Just Teach Sheets – Seeker December Week 4 2025

Seeker Track – Just Teach Sheet
December Week 4 (2025)
Theme: Advent & Preparation
Focus: Mary, Freedom, and Saying Yes to God
Audience: Seekers, non-Catholics, returning Christians, thoughtful enquirers

Weekly Goal
To explore why Christianity places such importance on Mary’s “yes,” and what it reveals about freedom, trust, and God’s way of working in the world.
This week shows that Christianity does not claim God forces Himself on people, but that He waits for free cooperation — and that real faith involves trust before certainty.

What You’ll Need
This sheet
A Bible (or online Bible)
Time for honest reflection

Opening Prayer (Optional)
God of truth,
if You act in human history,
help me understand why You wait for human freedom.
If trust matters,
teach me what it really means.
Amen.

Day 1 – Why Mary Matters

Teaching
Christianity teaches that God entered history through a real woman who freely agreed to His plan.
Mary is not important because she was powerful or famous, but because she trusted God.

Luke 1:26–30

If God is real and personal, then human freedom must matter.
Mary’s role only makes sense if God respects human choice.

Reflection
Would a loving God force His way into human life — or invite trust?

Day 2 – Was Mary Free to Say No?

Teaching
The angel announces God’s plan, but waits for Mary’s response.
She asks a question, thinks, and then answers.

Luke 1:34
Luke 1:38

Christian teaching insists that Mary’s yes was free, intelligent, and unforced.

Catechism of the Catholic Church 494

Reflection
Does real love exist without freedom?

Day 3 – Faith Before Understanding

Teaching
Mary did not know how everything would work out.
She trusted God before having all the answers.

Faith, in Christianity, is not believing without evidence —
it is trusting a Person when the future is unclear.

Luke 1:38

Reflection
Where in life do we already act on trust rather than certainty?

Day 4 – Why God Works Through People

Teaching
Christianity claims that God chooses to work through human cooperation rather than bypassing it.
Mary’s yes made Christ present in the world.

Luke 1:41–42

This suggests a God who desires relationship, not control.

Reflection
What kind of God works through people instead of overpowering them?

Day 5 – Saying Yes Today

Teaching
Mary’s yes was unique, but the pattern remains.
Christian faith involves responding freely to God’s call in daily life.

Luke 11:28

Christianity does not claim God removes fear or risk —
it claims God is faithful when we trust Him.

Reflection
If God were asking something of me now, what would make it difficult to say yes?

Weekend Summary

Key ideas
Christianity values human freedom.
Mary’s yes was not forced.
Faith involves trust before full understanding.
God works through human cooperation.
Obedience and freedom are not opposites.

Common Questions and Responses

Isn’t Mary just a minor character?
Christianity claims her decision changed history because God chose to act through her.

Doesn’t obedience limit freedom?
Christian teaching holds that choosing truth freely is the highest form of freedom.

Why would God need permission?
Christianity says God seeks relationship, not domination.

Is this just myth?
The claim is historical: God acted through real people, in real time.

Further Reading

Luke 1:26–38
Catechism of the Catholic Church 488–494
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
Pope Benedict XVI, Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy Narratives

Closing Prayer (Optional)

God of truth,
if You respect human freedom,
teach me what it means to trust.
If You invite rather than force,
help me recognise Your call.
Amen.