We will utilize a technology-based material this year that will be completed at home through interactive programs published by Loyola Press. Parents are encouraged to work with their children.  Grades 1-7 will work within the Finding God series and grade 8 will prepare for the beautiful sacrament of Confirmation through the series, “ Confirmed in the Spirit.”  These materials will be assessible as eBooks:

FINDING GOD
Grades 1-7

Program Overview:
 
Covering the full and authentic teachings of the Catholic Church and rooted in Scripture, Church Tradition, and Ignatian spirituality, Finding God: Our Response to God’s Gifts™ starts children out on a life of intentional discipleship. This faith formation program for Kindergarten through Grade 8 helps foster a lived relationship with God through Jesus.

Embracing the spirituality of St. Ignatius of Loyola, Finding God provides all the tools to engage the whole child—mind, heart, and soul—uniquely guiding children to engage with Scripture, practice prayer and reflection, and to find God in all things.

Finding God: Our Response to God’s Gifts is based on a spiral curriculum that integrates the fundamental themes of the Catechism of the Catholic Church with Scripture and Catholic social teachings. As children are introduced to and revisit concepts and vocabulary from one year to the next, their knowledge and experience both broaden and deepen as they grow in faith as committed disciples of Jesus.

CONFIRMED IN THE SPIRIT:  Confirmation Preparation
Grade 8

Program Overview:

Confirmed in the Spirit is a comprehensive, and flexible sacramental preparation program designed to welcome and form young people as they grow in faith and embrace their roles as disciples of Jesus Christ. Based on years of extensive research from experts in the field of catechesis and youth ministry, the components are doctrinally sound and use a proven pedagogy created by the Sisters of Notre Dame. The results are unparalleled experiences and support for young people and the adults who guide them.
 

Teaching Your Child to Pray
What to Pray
When and Where to Pray
Listening to God
Prayers Most Often Recited
Traditional Catholic Prayers
The Rosary
40 Ways to Foster Prayer in Your Home

My Dear Child,


     You may not know me, but I know everything about you (Psalm 139.1) I know when you sit down and when you rise up (Psalm 139.2)
 Even the very hairs on your head are numbered (Matthew 10.29-31)
 You were made in my image (Genesis 1.27)
 I knew you even before you were conceived (Jeremiah 1.4-5)
 I knit you together in your mother’s womb (Psalm 139.13)  I have been misrepresented by those who don’t know me (John 8.41-44)  
I am not distant and angry, but am the complete expression of love (1 John 4.16)  
And it is my desire to lavish my love on you (1 John 3.1)  I offer you more than your earthly father ever could (Matthew 7.11)
 For I am the perfect father (Matthew 5.48)
 Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand (James 1.17)
  For I am your provider and I meet all your needs (Matthew 6.31-33)
 My plan for your future has always been filled with hope (Jeremiah 29.11) 
Because I love you with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31.3).
  

     I will never stop doing good to you (Jeremiah 32.40)
 I want to show you great and marvelous things (Jeremiah 33.3)
 I am able to do more for you than you could possibly imagine (Ephesians 3.20) For I am your greatest encourager (2 Thessalonians 2.16-17)  
I am also the Father who comforts you in all your troubles (2 Corinthians 1.3-4)
  When you are broken-hearted, I am close to you (Psalm 34.18)
 One day I will wipe away every tear from your eyes (Revelation 21.3-4)
 I am your Father, and I love you even as I love my son, Jesus (John 17.23)  For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed (John 17.26)
  He is the exact representation of my being (Hebrews 1.3)
 He came to demonstrate that I am for you, not against you (Romans 8.31)
 And to tell you that I am not counting your sins(2 Corinthians 5.18-19)  Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled (2 Corinthians 5.18-19)
 His death was the ultimate expression of my love for you (1 John 4.10)  If you receive the gift of my son Jesus, you receive me  (1 John 2.23)  
And nothing will ever separate you from my love again (Romans 8.38-39)
 My question is “Will you be my child?” (John 1.12-13) 
I am waiting for you (Luke 15.11-32)
.

Love,
Your Dad,
 Almighty God
 

    OUR DAILY JOURNAL IN DISCOVING GOD

     At their Baptism, we promise to raise our children in our Catholic faith and we become examples of God’s presence in their lives.  As parents, we are and continue to be the first, primary and most influential “teachers” of the faith for our children.  “Parents receive the responsibility and privilege of evangelizing their children and should initiate their children at an early age into the mysteries of the faith of which they are the "first heralds" for their children” (CCC, 2223-2225).  We do this through immersing our children in a way of life that is Christ centered, thereby introducing them to God meaningfully, and leading them to a life-long relationship with Him.   “Parents bear witness to this responsibility first by creating a home where tenderness, forgiveness, respect, fidelity, and disinterested service are the rule.  A wholesome family life can foster interior dispositions that are a genuine preparation for a living faith and remain a support for it throughout one's life” (CCC, 2223-2225). 
 
