Surely every religious studies teacher of any faith must read Pope Benedict's book, Jesus of Nazareth. Reading this book is a great reminder of the primacy of the person of Christ in religious education. Everything else is secondary, in the sense of flowing out from Him. This book helps us to re-source our instruction to the incarnate Word.
As a teacher I find myself sometimes teaching more about the pope than about Christ. Perhaps this is because it is easier to do so. To teach well about Christ is incredibly difficult, but in Pope Benedict's 'personal search for the face of the Lord' we have a great resource.
In a sense the work is incomplete: This volume takes us up to the Transfiguration, and the pope is currently working on the next installment.
In subsequent posts I will give passages from the book that I have found especially illuminating and plan to use in the classroom.
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