A Roman Catholic Community Serving God and Neighbor
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Religious Education Program
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The St. Mary’s Religious Education Program provides our children and adolescents with ongoing faith formation, spiritual encouragement, and development of the understanding and practice of being catholic in the world today. As always, parents are the primary educators of their children, and the Religious Education Program serves to support and enhance their important mission. The programs strive to incorporate meaningful learning experiences designed to inform, guide and celebrate understanding of the Catholic faith. Children actively participate in prayer, worship, and service to others.
All of our religious education, or catechesis, is built around the belief that Mass must be our priority. We have designed our program to center around the 10:00 am Family Mass and expect our students to attend as part of their religious education class. We will also be engaging the children in various ways: reading, singing, altar serving, collecting, etc. This simple act has been proven to help our children feel part of the Mass and stay engaged in their parish.
St. Mary's Religious Education Program covers three areas of faith-filled learning. These areas include grade preschool - 5, grades 6 - 11 and adult Bible study.
Registration information for Faith Formation can be found here.
Service Sunday: Our Religious Education students in grades 2-8 worked together to create 165 Holiday cards to give to our parish home bound, those in the hospital and to include in the St. Vincent de Paul's Thanksgiving Food Baskets. They did a wonderful job creating beautiful cards with warm sentiments. They concluded their time together by praying for the recipients.
Baptismal Records
If your child was not baptized at St. Mary's Church, or if we do not have a copy of their Baptismal certificate, please email a copy to Mrs. Luna-Bagge or mail to:
St. Mary's Office of Religious Education
86 Mechanic Street
Westfield MA 01085
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Calendar
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Little Lambs
1st Grade
Our Little Lamb program is designed to instill a foundation of wonder and love for God as well as curiosity about our faith. The children will be introduced to various saints, learn important stories from the Bible, and engage in various activities/songs to help reinforce the lessons. This structured class will be taught by a pair of teachers, in the lower church, and will occur during the first half of the 10:00 am Mass. This program is open to all 4-5 year olds.
First Communion preparation is a two year process that normally begins in first grade. During first grade, students will continue to learn about their faith, God, Jesus, the saints and the Church. During these years they also begin learning traditional Catholic prayers. The children will attend class during the first half of the 10:00 am mass and will return to their families before Communion. Its is a fun class, full of activities and opportunities for the children to actively participate.
Littel Lambs and 1st Grade students will follow a weekly calendar set by the Office of Religious Education. Parents are asked to drop off the children to the child’s classroom between 9:50-10:00 am and then head to the 10:00 am Mass. The children will participate in their classes afterwhich they will be brought to the church to join their parents during Mass, generally right before communion. We have structured class time and have the children witness the Liturgy of the Eucharist and become familiar with the Mass.
2nd Grade
Second grade begins the immediate preparation for the sacraments. The first half of the year the students will study and prepare for First Reconciliation. During this time the children will learn about the 10 Commandments, and begin to understand what sin is. Most importantly they learn about God’s love, mercy and forgiveness. The sacrament is received during a penance service in late January or early February. The second half of the year is dedicated to the Mass, especially the Eucharist. It is important the children attend Mass to visually see and start to understand what the Sacrament is they will receive. First Communion is celebrated on one Saturday in the Spring.Class time will be designed to prepare them for two important sacraments, First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion.
As this is a very busy year, we ask that families commit to the program and become involved in their children’s preparation. We will offer various ways for you to do this throughout the year. Receiving sacraments is truly God’s gift to us and we are excited to celebrate them with you!
3rd - 5th Grades
Students in these grades will continue to develop their faith, knowledge and love of God by diving deeper into scripture and becoming proficient in using the Bible. In addition to a traditional learning environment, we will be engaging the children in small group activities, community service, and offering large group assemblies and retreats. Our mission is to help this particular group of children live out their faith and build community amongst each other. We are committed to providing a dynamic atmosphere which will instill lifelong faith and love of God. These classes will run weekly, per the ORE schedule, from 11:00 - 11: 45 am.
A retreat for all children is held in March in which parents participate. Two informational meetings are held during the year for parents.
Special provisions will be made for children past the age of third grade that have not received their Sacraments.
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This vital ministry continues the tradition of instructing our children in the fundamental dogmas of faith, doctrine, tradition and scripture. The focus is on prayer, learning, faith sharing, integration into daily life and outreach.
All students are expected to attend the Sunday Family Mass at 10:00 am. Faith Formation classes follow Mass each week 11:00 - 11:45 am. Grade 11 students are afforded the option of attending classes at 11:00 am or bi-weekly 6:00 - 8:00 pm.
Confirmation celebrates God’s gift of the Holy Spirit, first given in Baptism and then confirmed through the lived experience of the candidates. Confirmation is typically celebrated in early May of the Junior year of High School. During their 10th and 11th grade year, the students prepare for Confirmation by attending a Retreat, having special Confirmandi/Parent meetings, Confirmandi/Sponsor meetings, and doing service projects. The students learn about the Gifts of the Spirit and how we can use these gifts in our lives, as well as continuing their knowledge of our Catholic faith.
Change in Age of Confirmation
As of Fall 2022, Bishop Byrne has changed the age of Confirmation for our Diocese. Due to this change, we have decided to confirm all of our upcoming 9th, 10th and 11th grade students in the spring of 2023. Be on the lookout for registration information in early May. Please register your child early so that we can properly plan for classes.
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Children's Choir
St. Mary's Children's Choir is led and instructed by Mr. Lepage, Music Director. Choir rehearsal is held each Sunday 11:00 - 11:45 am and takes the place of the traditional classroom learning. The Children's Choir will sing at the Sunday 10:00 am Mass once per month
The Children's Choir is open to students grade 6 - 8. Sign-up for choir while completing the registration form.
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During the school year, we hold two on-going Bible Studies, one on Wednesday mornings (9:30) and one on Wednesday evenings (7:00). These studies cover a wide range of Bible books and are open to all teens and adults. The studies are always free with students only paying for books. For more information contact Mrs. Joanne Bagge.
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