Confirmation Schedule 2018-2019 Session Date Topic Location September 23 rd Parent/Student Meeting FCC September 30 th Grace Perfected: Sacrament FCC of Confirmation October 7 th A Bold Profession: Nicene FCC Creed October 28 th Hallows and Muertos: All FCC Saints and All Souls Days November 4 th Courageous Witness: Saints FCC and the Gifts of the Holy Spirit November 18 th Advent FCC Parents Welcome! December 2 nd Truth be Told: Moral FCC Decision Making Guest Speaker: Maredith Toweh December 16 th Eucharistic Adoration FCC Parents Welcome! January 6 th On a Mission: Missionary FCC Mandate of the Church January 27 th Safe Environment FCC February 24 th Spread the Word: FCC Evangelism March 3 rd Lent FCC March 24 th Your Turn: Christian Service FCC April 7 th Issue Night FCC April 14 th The Journey Continues: FCC Vocation and Discipleship Speaker: Cristian Reyes Rodriguez April 28 th Closing Celebration FCC *Topics listed are subject to change* Sundays 7:15pm-8:30 pm Participation in the 6 pm Sunday Mass is encouraged
Confirmation Requirements: Both Years - Weekly participation in mass o Weekly participation in Sunday liturgy is an expectation of all Catholics. o Groups are welcome to coordinate and attend the 6pm Sunday mass together as a small group o Mass Journals Every student in the Middle School and Confirmation programs will be receiving a Mass Journal from Dynamic Catholic Students should use the journal as a reflection and prayer tool to connect with the Mass Journals should be brought to every session and will be checked periodically - Prayer o There are no formal prayer requirements to turn in toward the fulfillment of Confirmation Formation but know that we will integrate methods of prayer throughout the program. During certain formation sessions and throughout retreats, candidates will have the opportunity to learn and practice the varying expressions of prayer. These experiences should be documented in the Candidates Confirmation Journal. Know that we do expect teens to know their basic formal prayers. - Participation in sessions o Be here, on time, every week. This is out of respect for your small and large group, especially guest speakers. Our sessions are shorter this year and will need to start promptly in order to cover all necessary material. You will miss important information if you are late for the session. o Attendance will be taken within the first 10 minutes each week. If you will be gone for whatever reason, parents need to call/email Katie Kelly: (763) 712-7456 (kkelly@ststehpenchurch.org) so that we can mark the attendance sheet accordingly. When leaving a message, please indicate the date and reason for the absence, the students name, session time and catechist. o No one is allowed to leave early unless parents have notified me beforehand. This is primarily for safety and security reasons. We don t want parents thinking their child is at formation when that is not the case. o Students must attend at least 15 sessions a year. - Service requirements o In Parish Service Minimum of 5 hours completed
After completion of a project, students should submit a brief paragraph on what the service was and how the service impacted his or her faith within two weeks of the opportunity. Recommended projects: o Used Book Sale: Friday February 22 nd, 2:30-6pm; Saturday February 23 rd 7:30am-4pm o Mardi Gras Festival: Thursday, February 28 th, 6-8pm; Saturday, March 2 nd, 9am-1pm; Saturday March 2 nd 4-11pm o Fish Fry: Every Friday in Lent, 4:30pm-8pm o Other Events as they come up o Out of Parish Service Opportunities Minimum of 5 hours completed Participation in opportunities that take place outside the parish or with external groups After completion of a project, students should submit a brief paragraph on what the service was and how the service impacted his or her faith within two weeks of the opportunity. - Confirmation Sponsor Conversations o At minimum 3 conversations with Confirmation Sponsor to be completed within the first year. Conversation Question Sheets Available at the end of packet. - Retreat Experiences o Year 1 One-Day Confirmation Exploration Retreat A one-day retreat to explore the teen s call to Confirmation and begin their journey Cost: $15 Option 1: November 17 10am-6pm Option 2: January 12 10am-6pm o Year 2 Weekend Confirmation Retreat Year 2 Confirmation students must attend a weekend-overnight retreat. Additional fees for the retreat are listed below. Register early, retreats fill up quickly Dunrovin Cost: $145 www.dunrovin.org TEC Central MN Cost: $95 www.cmtec.org
