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Faith Formation, Sacramental Preparation, and Youth Ministry 2023–2024
Children's Liturgy of the Word: Pre-K and Kindergarten
We are looking forward to providing Children's Liturgy of the Word again this year during the 9 a.m. Sunday Mass. We hope to meet every other week beginning in October. Children will be dismissed with volunteers after the Gloria at Mass to "unpack" the Scripture readings for Mass that week. The session will be about 20–25 minutes long. Children will then return to the church around the time of the Universal Prayers/Presentation of the Gifts to resume Mass with their families. This is a great way for children in pre-K and kindergarten to learn about Jesus, Scripture, and the Mass.
Children's Faith Formation: Grades 1–6
Sessions will begin in October and will be held every other Sunday (roughly) from 10 a.m. until 11:15 a.m. in Mahler Hall. Our textbook is Be My Disciples by RCL Benziger. To help with supervision and classroom management, parents are asked to "sign up" to be present in a classroom throughout the year. Ideally, this would be a classroom that your child is not in, as this will help them form trusting relationships with their teachers while also helping to foster their independence in their classrooms. A link for classroom signups will be sent via email at the end of September or beginning of October.
Instead of weekly online quizzes like we have required in the past, Rich will be providing an online worksheet related to the different topics being covered in class. Rich will have a brief teaching video, fun questions, and activities to help prepare them for the coming session in class. Rich has created these and has used them at other places with very positive feedback. The hope is that they will be more engaging and provide some form of assessment while making it feel less formal. Here is an example of a worksheet that Rich has used in the past so you can gain a sense of what it could look like. Children should complete the worksheet prior to coming to faith formation that week.
First Reconciliation and First Eucharist Preparation
Preparation for First Reconciliation and First Eucharist is generally done for children in second grade. However, parents can choose to have their child celebrate First Reconciliation in second grade and wait until third grade for First Eucharist. Per diocesan guidelines, children planning to celebrate these sacraments must be enrolled in both the sacramental preparation sessions and the faith formation program.
Our First Reconciliation and First Eucharist preparation programs will once again be combined with Immaculate Conception this year. We will be using the God's Gift sacrament textbooks from Loyola Press.
First Reconciliation sessions will begin in October and will be held weekly (except for Thanksgiving week) on Thursday evenings. We will celebate First Reconciliation with a combined service on Saturday, December 9, at 10 a.m. (location to be determined).
First Eucharist preparation sessions will begin in March 2024 and will be held on Tuesday evenings. We (St. Catherine's only) will celebrate First Eucharist Weekend on April 27 and 28.
Middle School Youth Ministry and Confirmation Preparation
Our Middle School Youth Ministry program and Confirmation Preparation program are combined to make things a little easier for families. That is, the required topics/sessions that the diocese has laid out to be covered for Confirmation are covered within your youth groups. Confirmation preparation is a two-year process that can begin no earlier than eighth grade. So, generally, official Confirmation preparation begins in eighth grade (Year 1) and ends in the spring of a teen's ninth grade year (Year 2). However, some teens may decide to wait to celebrate Confirmation until later.
To help provide a fun/faith-filled environment tailored to middle schoolers, our Middle School Youth group is designed for seventh and eighth graders with a focus on covering topics required for Confirmation preparation. The group meets (generally) every other Sunday (opposite faith formation weekends) during the school year from 10–11:15 a.m. in Mahler Hall.The group incorporates fun, prayer, and discussion on the required topics for Confirmation preparation. Although seventh graders are not yet "officially" preparing for Confirmation, this is a great opportunity for them to have fun, engage with other Catholic middle schoolers, and continue to learn about their faith and what they are hopefully longing to celebrate themselves—Confirmation.
This Year's Ninth Grade Confirmation Group (including older teens preparing for Confirmation)
We are going to try something a little different with our ninth graders (or older) who are planning to celebate the Sacrament of Confirmation in the spring of 2024. Our Year 2 candidates will meet separately with Rich and another volunteer to engage in topics and plan specifically for the sacrament. The ninth grade group will meet during the school year from 10 a.m.–11:15 a.m. in Mahler Hall on the same Sundays as the seventh and eighth grade group. It too will incorporate fun, prayer, and meaningful conversations about what living a "Confirmed" life means and ways in which they can do that after they celebrate the sacrament.
Please note that although this group is geared toward those in ninth grade and older who are planning for Confirmation in the spring, all high school teens are welcome to join the group at any time. It would be great to have as many high school teens as possible who would like to take part.
High School Youth Ministry (Ninth–Twelfth Grades)
For High School Youth Ministry this year, we are excited to be sharing experiences with All Saints, St. Anthony's, and Holy Cross. We have put together monthly events through December so far to gather for fun and service with other Catholic teens from our surrounding parishes and area. These include a bonfire, corn maze, baking cookies for Loaves and Fishes, and caroling for shut-ins and the bereaved. This is a great way to gather to put our faith into practice, have some fun, and experience faith-filled, teachable moments. All ninth–twelfth graders are invited.
To register for any of these faith formation programs, please click here.
Rich Rasmussen is available to answer any questions you might have at rich.rasmussen@dor.org or 607-257-2493.