FAITH DETECTIVES™ • FAMILIES & EDUCATORS
TURN THE MYSTERY INTO A CONVERSATION
An adventure children want to read.
A journey families and educators can explore together.
Faith Detectives™ combines story, mystery, Catholic history, prayer, puzzles and meaningful questions to help young people do more than simply hear about the Faith.
They investigate it.
Case #001 — The Templar Cipher gives families, teachers and groups an exciting way to read together, ask questions, explore Catholic traditions and discover why truth is a treasure worth seeking.
LEARNING HIDDEN INSIDE THE ADVENTURE
THEY THINK THEY'RE SOLVING A MYSTERY.
And they are.
But along the way, something else is happening.
Young readers are being invited to slow down, notice details, remember what they've learned, connect ideas, interpret symbols and ask why something matters.
The Templar Cipher carries the reader through an adventure involving Advent, ancient Christian symbols, monasteries, the Knights Templar, prayer, St. Peter, Rome and the search for a treasure that cannot be measured in gold.
And throughout the investigation, the story opens doors to something deeper:
Faith. History. Truth. Courage. Prayer. Memory.
Faith Detectives™ doesn't separate learning from the adventure.
The learning is part of the mystery.
BUILT FOR PARTICIPATION
DON'T JUST READ THE CASE. INVESTIGATE IT.
Each Faith Detectives™ adventure can become much more than reading time.
Case #001 includes opportunities for children and adults to stop, explore and participate throughout the story.
READ
Follow Sofia, Leo and Gabe as the mystery unfolds.
INVESTIGATE
Study clues, symbols, maps, ancient inscriptions and historical connections.
SOLVE
Decode symbols, search for hidden objects, work through puzzles and test your detective skills.
DISCOVER
Explore supporting Faith Files, Catholic history, articles and videos connected directly to the story.
PRAY
Pause for prayers and Catholic practices that appear naturally within the investigation.
TALK
Use the questions at the end of the case to move from:
“What happened?”
to
“What does this mean for us?”
That makes Faith Detectives™ useful around a family table, in a classroom, with a small group—or anywhere adults and young people want to explore the Faith together.
CASE #001: THE TEMPLAR CIPHER
THE STORY OPENS THE DOOR. THE QUESTIONS TAKE THEM DEEPER.
The first Faith Detectives™ case begins during Advent and quickly expands into an investigation of Catholic faith, history and tradition.
Along the way, families and educators can explore questions such as:
WHY DO CATHOLICS CELEBRATE ADVENT?
The mystery begins with waiting, watching and preparing.
WHY DO CHRISTIAN SYMBOLS MATTER?
The fish, cross, flame, crown and other symbols aren't merely decorations. They carry history and meaning.
WHY DO MONASTERIES MATTER?
The detectives discover that Catholic history isn't simply something in an old book.
It is living memory.
WHO WERE THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR?
The adventure gives young readers a reason to investigate the history behind one of Christianity's most famous medieval orders.
WHY DO CATHOLICS PRAY THE WAY WE DO?
Holy water, the Sign of the Cross, prayer and Christian vigil become part of the investigation rather than disconnected lessons.
WHO WAS ST. PETER?
The clues eventually lead toward Rome, St. Peter's Basilica and the next stage of the mystery.
AND ABOVE ALL...
Why is truth worth protecting?
By the end of Case #001, the mystery is no longer simply about seven keys.
It is about the kind of treasure we choose to seek.
THE CASE CONTINUES AFTER THE LAST PAGE
SOME OF THE BEST CLUES START AROUND THE DINNER TABLE.
At the end of The Templar Cipher, the investigation deliberately turns toward families, teachers and groups.
Young detectives are asked to think about questions like:
Why does the story begin in Advent?
Why is waiting important in the Christian life?
What is the difference between the treasure the world wants and the treasure God wants us to seek?
Why is truth worth protecting?
What might the Seven Keys represent?
There is even an opportunity to pray together.
Because the goal of Faith Detectives™ isn't simply to reach the last page.
It's to keep the conversation going.
Whether you're reading with your children at home, guiding students or gathering a group together, you don't have to have every answer before you begin.
Be curious.
Ask the question.
Follow the evidence.
Discover together.
YOUR FIRST CASE IS READY.
Case #001 — The Templar Cipher
The Mystery of the Seven Keys