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2007-2008 Confirmation Program
Special Peer Minister Power
Point Presentation
Who Should
Register?
Students who
were either in Year I of our Confirmation program
last year, and therefore are ready to start Year II;
or if you are of the age, at least beginning High
School, when you can decide if you would like to
begin the Confirmation program at Blessed Sacrament.
When you were
younger, you were either part of the religious
education program at Blessed Sacrament or another
church; or you received your religious education at
your Catholic school. But this is different; the
Confirmation program is a two-year program which
helps to prepare you to receive the sacrament of
Confirmation.
Even if you
attend a Catholic high school, you still participate
in preparing for Confirmation through a parish,
whether that be Blessed Sacrament or another church.
What it Means
to Participate
Receiving the sacrament of Confirmation does not
mean you have “graduated from CCD”, or that you have
learned all there is to know about what it means to
be a Catholic. What it does mean is that you are
ready to be initiated into the Catholic Church as a
young adult; that you want to continue along the
faith journey that your parents started you on, when
they had you baptized many years ago.
Once You
Decide
If you decide you want to begin the Confirmation
program, or that you want to continue it, please
fill out the
registration form
and send it in by September 7. Perhaps you will
decide that you’re not ready at this time; or that
your schedule is too busy right now to commit to the
Confirmation program; or that you would prefer to
participate in a program at a different parish. That
is your decision to make.
The
program has four expectations:
1.
Attend and Participate in all Monthly Sessions, as
well as the Orientation in September
Sessions are once a month on Sundays from
4:30-7:30PM, (except for the December meeting, which
is on a Monday), and include participation in 5:30PM
Mass; pizza is served after Mass; followed by our
small group discussions. Confirmation candidates
are expected to be there for the entire session,
in order to be considered to have completed the
program. If candidates have some other regular
commitment that occurs on Sunday evenings, that they
cannot miss for our monthly Confirmation sessions,
then they will not be able to commit to the
Confirmation program at our parish this year.
The
dates for this year’s orientation and monthly
sessions are on
the
schedule.
2.
Participate in a Service Project with Your Group
In
addition to the sessions, Confirmation candidates
participate in a service project. We focus on one of
the corporal works of mercy, doing what Jesus called
us to do: feed the hungry, shelter the homeless,
clothe the naked, and visit the sick and imprisoned.
Catholic faith grows and matures in shared
community; therefore candidates will be expected to
complete this service project with their small
group, not as individuals. We know that many
of you are doing community service with your schools
or other organizations; however those will not count
towards your Confirmation service project.
3.
Participate in a One-Day Retreat
All
Confirmation candidates will be expected to
participate in our day-long retreat; a time for
prayer, discussion, group activities, food, and fun.
These retreats are not optional; it is an
intentional piece of our program, and its goal is
for us to build community together.
Year
I Candidates: Participate in a day at Gordon
College, at their outdoor camp.
This retreat offers exhilarating and adventurous
activities which encourage personal growth, group
unity and spiritual development; and it accomplishes
one of our biggest goals: to build community. This
has been a big hit with the Confirmation candidates
in the past! In the past, we had it in the spring;
but we have moved it to the fall, so that the Year I
candidates will have the opportunity to get to know
each other sooner.
Year
II Candidates: Participate in a retreat day at the
Marian Center in Medway, MA.
This day has also been successful in the past; this
is due in great part to our Peer Ministers, who
share their faith stories and coordinate the whole
day. It is a chance for the Confirmation candidates
to come away together, before being confirmed, to
realize that they are the “church” at Blessed
Sacrament; that this is their own faith, not just
their parents’.
4.
Write Monthly Reflections
Each month, Confirmation candidates will be asked to
write a one-page reflection, which will be collected
at the next meeting. These will give candidates a
chance to think more about what was discussed, and
how it impacts their lives as Catholics. It is a key
learning component, and so the expectation is that
these reflections will be turned in on time.
This month's reflection
Question, Click here.
Questions?
Contact Terry Witherell, Coordinator of Youth
Ministry, at 508-668-4700;
terryw@blessedsacrament.org
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