Capstone+Article+Pam+Emery

=Capstone Article Pamela Emery= =**"AND A LITTLE CHILD SHALL LEAD THEM ..." [Isaiah 11:6] - 21st Century Sacrament Preparation**= []
 * DFF, Nativity Catholic Church,**
 * Brandon, Florida**
 * E mail: Pam@nativitycatholicchurcfh.org**
 * Formerly and perhaps traditionally, Sacrament Preparation for First Reconciliation and First Communion, was accomplished by sending children to Catholic School or Religious Education classes. In the context of a classroom setting children learned about their Catholic Faith, supported by weekly attendance at Mass. In some cases, diligent parents worked with their children at home with prayer, story and Bible reading. In some cases, children were expected to learn all about their faith by attending "class," with little or no support at home.**
 * Over the past ten years, we in our Parish, have made great strides in Sacrament Preparation. At the urging of our Diocesan Director, we moved from a Catholic School or Faith Formation "classroom" setting to a free standing program. That is, a program of preparation that would be __in addition__ to Catholic School or Religious Education. Sacrament Preparation would no longer be a "school" or "religious education" process, but a Parish based program. At Nativity, this Sacrament Preparation program consists of parent/student sessions and two retreats. Parents and children work together in a book at home, and come to the parish for sessions of prayer, ritual and supporting activities, together. Parents and children are not separated during this process. This system has worked very well in bringing families together for prayer, learning and fun. Some parents who have been away from the Church and/or the Sacament of Reconciliation and Eucharist, have come home to the Catholic Church. They have learned by teaching their children and leading by example. Every year, I am humbled by parents who thank us, recounting that they have enjoyed the process of Sacrament Preparation and that they have come back to Reconciliation after being away - some for many years.**
 * Attending the Diocesan Summer Institute for Technology in Ministry opened my eyes to an exciting array of web 2.0 tools that could be used to enhance an already good Sacrament Preparation program. I learned that many of these tools were very easy to use and could be adapted rather well. So, I went to the drawing board ... for my Capstone Project, I chose something easy to work with - Animoto. I introduced it to the Catechists and was delighted with the products that the Catechists were able to include in their classrooms. Children loved preparing for their individual screenings, learned while doing - and enjoyed seeing themselves on the "big screen." When our Parish was renovated a couple of years ago, daylight screens were added to the worship space. These screens are sometimes used to showcase an individual ministry; i.e., Life Teen; messages from our Pastor and Bishop. This year, I opened our registration process with an Animoto video before Mass showcasing Faith Formation and inviting families to the Social Hall after Mass. It, too, was very successful.**
 * One of my former Faith Formation families recently sent me a link to a YouTube video that they developed. It shows little Theo talking about the Sacrament of Reconciliation. In it he gives a very good examination of conscience using the Ten Commandments. Mom has also obviously been working with Theo on Catholic apologetics! Thanks to this lovely family, hundreds of children will see someone their age talking about Reconciliation. This is a great use of Social Media, and an excellent teaching tool. Learning that Theo's father is Jewish, I asked if they would consider making another video - this time filming some of their Jewish Sedar and/or Hanukkah prayer and ritual. I can't wait to show our students their former classmate on the "big screen," learning about the Jewish roots of the Catholic faith!** **Little Theo is quite a light bearer! ... innocent, pure evangelization. What a gift!**


 * Jesus taught us how to teach - leading by example, telling stories and showing us his divinity through miracles. It is through these web 2.0 tools that we can connect with our families - on an emotional level, thus helping to evangelize families of faith. I feel like I am standing on the edge of a great frontier!**