FOR 1 st GRADE STUDENTS ST JOSEPH CATHOLIC CHURCH PARISH RELIGIOUS EDUCATION PROGRAM 91 STILLHOUSE ROAD MILLSTONE TOWNSHIP, NJ 08510 732 792-2270 NEW REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS 2016-2017 Complete the attached registration form (one form for each child) A copy of the BAPTISM CERTIFICATE must accompany the registration Be sure to indicate 1 st, 2 nd and 3 rd choice for the day and time of Religious Education Class Return completed form, Family-Parish Covenant (if you have not returned one with re-registration for other children in the program), copy of Baptism Certificate and $100.00 per child registration fee. FOR THOSE TRANSFERING FROM OTHER PROGRAMS Complete the attached registration form (one form for each child) A copy of all sacramental certificates must accompany the registration form. A letter from the former Parish Religious Education Program must accompany the registration. The letter is to indicate what level was completed by the student. Be sure to indicate 1 st, 2 nd and 3 rd choice for the day and time of Religious Education Class. Return completed form, Family-Parish Covenant, copy of sacramental certificates, letter from former Parish Religious Education Program, and $100.00 per child registration fee. *REGISTRATION DEADLINE IS June 30 th. Classes are filled on a firstcome, first-served basis. After June 30 th there are late registration fees because we could not order textbooks early enough for a discount. Please help us serve you by registering on time. Register July 1 st through July 31 st -$125.00 per student Register after July 31 st -$150.00 per student
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION POLICIES 2016-2017 Class day and time We are not able to switch class times for students to accommodate sports or other activities. Home-schooling is permitted only if done for the entire year. Home schooling for grades1,2,7 and 8 is not permitted because these are Sacrament preparation years. Homeschooling is only permitted if you bring your child to church every week as required of all those in the Religious Education Program. Registration requirements and fees apply to home schooling as well. Please do not call during the year to ask for changes in class times and days to accommodate other activities. Attendance - It is important that your child be in class in order to learn the material. Religious Education is only one time a week for one hour and fifteen minutes. Because there is so much material to cover and so little time, if your child misses more that 5 classes during the year he/she will have missed too much of the material to be able to continue in the class and move on to the next level. If there is an unforeseen illness or injury that will keep your child from class for a long period of time, please contact the office to see if something can be worked out. Sports practices, games, music rehearsals, play practice, recitals and the like do not fall under the categories that should keep your child from participation in Religious Education. The number of children in the program and the number of activities that they are involved in simply makes it impossible to come up with special programs to accommodate the needs of every child. When a child is absent from class, it is his/her responsibility to find out what work was missed and make sure that it is done at home. Punctuality It is extremely difficult for our volunteer Catechists to stop class as children arrive late for class. It is not fair to them and it is not fair to the other children in the class who arrived on time. No child will be permitted to enter class 10 minutes after the start of class (4:40 PM for afternoon sessions and 6:40 for evening sessions). Please do not drop children off after those times as you will be called to pick your child up. Doors to the buildings will be locked (preventing outside entrance only it does not impede exiting the building) at 4:40 PM and 6:40 PM. But please understand that this is not intended as a 10 minute grace period children are expected in their classroom by the start of class. Children who are late will be marked as late. If you bring your child late repeatedly you will be asked to withdraw your child from class. We have to avoid constant interruptions to class. LEAVING CLASS EARLY Early dismissals cannot be accommodated and will not be permitted. If a child has to leave it causes an interruption to the entire class. Please plan appointments and other activities accordingly. If you are unable to schedule other things then please do not send your child to class. Missed work is the student s responsibility. An absence does count toward the maximum of 5 absences. ATTENDANCE AT MASS When you had your child baptized, you made a commitment to train them in the practice of the faith. Part of our faith is to make time for God and to receive the Sacraments. Parents are expected to bring their children to church to be nourished by Word and Sacrament. It is part of the child s religious education. Participation at Mass is the only way that children can understand what we believe, what God offers us and how we put our beliefs into practice. A child cannot be ready to receive other sacraments if they are not given the opportunity to receive