I am pleased to announce that K-6 Religious Education is returning to St. Mary of the Rosary! In addition, there will be changes to the existing program for Holy Ghost and Sacred Heart parishioners. The Church teaches that parents are “the first and foremost educators of their children” (Gravissimum Educationes, 3).

This is why our renewed program will be called “Family Faith Formation.” Parents or guardians will fully participate in nurturing their children’s faith by attending one family gathering on the first Wednesday of each month and teaching home lessons during remaining weeks of that month. The program is designed to assist parents in this primary role.

The Church teaches that “the right and duty of parents to give education is essential … original and primary … and it is irreplaceable and incapable of being entirely delegated to others”
(Familiaris Consortio, 36). Furthermore, “the family is a domestic church” (Lumen Gentium, 11). Upon reflection, I think we all realize that a child’s faith cannot be nurtured apart from the example and deep involvement of the parents. And all of us who have ever taught anything know that the best way to learn is to teach! So the added bonus is that parents will deepen their own faith while passing it on to their children.

More information will be coming your way. In the meantime, it is important for us to know how many K-6 children will enroll so that we can plan, create, and order materials. Please register your children by clicking here. If you have friends who do not have Internet access, please let them know they can register by calling our tri-parish coordinator of Family Faith Formation, Mark Selle of Holy Ghost parish, at 937-2335.

Finally, please mark your calendar and plan to attend a Parent Information Meeting at 6:30 PM on Wednesday, August 28th in the St. Mary of the Rosary Parish Hall. This meeting will be for everyone in the tri-parish community. Thank you, and we hope to see everyone involved!