Dear Parents,

The time has come again to register your children for our catechetical program. You may ask, what is catechesis? According to our late Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, “catechesis is an education of children, young people and adults in the faith, which includes especially the teaching of Christian doctrine imparted, generally speaking, in an organic and systematic way, with a view to initiating the hearers into the fullness of Christian life.” What then is the specific aim of catechesis? The Pope continues: “to develop, with God’s help, an as yet initial faith, and to advance in fullness and to nourish day by day the Christian life of the faithful, young and old. It is in fact a matter of giving growth, at the level of knowledge and in life, to the seed of faith sown by the Holy Spirit with the initial proclamation and effectively transmitted by Baptism.”

The fullness of Christian life presupposes that every aspect of your child’s life is directed to Christ: at home, at school, on the playground, with friends, on vacation, and on the ball field. Christian life is living one’s baptism!

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches:

Parents have the first responsibility for the education of their children…Parents should initiate their children at an early age into the mysteries of the faith of which they are the ‘first heralds’ for their children. They should associate them from their tenderest years with the life of the Church. A wholesome family life can foster interior dispositions that are a genuine preparation for a living faith and remain a support for it throughout one's life. Education in the faith by the parents should begin in the child's earliest years. This already happens when family mem-bers help one another to grow in faith by the witness of a Christian life in keeping with the Gospel. Family catechesis precedes, accompanies, and enriches other forms of instruction in the faith. Parents have the mission of teaching their children to pray and to discover their vocation as children of God. The parish is the Eucharistic community and the heart of the liturgical life of Christian families; it is a privileged place for the catechesis of children and parents (¶ 2223, 2225-6).

On behalf of all of our catechists I want to welcome your children back into our classrooms as we help you to educate your children in the faith and to assist you in the great task of forming your family in the Way of Christ Jesus the Lord!

Please find below the steps for enrolling your child in our catechism classes. For those enrolling their children in sacramental preparation classes, you will be receiving subsequent mailings about parent meeting dates, sacramental dates and rehearsal times, and other events which are relevant for your family.

If you need assistance in finding the right time for your children to attend our catechism classes, or you need to investigate a home-school option, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

If you know of any good resources—books, videos, projects—that you’d like to see in the class-room or that you think would be a good resource for our parish to have, please let me know.

If you would like to be a catechist, or assist in a classroom, or help us in the office during class time, we are always in need of more volunteers! This is a great act of Christian charity. Our Lord will reward you!

Sincerely in Christ,

David M. Wallace, M.A.
Director of Religious Education
(703) 451-8576, ext 36
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P.S. Please pray for all of those who participate in our parish’s mission of evangelization, from catechists, to classroom and office volunteers, to the hundreds of children who are growing in their knowledge of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Let us all seek to know, love, and serve God in this life so that we may be happy with Him in the next, beholding Him face to face.

Step 1:

Download a copy of our catechetical program's guidelines and policies. Select file format: .PDF | .DOC

Step 2:

Download a copy of the 2011-2012 catechetical calendar. Select file format: .PDF | .DOC

Step 3:

 Enroll Online! HERE. Before proceeding, please make sure you are an active, registered member of St. Bernadette's parish. You can register in the parish by selecting the "St. Bernadette Parish" tab above.

Please understand that many classes are now full and unavailable. Here are our current availabilities:

• Session 1: Sundays, 7:40-8:50AM: Grade 2, Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
• Session 2: Sundays, 9:15-10:30AM: Grade 7, High School
• Session 3: Sundays, 11:00AM-12:15PM: Grade 3, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
• Session 4: Mondays, 4:30-5:45PM: Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8