Montessori for Catholics

 

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 Our Lady of the Chair

 

“The little ones may not be able to understand

the symbolic meaning of the Madonna of the Chair,

but they would see in it something greater

than the other pictures which show

fathers, mothers, grandparents, and babies.

 

They would enfold it in their hearts with religious feelings.”

                                                                 

(Maria Montessori)

Unknown to many, Maria Montessori was a devout Catholic. My favorite MM (Montessori Method) book is Discovery of the Child. In this book is where Maria's Catholic faith is expressed in her writing. Maria Montessori chose the Madonna of the Chair as her emblem, and hung a copy of the painting high up on the wall in each of the Children's Houses. In her own words she said:

Indeed the Children's Houses represent not only social progress but also the progress of humanity; they are intimately bound up with the elevation of motherhood, with the advancement of women, and with the protection of posterity. The Madonna idealized by the divine Raphael is not only lovely and sweet, a sublime virgin and mother with her adorable baby, but beside this perfect symbol of real, living maternity, was the figure of John the Baptist, who represents for us in the fresh beauty of babyhood the cruel sacrifices of him who went before to prepare the way. Further, it introduced a work of art by the greatest Italian artist, and if, some day, Children's Houses are scattered throughout the world, Raphael's picture will be there to speak eloquently of the land of its origin.     (from Discovery of the Child).

Catechesis of the Good Shepherd

Montessori herself admitted... on more than one occasion that in the working out of her own educational ideas she learned much from what she called the "pedagogical method" of the Church...Furthermore...her own method could only find its fullest expression when applied to the teaching of the Catholic faith.

(From The Child in the Church by E.M. Standing)

Maria Montessori founded her educational methods on the scientific observation of children and although she did not directly include a program of Catholic catechesis in her original course of study she inserted evidence of her Faith in her writing and throughout the environment of the Casa Bambini - the Children's House.

There were some schools such as the one in Barcelona, Spain - highlighted in The Child and the Church by E.M. Standing - that did directly apply Montessori's method of education to the teaching of the Catholic Faith. The experience that touched me most deeply is where the children carefully grew, in their garden,  the wheat and grapes that were to be used for the hosts and the wine for their First Communion. The children also went into retreat five days before their First Communion and temporarily "lived apart" from their companions spending time in the garden caring for the animals and collecting little bouquets for Jesus, eating alone, etc.

It was Sofia Cavalletti and Gianna Gobbi however, who authored several books and specifically addressed using Montessori methods as a Catechist (one who teaches the Faith). The Introduction of their book "Teaching Doctrine and Liturgy" reads:

The Montessori method is not a religion. It is only a way of helping small children to educate themselves. But this way is one that is naturally religious. It is based on a sense of awe before truth, of reverence for all the works of God's hands, of minute care and perfection in every action, of deep respect for the human person created in the image of God (even if that person is only two years old). Self-control, recollections, contemplation, silence, grace, courtesy, mutual help, - those are its tools and its aims. It is easy to see how a person whose religious sense has been thwarted in a secularized life might confuse religion itself with a way of education based on naturally sacred values."

The name of Montessori is in the public domain, meaning anyone can legally use the Montessori name, but there are no guarantees that the method or its foundations are true to the founder's intent. Today many of the Montessori schools step around a commitment to any true religious beliefs in the name of being non-sectarian and technically they have every "right" to do that. Worse yet, a number of schools have used Montessori's methods as a smokescreen for introducing New Age philosophies. I was first alarmed when, on a Montessori web site, as I read the hymn "Let There be Peace on Earth,"  I saw that the  wording had been changed from:

     "...with God as our Father, brothers all are we..."
    to the words "...with earth as our Mother, neighbors all are we..."
Be assured that the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd training is based soundly in Catholic doctrine. The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is,  however, often used in Christian but non-Catholic settings and many Christian churches have adapted the presentations to the particular doctrine of the church using it. I completed the first part of my Level I training for ages 3-6 over the summer 2004 and I will highly recommend this program - I have not seen any catechesis program with more "meat" for the Catholic faith than this one.

For more on the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd

National organization for the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd

Courses for Catechesis of the Good Shepherd training
 
Catholic Learning Materials is a discussion egroup and we especially welcome those who want to incorporate Montessori methods into the teaching of the Catholic Faith and those who are trained in the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd.

 

Does your home have both an American flag and a Catholic flag?

(right) The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the Holy See  next to the the Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag. The 3-holed flag stand and the United States, State of South Dakota and Vatican flags are from Quinn Flags.

The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the Holy See can be found HERE.

Recommended CGS RESOURCES:

[Cover]    [Cover]

Sing with Joy -  songbook with CD recording to use with children ages 3 to 6.

Songs of Love -  songbook with CD recording to use with children ages 3 to 6.

 

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A is for Altar, B is for Bible - Each letter A-Z represented with a beautiful hand painted images from the atrium and a scriptural or liturgical quote.

 

Seed of God - A series of books for children age 3-7 to prepare for an deepen their baptismal life. Meditations with simple drawings and few words. Each book written in English and Spanish. Translated by Maria Ludlow.

 

[Cover]

Remember the Lord your God: A History of the Jewish People - Color timeline of the history of Israel with scroll and booklets. Timeline measures 15 x 120.

 

See our recommendations for more Catechesis materials HERE

 

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Last modified: 05/20/08