In case you have missed the announcements at Mass, St John Neumann is now offering Faith Formation for EVERYONE...
What: Faith Formation Classes and Small Groups
Who: EVERYONE (4 – 104 years old)
When: 9:00 – 10:15 am on the 1st and 3rd Sunday of each month from 9/15/19 – 5/31/20
Why: Because learning about our faith is a LIFELONG journey!
So, what will this program look like?
Everyone will be added to a class or small group (called a faith sharing group) and will spend time reading and reflecting on the weekly Gospel. The format is informal for adults in the faith sharing groups and more structured for children through 10th-grade in classes, but will include time for reading, reflecting, and discussing faith themes and the weekly readings, in a small group setting.
Children’s classes will be led by co-catechists (or a catechist and an aide) and will take place in the school building on the Sheldon site. Young Adult (YA), grade 11 through college age, and all other adults will meet in Weber Hall. Both the YA and Adult groups may have a facilitator to help encourage discussion but will primarily be faith sharing groups where equal participation in the discussion and reflection is the focus.
Like last year, there will be five parish-wide faith events in 2019-2020 that will take the place of the classes or small group meetings. These events will focus on faith themes or important holidays in our church. This year we have decided on the following faith themes and dates (same time as the classes 9-10:15 am):
- 9/15/19 – Church of the Home: this session explores how we carry out the mission of the church within our homes, in ordinary ways.
- 12/1/19 – Preparing for the Messiah: this Advent session will explore various ways we can experience the season more deeply through the Advent Wreath, the Advent Calendar, and the Jesse Tree.
- 1/19/20 – The Baptism of the Lord: this session will explore why Baptism is so important that even Jesus did it and we will learn a little more about St. John the Baptist.
- 3/1/20 – Jesus’ Death and Resurrection: this session explores ways to live as disciples in response to Jesus’ love as expressed in his redemptive death and resurrection on Christ’s Journey to Jerusalem.
- 5/31/20 – Pentecost: the final parish-wide event will introduce participants of all ages to the feast of Pentecost in the Church’s liturgical calendar and will help to connect its meaning with the Pentecost event as retold in Scripture (Acts 2:1-11).
If you have not yet filled out a registration form (available at the back of the church), please print out the attached forms and get them back to the parish ASAP. You can drop it in the collection basket or in the parish office.
Classes for children are $35 per student and are free for YA and Adults. We will collect the registration fee on 9/15.