LOCAL AUTHOR KELLEY RENZ SHARES HER BOOKS
Kelley Renz has always wanted kids to realize how accessible God is.
“Kids are taught our formal prayers and I think they get the idea that you can only come to God with ‘big’ concerns – peace in the world, healing for this person who is sick, vocations. What we’ve forgotten to teach them is that God is concerned with their everyday things – friends, growing pains, not feeling as good as, picking on others.”
This is what motivated Kelley to write God Listens to Our Children: Kids’ Prayers for Every Day of the Liturgical Year (Our Sunday Visitor, $12.95; www.osv.com). God Listens is packed with over 300 prayers for kids on topics from arguing and bugs, to war, weakness and worry. These topics are sprinkled in prayers that fit each day of the liturgical year, written to coincide with that day’s Scripture readings.
“So kids learn the Bible as they pray,” the author says. “They learn a possible application of Jesus not being believed in by the people of his hometown – well, when do we doubt him, too?”
Renz also teamed up with Waynedale resident Theresa Driscoll to write, Catholic Faith Facts: Q & A for Lent and Easter (Our Sunday Visitor, $9.95).
“Theresa and I thought ‘what better way to help kids and adults realize all the connections and deeper meaning to what we do during Lent than to create a game of it?’ So we sat down (many times!) and came up with over a hundred questions, primary, intermediate, and advanced on this wonderful season.”
For instance, on the card about Good Friday, the level 1 question is: “How does the Church celebrate Good Friday and what is the proper name for this celebration?” Multiple choice answers are given for level 1 questions. The level 2 question is: “What are the parts of this celebration? And, the level 3 question is: “Why is it appropriate that there is no Mass on this day?” Answers with an explanation are given on the back.
“These cards help people come to an understanding of the rich seasons of Lent and Easter, what the catechumens and candidates experience, and what we can experience as we walk the journey each year.”
Kelley Renz is available for interviews and presentations/workshops on a host of topics including morality, Scripture, and personal spirituality. She can be contacted at kelleyr@comcast.net.
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