Transfiguration of the Lord Parish Religious Education Program
Welcome to our page! We are a Roman Catholic Religious Education Program located at Transfiguration of the Lord Parish in the Diocese of Metuchen.
The mission of our religious education is to help families grow in faith by teaching the traditions and doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church. These teachings are supported by Church documents and the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
Our catechists are properly formed and have completed the child safety protocol of the Diocese of Metuchen.
Did you know that Mass attendance is central to our Faith? Catholic parents are obligated to teach their children by example the meaning and value of attending Mass. “The greatest stumbling block for children at Mass is that their parents do not cherish the hour.” Children should see how Mom and Dad bow their heads in earnest prayer during Mass. They should see how Mom and Dad sing praise to God with joy in their faces, how they listen hungrily to His Word and receive Him reverently in the Eucharist. Children should catch the spirit of their parents meeting the living God.
If you have children in grades K to 8, we welcome you!
We hope to see you!
Thank you and God Bless!
Bridget O'Connor,
Parish Catechetical Leader
Weekly Schedule
Sessions held weekly on Sunday for children grades K-8
9:30 a.m. Family Mass - St. Paul the Apostle Church
10:30 a.m.– Following Mass children go directly to class.
11:45 a.m. – Dismissal
Class time: 10:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.
Religious Education Program 2022-2023 Calendar
Location
Transfiguration of the Lord Parish Center
23 South Fifth Avenue
Highland Park 08904
Program Registration Forms
Registration forms are available at the parish office. The information is valuable for both our records and your child's safety.
First Penance & First Communion Preparation Information
Rite of Christian Initiation adapted for children
Children who have reached the age of 7 (age of reason) and have not been baptized are invited into the process of Christian initiation based on the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA.) This process will prepare young people and their families for the celebration of the Sacraments of Initiation - Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist - after an appropriate time of formation. (RCIA #256) Formation takes place within the parish community.
The adaptation of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults for children is found in Part II, Chapter 1 of the rite. It states, “This form of the rite of Christian initiation is intended for children, not baptized as infants, who have attained the use of reason and are of catechetical age” (#252 RCIA). The Christian initiation of children is similar to that of adults (RCIA #253); however, Part II, Chapter 1 of the rite provides for adapted language, catechetical process, and ritual celebrations that are more appropriate for children. Therefore, the process for children of catechetical age envisions the following:
Process
This process “requires both a conversion that is personal and somewhat developed” (#253 RCIA). “The process of initiation thus must be adapted both to their spiritual progress, that is, to the children’s growth in faith, and to the catechetical instruction they receive” (#253 RCIA). Thus, the ritual envisions the catechetical process to be more than instruction; it is to be a time of conversion and growth in faith. “...their initiation is to be extended over several years, if need be, before they receive the sacraments of initiation” (#253 RCIA).
Parish Involvement
In addition to the parents, the rite suggests that the peer group of the children to be baptized participate in the process as companions in the catechetical sessions and during the celebration of the rituals. (cf. #254.1) Sponsors are another form of support for the child(ren) and the family, particularly if the family is un-catechized or has not been actively involved in the Church for some time.
Parent Involvement
The rite envisions that the child’s parents or guardians are involved in the process: “They seek Christian initiation either at the direction of their parents or guardians or, with parental permission, on their own initiative” (#252 RCIA). “The children’s progress in the formation they receive depends on the help and example of their companions and on the influence of their parents” (#254 RCIA).
Children for Full Communion
Children of age of reason (7 or older) and baptized in another Christian faith are not catechumens. "Those baptized persons who have lived as Christians and need only instruction in the Catholic tradition and a degree of probation within the Catholic community should not be asked to undergo a full program parallel to the catechumenate" (NSC 31).
"[T]he reception of candidates into the communion of the Catholic Church should ordinarily take place at the Sunday Eucharist of the parish community, in such a way that it is understood that they are indeed Christian believers who have already shared in the sacramental life of the Church and are now welcomed into the Catholic Eucharistic community . . . " (NSC 32).