation, in the room

with you, in your neighbour, and in yourself. You don’t need to travel far to find God – he is within us, in our hearts, waiting for us to turn to him. Be aware of the God who created you, who knows every hair on your head, every thought in your mind, who loves you totally and completely. He listens to our prayer, and he fills us with his Spirit.

4 Invitation – Invite the Spirit to come into your hearts and ask him to guide you. As you become

aware of the Spirit within you, allow any tension and anxiety to leave you; perhaps link this to your breathing – on the inward breath receive the Spirit and on every outward breath release stress and negativity.

5 Rest – ‘Come to me ... and I will give you rest.’ Enjoy being in God’s presence. There is no need for words or thoughts necessarily, pray with your heart, turn your gaze towards God, and simply enjoy being with him. Don’t worry if you get distracted or your mind fills with other thoughts – just gently let such distractions go and focus on wanting to rest here in God’s presence and love him. ‘Be still and know that I am God’ (Psalm 46.10).

Developing Contemplative Prayer Some people like to focus on a word, phrase or piece of scripture and repeat it slowly: ‘Jesus’, ‘Love’, ‘Come Holy Spirit’, ‘Come Lord Jesus’, ‘I am the Way, the Truth and the Life’. (This can also be linked to your rhythmical breathing). You may prefer to contemplate an image such as Mary sitting at the feet of Jesus in Martha’s house (Luke 10.38 – 42) ‘you worry and fret about so many things, and yet few are needed, indeed only one’. Imagine yourself at the feet of Jesus and enjoy just being in his presence. Another variation is to focus on a lighted candle, with the image ‘Jesus the Light of the World’. Always remember though that often the less you have in your mind the deeper you are able to go. The important thing is not to worry about the methods you use, or the order in which you do things; there are no set rules to obey or processes to follow. ‘How’ we get there is not important – the point of contemplative prayer is to become aware of God’s presence and his love for us, and to open ourselves up, so that we can return his love, and deepen our personal relationship with him. Becoming aware of God’s presence is crucial in the busy lives we lead today, and contemplation can be enjoyed by anyone, anywhere at any time. Indeed it is often in the busiest and noisiest places that contemplation is most required, to refresh and reduce the stresses of modern life, and to make us aware that God is present in all aspects of his Creation. Try contemplation whilst cleaning the house, gardening or while you are at work or school, and instead of seeing prayer as a separate activity for a Sunday or a special time, we can perhaps come to regard everything we do as a prayer.

Peer RE Book 2 Handbook€¦ · Do you agree? What things can you identify with yourself that you...

Documents

Transcript of Peer RE Book 2 Handbook€¦ · Do you agree? What things can you identify with yourself that you...