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Family Catechesis (LOFT)

- Parent Portal
A family Blessing

Bless our families.
Be they formed by blood or circumstance.
Make them holy.

As you reveal yourself to us in three persons: Father , Son, and Spirit,
And in the relationship that flows among the three,
May we find you in our relationships.
In our marriages, in our families
Inour households, in our communities
In our global humanity.

May we look across all that devides us
And see family
And embrace as a family does.and love as a family ought to.

For where two or three gather in your name
There are You in the midst.
There indeed are You,
The one for whom we long so deeply.

Amen

LOFT (Learning Our Faith Together) 2017-2018

Opportunities to meet the requirements for Family Catechesis

According to the Archdioceses of New York, students in grades K-8 are to participate in 5 hours of Family Catechesis every year. Family catechesis opportunities can be offered any time from September through August. Family catechesis can be done through any combinations of model or method listed below.

MODEL 1
Family Prayer Celebrations: Families participate together in a Catholic prayer service or a Catholic devotion. After the prayer or ritual the families will engage in discussion on reflection questions to be handed into the Religious Education Office. Download Reflection Worksheet or picked one up at the Religious Education Office.

1. Holy Hour (1.5 Hours): October 3, 2017 5:30PM AND October 4, 2017 6:15PM in Church. Children in grades 3-5 will attend the Adoration and Benediction. This is an opportunity to learn and to experience what happens during Adorations and Benediction. Parents are asked to attend and stay in the church for some questions and answers.

2. Advent Prayer Service: (1.5 Hours) November 3, 2017, at 7:00PM in the Church.

3. Holy Hour (1.5 Hour): December 5, 2017, 5:30PM AND December 6, 2017, at 6:15 in the Church. Children in grades 6, 7, 8 will attend the Adoration and Benediction. Parents are asked to attend and stay in the church for some questions and answers. Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament is when the consecrated host is placed in the monstrance, by a priest or deacon. The monstrance is then placed on the altar for adoration.

4. Stations of the Cross:(1.5 Hours) Held on Friday nights during Lent starting on February 23, 2018, through March 30 , 2018, at 7:00PM in the Church. Children's Stations of the Cross is on Good Friday, March 30 , 2018 at 11:30am in the Church.
If you attend Stations of the Cross more than once, you will have to fill out separate "Reflection Sheets".
The Stations of the Cross began as the practice of pilgrims to Jerusalem who would retrace the final journey of Jesus Christ to Calvary. Later for the many that wanted to pass along the same route, but could not make the trip to Jerusalem, a practice developed that the Stations of the Cross began as the practice of pious pilgrims to Jerusalem who would eventually took the form of the fourteen stations currently found in almost every church. (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops).

5. Tenebrae: (1.5 Hours). Held on March 29, 30 , and 31, 2018, in Church at 9:00AM.
Tenebrae comes from the Latin word meaning darkness or shadow. It is held the last three days of Holy Week; Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday.The principal ceremony is the gradual extinguishing of candles after the readings of psalms.

6. Divine Mercy Sunday (1.5 Hours). Sunday, April 8, 2018, at 3:00PM in the church. Divine Mercy is celebrated on the Octave of Easter or the eighth day of Easter, that is, the Sunday after Easter, celebrating the Divine Mercy of Jesus Christ, as revealed by Christ Himself to St. Maria Faustina Kowalski. Christ's Divine Mercy is the love that He has for mankind, despite our sins that separate us from Him. (ThoughtCo by Scott Richert). Get packet here.

MODEL 2
Intergenerational Community Faith Catechesis (LOFT).This program involves parents staying with their children for the entire time.This program has the following components; hospitality, opening and closing prayers, introduction to the theme to the whole group, a learning/activity station(s),and a summary of the theme, a home activity or kit.

1. LOFT "Jesse Tree": (2.5 Hours). November 4, 2017, 9:00AM -11:30AM in the Church, Cafeteria, and Gym. The Jesse Tree tells the story of God's salvation plan, beginning with the creation and continuing through the Old Testament to the coming of the Messiah. The Jesse Tree is an Advent custom for teaching children about the Bible and Christmas. Please stop in the Religious Education Office to register. Get Packet Here.

2. LOFT "Stations of the Cross": (2.5 Hours). March 16, 2018, (Snow Date March 23, 2018) We will gather and share a pizza dinner, as it will be a meatless Friday during Lent,. Then we will attend Friday Lenten Stations of the Cross in the Church, led by our young people. You will be given information on observing Lent and Holy Week to take and use at home. Get Packet Here.

MODEL 3
Family Pilgrimage. A shrine is a church or other sacred place visited by the faithful as pilgrims for a special devotion. A pilgrimage is a journey by the faithful to a shrine. A pilgrimage is not a vacation time or sightseeing stop or visit but rather an action of spiritual renewal. After the pilgrimage, fill out the Reflection Sheet for Family discussion and return the sheet to the Religious Education Office. The Reflection Sheet may be picked up at the Religious Education Office. Please visit the following websites for Catholic shrines locations:

•                  Thecatholictravelguide.com/destination/u-s-a
•                   10 top catholic shrines in US- religious travel planning guide
•                   Holy Thursday visit 7 Catholic churches in the community.

Some local churches to visit are Mount Alvernia in Wappingers Falls, St.Kateri
Tekakwitha in LaGrangeville, and Our Lady of Rosary Chapel-St.Peter Church in Hyde Park.

MODEL 4
On-Line Faith Formation- The online faith formation/LOFT study will take place on Monday nights at 9:00PM for 5 weeks from the comfort of your own home via video conference. This is a great opportunity to fulfill your LOFT requirement, get to know some other families in your parish, and grow in your faith not only for you but for your whole family. This online course will be run by Mrs. Ann Marie Hollywood and Deacon Mike Correale.

LOFT On-Line Week long study - Jesus' Life.
March 5th - March 9th, 2018
8:30PM - 9:30PM
Must RSVP by 2/19/18 to ahollywood@gmail.com

Saint Martin de Porres
Religious Education Program

Poughkeepsie, NY 12603

Family Catechesis (LOFT)

A family Blessing

LOFT (Learning Our Faith Together) 2017-2018