St. Cecilia

Faith Formation

Handbook

2017-2018

Email: (Tammy Geubelle) or Director of Faith (Kenneth Kron)

the Youth (Karen Boespflug)

Visit us at: www.stceciliastanwood.org

26900 78th Ave. NW

Stanwood, WA 98292

360-629-4425

Dear Parents and Guardians,

When you brought your children to Church for their Baptism, you received and accepted the responsibility of raising them in the Roman Catholic Faith.

You have carried out this serious responsibility in many ways over the years. You have taught your children their prayers. You have told them the story of Jesus' birth at Christmastime and how He died and rose again at Easter. You have taught them about forgiveness, concern for others and so many other aspects of our Catholic faith by the way you live and share your lives at home each day.

To further deepen their understanding of our Catholic faith, you have enrolled them in our Faith Formation program.

It is important that you support and reinforce the efforts of the Faith Formation program at home by reviewing the weekly classwork with your children.

Please make the weekly attendance at the Faith Formation classes a priority in each child's life; sports and other activities should be planned around religion classes.

As the Eucharist is the center of Catholic life, it is most important that your family participate in Sunday Mass each week throughout the year. Sunday Mass and daily prayer are a critical part of every Catholic's life.

We pray that in the coming months your children will grow in wisdom and grace as they come to know Jesus and to deepen their understanding and appreciation of our Catholic faith.

Yours in Christ,

The St. Cecilia Faith Formation Team

1. Admission: Parents or guardians must be registered in the parish before seeking to register children in our program. Upon enrollment, a copy of each child's baptismal certificate must be turned in no later than the end of January. Those transferring from another faith formation program should give the office a letter from that parish indicating the years of previous instruction and sacraments received.

Our call as Christians requires love and respect for all people. No one will be turned away based on race, ethnicity, physical disability or financial status.

Issues of Custody

Parents must inform the Faith Formation Office staff if there are any custodial issues; please provide a copy of any pertinent court documents.

2. Registration: Registration occurs every September and can be done on-line at www.stceciliastanwood.org or obtained from the INFORMATION STATION on the wall in the entrance of the church. All children will be assigned to a class by the Faith Formation office.

3. Registration Fees: The fees received are used for books, workbooks, supplies and office needs for the program. There are no special sacramental fees for First Eucharist. There is a retreat fee for Confirmation to be determined. Families experiencing financial hardship can contact the office. The Faith Formation office will send a reminder of any tuition and/or meal fees owing.

Fees are waived if a parent volunteers for the whole year at the elementary level. If a parent volunteers in the Middle School or High School Faith Formation, the fee is waived for their adolescent enrolled therein. If you have children in both Wednesday afternoon and evening Faith Formation, and you work in only one of the two programs, the fee will be waived only for the program you are volunteering for. The fee waivers do not apply to the Wednesday evening meals as that is a separate.

4. Home-schooling: According to the Archdiocese of Seattle's Guidelines For Catholic Religious Education In The Home, the continuation of Catholic faith in the home by the instruction of parents to their children may happen due to a variety of reasons. When it comes to sacramental preparation, the pastor needs to know that the child is properly prepared and that suitable catechesis has been given for the reception of Reconciliation, Eucharist and Confirmation. Pastors can require children and youth in home school programs to attend all practices, retreats and rehearsals associated with their grade level. Parents are required to attend parent meetings.

Home-schooling families are encouraged and welcomed to participate in our Faith Formation programs, especially during the sacramental years.

5. Schedule of Classes & Arrival/Dismissal Policies:

*Grades Preschool through 5th meet on Wednesday afternoons from 4:00 - 5:30 p.m.

*Grades 6 through 12 meets on Wednesday evenings from 6:00 - 7:30 p.m.

There is an optional meal for Middle School and High School students from 5:30 - 6:00 p.m.

Being on time is not only polite, it shows proper respect and is essential to a good learning environment. The first 10 minutes of class sets the tone for the lesson.

For the elementary program, a parent/guardian or authorized adult is to bring their child(ren) to their classroom and pick them up from the classroom. For Middle School and High School Faith Formation, a parent/guardian of the youth should bring their child(ren) to and from the church building. In particular, a parent/guardian must escort their teen into the building when their teen has invited a friend to accompany them. Parents must complete a visitor form that can be picked up at the Parish Office.

For All Grades

If someone other than a parent/guardian is picking up a student, a written authorization must be given to the catechist and the Faith Formation office. No student is permitted to leave the building early without a parent. To have your adolescent released early from the Middle and High School Faith Formation classroom, the parent/guardian should notify the Youth Minister and pick up student from their classroom downstairs (or from the church if the class is in Adoration or worship).

6. Attendance: Consistent attendance at class demonstrates to your child the importance of learning about God and developing a Christian way of living. Therefore, all students are expected to attend scheduled classes unless prevented by illness.

A copy of our Calendar is available at www.stceciliastanwood.org.

Please call the office if your child will be absent. It is the responsibility of the student and the parent/guardian to make up the work missed. If your child cannot attend on a regular basis, please call and discuss the situation with either the Director of Faith Formation or the Youth Minister.

