For many years, I’ve been blessed by being able to teach our tiny parish’s Confirmation Class. Teaching our Confirmation Class is always rewarding, but rarely do the children make any sort of a young Catholic’s Theological Breakthrough.
Today, one of the students did make a young Catholic’s Theological Breakthrough regarding John 8: 1-11. He connected it in a new way with The Church’s teaching about the Immaculate Conception, a previously studied subject in which the moral perfection of The Blessed Mother was discussed.
This Sunday, our textbook recounted the passage describing what happened to The Woman Caught in Adultery. She was dragged before Jesus as a mob of self-righteous zealots formed. They prepared to stone her because that was the punishment prescribed by Moses.
The scribes and Pharisees asked Jesus what to do. Jesus said, “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.”
Beginning with the elders, the men walked away. Soon, the woman was left alone with Jesus. Jesus told her, “Go, and sin no more.”
As the students began to discuss the wisdom of Jesus, 12 year old Mr. Christman spoke up: “If Mary had been there, she could have cast the first stone.”
I believe that he made a young Catholic’s Theological Breakthrough.
