Inviting Kids to Use Mass Journals

Jane Korvemaker explains how to help your children use Mass journals to grow their faith and love of God.

I want my children to love the Mass like I do. I want them to understand that if certain aspects of it are not to their liking, they are still fed and satisfied at the table of our Lord. There is, however, a discrepancy between my adult experience of faith and their child experience of faith. And if there’s one thing I’ve come to learn, it’s that I cannot force them to experience Mass in the way that I do. While my efforts to physically or verbally demonstrate my own love of the Mass every week are important, I recognise that each of my children already has a relationship with God and they need tools to help them build that relationship in as much as they need me there beside them showing them what that relationship can look like.

I have been fortunate to receive training in Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, an evangelisation and catechesis program based on Montessori. It has helped me to understand my children’s faith better and be able to respond to their spiritual needs by providing proper tools for them to grow in their relationship with God.

It is from this training that we have started Mass journals for my two youngest. Artwork is to a child what journaling is to an adult—it might not be the right fit for everyone, but it often is a tool for children to express their joy and love for God when growing in their faith.

This is how it works for us:

They each have their own book with blank pages (we got ours from the dollar store) and a tool for drawing (pencil, pen, crayon, marker … whatever works).

We focus on part of the Gospel. Children, especially young children, can be overwhelmed by the information of the readings and we need to help them to focus on the richest part of the message that speaks to their needs. Overwhelmed can look like disinterest or doodling—they can’t process everything. If this is the case, there is an easy format to help them find that focus that ignites their faith imagination.

To find the richest part of the message for kids, we need to listen to the reading and determine what is God doing in this passage? This will be associated with a verb in the reading. Let’s try this out with this coming Sunday’s reading: John 16: 12-15. Jesus is preparing His disciples for His departure, telling them about the Spirit who is to come and help them. And here we can find the verb: “he will guide you to all truth” (v.13). Guide is the verb that conveys what God (the Spirit) is doing in this passage. Therefore, the part of the Gospel we zoom in on for our kids is that portion: “But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you to all truth.” This small piece is rich enough for them to spark that imagination and love. 

We can do this before Mass if we are inclined, or we can do it as we are listening to the Gospel. My girls each have a children’s Missal that we follow along with at Mass; if they have trouble finding something that sparks for them, we look to the action words. 

Give them time during the homily to sketch what they imagine that action of God looks like. It is not our role to tell them what to draw or critique it. This work draws them into the heart of the Gospel, and we know that Jesus will meet them there, for he has promised us his presence in the Eucharist and in the Scriptures; he is the Word Incarnate.

I forewarn my girls that when the priest goes back to his chair, the markers/pens need to be put away. If they are not finished yet, they can continue their work after Mass. It mostly works out that they’re happy to finish if they haven’t already. 

After Mass I ask if they would like to share anything from their Mass journal with me. One of them usually does not, and the other one usually does. With her permission, you can see the work she’s done. The first needs a little explanation (and just a note that she was seven when she did these).

That Advent week’s drawing is on the right side of the book. There are two people; on the left is Jesus and he is getting his power from the Holy Spirit (the 'bird' above) into him and baptising a baby (indicated through the Spirit's power going into one hand and Jesus baptising with the other). On the right is John the Baptist; the Holy Spirit is working through John's hand to baptise a person (indicated through the Spirit's power going through John's one hand to the person). All I did was read one verse to her and she interpreted the rest, demonstrating an understanding that the Spirit is in Jesus in a different way than in John.

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Artwork often is a tool for children to express their joy and love for God when growing in their faith. #catholicmom

This is from Lent, when Jesus was tempted in the desert. She wrote her own reflection of what the Gospel meant for her.

My girls both including writing occasionally in their reflections; they are old enough that it appeals to them sometimes. Both are good ways to encourage them to grow in their relationship with God. And sometimes there are cats or Pokémon in the picture … it’s not always how we expect, but we can accept their work with love.

For another type of Mass journaling for our kids, Ginny Kochis (another Catholic Mom writer) has produced some great journals for families!

Have you found a useful way to help your children grow in their faith? What does it look like in your family?

Copyright 2022 Jane Korvemaker
Images: (top) Canva; all others copyright 2022 Jane Korvemaker, all rights reserved.