Sunday Mass attendance is not only a precept of the Catholic Church, it is also a loving response to Jesus' request at the Last Supper: "...then, taking bread and giving thanks, he broke it and gave it to them saying: 'This is my body to be given for you. Do this as a remembrance of me.'" (Luke 22:19) Prayerful reception of the Eucharist affirms our belief that this truly is the Body of Christ. Our spiritual life and union with Jesus grows with our reception of the Eucharist.

7. Inclement Weather: If the Stanwood School District is closed due to severe weather conditions, there will be NO Faith Formation sessions that afternoon or evening in our Parish. If school is in session, but weather conditions deteriorate during the day, please call to see if classes will meet.

8. Illness or Accident: Every child must have a Medical Release Form on file in the Faith Formation office. When a child becomes ill or is injured during a Faith Formation class, the office will immediately make every attempt to contact the parent/guardian.

9. Student Conduct & Responsibility: As a Catholic community, we foster Christian principles of respect and courtesy toward all adults and children. It is expected that all students will obey all program procedures and the rules set forth by their catechist. Parents will be notified of any inappropriate language or behavior. Persistent problems will be addressed at a meeting of parent, child, and program director.

Dress Code

Appropriate clothing for the season and place of instruction (our Church building) should be worn. For safety reasons, students should not wear flip-flops or sneakers with wheels in them. All students are to dress modestly and appropriately.

Property

All students are expected to respect the Church property, especially the personal items of both Elementary, Middle School and High School students who share our facilities and their catechist and aides. Parents will be held responsible for the repair of any serious damage to church property or the personal property of fellow parishioners that is caused by their child.

Electronic Devices

Electronic devices, such as iPods and MP3 players, are not be brought to class. Cell phones may be brought to class, but must be on silent mode while the class is in session. If the student uses their electronic device(s) during class time, the catechist will ask the student to put the device away and if the student does not comply the catechist will then collect the device and hold it until the end of class, and the parent/guardian will be contacted.

10. Supervision: Students should not arrive more than 10 minutes before class begins or when the meal begins in the evening. They are not allowed into the classroom until their catechist arrives. There is no supervision before this time.

Parents are responsible for the prompt pick-up of their children. Students not picked up by five minutes after class is dismissed will be supervised in the Faith Formation office for a reasonable length of time. Please contact the office (360) 629-4425 if, due to an emergency, you are unable to pick-up your child on time.

11. Emergency Care: Each parent is required to fill out the emergency form found on the back of the registration form. Since children are with us such a short time we expect all medications to be administered before or after class. However, it is understandable that there may be a need to use an inhaler, which would warrant medication being brought to class. The Director of Faith Formation or the Youth Minister must be informed of any medicine being brought to class.

12. Field Trips: If a catechist would like to take students on a field trip, he/she must get approval from the Faith Formation Administers, and then the catechist must have written permission from the parent/guardian of the child/ren stating that they understand the nature of the trip as well as the cost along with their permission to allow their child to attend the trip. A catechist has the right to refuse participation to anyone whose conduct has not been satisfactory. A parent also has the right to refuse participation.

The Faith Formation program may periodically include such activities as a visit to the parish church, nature walks on parish property or other limited outdoor activities. The Middle School or High School Faith Formation students may also participate in the same activities or utilize the gardens or building(s) at the Institute of Spirituality. The teens will only leave the Church or Institute property for conferences and/or retreats that the parent/guardian will have known about weeks in advance and only after all the proper permission, medical release, and codes of conduct forms have been signed and dated by the parent/guardian, student, and the Youth Minister. Parents always retain the right to drive their own teen to or from an off-site event, but must notify the Youth Minister in writing that they are doing so. For off-site events, the Youth Minister is required by the Archdiocese of Seattle to provide approved transportation via bus or personal automobiles, and will do so for all off-site retreats and conferences.

13. Prayers in the Classroom and at Home: Prayer is an integral part of every lesson at all age levels. Students will experience a variety of ways to pray including both formal, memorized prayers, and informal, spontaneous prayer. Parents/guardians are to help their children and adolescents learn their prayers and devotions. All prayers need to be learned in the home as we do not have the time required to memorize them in the short time we have in class each week.

The Archdiocese of Seattle provides lists of prayers, devotions, religious vocabulary words and concepts that the children/adolescents should know by the end of each school year up through Grade 8. All of the prayers, devotions, words, and concepts should be memorized prior to the proximate year of Confirmation catechesis.

14. Sacraments:

First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion

According to the Archdiocese of Seattle guidelines, every parish and faith community must provide children with adequate catechesis for First Reconciliation and First Communion. The Archdiocese of Seattle views this occurring over a two-year period. Proximate catechesis begins in the first grade or the year prior to the celebration of First Reconciliation and First Communion. Immediate preparation for First Reconciliation and First Communion should consist of at least four to six classes of catechetical instruction directed toward each sacrament.

If a child enters our program at a later age and needs to receive the sacraments, a two-year program is still required. Children beyond the age of reason (over seven) who are baptized or unbaptized and new to Faith Formation must be prepared for the Sacraments of Initiation in accordance with the provisions of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults Adapted for Children. They should receive the Sacraments of Initiation at the Easter Vigil, along with the other catechumens and candidates for full communion.