Youth Religious Education
Guidelines for Confirmation
Being a follower of Jesus means a lifetime of service to others. This will take different forms at different times of your life. But true service is always about being Christ for others. He came to serve, not to be served.

Beginning to take an active part in Christian service is a way of learning what your gifts are and how you can offer them to others. The service that you choose should be an opportunity for you to be an instrument of Christ for others.


Christian Service Project
The Christian Service Program is part of the formation of the Confirmation Candidate. It is not something that one does in order to earn the Sacrament of Confirmation. It is something one does because service is part of Christian life.

Candidates who are already involved in on-going service to the parish, the community or the school are permitted to use that service as fulfillment of this part of the Confirmation preparation.

Parent supervision and participation is essential. It is important that youth experience adult witness, involvement and protection.

Candidates should not be handed a project; they should be encouraged to suggest and select the type of service they prefer. These service activities need to arise from a desire to give oneself to the welfare of others for love of the Lord.

You can do a number of shorter projects or one large project. The total number of hours should be in the area of 20 to 30 hours during the last year of preparation. A deadline will be published.

Service should not include: assigned duties at home or in school, jobs for which you are paid, school fundraiser projects




Sponsors

The following is a list of some of the service possibilities.
  • Visit local nursing homes
  • Help elderly people find companionship by adopting them as grandparents
  • Visit shut-ins/persons with handicapping conditions
  • Do housework for an elderly person
  • Help a family where someone is hospitalized
  • Sponsor a clean-up in your area
  • Perform odd jobs, e.g. wash windows, rake leaves, remove snow
  • Be part of a youth choir
  • Serve as an usher, lector, altar server
  • Volunteer your time at a non-profit organization e.g. library, hospital
  • Run errands for the elderly
  • Help with Vacation Bible School
  • Be creative

A sponsor represents all the people of the Church, who want you to know that they support you and want to share the fullness of the Christian Faith with you A sponsor can assist you in learning how to live a Christian lifestyle.

It is good to choose a sponsor who can take an active part in helping you to grow in your Catholic Faith. Your sponsor must be a practicing Catholic, 16 years of age and have received the Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist. Your sponsor can be male or female.


Confirmation Name
You can take your baptismal name as your confirmation name or you can choose another Christian name to express the fact that there is a significant change in your life with the reception of the Sacrament of Confirmation, hence a new name. If you choose another name it must be a Saint’s name; someone you want to model yourself after.


Christian Service Activity Form
STATEMENT ABOUT MY CHRISTIAN SERVICE ACTIVITY

Describe what you did as a service project:

___________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________

How much time did you spend on this project?

___________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Tell why you chose to do this:

___________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Tell what was good about the project.

___________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Describe any problems or difficulties you encountered:

___________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________

What did you learn? How has it helped you to understand the Gospel call to serve others?

___________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________

CANDIDATES SIGNATURE ____________________________________________________________________



SUPERVISING ADULT SIGNATURE _____________________________________________________________




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Guidelines for Individual Family
First Holy Communion


Introduction

Besides the group First Holy Communion, families may choose individual First Holy Communion on
designated weekends after the group First Holy Communion. This would be an either or choice.

Sign up

If a family chooses individual First Holy Communion the parents need to contact the Second Grade
Catechist to sign up for a particular weekend Mass from the distributed schedule. So that this is a special time no more than two families will usually be scheduled for the same Mass.

Mass Procedure

The front pew on either the Blessed Mother side or Saint Joseph side will be reserved. You will know which one when you arrive.

The entire pew will be reserved for the parents, child and any other people designated by the family and communicated to those people by the family

The three seats of the pew closest to the middle aisle will be for the parents and child.

The family will arrive 15 minutes before the Mass and meet with Sister.

They will be in procession immediately after the cross bearer and servers and enter their pew without genuflection. (They may genuflect with the priest when he arrives at the steps of the sanctuary).

At Communion time the family will come up to the steps of the Sanctuary, as soon as the Priest drinks from the chalice. The parents will stand on either side of the first communicant. The communicant will receive first and remain there until the parents have received, then all return to their place and the next family, if any, comes forward in like manner.

At the end of the Liturgy the parents and child walk out immediately after the cross bearer and servers (ministers wait).

The First communicant should stand at the door to be greeted by the people.



Notes:

Pictures may be taken in the Sanctuary after greeting the people in the back.

The child may wear whatever the family decides,
but the clothes should be their "Sunday Best".