The Living Community

The Living Community is year five of a five-year intergenerational program. Sessions within the program can be used independently from the whole. This year's sessions focus on the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes as guidelines for Christian living in the context of Christian community.

Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE Year-long Program The entire collection of sessions for year five of FIRE: The Living Community.		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE Covenant The purpose of this gathering is to foster relationships that have already been formed, to introduce new people, and to make a covenant with one another. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE Why Rules In this session participants will understand the purpose of rules in our lives, how those rules come about, and how we learn to obey them. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE Where Your Treasure Is Participants will explore the meaning of “poor in spirit” and its relationship to the first commandment. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE Comfort My People Participants will explore the importance of emotion in our spirituality through the study of the story of Zacchaeus. They will understand the respect for the entire person that is commanded by the fifth commandment. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE The Last Shall Be First Participants will acquire a deeper understanding of “meekness” in terms of the meekness Jesus calls “blessed” and to understand the role of respect for family and authority in living out this beatitude. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE Remember to Keep Holy the Lord's Day Participants will understand the Eucharist as our “home base” and our way of remembering. They will appreciate the necessity of a day of rest in our lives. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE An Issue of Justice This lesson offers participants an experience of the injustice that governs world economics and will help them to prepare to celebrate Lent meaningfully. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE Review of Beatitudes The lessons serves as a review of the first four Beatitudes.		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE Blessed are the Merciful Participants will experience the meaning and the need for mercy, and will understand the basic difference between mercy and justice. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto	View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE Blessed are the Pure of Heart Participants will explore what it means to be pure of heart, to seek God. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto	View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE Honoring Relationships Participants will explore the concept of relationship: what fosters strong relationships and what “adulterates” relationships. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE Blessed are the Peacemakers Participants will understand what it means to be a "peacemaker" in the reign of God. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE The Power of Speech The purpose of this lesson is to explore the power of speech. We will be studying the commandment to not bear false witness by our speech—the importance of truthfulness—as well as the commandment to refrain from speech that uses God’s name irreverently or that makes unnecessary oaths. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE You Shall Not Covet Participants will understand the meaning of the last two commandments, their relationship to the others, and their relationship to the Beatitudes. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE Beatitude & Persecution Participants will come to an understanding of the eighth beatitude as the natural consequence of incarnating the other beatitudes in our lives. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto		View all
Inter generational Session	The Living Community • FIRE Review of the Year In this session participants will play a game to review the Commandments. • By Kathleen O'Connell Chesto		View all

Author

Kathleen O'Connell Chesto

Dr. Kathleen O'Connell Chesto is a well-known author and speaker on family spirituality who draws on her many experiences as a wife and mother. She holds a doctor of ministry degree from Hartford Seminary and a master of arts in religious studies from St. Joseph College in West Hartford.