All of the religious education activities at St. John Neumann center on our weekly celebration of the Liturgy. The Liturgy is the heart of our life together. Catechesis flows from worship and leads back to a more meaningful experience of worship. Adults and children in all our catechetical sessions reflect on the Word of God as proclaimed in the Sunday Scriptures. Materials are available for everyone in the parish to engage in that same reflective process. In this way, religious education at St. John Neumann is Lectionary-based.
Sacramental Preparation
Religious Education Options, K-6
Youth
Ministry - Junior High (Grades 7 & 8)
Youth
Ministry - Y.A.C.H.T Club (Grades 9th through 12th)
Adult
Education
Information
Religious Ed. Forms and Information
The celebration of the Sacrament of Reconciliation takes place in the month of December, during Second Grade, in the Season of Advent. Preparation for the sacrament occurs during five ninety minute sessions on Saturdays in the Fall. A Parent Orientation meeting is held prior to the preparation sessions. Parish volunteer catechists prepare the children for the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
The celebration of First Eucharist presupposes two years in the religious education program and regular attendance at Liturgy. Preparation for the sacrament occurs during six ninety minute sessions on Saturdays in the Winter and the early Spring. A Parent Orientation meeting is held prior to the preparation sessions. Parish volunteer catechists prepare the children for the Sacrament of First Eucharist, which is received in early May. A day of retreat is provided for the children during the week prior to First Eucharist.
The Confirmation preparation program is not grade-related but is situated within the context of the Parish's ministry to youth and is modeled on the RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults). The Junior High Youth Ministry sessions take place on Sunday evenings according to the published calendar.
Confirmation preparation presupposes regular attendance at Liturgy and in the Junior High Youth Ministry sessions. Immediate preparation includes parent created activities, a retreat day and evidence of growth in faith shown through service to the community. A conference with the pastor determines the candidate's readiness to complete his or her initiation with the celebration of the Sacrament of Confirmation.
Religious Education Options, K-6
The Saturday Catechesis Gathering is a morning session, held for 2.5 hours once a month in the morning. At least one parent is required to attend this program. Adults participate in small group discussions with other adults and in intergenerational activities with their children. Prayer and music are important components of the Saturday Catechesis Gathering.
Sunday morning catechetical sessions are conducted by parish volunteer catechists and are held at Valley View School generally twice a month on Sunday mornings from 9-10:15 AM.
Youth Ministry is the Church in action WITH its teenagers. It is a program without walls in that its purpose is to integrate the young person in the life of the parish while honoring the stages of development of the early and later adolescent. It is therefore a “ministry” of the church lived with the youth who are so able to share the Catholic/Christian life of the community. The teens engage in activities organized and facilitated by themselves such as lock-ins, prayer and relationship building activities. The teens serve the parish when calls for help come from parish activities such as baby-sitting during Discovery Sunday and for the MOMs group, working with adults in fund-raising events such as the Craft Fair and Grand Auction. They prepare food for the homeless through the Genesis Project and the annual holiday food distribution program of Social Ministry. They collect dollars and soup for Elijah’s Promise Soup Kitchen in Metuchen where they deliver the donations and help others to serve in the center for the homeless. The adults of the parish minister among themselves for the benefit of youth. As catechists adults meet together with the Youth Minister on a monthly basis for shared prayer and planning of instruction and activities in support of the teens. The parish ministers to youth when it sets aside funds for the development of teens in the parish and when the adult community supports the needs of youth through leadership development training, chaperoning, giving workshops and many other ways of letting the youth feel their worth in the Community.
Junior High Youth Group members are in Years I and II of Youth Ministry. These are years of growth from the elementary level to early teen. The Youth Group meets in the Church Center from 6:30 to 8:30pm on 18 Sunday nights a year according to the annual schedule. The evening begins with prayer created by the teens and catechists, followed by an hour of catechesis (learning the faith) in small groups, then a social time with snacks and closing with a community building activity run by the evening’s group in charge. Once a month the leadership group meets with the Youth Minister to plan activities such as Lock-in, Sports Events, recreational activities, outdoor activities with Project U.S.E., fund-raising and social ministry activities.
Junior High Years are times of preparation for the last stage of initiation into the Catholic/Christian Community - Confirmation. During Year II the study focus is on the Eucharist, the Catholic Church and the Sacrament of Confirmation. In addition to the regular Sunday program the youth participate in a Mini-Retreat (3 hours in length) which closes with a spagetti dinner. Since Confirmation is celebrated in the Fall of Freshman year of high school the teens participate in a September Retreat and the parents of the candidates prepare a Parent/Candidate Retreat to announce the teens to the parish community and affirm them publicly as their children continuing in faith development in the Catholic Church.
Y.A.C.H.T Club - Grades 9 through 12
The Y.A.C.H.T Club (Youth and Christ Hanging
Together) is the next stage of Youth Ministry in the parish when
the older teen, post Confirmation through senior year come
together to enjoy and serve all teens of the parish. The YACHT
Club has social activities such as ice skating, tubing when the
water permits. They have come together for a lock-in and small
group activities at one another’s homes. The youth group
participates in Youth Ministry Day and the Youth Rally at Dorney
Park, both sponsored by the Diocesan Youth Office of Metuchen
diocese. The leadership developed a Statement of Purpose which
reads:
PURPOSE
STATEMENT OF THE SENIOR HIGH YOUTH GROUP
THE Y.A.C.H.T. CLUB
(Youth And Christ Hanging Together)
The mission of the Y.A.C.H.T. CLUB is to invite all teens of the parish to experience the magic, the wonderfulness, the natural high, the “ka-pow” feeling you have when you are with someone who loves you.
******
We want the teens in the parish to feel the “ka-pow”, to get in touch with their deeper self and be sustained in life by knowing that they are loved by God through each other and Jesus Christ. We want the teens in the parish to feel bonded to one another and share the gift of God’s love and to give that love in service to others who need love. We want to make the world a place of peace and love.
Tuesday evening sessions are held in the Parish House under the leadership of Fr. Mickiewicz. Usually a current book is selected and discussed chapter-by-chapter. Participants have delved into the meaning of the cosmic Christ, the post-Vatican II Church, and the History of God, among other topics. New participants are always welcome. In the process of Parish Catechesis adults are always updating and enriching their understanding of the Catholic faith. It is not only the children who are involved in Catechesis, knowing and echoing the Word of God. We are all involved.
How do we keep up? Weekly printed materials on the focus of Sunday scriptures are available for you to purchase at the literature table. Reflection questions on the scripture readings are printed in the weekly bulletin. all of this is available for you to take home, read and reflect. Then live the Gospel!
For more information or to register in the religious education contact the Office of Religious Education at 832-2162 or 832-2513.
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This page last edited on
08/04/11