The cube has six messages on practical ways we can show love in the family, with friends, neighbours and even people we don’t get on with!
These come from Pope Francis’ letter called The Joy of Love. Here he invites us to practice skills of love – saying thank you, well done, sorry; inviting family members to share stories from their lives, especially older members; reaching out to care for someone who is hurting or to forgive someone who has hurt us.
The ‘Amoris Cube’ is inspired by the Focolare ‘Family Cube’. Many thanks to Focolare for the idea.
Tips
- Pick a day and a time once a week that the family is most often together – for example before or after a family meal.
- Roll the cube or throw it in the air for someone to catch – see what message comes up that you can try to live out that Below is a brief explanation of each message.
- Take one minute to be quiet and think- Is there something I want to say or do during this week to carry out this message?
- Take a few minutes to chat- Is there anything we want to say to each other now from this message? Then take a few more minutes to look back on how we got on with last week’s Did we feel good after it? Did we find it hard? Did we miss an opportunity?
Note to parents: This is something for us all to live together. It will bring great joy to the Family. It’s important to keep this a fun moment and not use it as a chance to correct each other! It’s OK if we make mistakes and are ready to start again.
The six messages of the Amoris Cube
Thank you!
Is there somebody that I should say thank you to for something kind they did to me? What can I say thank you to God for?
I’m sorry…
is there something I have said or done to somebody that I want to put right and say ‘sorry’ for?
‘Spend some time with… ‘
is there somebody from our wider family I haven’t seen in a while? Is there an older person in our family or neighbourhood that I could visit and chat with?
Let’s pray for…
is there somebody or something we want to pray for now or during this week?
How can I help?
Make a difference … ls there something I can do to make life better for those around me and to help more at home? Is there somebody I can show a kindness to or ask if I can be of help to them?
Be the first to love!
is there somebody I have fallen out with where I can be the first to reach out to and try to make up with? Is there someone that others are not including where I can be the one to reach out and make friends?
