Course Code: TREDFOR

Course Title: The Call of the Kingdom of God and Christian Responses
Credit Units: 3.0
Prerequisite: TREDONE, TREDTWO, TREDTRI
Type of Course: Basic
Faculty: Dr. R. Baring, Dr. J. de Mesa, Dr. E. Domingo, Mr. G. Gabe,
Ms. J. Peracullo, Dr. R. Puno, Fr. F. Salcedo, Dr. L. Sembrano.
Course Description:
The Christian life is a response of faith to the call of the Kingdom of God as an unconditional offer of life and love. The
course will focus on marriage and family life as a way of following Jesus. After exploring the meaning of the Kingdom as
vocation in Module 1, its implication for the marital commitment will be discussed in Modules 2 and 3. The characteristics,
relational means of the marital commitment and the meaning of being and becoming family will be treated in module 4.
Priesthood, religious life and single life will be considered in Module 5 as other ways of seeking first the Kingdom. The
course will be concluded with a synthesis.
Overall Course Objectives:
By the end of the course, the students are expected to:
1. Display better understanding of marital life as a way of seeking the Kingdom of God.
2. Manifest critical understanding of the meaning and implications of the Kingdom of God preached by Jesus as the
fundamental vocation of every Christian.
3. Have a clear grasp of the characteristics of marriage as a way of following Jesus within a process of discerning
inquiry.
4. Acquire relational skills needed to strengthen the marital relationship through gaining insights into what being and
becoming a Christian family means from a Christian perspective.
5. Consider the possibility of other forms of discipleship such as priesthood, religious life and single life.
Course Content:
Module 1: The Kingdom as a Vision of Life
Module 2: Traits of the Christian Marital Commitment

Module 3: Tools of the Christian Marital Commitment

Module 4: Being and Becoming a Christian Family as a Christian Response to the Call of the Kingdom
Module 5: Other Forms of Christian Response to the Call of the Kingdom.
WEEK
1-3

TOPICS
Module 1: The
Kingdom as a Vision
of Life

LEARNING
OBJECTIVES
At the end of the lesson,
the students are expected
to:
-Share their personal
insights/opinions on
marriage.
- discuss basic concepts
of marriage based on
Judaeo-Christian
understanding of the
kingdom as Jesus vision
of life.
- compare and contrast
their initial insights on
marriage with the JudaeoChristian perspective.
-state some implications
for considering the
Judaeo-Christian
principles in

PROCEDURE/
ACTIVITIES
Group
sharing/discussion
Master Lecture

OUTPUT/
ASSESSMENT

REFERENCE
S

- Group
Discussion with
written
synthesis

Jos M. de
Mesa.
Marriage
is
Discipleship.
Quezon City:
East
Asian
Pastoral
Institute,1995.

Filmviewing
Creative group
presentations
Reflection writing

- Tableau
presentation
-Seatwork/
exercises
- Creative
synthesis
- Reflection /
Reaction Paper
Quiz

Fllenbach,
John.
The
Kingdom of
God. Manila:
Divine Word
Publications,
1987.
Porter, J. R.
Jesus Christ:
The Jesus of
History,
the
Christ
of

understanding marriage.

Faith.
London:
Duncan Baird
Publishers,
1999.

- write a reaction/reflection
paper expressing which of
the perspective on
marriage based on
Judaeo-Christian Tradition
are meaningful and
relevant.
- present creative
synthesis on relevant
concepts and lessons
learned.
4-6

Module 2: Traits of the At the end of the lesson,

Christian Marital
the students are expected
Commitment
to:
- discuss helpful ways of
preparing for marriage

Group sharing/
discussion

quiz
seat works

-explain the essence of

commitment in marriage
and its implications for
couples preparing for
marriage

Master Lecture

- make a critique of the

Dos and Donts of Dating
being promoted by Mass
Media.

Critiquing

exercises
Research
Interviews

group
discussion/
critiquing
reflection paper

Picture Talk

Case/situational
- enumerate some ways to analysis
counteract peer pressure

research paper
dating game

De Mesa,
Jose.
Marriage is
Discipleship.
East Asian
Pastoral
Institute,
Quezon City:
1995
Gonzales,
Andrew
F.S.C. One in
the Lord. De
La Salle
University
Press, Manila:

and Media influence

towards responsible
dating and commitment in
relationships.
- share insights and
opinions on the
significance of dating and
courtship in preparing for
married life.
- state different traits to
consider in Christian
marital commitment.

Dating game

1994

Class Survey

Lana,
Tamerlane
O.P.,
Marriage: A
Commitment.
Love, Life and
Family. UST
Publishing
House,
Manila: 2002
Short, Rey E.
Sex, Love or
Infatuation.
How can I
really know?
Claretians
Publications,
Manila: 2002
Verzosa, Sr.
Mary Pilar
RGS.
Learning to
Live and
Love. Word &
Life
Publications,
Makati: 1996

7-9

Module 3: Tools of the

Christian Marital
Commitment

At the end of the lesson,

the students are expected
to:
- share their personal
understanding of being
man or woman.
- discuss the similarities
and differences between a
man and a woman.