     As a parish community, is our privilege to partner with you in this great responsibility in raising your children in the faith, and one that we view as a support, recognizing that you are the most significant and influential individuals from whom your children will meaningfully learn about God.  The knowledge we impart should supplement what your children learn experientially at home, and it is our honor to embark upon this great Journey with you.
 
     This JOURNAL FOR THE JOURNEY, is designed as a support to help you further engage your children about God’s presence in their lives on a daily basis throughout the year.  It includes a ‘reflection page’ for each week of the year, upon which your family can record their DAILY encounters, thoughts, experiences and living presence of God in our midst.

• It includes space for considering and recording what we are most grateful for in our daily lives, as we have much for which to give thanks. 

• It includes space for identifying and recording the places we “SEE” (experience) God in our lives, such as:  in all forms of nature, through acts of kindness, acts of forgiveness, words of encouragement, special skills, talents and abilities we may hold, acts of charity and generosity, moments of prayer, worship at mass, acts of love, etc...

• It includes a space for considering and recording prayerful intentions, which includes praise to God, thanks to God, as well as those special prayers we send out on behalf of others, as well as the needs of the world.                                                      

• It includes a space for recalling and recording acts of kindness and service we offer to others at home and in the community, as well as receive from others, meaningfully reflecting God’s loving presence in all of our lives. 

• Each reflection page includes a Bible verse that focuses our attention upon God’s love, mercy, compassion, peace and forgiveness, virtues that God teaches us and invites us to follow and emulate.  These verses further invite us to reflect upon God’s presence in our lives and ways we can evangelize others toward him.

     We hope that you will find this resource to be one that supports your ability to converse about and more importantly, to heighten your child’s awareness of God’s great love and real presence in our daily lives, through all that we experience.  All close relationships and friendships require our time and presence to one another, in order for those friendships and relationships to grow and strengthen over time.  The same is true with our relationship with God.   It is through the meaningful encounters and experiences in our daily lives, during which we recognize and spend time with God, that our relationships with Him will develop and strengthen over time.  It is such experiences that we as parents create and call attention to, while we interact with and guide our children, as they continue to grow and mature as individuals and most importantly, as disciples and children of God. 
 
     We are grateful to play the “supporting role,” in our continued Journey in which we travel together, along with our children, toward transformation and conversion to a life lived with Jesus Christ, here and for all eternity.

“May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.” 
(2 Corinthians 13:14)

You Are the Church in Your Home...

"Follow the Way OF Love." USCCB.org. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, n.d. Web. 30 July 2017

Baptism brings all Christians into union with God. Your family life is sacred because family relationships confirm and deepen this union and allow the Lord to work through you. The profound and the ordinary moments of daily life:  mealtimes, workdays, vacations, expressions of love and intimacy, household chores, caring for a sick child or elderly parent, and even conflicts all are the threads from which you can weave a pattern of holiness.

A family is our first community and the most basic way in which the Lord gathers us, forms us, and acts in the world. The early Church expressed this truth by calling the Christian family a DOMESTIC CHURCH or church of the home.  This marvelous teaching was underemphasized for centuries but reintroduced by the Second Vatican Council. Today we are still uncovering its rich treasure.

The point of the teaching is simple, yet profound. As Christian families, you not only belong to the Church, but your daily life is a true expression of the Church.  Families carry out the mission of the church of the home in ordinary ways when:

• You believe in God and that God cares about you. It is God to whom you turn in times of trouble. It is God to whom you give thanks when all goes well.

• You love and never give up believing in the value of another person. Before young ones hear the Word of God preached from the pulpit, they form a picture of God drawn from their earliest experiences of being loved by parents, grandparents, godparents, and other family members.

• You foster intimacy, beginning with the physical and spiritual union of the spouses and extending in appropriate ways to the whole family. To be able to share yourself, good and bad qualities, within a family and to be accepted there is indispensable to forming a close relationship with the Lord.

• You evangelize by professing faith in God, acting in accord with gospel values, and setting an example of Christian living for your children and for others. And your children, by their spontaneous and genuine spirituality, will often surprise you into recognizing God's presence.

• You educate. As the primary teachers of your children, you impart knowledge of the faith and help them to acquire values necessary for Christian living. Your example is the most effective way to teach.
  • Sometimes they listen and learn; sometimes they teach you new ways of believing and understanding. Your wisdom and theirs come from the same Spirit.

• You pray together, thanking God for blessings, reaching for strength, asking for guidance in crisis and doubt. You know as you gather restless toddlers, searching teenagers, harried adults that God answers all prayers, but sometimes in surprising ways.

• You serve one another, often sacrificing your own wants, for the other's good. You struggle to take up your cross and carry it with love. Your "deaths" and "risings" become compelling signs of Jesus' own life, death, and resurrection.