God s gifts. A child cannot be ready to receive the sacraments until they are given the opportunity to be part of our community of faith. Many things can occupy our time. Other activities are too often given greater importance over the practice of our faith. It is a choice that must be made. However, if the choice is made that the other activities are more important than following the 10 Commandments, giving time to God and receiving God s gifts, then it is not the right time for your child to be involved in a Religious Education Program. If a child does not attend Mass, he/she cannot be ready for the sacraments. You should choose to have your child in Religious Education when you can make the commitment to actively practice your faith. Again, this is a choice. If you choose to have your child prepare for the Sacraments then it means that you must also choose to practice the faith. If you do not practice the faith, you have also chosen for your child not to receive the sacraments at this time. Therefore, each parent must decide to choose the whole package, Religious Education Classes and participation at Mass, if your child is going participate in the Religious Education Program and receive the sacraments. Of course I thank all who bring their children to Mass and give them the opportunity to celebrate with the community. By bringing your child
to celebrate God s Sacraments and hearing God s Word, you are giving your child the gift of faith which is something they will be able to use for a very long time. It is something they will thank you for later in life. COURTESY AND RESPECT All participants are expected to show respect. Disruption of class is not acceptable behavior. A child who is disruptive will be sent out of class. If a child continues to be disruptive, a parent will be required to stay with the child during the whole class or withdraw the child from the program. It is not expected that our Catechists will have to tolerate any disrespect. Cell phones use is banned from the buildings. Students using cell phones will be asked to leave class, call a parent and not return until assurances are given that the participant is ready to participate in class. Anyone who defaces property will be asked to withdraw from the program for the remainder of the year. Eating and drinking are not permitted during class time except when a special class activity is planned. It is courteous to come to class ready to participate, with paper, textbook and writing instrument. HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS In order to cover all information, it is necessary that homework assignments be given. It is expected that children will complete assignments prior to class. When work is not completed, it is an indication that the individual is not ready to move on. Faith Formation is a matter for the whole family, not just the teachers in our religious education program. Homework is an opportunity for parents to discuss matters of faith with their child. Remember though, it is supposed to be your child s work, not yours. It does not take a great deal of training to know when a parent does the work and not the child. PARKING LOT POLICIES Everyone who enters the parking lot of the Parish is expected to demonstrate the highest level of courtesy and respect in order to ensure the safety of all people. Parking is permitted in parking spaces only. Do not block the driving lane anywhere in the parking lot. When dropping off your child you may stop in front of the building and allow them to leave your vehicle if they are ready to depart only. Remember, there are others waiting to drop their children off courtesy is important. If your child is not ready, pull into a parking spot instead of blocking the way for others. If you need to enter the building for any reason, you must park your car in a parking spot not in front of the building. Anyone who does not drive responsibly or is discourteous to others in the parking lot will be asked not to return. If others are dropping off or picking up your child, it is the responsibility of the parents to inform them of the procedures and policies. MISC. The key to all of our policies is respect and courtesy. Please think about how any action may impact another person. As an example, some children are very afraid of dogs, therefore it is inappropriate to bring your dog while waiting for your child. If the dog begins barking it is a disturbance. If you walk your dog anywhere on church property, be sure to clean up after it. It is all a matter of respect and courtesy. To be sure that there are no misunderstandings about our policies, every family must enter into a covenant contract with the parish. The Covenant must be signed and returned with all registrations. No child will be registered unless a covenant is signed by the parent. The covenant states that you are going to fulfill your responsibility to train your child in the practice of the faith INCLUDING PARTICIPATION AT MASS EVERY WEEK. It also states that you have read all of the policies, that you understand that Religious Education is the primary responsibility of the parents and that you will adhere to the policies. This Covenant will hopefully help us to avoid misunderstandings if a situation comes up.