Class discussions

Evaluation of
the Inquiry Plan.

Sharing of
Opinion/insights

Plenary Reports
of groups

Creative Synthesis

Film analysis
through
reflection paper

Research
- state their ideas on how
to strengthen commitment
in relationships especially
in marriage.

Interviews
Film viewing and
analysis

- explain the importance of

effective communication in Checklist Completion
resolving conflicts in
relationships.
Quiz
- present creative
synthesis on relevant
concepts learned in class
discussions.
- suggest ways to make
marriage work.

Evaluation of
presentation of
new knowledge
Evaluation of
quality of
presence
(attendance,
participation,
behavior)
Group
presentation
(creative
synthesis)
Homeworks/Ass
ignments
Quiz

De Mesa,
Jose.
Marriage is
Discipleship.
Quezon city:
East Asian
Pastoral
Institute,1995
Wostyn,
Lode.(ed.)
Living Like
Jesus.
Quezon city:
Claretian
Publications,
2004
Sanford,
John. The
Invisible
Partners. New
York: Paulist
Press, 1980
Miller,
Patricia. Sex
is not a Four
Letter Word.
New York:
The Cross

10-12

Module 4: Being and

Becoming a Christian
Family as a Christian
Response to the Call
of the Kingdom

At the end of the lesson,

the students are expected
to:
- discuss the key concepts Class Discussions
that revolve around being
and becoming family with Checklist Completion
respect to the call of the
kingdom in the path of Group Sharing
discipleship.
Film Viewing and
- explain how marital love Analysis
is celebrated in the
context of sexuality by Quiz
inquiring about the ways
by which couples express Research
their love in marriage.
Creative Synthesis
- evaluate the quality of
the contemporary
Group Presentatios
Christian response shown
by married couples by
Role Play/Simulation
articulating the vision of
married life viz a viz the
Christian demands.
- show in diagram form the
relationship of the various
factors that constitute the
couples Christian

- Case Repot
- An analysis of
films that
portray good
family practices
and how these
practices
articulate the
Christian family
ideals.
- Quiz
- Group
discussions and
reports
- Creative
presentations
(group)
-Reaction/
reflection
papers
- Participation
in class and

Road
Publishing
Company,
1995
De
Riedmatten,
Henri OP.
1968.
Responsible
Parenthood:
Theory and
practice.
McHugh,
James Rev.
ed. Marriage
in the light of
Vatican II.
Washington,
DC: Family
Life Bureau,
USCC.
Bourg,
Florence
Caffrey. 2004.
Where two or
three are
gathered:
Christian
families as
domestic
churches.
Notre Dame,

response to Gods
Kingdom.

group
discussions
- Evaluation of
their
presentation of
new knowledge

Indiana:
University of
Notre Dame
Press.
Garcia de
Haro, Ramon.
1993.
Marriage and
the family in
the
documents of
the
Magisterium:
a course in
the theology
of marriage.
2nd edition,
revised.
William May,
trans
[Matrimonio &
famiglia nei
documenti del
Magistero
Corso di
telogia
matrimoniale,
1989. Milan:
Edizioni Ares].
San
Francisco:
Ignatius

Press.
Shivanandan,
Mary. 1999.
Crossing the
threshold of
love: a new
vision of
marriage in
the light of
John Paul IIs
anthropology.
Washington
DC: The
Catholic
University of
America
Press.
John Paul II.
1986. The
theology of
marriage and
celibacy.
Boston, Ma:
St. Paul
Editions.
13-14

Module 5: Other
Forms of Christian
Response to the Call
of the Kingdom.

At the end of the lesson,

the students are expected
to:
- discuss how single

Class Discussions

- quiz

Acronym making
Sharing of insights

- oral
participation

Acts and
decrees of
PCP II # 494573, Decree

blessedness, priesthood
and religious life are other
ways of responding to
Gods call.

Panel discussion/
Symposium

- group
discussion and
reports

73 # 1-3,
Article 58, #
458-487

Research
- analyze the present
situation of priests and
religious men and women
as they live up to the
evangelical vows they
have made.
- state the significance of
their share in the mission
of the Church.

Gaudium et
- participation in Spes and
Quiz
symposium
Lumen
Gentium
Simple exegesis
- reflection
(section of
paper/reaction
priests and
Reading and analysis paper
religious)
Biblical
Passages: 1
Cor 12:1-11,
Tim 3:1-12

- research on the
advantages and
disadvantages of staying
single for life.
- enumerate ways by
which lay faithful can help
and support single
persons, priests and
religious men and women
in their apostolate.
- make a research on the
contributions of priests,
brothers and sisters in
human societies through
the years.