• You forgive and seek reconciliation. Over and over, you let go of old hurts and grudges to make peace with one another. And family members come to believe that, no matter what, they are still loved by you and by God.

• You celebrate life: birthdays and weddings, births and deaths, a first day of school and a graduation, rites of passage into adulthood, new jobs, old friends, family reunions, surprise visits, holy days and holidays. You come together when tragedy strikes and in joyful celebration of the sacraments. As you gather for a meal, you break bread and share stories, becoming more fully the community of love Jesus calls us to be.

• You welcome the stranger, the lonely one, the grieving person into your home. You give drink to the thirsty and food to the hungry. The Gospel assures us that when we do this, they are strangers no more, but Christ.

• You act justly in your community when you treat others with respect, stand against discrimination and racism, and work to overcome hunger, poverty, homelessness, illiteracy.

• You affirm life as a precious gift from God. You oppose whatever destroys life, such as abortion, euthanasia, unjust war, capital punishment, neighborhood and domestic violence, poverty and racism. Within your family, when you shun violent words and actions and look for peaceful ways to resolve conflict, you become a voice for life, forming peacemakers for the next generation.

• You raise up vocations to the priesthood and religious life as you encourage your children to listen for God's call and respond to God's grace. This is especially fostered through family prayer, involvement in parish life, and by the way you speak of priests, sisters, brothers, and permanent deacons.

• Reflect for a moment on your life as a family:
  • Do you recall a time when you felt God's presence in your midst?
    • Why do you think this was so?
    • What was happening?
  • Recall one or more instances where you experienced being church, either in the home or outside of it.
    • What was the outcome?
  • How can you help your children experience God’s presence in their midst during their ordinary and meaningful daily experiences and encounters?

www.catholic.com Catholic Answers is mostly a site that answers questions about the Catholic faith. It was put together by the people who work with Karl Keating, author of Fundamentalism and Catholicism, and other great books about knowing, defending, and sharing the Faith of the Roman Catholic Church.

www.catholic.org  Catholic Online is a huge resource center, with news, 10,000+ links, forums, articles, devotions, shopping, and more.

www.catholicculture.org  This site reviews over 500 Catholic web sites annually to let you know what’s out there—both  what to look at and what to avoid. If you want to learn more about your Catholic faith—its doctrine, its history, and what is happening in the Church today—this is the site for you!  

www.catholicmom.com  This is a web site for sharing and learning about parenting and faith issues. You can stop by their Catholic Mom blog and share your comments and ideas. Check out the Catholic Moments Podcast for news and chats with authors, columnists, and musicians. Other highlights of the Catholic Moms (TM) web site include: recipes, traditions, holy day and holiday ideas, home management, kid’s activities, and motivational tips pages; you can submit your ideas or find out new tips.

www.dads.org This is the online resource ministry of St. Joseph’s Covenant Keepers (SJCK), an informal international network of Christian men, under the patronage of St. Joseph, dedicated to strengthening the family. The site is filled with information and resources for dads.

www.catholicparents.org  Catholic Parents mission is "to build a network of faithful, dynamic, and informed parents, students, and alumni, committed to working with Catholic schools and other programs of education to ensure the authentic teaching and protection of the Catholic Faith." They are truly devoted to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church, the Pope and the Bishops in union with him. They also recognize parents’ role as the primary educators of their children.

www.formed.org  If you are interested in learning more about your faith but don’t have time to attend a class or Bible study, check out this website. St. Mary’s has purchased a subscription to this online resource. Enter the parish access code (ed01c4) to create an account. With your account you can access Bible and faith study programs, full-length movies, audio talks, and ebooks.

www.magnificat.net  Magnifikid! reaches children from 6 to 12. When you order a subscription, the booklets are sent to the child on a monthly basis. Every month, the child will receive a booklet of 16 color pages for each Sunday, and also special issues for all major feast days (Christmas, Ash Wednesday, Holy Week, Ascension, Assumption, and All Saints Day).

www.masstimes.org  This is a free ministry to traveling Catholics, funded by Pauline Books and Media, in partnership with the Catholic Communication Campaign of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and Mass Times Trust. No matter where you are traveling in the world, you can find out where and when the nearest Catholic Masses are available.

www.newadvent.org  New Advent is a Catholic Encyclopedia online, plus much more.

www.sacredspace.ie  You can make a 'Sacred Space' in your day with ten minutes of pryayer as you sit in front of your computer, with the help of on-screen guidance and Scripture chosen especially for each day  It’s like a having a ten minute online retreat at your disposal every day!

www.usccb.org   On this website you can find Church documents, an online Bible, Daily Mass readings, an online Catechism, and more!
 
www.zenit.org  ZENIT’s "mission is to provide objective coverage of events, documents and issues emanating from or concerning the Catholic Church.” This is where to go to get the latest news, from the viewpoint of the Roman Catholic Church