Church of the Resurrection
  Christian Formation

The Christian Formation Program at Church of the Resurrection offers religious instruction to children in Kindergarten through 12^th grade.

Church of the Resurrection celebrates God's presence among us by creating a Christian learning environment through the cooperative efforts of catechists, parents and students. Realizing that parents are the primary religious educators of children, volunteer catechists and aides work to build a community of faith in which each student can better see and understand the action of God in our community through faith-sharing, prayer and liturgy.

Children’s Formation: Kindergarten through 5^th grade classes will take place at Church of the Resurrection

Youth Formation: 6^th through 12^th grade classes will take place at Church of the Resurrection, 3501 Cedar

All materials used in the program are in compliance with the General Directory for Catechesis. Our program is intended for faith formation and not just sacramental preparation. The program is designed for continuity and the curriculum provides a complete and comprehensive presentation of doctrine, scripture, morality, prayer and sacraments. Skipping of years in between sacraments does not allow for adequate preparation.

Following Diocesan guidelines, children begin their preparation for First Reconciliation and First Communion when they enter the 2^nd grade." Students in both public and Catholic schools attend this yearlong preparation in the parish Christian Formation program. Children should take part in the regular religious education program (either with the parish or in a Catholic School) for at least one year before they prepare for these sacraments.

The Reconciliation and Eucharist Program includes:

• Parent information and formation meetings
• Classroom instruction
• Celebration of the first reception of the sacraments

Confirmation Preparation takes place during the formation year in which the youth is to be Confirmed. The Confirmation Preparation Program takes place separately from Christian Formation. Students may be confirmed if they are currently in at least their 10^th grade year of school. Non-Confirmed Catholic school students in their 10^th grade year or higher should register for Confirmation Preparation.

Following Diocesan Guidelines, students preparing for the Sacrament of Confirmation should also be enrolled in the Parish Christian Formation program. Parents and teens are expected to attend an informational meeting prior to participation in the Confirmation preparation program. All students wishing to be Confirmed will participate in four Confirmation Preparation sessions prior to Confirmation, a day retreat, and one Mystagogy session after Confirmation. Celebration of the Sacrament will take place at a time and date to be specified by the Diocese. Additional information regarding Celebration of the Sacrament will be provided when available.

Good conduct, cooperation, attention and courtesy are expected during class time. Students are expected to respect the property of other students. Any student who consistently disturbs a class or who continually fails to cooperate with the catechist and other students within a class shall be subject to the following procedures.

1. First incident - The Catechist will speak with the student and after class, notify the Christian Formation Liaison.
2. Second incident – The Catechist will send the student to the Parish Christian Formation Liaison. The Parish Christian Formation Liaison will contact the parents, and the student will not return to class that day.
3. Third incident – The Parish Christian Formation Liaison will notify the Coordinator of Christian Formation who will contact the parents to schedule a conference about the situation. During this conference the student will be asked to enter into a contract which will seek to resolve the problem. The contract will name the problem situation and the corrective action agreed upon. The contract will be kept on file in the Coordinator of Christian Formation's office.

If there is no improvement, in fairness to the Catechist and other students in the class, the Coordinator of Christian Formation will remove the student from the program and ask the parents to provide in-home religious formation instruction.

Students will not be allowed to leave class early unless a note from a parent is sent to the Parish Christian Formation Liaison before classes begin. The note must state who will be picking up the student and the reason for early dismissal. For the protection of the student, the person picking up the student must report to the Parish Christian Formation Liaison and provide picture identification.

All questions regarding Children’s Formation, First Reconciliation and First Communion preparation should be addressed to Marisa Beebe, Coordinator Christian Formation, at mrcbeebe@cox.net or 966-5461.

All questions regarding Youth Formation and Confirmation preparation should be addressed to Shaylyn Baker, Coordinator of Youth Ministry, at youthminister@clusterparishes.com or 966-5461.

3501 Cedar Lane, Portsmouth, VA 23703 ~ 757/484-7335 ~ 757/484-5857 ~ info@reschurch.com