THE IMPORTANCE OF GOING TO MASS God has given us many important and wonderful gifts. Among those that are among the best of those gifts are the gifts of community and God s Word and Sacrament. These are the gifts that God has given us to strengthen us in a special way to face the world, deal with the challenges that always seem to be present as we journey through life and to have the ability to find our way to an inner peace. I am always so happy when I see parents trying to help their children understand these great gifts from God. On the weekend I look at the children at Mass and pray that God s gifts will be not only recognized by them, but also appreciated and used. All of us know and hear of the horrible things that take place in the world. I wish that I could say that I believe they will get better, but it seems that they just multiply not just in number, but also in the severity of the actions that are taking place. Who would have thought someone would ever enter a school and kill innocent little ones? Who would have imagined that a celebration of endurance and athleticism would end with explosions that would take away innocent life and change the lives of so many with horrible wounds? These are the things that are unimaginable. But these are the things that people are being forced to deal with and future generations will not be exempt. It is exactly because the world has so many unknowns that God has provided for us. From the very beginning the Christian community was formed as a means to support one another. The early followers of Jesus faced very serious unknowns. They could be hauled off and killed just for being a follower of Jesus. They could lose jobs, homes and security because they were viewed as a threat to the way of life that those in power had grown accustomed to. One minute life could seem carefree and the next minute life could be permanently changed. But those very early followers of Jesus were part of the larger Christian community and that community was there to offer support and comfort. They never faced anything alone. If one person was in need, the community responded. They shared everything, including the faith they had received from Jesus. Our Parish Community of faith is no different. People come together and share who they are. I watch people standing around after Mass talking about life. They are there to support and encourage one another. Our Parish events both prayer and social are meant to offer us the nourishment we need to face the uncertainty of life. I always feel that the sometimes church member can never fully appreciate this tremendous benefit and gift. I do believe that the children need to learn and observe what it means to be part of a Community of Faith if they are going to have what they need to deal with all that will come their way. Part of what the Community of Faith gathers for is to be nourished by Word and Sacrament. God has given us the Words in Scripture to help us. Some people feel that God s Word is controlling, that it takes away freedom. But the truth is far from that thought. God has given us the Words in Scripture so that we might know true freedom. To live according to God s Word means that we will not be controlled by the things of this world which seek to have power over us. For the very early Christians the Eucharist was a tremendous gift. Very often they were hungry. Very often the yearned for something that was going to give them the nourishment they needed in order to face the realities of their time. The Eucharist became for them that source of nourishment. In the Eucharist they knew and understood that Jesus was still with them. In our own times we still yearn for something to satisfy us. We still look for that which will give us the strength to face not only the day to day challenges that arise, but also to face those more challenging situations that come our way. We still need to know that Jesus is with us. We need to know that Jesus feeds us and nourishes us not so that we can believe that no challenges will ever come to us, but so that we can have the courage to face them realistically. We still need the Eucharist. We need to gather around the Table of the Lord as a community of faith. But in order for God s gifts to become a reality, children have to grow up learning that this is what we do. Very little is gained by the occasional visit to our celebrations of Word and Sacrament. If gathering with the community is not a regular event in a child s life they do not grow up with this understanding. They do not grow up with the understanding that God offers us what we need. If someone eats poorly and does not take in the proper nutrients, a vitamin once in a while is not going to supply what is lacking. It has to be part of the regular routine. The same holds true for our Sacramental life. To receive the Eucharist once in a while can not supply what we need in order to deal with everything in life. Your child s participation in Religious Education is not enough. Hearing God s Word and receiving the Sacraments has to be part of our regular diet if we want to benefit from what God offers us.
There is even more reason to have coming to Mass be a regular part of your child s life. Remember that children learn more from what they observe than from what they are told. If you offer excuses for not coming to Mass, your child is learning to make excuses. It will be part of your child s life. If you do not keep commitments your child is learning that commitments are unimportant and can be broken for whatever reason that happens to come along. If your child hears you saying that you promised to do something but now just don t feel like doing it, then your child is learning that behavior. If you promise to have dinner with someone but then when the time comes you call to offer excuses of being sick or having some emergency, just as an excuse to get out of the commitment, your child will observe and learn to do the same thing. Remember, children learn the most when you think they are not even listening. Well, when you had your child Baptized you did make a solemn commitment to raise your child in the practice of the faith. If you have kept that promise, you have given your child wonderful example that will carry forward with them in life. If you have not, remember, you are teaching your child that commitments can be changed for whatever reason you choose. But even if you have not kept that commitment to this point, now is a great time to start. One of the best things about God is that God is always ready to welcome us. Don t be afraid, no one is here to judge you or ask where you have been. Quite the contrary, we are ready to welcome you with open arms. You are enrolling your child in Religious Education, there must be some part of you that wants your child to understand the faith you have chosen for your child. You have given that faith to your child as a gift. Faith is one of those things that continues to grow as it used. Not practicing faith makes it seem no more important than going to the movies or to a fast food place. Faith that is not used becomes stagnant and eventually dies. So, seize the opportunity and act on it. It is a decision you will not regret. God does not disappoint. God keeps setting us up to win but sometimes we choose not to accept God s invitation thinking that there is something better or that there will be a better time but there is no better time than now. I still believe that no one likes to break a commitment, let alone a commitment to God, rather I believe that it is just easy for us as human beings to fall into habits that we keep meaning to change. Sometimes we just have to be willing to take the first step. You will feel better about your relationship with God and about yourself. You will be teaching your children without even saying a word. You will be giving them the opportunity to learn about community, faith, Sacraments and the ways in which God acts in our lives. I have heard many of the excuses people give for not coming to church; it is too difficult to get everyone ready, the children fight getting ready to get out on time, I am worn out by the time I get everyone up and ready, Sunday is my only day to sleep, or any number of other excuses. There is no better way to change a bad habit than to replace it with a good habit. The longer we practice a bad habit, the better we get at it until we finally surrender to the excuse or bad habit. This goes against all that God has tried to do for us. To be a Christian is to recognize that nothing can control us unless we allow it to control us. Have you given up some of your freedom to television, sleeping, sports, rehearsals, running around to numerous events? Patterns of behavior can enslave us if we allow them to do so. Our course in life is never hopeless, never final, as long as we trust in the way of life God calls us to. Never give up your freedom by resigning yourself to a certain habit. Change can happen and when change leads us to God we actually find out more about our freedom. Some of you already know all of this and have whole-heartedly embraced the practice of our faith you have provided your children with a gift that will serve them well as they go through life. For others, now is a very good time to give yourself and your family the opportunity to experience God s way of life. Take an honest look at your relationship with God, take a leap of faith, and know that God s way is the only way that will lead you and your family to genuine happiness!
