Faith formation for the young goes online

By Susan Bailey | CFP Correspondent

Despite the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, dedicated catechetical leaders and volunteer teachers continue the vital work of faith formation with the diocese’s children and young people.
The diocesan Office of Religious Education was prepared, having been in touch with all the catechetical leaders through Flocknote, according to Elizabeth A. Marcil, director. She also noted the cooperation of publishers of catechetical resources: “They have been very generous in opening up their websites and their digital versions of most of our recommended materials,” she said, noting that catechetical leaders are making use of them.
Ms. Marcil emphasized flexibility in dealing with families. 
“One size does not fit all, both in terms of leaders and in terms of families that we are engaging,” she said. “Some of them have the technological skills and some don’t. So we have asked the catechetical leaders to be mindful of who their people are, and select things that they think would engage them and not overwhelm people.”
First Communion, normally celebrated in the spring, is a concern. According to Ms. Marcil, preparation can continue while families wait for a date. She recommends to her catechetical leaders to encourage parents to share Gospel stories with their children. 
“The more they get to know about Jesus, the more they will desire to receive him, and be close to him,” she said.
Concerning high schoolers seeking to be confirmed, Ms. Marcil said in a newsletter to catechists that Bishop McManus has determined that because of the restrictions on gathering more than 10 people, all confirmations scheduled through May 4 will be postponed.
She encouraged the students to continue serving those around them. 
“I think they are very generous,” she said. “As I look out at what volunteer things are happening around, I see a lot of young people doing that. And I think parents can encourage that generosity, that living of the Gospel. That’s the most important right now.”
Various catechetical leaders in the diocese have been acting upon the advice of Ms. Marcil. 
“I have been in constant contact with my catechists, all 50 of them,” said Dianne Patrick, director of religious education at St. Luke the Evangelist parish in Westborough. “We have shared information and directed families to online resources frequently used by the teachers in their own lessons. We are fortunate to have such a devoted and committed team.”
Mrs. Patrick has instructed her teachers to continue reaching out to students and their parents;  some have created videos or used Zoom, a video conferencing tool, to stay in touch. 
Maintaining the practices of worship and prayer have also been stressed. 
“All families are encouraged to make it a daily practice to pray together at home,” said Mrs. Patrick. “Watching the televised or online celebration of the Mass is highly recommended.”
First Communion preparation for second graders began last September. 
“We held a meaningful morning retreat with parents and students in January,” said Mrs. Patrick. “Parents have been working on a booklet entitled ‘My Book about My Church,’ created by us and revised each year to enhance the understanding of the sacraments and our global church as well as our St. Luke’s Parish family.” 
Reception of the sacrament had been scheduled for May, but is on hold pending a decision from Bishop McManus. 
“We are prepared to move forward and are just waiting for the timing whenever this health crisis subsides. I pray it will be soon,” said Mrs. Patrick.
Darleen Farland, director of religious education for both St. Mary Parish in North Grafton and St. Philip Parish in Grafton, has also been reaching out to families. 
“We’re making resources available for them with all of our programs, and certainly our sacramental preparation programs as well,” she said. 
While some classes are taking place using Zoom, Mrs. Farland has also put together packets for families to work with at home; they are placed in the gathering area of the church for pickup. 
“We’ve also been using Flocknote to send out weekly newsletters,” she said. “We’ve been doing some Stations of the Cross, videotaping them and making those available on our website.”
St. Mary’s and St. Philip’s also had their First Communion celebrations scheduled for May. After a parents meeting was canceled, Mrs. Farland emailed summaries of the information from that meeting to the parents. The response has been very positive. 
“I think they are just grateful that we’re still trying to give them resources to help them and to continue working with their children,” said Mrs. Farland.
Kelly Sullivan, director of religious education for Mary, Queen of the Rosary Parish in Spencer, has also been proactive in providing support for students and their parents. 
“I have mailed out packets of materials such as Plfuam weekly readers, age-appropriate worksheets relevant to what they were learning in faith formation classes, coloring pages for the little ones and some Lent and Easter activities as a way to stay connected to them and hopefully encourage them to continue exploring and learning about their faith,” she said. She has been encouraging families to pray the Stations of the Cross together by providing many creative ideas. 
“With many parents home with their children at this time, it would be a great way to share their faith and learn together,” she said.
Instruction continues for First Communion and confirmation students. 
“Packets were sent out to continue that preparation at home with their families,” said Ms. Sullivan, noting that there was much still to do. “Sadly, our confirmation students were enrolled to participate in a diocesan-sponsored retreat on March 22 that was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic; we will try to make up their retreat and other missed classes when it is safe to gather again.” She is determined to stay in touch with her students.
“We are not sure how long this will go on, so I will continue to send materials and hope to provide them some reassurance that it is our faith that gets us through these times.
“It is a scary world right now and with so much of their day-to-day lives having been disrupted, if there is some small way we can stay connected with them and let them know that they are missed, it’s important that we try to do that,” Ms. Sullivan added.