MCFARLAND — If you strolled up to Christ the King Parish in McFarland on Thursday, July 21, the sidewalk would give you a hint of what you’d find inside.
Colorful chalk images with messages like “God Loves you!” hinted at both the faith and fun that had happened during that week.
The Diocese of Madison Totus Tuus team wrapped up its summer at Christ the King with the parish hosting the fifth session held in the diocese by that team.
Totus Tuus is a weeklong program held in the mornings for the younger children (kindergarten to fifth grade) and in the evenings for the teens (sixth to 12th grade).
Learning the faith
The morning session was in full swing on Thursday: Classroom sessions were alternated with prayer, Mass, lunch, and recess time outside.
Daily Mass marks a great opportunity for the kids to become accustomed to Mass outside of Sunday.
Pastor Fr. Stephen Brunner celebrated Mass, and several parishioners joined the kids in taking advantage of the opportunity.
Mass was followed by lunchtime, which started with the call, “Totus Tuus! Maria!”
The catchphrase is pragmatic because the kids know it means to be quiet for the leader about to speak, but it also holds the meaning of the program’s name. Totus Tuus, translated as “totally yours,” is St. John Paul II’s papal motto, and “Maria” is an appropriate response because the motto refers to Marian Consecration.
Mary plays a key role in the week, as the Mysteries of the Rosary are a focal point of the daily lessons, and are used to teach kids about the events in Christ’s life.
The Luminous Mysteries were this year’s focus, so Thursday was the Fourth Mystery: The Transfiguration.
The kids not only learned the story of the Transfiguration in lessons, but also prayed the mystery together, and worked on constructing a giant Rosary poster on the wall.
The class time also included an introduction to different types of prayer such as intercession and thanksgiving, an analysis of the “Our Father,” and a reminder to call on the saints.
These classroom sessions are kept brief and mixed in with the other activities, in order to keep the younger kids focused, but they are also reviewed throughout the day, to enable lessons to sink in.
Time for fun
The kids, of course, have plenty of energy after sitting still for any duration of time, so recess is a key part of the day.
They enjoyed kickball, soccer, and drawing with chalk on the church parking lot.
The weather, fortunately, was extremely cooperative.
“It’s been great,” Father Brunner commented, mentioning that even the evening sessions were able to be held outside, as the sun shone but it wasn’t unbearably hot.
Father Brunner was present not just at Mass but also for the fun, joining the kids and the leaders in kickball and lunch.
The kids were thrilled, chanting his name to beg him to pick their table.
The leaders also clearly went out of their way to really get to know the kids, including in little ways.
The classrooms had a “rock star” system to monitor behavior, with kids earning and losing rocks based on politeness, attention in class, and so on.
The system also extended to the leaders as well. If a leader couldn’t remember the kids’ names, the kids earned rocks.
These “rocks” are then tallied to show which class was best behaved, and the kids looked forward to their reward.
Part of the reward included Friday’s activities of a water fight and the chance to throw shaving cream all over a leader.
Even on Thursday, however, the session didn’t end without some fun.
Totus Tuus has used skits for years, and this summer’s sessions were no exception.
The children’s chant for “Totus Tuus Theater!” is answered by a comedic sketch about raisins being hunted by a spoon.
Evening session
However, that’s not the end of the day at Christ the King.
Thursday’s normal evening session was replaced by a special event: Taco Dinner with the Bishop.
The parish was quite gracious, as teen and adult volunteers had helped with Totus Tuus throughout the week, and the taco spread was clearly a labor of love.
One parishioner commented, “We’re delighted to have him,” and it showed.
The evening started with Father Brunner thanking the many whose efforts contributed both to Tutus Tuus and the dinner.
The dinner was a great opportunity as the parish at large was invited and the kids of Totus Tuus mingled with their elders who had come for the event.
After dinner, Bishop Hying gave a talk. The Totus Tuus leaders provided entertainment for the younger kids while the teens were able to replace their usual session by joining the adults for the bishop’s talk.
Bishop Hying expressed his appreciation for the Rosary focus of Totus Tuus.
His talk then focused on the most fundamental message of the Gospel, the kerygma.
This is the Good News, and he expressed his hope that all members of his audience would be able, if asked, to give this answer for why they are Catholic.
The bishop commented that in our present day, it is important to be able to tell people about Christ “as if they’ve never heard of Him — because they haven’t.”
The fact is that so many people think they know what it means to be Christian or Catholic, but really, they have many misconceptions. We, as Catholics, need to be able to express in a simple and direct way who Christ really is.
For this reason, he gave four points. One, God created everything good, including us. Two, sin messed everything up. Three, Christ came on a rescue mission. Four, our response to that rescue matters. That’s the bare bones of the Gospel, but it’s important that we be able to explain that these truths are why we’re in Church, why we come to thank God every week.
The bishop then opened the floor for a Q and A session, which had questions that ranged from his talk to current events, things you’ve always wanted to ask a bishop, and fun Catholic trivia, such as his favorite saints.
The parish was clearly grateful for the opportunity, and the bishop thanked them for their hospitality.
For more information on the Totus Tuus program in the Diocese of Madison, go to madisondiocese.org/totustuus