Welcome to Oblate Academy!

Introducing our children to stories and experiences that model the virtues are important for their development in cultivating a virtuous and purposeful life.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us:
A virtue is a firm attitude to do what is right. Its direct opposite is a vice. A vice is a habit to do what is wrong. Prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance are called the human or cardinal virtues because they forge our human character. These four habits assist us in developing a pure heart that is open to God’s will.

“The moral virtues grow through education, deliberate acts and perseverance in struggle. Divine grace (God’s special help that strengthens us) purifies and elevates the virtues in our lives.”
Catechism of the Catholic Church #1839

I hope you will enjoy the straightforward and easily understandable explanations and resources we have prepared to help you teach and model the virtues.

Fr. David P. Uribe, OMI

This Month’s Virtue is: Forgiveness

“[And] be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another as God has forgiven you in Christ.” (Ephesians 4:32)

Teaching Tips:

  • Explain to your child the meaning of Forgiveness. Forgiveness is a conscious, deliberate decision to release feelings of resentment or vengeance toward a person or group who has harmed you, regardless of whether you feel they actually deserve your forgiveness. Forgiveness does not mean forgetting, nor does it mean condoning or excusing offenses. Just as God has forgiven us, we must forgive others.
  • Teach your child that these feeling of anger and hatred can cause harm to the person feeling them, so Jesus taught us to try to let them go. In the parable of the Prodigal Son, the father forgives his son when he returns and welcomes him home. In the same way, God waits for humans to realize what they have done wrong, ask for forgiveness and welcomes them back when they do. It is the willingness to ask for forgiveness and change one’s behavior that is central to the idea of forgiveness.
  • Pray the Lord’s Prayer, then discuss the meaning of “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” Forgiving someone who has caused us harm or pain is difficult to do. But explain to them that Jesus forgave those who crucified him. This act of forgiveness shows that any act can be forgiven. Jesus is teaching us to ask for forgiveness — something that we all need, because we all have sinned.
  • Explain to your child that sometimes forgiveness can take time, it is not always easy, and we may need to forgive someone multiple times. The Lord’s Prayer can help comfort us and help us pray for forgiveness.

Extensions for 3rd – 5th grades

Welcome to Oblate Academy!

Exposing our children to stories of the Saints is important for their faith development. The Saints are heroes of the faith! We are called to be like them and to live for Jesus.

I hope you will enjoy the story of St. Patrick and have the same passion for spreading the Gospel that he did!

Much like St. Patrick, my brother Missionary Oblates travel far and wide to bring Jesus’ love to the poorest and most abandoned throughout the world.

Saint of the Month for April:
St. Patrick

“My God will full supply whatever you need, in accord with his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”  (Philippians 4:19)

St. Patrick was born in Romain Britain. His birthplace and exact birthdate are not known, but he is believed to be born around the year 385. He was a fifth-century Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland. He is known as the “Apostle of Ireland,” and today he is the primary saint of Ireland.

Patrick was never fully canonized because he was living prior to the current laws of the Catholic Church. However, he is still seen as a Saint in the Catholic Church. Early medieval tradition credits him with being the first bishop of Armagh and Primate of Ireland and names him as the founder of Christianity in Ireland.

Patrick’s father Calpurnius was a tax collector, senator, and a deacon. His grandfather Potitus was a priest from Bonaven Tabernia. However, Patrick was not an active believer in his youth.

At age 16, he was captured and enslaved by a group of Irish pirates, who would hold him captive for six years. During his captivity, he worked as a shepherd and strengthened his relationship with God through prayer, eventually converting to Christianity. After six years of captivity, he heard a voice telling him he would soon go home and that a ship was waiting.

He fled to a port 200 miles away, where he persuaded the captain to take him on the ship. He sailed for three days until they landed in Britain. He then walked for 28 days in a wilderness, where he became very faint and hungry — but he prayed to God for sustenance and asked his group to have faith in God. After Patrick prayed, they encountered a herd of wild boar, and his prestige in the group increased. After various adventures, he returned home in his early twenties to Britain, where he continued to study Christianity.

Patrick had a vision and returned to Ireland as a Christian missionary. He traveled far and wide, baptizing and confirming with untiring passion. He brought gifts to the kings and lawmakers but accepted none in return. He lived in constant danger dealing with the non-Christian Irish. He was a very humble man and always gave thanks to God for choosing him as an instrument helping to convert people to Christianity. By the time of his death on March 17, he had established monasteries, churches, and schools. St Patrick’s feast day is March 17.

St. Patrick Prayer for Students

St. Patrick, please be my friend.
Help me to be like you and practice charity with others
and share the gifts God has given me every day.
Pray for me so I might serve the poor and others
in their time of need. St Patrick, pray for us!

Download the activity sheet and please send me your prayer requests and petitions in the form below!