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This past Sunday, the younger Faith Formation students reflected on the Parable of the Sower and wondered together about what it means for our hearts to be like “good soil” ready to receive God’s word. They connected this lesson to their recent work with the True Vine, then went outside to the raised bed garden to observe the soil and help plant seedlings. As they worked, they talked about how plants need sunlight, water, nutrients, and care to grow—just as we grow in God’s love through prayer, listening, and remaining close to Jesus. The students ended the morning with a special end-of-year snack and joyful time together on the playground. It was a beautiful way to celebrate a year full of learning, wondering, growing, and joy. We are so grateful for this special time with the students, and we look forward to a restful break before returning together in September. Happy Summer!
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Last week, the younger Faith Formation students reflected on Jesus as the True Vine and on how we are all lovingly connected to Him. They listened to this parable from Scripture, wondered together about what it means to “remain” in Jesus, and talked about how God cares for us like a vine grower cares for a vine. The students also observed real vines in the aeroponics and outdoor gardens, made beautiful grapevine wreaths as a reminder of Jesus’ love, and ended with a snack and joyful reflection together Back in January, our Level III students gathered around a question that was both scientific and deeply spiritual: What happens when light meets living things? Exploring the season of Epiphany through the twin lenses of Scripture and science, the students read Matthew’s account of the Magi following the star and reflected on Isaiah’s great proclamation: “Arise, shine, for your light has come.” They considered how Epiphany — the revelation of Jesus to all nations — is itself a story about light breaking into darkness, about something hidden becoming gloriously visible. The students were struck by a powerful metaphor: roots grow in darkness. Before anything blooms, there is quiet, hidden growth that no one can see. They connected this to their own lives of faith — how trust in God can deepen in unseen ways, long before it becomes visible to the world. From that reflection, an idea took root (quite literally): the class would plant a Tower Garden — a vertical, soil-free growing system — as a living sign of hope in the middle of a Pittsburgh winter. They chose their seeds, planned a rotation of student caretakers, and began a Tower Log to track light levels, water, nutrients, and plant health week by week. How it Works A Tower Garden is a vertical aeroponic growing system — a tall, tower-shaped planter in which plants grow without soil. Here’s what makes it work: ▸ Water and nutrients are pumped up from a reservoir at the base and flow down over the plant roots in a gentle, continuous cycle. No soil is needed — the roots hang in open air and absorb what they need directly from the water. ▸ A grow light mounted above the tower provides the full-spectrum light that plants need to photosynthesize and thrive, even indoors during the darkest months of the year. ▸ Seedlings begin in small grow pods and are nestled into the tower’s openings once they are ready. From there, the system does much of the work — but attentive tending is still essential. ▸ Plants grow remarkably fast in this environment — often two to three times more quickly than they would in soil — because their roots have constant access to oxygen, water, and nutrients all at once. Week by week, the students have watched with wonder as the Tower Garden did exactly what living things do: it grew. Stems that were barely visible became lush and green. Leaves unfurled and stretched toward the light. What began as a classroom project quietly outgrew its space. The plants grew so abundantly — so insistently full of life — that the Tower Garden has now been moved into the hallway just outside the Parish Hall, where it stands as a visible, green, growing presence in the heart of our building. A Lesson in Pollination Growing indoors has brought its own unexpected lessons. Outdoors, pollination happens constantly and invisibly — bees moving from flower to flower, butterflies drifting through a garden, the wind carrying pollen on warm currents. Inside, none of those partners are present. The students discovered that this is a real challenge for a thriving Tower Garden, and it led to a wonderful inquiry: How does fruit form when the bees can’t find us? We learned that the best plants for indoor growing are self-pollinating varieties — plants that carry both male and female parts within a single flower and can, in the right conditions, fertilize themselves. But even self-pollinating plants often need a little help indoors to transfer pollen within and between blossoms. Without bees, butterflies, or a good breeze to do that work, human hands must step in. So we have taken on the role: gently shaking the flowering stems to mimic the movement of wind, and using cotton swabs to carefully transfer pollen from one flower to another, standing in for the bees we’re missing. It worked! There are now tiny tomatoes and very small peppers growing and hope to see more very soon. Throughout this project, the Tower Garden has been more than a science experiment — it has been a living parable, connected at every point to the themes of our faith formation work with the children. Light The grow light is not decorative — it is essential. Without it, there is no growth. The students have reflected on how God’s light works the same way in our lives: not merely brightening what is already there, but making life itself possible. Jesus tells us, “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12). Goodness and Creation In our Faith Formation classes, we return again and again to the goodness of God as Creator — the One who called creation into being and declared it good. The Tower Garden is a small but vivid testimony to that goodness. Water, light, life, growth: these are gifts. The children have been learning to receive them as such, and to respond with the attentiveness and care that stewardship of creation requires. Hidden Growth and the Life of Faith Perhaps the most powerful image the students have held onto is this: roots grow in the dark. Long before a plant is visible, something is happening below the surface that makes everything else possible. Our formation work invites children — and all of us — to trust that this is true of faith as well. God is at work in the quiet, the unseen, the in-between seasons. Growth is happening even when we cannot yet perceive it. The Gift of Life Life is a gift — astonishing, persistent, and full of surprise. The Tower Garden did not ask permission to grow. It simply grew, because that is what life does when the conditions are right. We pray that Calvary is such a place: a community of light, nourishment, and attentive care, where every person — child and adult alike — has room to grow. We invite every member of the Calvary community to stop by the hallway outside the Parish Hall and visit the Tower Garden.
As you stand before it, we invite you to wonder: ▸ What good things are growing in my life right now right that I cannot yet see? ▸ Where in my life am I being called to arise and shine? ▸ What does it mean to tend to the living things and the people entrusted to my care? ▸ What gift of life am I grateful for today? |
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