Registration for Family Based Catechesis takes place during September. A Baptism certificate is REQUIRED if your child was NOT baptized in our parish or you have not previously registered for Family Based Catechesis.
The primary educators of our children in the faith of our Church are parents. Our parishes have adopted the Family Based version of the Born of The Spirit Catechetical series.
The Born of The Spirit series is a resource to assist parents as they share the faith of our Church with their children. While there is no fixed age for starting to use this resource, we believe Year 1 is best started when the child will be 6 years of age by December 31 of the year they register. The resource develops as follows:
The Resource begins with, In God’s Image, and it is recommended for preschoolers up to the age of 5. This year introduces the children to the concept of God in our daily lives through our friends, family, environment, celebrations, and how we belong. It also introduces them to some simple prayers and to the Church.
Year 1, We Belong to God, is recommended for children 5 (turning 6 by Dec. 31st). It builds upon your child’s experience of belonging. Participating in this resource will help families to extend and deepen that sense of belonging to God and to the family of faith. It also introduces the basics and foundations of our faith, including prayers such as The Our Father, Glory Be, Hail Mary etc.
Year 2, We Belong to the Lord Jesus can begin when the child is 6 or 7 and has completed year 1. The focus in year 1 was on God’s love and in year 2, the focus is on Jesus who is the most perfect expression of God’s love for us. Year 2 is about, meeting Jesus and especially about meeting Jesus in the Sunday Eucharistic Liturgy the Mass. The children will grow in friendship with Jesus and a special way is through participating with the family of Jesus in the Eucharist. This year will also introduce the Holy Spirit as the helper of Jesus, who helps us to see how God is present and acting in our world. During this year the child may be ready to celebrate the sacraments of Confirmation and Eucharist.
Year 3, In The Spirit We Belong, is about the Holy Spirit. Children and families are introduced to the stories of some people in our faith tradition who were filled with the Holy Spirit, and are reminded that the story of Jesus is really a story of the coming of the Holy Spirit into our midst. It is the Holy Spirit who leads us to Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist and who places in us a desire for Reconciliation. During this year children will be prepared to celebrate the sacrament of Reconciliation.
In Year 4, Come and See, we explore the Good News, the Gospel of Jesus Christ and we will discover how this Good News proclaimed by Jesus is handed on from generation to generation by the Church. We come to know Jesus through those who were closest to him, the Apostles. The words of Jesus “Come and See”are extended to the young person, who is invited to deepen his or her relationship with Jesus and to become even more fully a disciple of Jesus. This year opens up the Scriptures for children by placing the Gospels in their hands.
May We Be One, Year 5, is about the Church as the community of God’s people where the Lord Jesus is visible, active and present in the power of the Holy Spirit. Families become familiar with the Old Testament and how Jesus came to proclaim the coming of the reign of God. The Church, guided by the Holy Spirit continues the mission of Jesus Christ in the world today.
The last year in Family Catechesis is Year 6, You Shall Be My Witnesses. This year is about the moral life of young Christians who are witnesses of God’s justice and love when they are firmly rooted in the faith. This year is based on the Bible and presents how God’s covenant, with the peoples of the earth, is reflected in moral existence by the witness of love, justice and compassion.