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General Sacrament Information

"The sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us.  The visible rites by which the sacraments are celebrated signify and make present the graces proper to each sacrament.  They bear fruit in those who receive them with the required dispositions."
--Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1131
One of the functions of the Religious Education Program of St. Kevin Catholic Church is to prepare each child to celebrate the Sacraments of Initiation, if desired.  Faith formation is fostered as the child prepares, with the whole family, to take this next important step on their journey of faith.

However, we want to emphasize that the goal of the St. Kevin Religious Education Program is NOT simply to prepare children to celebrate a sacrament, but to offer continuous formation in the Catholic faith.  This formation is NOT completed with the celebration of any sacrament and needs the cooperation and support of the family and sponsors who should be examples of Christian living as part of our journey of faith.




FIRST RECONCILIATION 
and 
FIRST COMMUNION





Program Requirements:
  • The child has to attend the program for at least two consecutive years.
  • The child must have good weekly attendance.  (see Attendance Policy in our "Religious Education Handbook.")
  • The child must be at least in third grade  (when s/he celebrates the sacrament).
  • Everyone will wear a white gown at the First Communion, and girls may NOT wear veils of any kind.
  • Parents must attend all mandatory preparatory meetings.  
  • Children must attend all mandatory rehearsals.
  • Additional information and requirements will be provided at the Parents’ Meeting for First Communion.



"The Eucharist is 'the source and summit of the Christian life.'  The other sacraments, and indeed all ecclesiastical ministries and works of the apostolate, are bound up with the Eucharist and are oriented toward it. For in the blessed Eucharist is contained the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself, our Pasch."
--Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1324





CONFIRMATION






Program Requirements:
  • The child has to attend the program for at least two consecutive years.
  • The child must have good weekly attendance.  (see Attendance Policy in our "Religious Education Handbook.")
  • The child must be at least in eighth grade  (when s/he celebrates the sacrament).
  • Everyone will wear a gown during the Confirmation ceremony.
  • Candidates, parents, and sponsors must attend all mandatory preparatory meetings, retreats, activities, and rehearsals.
  • Candidates must complete 10 direct community service hours in their Confirmation year.
  • Candidates must complete two service hours at the Parish Festival.
  • Additional information will be provided at the Parent-Candidate Meeting for Confirmation.


"... [B]y the sacrament of Confirmation, [the baptized] are more perfectly bound to the Church and are enriched with a special strength of the Holy Spirit. Hence they are, as true witnesses of Christ, more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith by word and deed."
--Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1285

BAPTISM  (Catechumens)


Any child that enrolls in our Program without having celebrated the sacrament of Baptism is considered a Catechumen. 

The process of celebrating the sacraments will depend on the grade level of the child, based on the Archdiocese of Miami's "Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, Adapted for Children" (RCIC).



CHILDREN IN GRADES 1-6

  • The child has to attend the program for at least two consecutive years.*
  • They will celebrate the sacraments of Baptism and the Eucharist in the same year.
  • The Catechumen will enter into his/her specific grade-level class for the first year of faith formation.  After at least one year of faith formation, the child will be evaluated and attendance will be checked.  If deemed appropriate, the child will then be placed into the First Communion Class.  Near the end of the second year, the child will be evaluated again, and attendance will be checked.  If the child is ready, the child will celebrate the Sacrament of Baptism at the Easter Vigil, and First Communion with his/her class at the designated date of the ceremony.  They will then be placed into continuing faith-formation classes to prepare for Confirmation.
  • *NOTE: Since the minimum grade to celebrate First Communion is third grade, if a student begins faith formation classes in first grade (which is the ideal scenario), then the student will celebrate the Sacraments of Baptism and First Communion in their third grade year (after three years of formation).

 

CHILDREN GRADES 7 and UP
  • The child has to attend the program for three consecutive years.
  • They will celebrate all three Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, Eucharist, and Confirmation) in the same year.
  • The Catechumen will enter into an introductory Religious Education class for the first year of faith formation.  After the first year of faith formation, the child will be evaluated and attendance will be checked.  If deemed appropriate, the child will then be placed into one of the classes prior to Confirmation (seventh grade and up).  The child will be evaluated again, and attendance will be checked after the second year.  If deemed appropriate, the child will then be placed into the Confirmation Class.  A final evaluation will take place near the end of the third year.  If the child is ready, the child will celebrate all three sacraments of Initiation, Baptism, First Communion, and Confirmation at the Easter Vigil.


Prior to the child celebrating the sacrament of Baptism, all necessary paperwork must be brought into the office and placed on file, and the parents and godparents must have attended and completed a Pre-Baptismal class.  The godparents chosen for the child should provide an example of living our Christian values daily by following the teachings and example of Christ.


"Holy Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, the gateway to life in the Spirit (vitae spiritualis ianua), and the door which gives access to the other sacraments.  Through Baptism we are freed from sin and are incorporated into the Church and made sharers in her mission: 'Baptism is the sacrament of regeneration through water in the word.'"
--Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1213