Religious Education Programs
 

 

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The Rite Of Christian Initiation Of Adults (R.C.I.A.)

The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults is a process which guides a person through various stages of initiation into the Catholic Church. 

R.C.I.A. is intended for the following people: 

o    A person who has never been baptized into any Christian faith;

o    A person who is baptized in another Christian denomination, but who now wants to consider becoming Catholic;

o    A person who may have been baptized Catholic as a child, but who may have had little or no religious education or who never received the Sacraments of Confirmation and/or First Communion;

o    A person who may have received the Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, Confirmation and First Communion) as a Catholic, but who has been out of touch with practicing the faith, and wants to “catch up;”

o    Anyone who is interested in learning more about the Catholic faith, even veteran Catholics.

What is it?

R.C.I.A. consists of weekly sessions, conducted in the company of a parish “team,” whose purpose is to make the person welcome and comfortable, and to encourage, pray with, and guide along the path toward the Sacraments.  There is prayer, a teaching or lesson on a particular weekly topic, and group sharing. 

Those who are going to become Catholic are presented to the parish community at various times along the way, in ceremonies that correspond to their level of preparation for the Sacraments.

To start coming to R.C.I.A., just come on Tuesday evening at 7:00 to the Church Hall, or talk to Paul Haggerty, D.R.E. (Director of Religious Education).

 

Sunday School

Sunday School is a program of weekly religious education for children and youths from 1^st grade on up, conducted apart from regular school time.

It is most helpful for youngsters who do not attend Catholic school, as it gives them their religious education in the Catholic faith.  However, Catholic school students are most welcome, and many do attend.

Sunday School is also the place where youths seven years of age and over, who have not been baptized, or who have been baptized in another Christian faith and who want to become Catholic, receive their preparation for becoming Catholic.

Likewise, all preparation for the Sacraments of Confirmation and First Holy Communion is conducted in Sunday School.  Thus, Catholic school children must attend Sunday School to prepare for these sacraments.

Sunday School is conducted on Sunday mornings from 8:45 to 9:45 A.M. in the parish school.  Teachers and aides are devoted parishioners who are anxious to share their faith with our younger members.

Registration for Sunday School is conducted during the weeks of September, but registrations can also be taken before class on any Sunday.  To register, see Paul Haggerty, Director of Religious Education (D.R.E.). 

 

Bible Study

Now in its third year, Bible Study is an organized study of the various books of the Bible.  The Bible, or Sacred Scripture, is the “Book of the Church,” because our Lord Jesus Christ entrusted the mission of teaching his Word, preserving his message, and spreading his Word to the Church.  So the Church is the caretaker, or custodian, of the Bible.  The Bible, and Tradition, are the fonts of revelation: the manner in which God has chosen to make himself, his plan and his message, known to us.  And it is all entrusted to the Church, to guide us and help us understand.

Bible Study is held on Sunday afternoons after Mass, at 12:30, and on Thursday evenings at 7:00, in the Church Hall.

It consists of an examination of a certain section of whatever book is currently being studied.  There is prayer, a presentation or teaching, questions and answers, and faith-sharing based on the section being studied.

The study of God’s Word in Bible Study has given a deeper experience of community, a strengthening of faith, and a deeper love of the God whose marvelous deeds are laid out for us.

There is no need to sign up, - just come to the Church Hall.

 

Education And Evangelization

These programs and activities are part of the parish’s mission to educate, but we also refer to them as “evangelization.” Evangelization is the process of, not merely learning the truths of the faith, but even more, of allowing the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to penetrate more deeply into our lives: to influence our thoughts, our way of seeing things, the way we relate to other people.  Evangelization is allowing the Gospel to “take over,” as much as humanly possible, our lives: our thoughts, feelings, attitudes, actions.

Education provides us with the information we need; evangelization is the process of meeting the Person of Jesus Christ, praying to and in him, allowing ourselves to see as he sees, to want what he wants, to do as he would have us do, - in the Holy Spirit, to the praise and glory of God the Father.