Have you ever been just sitting there and all of a sudden you feel like doing something nice for someone you care about? THAT’S GOD. He talks to you through the Holy Spirit.

NEW LIFE! That is what we think of over and over again as we celebrate the new life we receive when we receive Jesus in the Eucharist. Jesus sustains us with the Body of Christ, with His own flesh and blood. We cannot be shy about this belief; it is the very heart of our faith. Each of us is on a journey returning to our heavenly home.

Our second graders have joined us on the journey when they were baptized and now, when they received the sacraments of Reconciliation and Eucharist for the first time. CONGRATULATIONS to all our second graders who received Jesus for the first of many times in their lives. Now you join the adults in our church at the Lord’s table. Our teachers, Mrs. Kilker, Mrs. Howell and Mrs. Lutz, as well as Mrs. Arnone and Mrs. DiPietro and I are all very proud of how hard you have worked to be prepared for these very important celebrations in the life of our church.

CONGRATULATIONS also go to our three neophytes: Elizabeth Conway, Dustin Likens, and Allison Reynolds, who worked for two years in the Children’s Catechumenate of the RCIA. Their catechist, Mrs. LeFevre, and I, are so very proud and excited for them as they, too, become a very important part of our community with their families. A very sincere thank you to the parents of these children, who truly gave so much to the process by being present every Sunday.

NEED BAPTISM, RECONCILIATION OR EUCHARIST FOR YOUR OLDER CHILDREN? You may wish to consider the Children’s Catechumenate on Wednesday evenings from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Please call the Religious Education Office to register for the Fall.

As we bring the formal religious education year to a close, it is with deep respect and love that I thank the families and teachers for truly giving so much to the continued success of our programs. And we look to see how we can do things better next year. Of course, this is the time of year when we lose teachers, and we will be asking parents and single adults to consider teaching in the Parish School of Religion program

As I am writing this, I am awaiting an influx of Parent Surveys regarding these issues. We also will be needing classroom assistants for every classroom. At this time, we need an additional catechist on the first and second grade levels, and the reason for this is to allow for smaller groups, which will provide our catechists with a better one-on-one experience with each child

There are a number of parents who have expressed the desire to continue their own religious instruction. I am offering an opportunity on Monday mornings with the Women of Faith group which meets from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. The first half of this time is a social for women who wish to share their experiences of family living. The second hour will look at specific topics, like Prayer and Spirituality; Liturgy and Sacraments; Catholic Morality; Introduction to the Scriptures; What We Believe. Each topic will be covered for four weeks.

Our first class for Early Education, Elementary and Junior High PSR will be held in the church on Wednesday, Sept.10 and Saturday, Sept. 13. The Early Ed parents are asked to join the Elementary group on Sept. 13. We will meet at 9 a.m. with the second grade parents, and then Early Ed grades 1, 3 and 4 are asked to join us at 9:30 a.m. The Junior High group will meet in the church with the eighth graders and their parents at 7 p.m., and the parents and youth in grades 5, 6 and 7 are asked to join us at 7:30 p.m.

On both Wednesday and Saturday you and your child will have the opportunity to meet your child’s catechist, and perhaps consider the possibility of volunteering to assist in some way with the program. Please watch the mail for your reminder postcard!