When I was a young Christian and being discipled by a Navigator, I was given the Topical Memory System - the TMS. The TMS had topics of basic Christian doctrine with scriptural references. Each topic/reference was placed on an individual piece of paper about the size of a business card. One could easily carry several cards and memorize scripture. It was a clever system that grounded me in Christian basics. Fortunately the TMS is still around. Unfortunately the Navigators have had a Roman Catholic based ministry (Catholic Discipleship Ministry) since 2000. It occurred to me that it would be conceivable that a new Christian could be discipled through the TMS then move into Catholic doctrine and then into the Catholic church, all the while remaining with the Navigators. The challenge would be, what to do with the TMS? It is scripture only and lacks the Catholic Tradition necessary for salvation. I came up with a solution - the Topical Merit System - the TMS. Please click the link below to download the Topical Merit System in pdf. It includes an introduction and Catholic Tradition cut-out cards for memorization. All you need is card stock paper, a printer, and a sense of humor.

TOPICAL MERIT SYSTEM DOWNLOAD

If you are in the military or a college student and are being discipled by a Navigator field staff representative, you might want to introduce the staff to the Topical Merit System when asked by the representative to review the Topical Memory System. This could be a good lead-in for discussing why there is an Navigator Catholic Discipleship Ministry in the first place, but don't hold your breath. Generally, Navigator representatives have an agenda for you and addressing Navigator Headquarter's bad doctrine and promoting a Gospel based on merit (works) are not part of the agenda.