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High School Religious Education

 

August, 2010

Dear Parents,

As the new Director of High School Ministry and Formation I want to welcome you all to our program and thank you for the warm welcome many of you have extended to me. I am extremely aware of the responsibilities this position implies and the trust you have placed in me. I have accepted this position in order to serve you and share with you the joy I have found in Christ and His Church.
 
Yet, while planning how to best serve your teen’s faith formation, it is clear to me that our team work is key to our success! You, as parents, are the primary educators of your children and we are called to support your efforts.
“When they are given the dignity and role of fatherhood and motherhood, parents will eagerly carry out their duties of education, especially religious education, which devolves primarily on them.”  (Vatican II - Gaudium et Spes no. 48)
“The parish…is called to be a fraternal and welcoming family where Christians become aware of being the people of God. … It must however, continue " to be the prime mover and pre-eminent place for catechesis" (General Directory for Catechesis # 257)
 
We, as the team of catechists serving the High School Faith Formation Program, will do all within our power to facilitate your teen’s growth in their knowledge and love of the Catholic Faith. As teens they are now able to think and decide as adults, but without the advantages of experience and emotional maturity, so while it may seem they are “independent” they still need strong leadership and guidance. We will offer them all we can on this point, but they need much more than what can be imparted in the 23 Formation Sessions we will have with them this year. To this end I would like to point out some tools you have at your disposal as the primary educator of your teen in the faith:
-       St. William’s Adult Faith Formation Program Thursday Nights – Contact Noe Rocha at nrocha [at] saintwilliams [dot] org
-       Two parent Formation Sessions (please see the 2010-2011 calendar)
-       Many wonderful books, websites, etc. of which I highly recommend: www.vatican.va, www.peterkreeft.com www.catholic.net
 
My priority is to, by all possible means; help your teen become a saint! Saints are not just those who are canonized. A saint is each and every person who makes it to heaven. This is the sole purpose of our existence. If we fail in this, we have failed in life. With this sole purpose in mind I will seek that each activity build your teen’s:
-       Relationship with Christ (to know they are loved and love Him in return– especially through prayer)
-       Love for the Will of God in their lives
-       Confidence / leadership – so they face the world not with fear, but as apostles who will challenge others to know and love Christ
 
The primary means I will use to achieve these goals are four. These will be my specific priorities throughout the year.
1.     To streamline the High School Formation Program, ensuring our curriculum is in line with diocesan requirements
2.     Forming a committed team of Catechists that understand the great responsibility upon their shoulders
3.     To form a group of teens that is committed to ministry and takes their faith beyond the classroom (be it in St. Williams Youth Ministry Program or other groups)
4.     To ensure that all events bear specific fruit in our teen’s souls, never promoting an event for the sake of an event.
 
There are two more simple ideas I would like to share:
  1. It is God who has called us! Not we who have called God. I invite you to bear this in mind especially as regards the Sacrament of Confirmation. He has invited us. We respond in humility to this beautiful invitation.
  2. We are saved not by the letter, but the spirit of the law. “Love and do as you will” St. Augustine said, knowing that love leads us to more, not less. On this note I want to invite our teens to give their best in all not limiting themselves to the “requirements”. I would like to encourage a maximalist attitude, not a minimalistic one.  
 
Your prayers for our priests, the staff, this ministry and the entire volunteer team are essential for success. Please keep me in your prayers as I too seek to follow God’s will for my life and this ministry. 
 
Know that your family is in my prayers as well.
Sincerely in Christ,
 
Amber Jaloway
Director of High School Ministry and Formation
St. William Catholic Church