NET Ministries Confirmation Retreat Cost: $150 www.netusa.org/confirmation - Lifeline Mass o Students are required to attend one Lifeline Mass through NET Ministries o Students can choose which date they attend o After attending Lifeline, students have 1 week to email Katie a 1-page reflection on the experience o Lifeline Mass runs from 6:00-9:30 pm at the NET Center in St. Paul. To receive full credit, students must attend the entire event. The address for the NET Center is: 110 Crusader Avenue West West St, Paul, MN 55118 o Date Options: October 6 th, January 5 th, February 2 nd, March 2 nd, April 6 th, May 4 th A car pool system will be available for all dates except October 6 th. Students must sign up for a date by October 17 th at: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0d4baeae22a2fb6-lifeline - Participation in Parish Events o Our parish offers many options to stay connected and growing in your faith o Students must attend 3 parish events for their faith and write a paragraph reflection on how this opportunity helped them grow o Can attend 3 of the same events, 3 different events, or any combination o Options: Youth Ministry, Wednesdays from 7:30-9:00pm Summit Lectionary Discipleship Groups, Sundays 5:00-6:00pm Alpha Sessions, Wednesdays, 6:15-7:30pm from September 26- December 19 in FCC 10 Men s Group and Women of Wonder, see website Participation in mass, such as lector, altar server, or usher Other opportunities will be emailed out throughout the year
Additional Year 2 Requirements - Letter of Intent o Please choose 2-3 of the following suggestions in your letter of Intent to our pastor. Due February 25 th. The final question (I) must be answered along with your 2-3 suggested topics: o Why do you wish to be confirmed? o Identify one thing you have discovered about yourself on this journey? o How have you accepted the responsibility to learn more about your faith? o Name a gift of the Holy Spirit you have recognized in yourself. o How has your relationship with the Holy Spirit matured over this journey? o How would you describe your prayer life? o Who is your Confirmation/Patron saint and why? o What did you learn from your retreat and the service you gave? o How do you plan on continued participation in your Catholic Faith? (This question MUST be thoughtfully answered.) o Please type a formal letter to your pastor about 1 page in length describing these things listed above, along with anything else you may want to let him know. This must be at least one page but not more than two. - Saint Name o Every confirmation candidate will be asked to choose a patron saint name- or a confirmation name. It is perfectly fine to stick with your baptismal name so long as it is the name of a Saint, Blessed, or person of the OT. o This name should be the name of an actual canonized Catholic saint, blessed or someone from the old testament. The choice of the name should be made after some consideration and prayer as you are electing a patron saint to pray for you and intercede for you before the throne of God. o Please ask your catechist, parents, sponsor or me for help if you cannot decide on a saint name to choose. - Confirmation Candidate Form The Church asks that the following qualifications be met by every sponsor: o At least 16 years of age o Has received the Sacraments of Initiation: Baptism, Holy Eucharist, and Confirmation o Participates in Mass on Sundays and Holy days of obligation; receives the Eucharist and the sacrament of Reconciliation regularly. o Actively strives to live a life of holiness and contributes to the missionary activity of the church.
o If married, has been validly married according to the laws of the Church. o Neither the father or the mother of the confirmation candidate o Due November 12 th - Baptismal Certificate o If you were not baptized at St. Stephen s we need a copy of your baptismal certificate from your Church of Baptism issued within 6 months of the date of Confirmation. o You can request this copy by calling the Church of Baptism and they can issue a new certificate for Confirmation. o Certificates can be emailed to Katie Kelly at kkelly@ststephenchurch.org or faxed to the church at 763-421-4230. o Copies of Baptismal certificates will no longer be accepted. o Files are not kept beyond the year of the sacrament; we do not save documents from First Communion. o If you have any questions about this, do not hesitate to contact Katie Kelly, kkelly@ststephenchurch.org or 763-712-7456. Katie Kelly Youth Minister/Confirmation Coordinator Email: kkelly@ststephenchurch.org Work Phone: 763-712-7456 Office Hours: Monday-Thursday 9am-4pm Important Contact Information Mass Schedule Saturday: 5:00 pm Sunday: 8:30 am, 10:30 am, 12:30 pm(spanish), 6:00 pm Individual Reconciliation Wednesday: 7:00 pm Saturday: 3:30 pm
Sponsor Conversations Conversation 1 For the Sponsor: - What are you most looking forward to during this time of preparation with your candidate? For the Candidate: What are you most looking forward to during your preparation to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation? Conversation 2 For the Sponsor: - Take a few minutes to share your faith story with the candidate - How have you come to know God more personally in your life? - How have you seen God working in your life through the years? - What was your Confirmation experience like? For the Candidate: - How do you want this Confirmation program to make a difference in the way you relate to God? - Do you feel close to God right now? Why? - What more do you think you can learn about your faith? Conversation 3 For the Sponsor: - What do you feel is the call of Christ in your life as an adult member of the Church, and how do you live out that call? For the Candidate: - When you are confirmed, you become a fully initiated member of the Catholic Church. What does that mean to you? - How do you want to live that out in your life?