Welcome
Full 2016/2017 Class Calendar now available
in the link in the right column.
First Parent Session: 9/7/2016 - 7:00pm to 8:00pm
First Student Session: 9/14/2016 - 7:00pm to 9:00pm
Please see the initial parent letter below:
Hello Middle School CCD Parents!
I am excited about this coming year and the resources we will be using to prepare your children for the Sacrament of Confirmation! We are using “Decision Point” by Matthew Kelly and the Catholic Answers "20 Answers Series". This will be the second time we have used Decision Point for Confirmation preparation and because it is video-based it is very engaging for the kids. The 20 Answers Series is a collection of 17 booklets with 20 answers to 20 common questions for topics like God, The Real Jesus, Mary, Faith & Science, and many other topics. They are great booklets and can be a good reference outside of class when questions come up that you do not know the answer to.
All sacraments are special but one way Confirmation is special is that it completes the Sacraments of Christian Initiation. Baptism and the Eucharist are the other two. The Catechism of the Catholic Church in paragraphs 1302 through 1305 teaches the effects of Confirmation. Those effects help us in many ways but one way it helps us is to more fully see ourselves as the “Child of God” we are. Truly understanding and believing we are Children of God is an important foundational point that will be stressed all year. Many of the class sessions will begin and end with music videos that are available on the Internet. One of my favorite songs is titled “Children of God” by Third Day. I had the opportunity to attend an outdoor concert a couple summers ago where Third Day performed this song live. The words of the song made a pretty power statement when 30,000+ people are singing along with this song that proclaims “We are Children of God”.
COMMUNICATIONS
I have a Blog (website) setup for this class that will be used along with parent emails to keep parents, sponsors, and students informed. The Blog site can be found at mphmmsccd.blogspot.com so share this site with your child’s sponsor and anyone interested in what is going on in the Middles School CCD class. Please bookmark this site and check it weekly to see the new information. This site is also mobile friendly so it can be viewed on a smart phone or tablet.
CLASS SCHEDULE
The Decision Point program is setup for 2 hour class sessions so the student sessions will be from 7:00pm- 9:00pm. Since this is longer than our normal 1-1/2 hour CCD sessions, the students will not be meeting every week. The class calendar, which is linked on the right-hand side of the class Blog site, contains the list of days the students will be meeting in St. Mary's school. Parent sessions have also been scheduled to help you encourage your child during their confirmation preparation. The dates for the Parent sessions are also on the class calendar and will only last 1 hour from 7:00pm to 8:00pm. Sponsors are also invited and encouraged to attend the parent sessions when they can. There are a few sessions included in the calendar that are not on Wednesday evening so please make special note of those dates.
The first session on Wednesday, 9/7, will be a one hour parent (sponsors are also invited) only session from 7:00pm to 8:00pm. If you have not turned in the registration form before that session, please bring the completed form with you to this parent session. If you need a registration form, please contact the Parish office.
I tried to be brief but there is a lot of information I wanted to share with you before we kick-off the new year. If you have any questions regarding the content of this letter or anything else related to the Middle School CCD classes, please contact me.
God Bless!
Gary Lauderbaugh
