Repost: Stories & Scripture- Doubting Thomas

In honor of St. Thomas' appearance in today's Gospel, I thought I'd repost this activity from a couple of years ago.  Poor Thomas gets a bad rep for his "doubt,"  but there is more to Thomas than this one story.  Don't forget that when Jesus told the apostles that Lazarus had died, and it had happened so that they would believe, Thomas said, "Let us also go, that we may die with him."  He was eager, that guy, to follow Jesus, but sometimes put his foot in his mouth, a lot like Peter.  Let's remember Thomas as the one that believed that Jesus had risen and called Him, "My Lord and My God."  We all have to move from doubt to belief, and he gave us a model to follow.

Last fall, I was asked to present at a workshop for CCD and Catholic School teachers.  The theme for the evening was "Making the Secular Holy."

I spent the summer thinking about ways that we can use the secular resources around us in our classrooms and our home to deliver a message of Truth to the kids that we love.  Now don't get me wrong, there are some wonderful books and movies out there that teach directly about Christ and His Church.  However, they might not be as readily available, might be more expensive, might not be as attractive, etc.  Let's be honest- most American homes have a copy of The Cat in the Hat, but few have The Weight of a Mass.

So let's teach our kids to find meaning in all things around them, that God can be found in the movies they watch and the books they read, even if they don't have an obvious tie.

This and following posts will have links to a one page sheet with questions, activities, and prayers that show the connection between a well loved secular children's book and a story from the Bible.
Included are questions to ask for each story, ways to bring them together, and connections to the Sacraments and Saints.

First up: The Kissing Hand & Doubting Thomas, a lesson in believing when you can't see.
Click on the document for a link to the real thing.

Happy reading!

You might also like to check out:

Click, Clack,  Moo & Ask, Seek, Knock

 Curious George & Zacchaeus

 The Giving Tree & The Prodigal Son

 Stone Soup & The Feeding of the 5000