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Parish Resourcing Pastoral Renewal Do This in Memory: A Parish Based Programme for First Eucharist
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| Do This in Memory: A Parish Based Programme for First Eucharist |
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Do This in Memory is a resource for parish communities to help them in their preparation for First Communion. It complements the school –based work and takes place outside the classroom in the context of the parish Sunday Eucharist. It is continued in the home through the use of activities and resources for both parents/guardians and children. The programme highlights the importance of the Sunday Eucharist as a celebration where we gather, are nourished by the Word and the Bread of Life and are sent forth to live the Gospel. It acknowledges the home as the most important and significant place, where the faith of our children is nourished and sustained. Do This in Memory is built on the four cornerstones which lay the foundation for sound community based sacramental preparation: That the sacramental preparation of children is the responsibility of the home, school and parish working together in partnership. That the work of sacramental preparation begins long before the First Eucharistic Celebration That the celebration of First Eucharist is a sacred and important moment on a long journey of faith development. Together with Baptism and Confirmation it opens the door to full membership of the Christian community. It is not an end in itself. The sacramental preparation of our children must always be seen as one element of the broader task of whole community catechesis. Speaking about the programme, one of its creators Maeve Mahon, a native of our diocese had this to say to parishandfamily.ie about the programme: In 1999 Martin Kennedy explored the religious experience of Irish children in preparation for the re-presentation of the senior cycle of the Children of God Programme. As an illustration of his findings he used the image of three islands, to represent home, school and parish. His conclusion was that the majority of children have their most positive religious experiences on the island of the school in the context of the classroom. The island of home is a place of diminishing religious experience. The island of parish a place more identified with sport than with religion. It may seem almost paradoxical then, that the vast majority of parents and guardians continue to want religion to be taught in school and for their children to celebrate the sacraments of initiation. How best can the church as Christian community respond to our present reality? There are a number of possible responses probably best expressed in the following reactions, 'ignore, deplore, restore or explore.' In choosing to explore many parishes have already identified the need to work with those preparing to celebrate sacraments and their parent or guardians in the context of home and the parish liturgical assembly. The experience of the Dioceses of Kildare and Leighlin and Ossory leads us to conclude that one possible response is to see sacramental moments as opportunities for bridge building between the three islands. These bridges are not the pontoons of former times, when we sent out invitations a couple of weeks before the sacramental celebration to 'come to a meeting.' They are, instead, the beginning of more solid and permanent structures which are in place before, during and perhaps most importantly after the celebrations of First Penance and Eucharist. We have developed Do This in Memory as a resource for this bridge building. In the process of developing such a programme there has been much learning. Perhaps, the most important conclusion is that it is essential to offer parents, children and the parish community the opportunity to prepare together for First Eucharist. We have also learned that there is a tremendous amount of goodwill and enthusiasm among parents and parish teams for such work. There have been positive reactions from teachers who found that it was easier for them to teach the Alive-O, Primary Religious Education Programme because of the children's familiarity with the Church and the celebration of the Eucharist. The Sunday community has benefited from the infusion of life and energy which the children bring. Do This in Memory offers those inhabiting the three islands of home, school and parish the opportunity to work together to begin to build the bridges that will enable us to understand what it means to belong to the family of God no matter which island we live on. Do This in Memory offers guidelines and suggestions for making the Sunday celebration, and indeed the church environment, a place where children feel welcome and have a sense of belonging. There is also an opportunity for parents and guardians to become more actively involved in preparing for and ministering within the Sunday celebration. The inspiration for Do This in Memory is drawn from many places but is perhaps, best summed up in the following quotation from the General Directory for Catechesis. The Christian community is the origin, locus and goal of catechesis. Proclamation of the Gospel always begins with the Christian community and invites people to conversion and the following of Christ. It is the same community that welcomes those who wish to know the Lord better and permeate themselves with a new life… (GDC, 254). Do This in Memory is presently being piloted in parishes, north and south, in our diocese. We look forward to bringing you information about the piloting and about training for parishes that want to adopt the programme in September 2005. |
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