THE PARISH COMMUNITY OF ST. JOSEPH RELIGIOUS EDUCATION PROGRAM REGISTRATION 2016-2017 FOR NEW STUDENTS ONLY ONE FORM FOR EACH CHILD MUST BE USED PLEASE PRINT NEATLY Family Name: Father s Name: Mother s Maiden Name: Address: Phone # Emergency Phone # Daytime Phone (if different than home #): Email TRANSFER NEW Sibling(s) already in program Student s full name: Grade to enter in September 2016 School: Date of Birth City of Birth: Preference for class time: (list 1 st choice, 2 nd choice, etc) Monday 4:30 5:45 Monday 6:30 7:45 Tuesday 4:30 5:45 Tuesday 6:30 7:45 (If you do not include 2 nd and 3 rd choices and your 1 st choice is full or there are not enough students for a class, we will place your child in the first class that has openings)
Sacraments: Copies of Certificates for any Sacraments received must accompany registration form. Baptism: Date: Church: Church Address: Reconciliation: Date: Church: Eucharist: Confirmation Date: Church: Date: Church: If Transferring from another program list all places where your child has attended Religious Education Dates Parish/City Grades Completed Letters from the parishes where Religious Education was attended must be received to verify completed levels prior to the start of Religious Education Classes. EMERGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION: (parents will be called first) Name: Phone: Office Use Only: Date Received: Payment: 2016-2017
FAMILY NAME: FAMILY PARISH COVENANT 2016-2017 In seeking to have my child(ren) be part of the Religious Education Program of St. Joseph Parish I agree to the following: - To accept my role as primary Catechist for my child or children, discussing aspects of our Faith with my child(ren) and talking about homework assignments and matters of faith. - To help my child understand the beliefs of the Catholic Church and to give my child(ren) the opportunity to practice our faith by: Bringing my child(ren) to Mass every week and Holydays celebrating the Sacrament of Reconciliation at least once a year giving positive witness to my child(ren) for Christian living as I promised to do when I presented my child for Baptism. - Being involved in my child(ren) s Religious Education by ensuring that homework assignments are completed and handed in on time. - Ensuring that my child(ren) attends class. I understand that more than 5 absences may require repeating the same level next year. - Have my child(ren) at class on time to prevent unnecessary interruptions to the class. - I have read and agree to abide by the policies of the Parish Religious Education Program Including: no early dismissals, parking lot rules and behavior policies. I freely choose to enroll my child(ren) in the Religious Education Program. I understand that if I choose not to uphold my part of this covenant that I have also chosen not to present my child for reception of the sacraments of First Reconciliation, First Eucharist and/or Confirmation and not to have my child advance to the next level until such a time as I am able to uphold all parts of this covenant. If Homeschooling, I understand that failure to uphold the parts of the Covenant that apply may end the opportunity for homeschooling. Parent(s) Signature - Date As the Parish part of this covenant, the Parish of St. Joseph promises to provide Religious Education for your child helping your child to understand the teachings of the Catholic Church, the Good News of Jesus and preparation that will allow your child to complete the Sacraments of Initiation. The Parish also promises to pray for your child and to encourage your child on his/her journey of faith. We also promise to make every attempt to give Christian witness to the children of the parish. Designated representative on behalf of the parish community Date