Archdiocese of Boston
Office of Religious Education
Oficina de Educación Religiosa
Archdiocese of
Boston
Office of Religious Education
Oficina
de Educación Religiosa
66
Brooks Drive
Braintree, Massachusetts 02184
617-779-3625
Our
Mission Statement ~
Committed
to the ministry of the Word centered in the person of Jesus Christ, the
Office of Religious Education
strives to lead people to an
ever
more intimate communion with the Triune God
·
The
Office of Religious Education is
delegated by the Archbishop to provide leadership in the catechetical mission of
the Archdiocese of Boston.
1.
promoting
knowledge of the faith
2.
liturgical
education
3.
moral
formation
4.
teaching
people to pray
5.
education
for community life taking “special note of the ecumenical dimension”
6.
missionary
initiation including catechesis for inter-religious dialogue.
(General Directory for Catechesis ch. 3, #85)
January, 2011
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Welcome Get to know us...Mrs. Janet Benestad Ms. Susan Lang Abbott
Ms. Susan J. Kay Ms. Kathleen Foley Services ~ How can we serve you? |
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Catechist Formation in the Year of Faith!
Click here
for information.
Check out upcoming enrichment, prayer opportunities, and
conferences on topics of interest.
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Resources
Guidelines:
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opportunities for on-going education and formation
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Catholic Network for Adult Faith Formation: a new website |
Two end of year traditions - join us:
Leadership Prayer Days, June 11 and 12 - click here
for details
Twenty- seventh Annual Catechetical
Leadership
Appreciation Day - June 3 - click here
for details
Year of Faith October 11, 2012 ~ November 24, 2013.
"The 'door of faith' (Acts14:27)
is always open for us, ushering us into the life of communion with God and
offering entry into his Church."
Pope Benedict XVI, Apostolic Letter Porta
Fidei for the Indiction of the Year of Faith.
To read
Pope Benedict XVI's Apostolic Letter Porta Fidei, click here
Check out Boston's own Year of Faith
website: www.yearoffaithboston.org
Family and parish activities and
suggestions: http://jclubcatholic.org/paulinekids/YearofFaith.aspx
The Catholic Network for Adult Faith Formation has a new web site devoted to
promoting faith formation for Catholics. From their web page:
The Network
for Adult Faith Formation (NAFF) was created by the Emerging Technologies
Committee, a standing committee of the National Advisory Committee on Adult
Religious Education (NACARE) that, in turn, is a consultative committee of the
Committee on Catechesis of the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops on
matters pertaining to adult religious education.... In April, 2004 the Emerging
Technologies Committee was joined by the Adult Faith Formation Committee of the
National Conference of Catechetical Leadership (NCCL). These two committees now
administer this web site.
Parts of the site are, or soon will be, password
protected for use by committee members and diocesan staff. The site
provides excellent materials for parish adult faith formation including articles
and links to organizations and Church documents. These are available to
all and the site is a great resource for parishes. Visit the site www.cnaff.org
Faith Formation for Persons with Disabilities
From
Loyola Press: Adaptive First Eucharist Preparation Kit for Children with
Autism and Other Special Needs. Check out this new resource - it looks
great; www.loyolapress.com/special-needs
Religious Education Classes for the Deaf
Religious Education of Deaf Youth from First
Communion through Confirmation age are offered throughout the
Metro Boston area: Brighton, Dracut, Framingham, Lowell, Middleborough, Newton,
Randolph, and Stoneham. To register or for further information, contact
Father Shawn Carey at 617-746-5645 (voice) 617-787-6083 (TTY).
All classes are coordinated by the Deaf Catholic Ministries, Office of Cultural
Diversity. www.deafcatholic.org
Sacrament Preparation Resources for Persons with Learning
Disabilities
The Institute for Pastoral Initiatives at the University of Dayton has
wonderful material available for children and young people preparing for
sacraments. The Network
of Inclusive
Catholic Educators (NICE) has student texts and resource binders for
catechists and catechetical leaders and videos for catechist formation and
enrichment in the are of inclusive religious education for persons with
disabilities. For more detailed information and price list, go to http://campus.udayton.edu/~ipi/nice
Local Resource Materials
The religious education program at St. Mary Parish, Winchester, has great
resources for sacrament preparation especially for children with autism.
Designed by the mother of an autistic child, the material correlates with the Catechism
of the Catholic Church.
For more information, check out the website:
www.autismreligiouseducation.net
Who gets mailings .... and how?
Letters, brochures, fliers, and forms that are intended for the parish religious
education office, will be included in the weekly electronic mailing from the Pastoral
Center. Please ask the person who opens the parish e-mail to pass along
anything with: Religious Education Office in the upper right corner of the page,
to the PCL. If you have not given us your e-mail address, please contact Kathleen_Foley@rcab.org
so he can add you to our Constant Contact list.
Opportunities for Ongoing Education and Formation
An Internet based E-learning initiative sponsored by The
Institute for Pastoral Initiative of the University of Dayton and the Archdiocese
of Boston
Because of this partnership, the fee for each course is only
$40.00.Courses run 5 weeks and each class is capped at 12 students. You don't have to leave
home. Your classroom is your own computer desk and your co-learners are
from all over the country! Many catechetical leaders and catechists in
the Archdiocese of Boston have taken courses through the Virtual Learning
Community for Faith Formation and have gone back for more! Word is
spreading fast that these courses are a wonderful means of personal or
professional enrichment. This is a great way to become grounded in faith for
parish ministry.
For more information: www.udayton.edu/~vlc
1-888-300-8436 or call Susan Abbott at the ORE
"It
{U Dayton} is a wonderful program. I decided to take one class, then
another. I now plan to get my certificate of catechesis.... I started with
the intention of just learning more and feeling more comfortable in my
faith. I am now finishing my 2nd and 3rd courses and I feel so great about
all that I have learned that I have now volunteered to be a catechist for the
9th grade. Thank you for providing such a great opportunity to grow in our
faith." Brenda
Return to menu
The Theological
Institute for the New Evangelization at St.
John's Seminary
Degree and non-degree students are welcome.
For more information, visit www.sjs.edu
, call 617-779-4104, or
email TINE@sjs.edu.
The Theological Institute for the New
Evangelization (TINE) at St. John's Seminary invites you to consider taking an
evening class at 149 Washington Street in
Brighton (the former St. Gabriel's school). TINE offers two
degree programs: the Master of Arts in Ministry (MAM) and the Master of
Theological Studies for the
New Evangelization (MTS). Summer sessions are also available.
Each class meets once a week. Auditors are welcome. For a
registration form or more information,
visit our website at
www.TINEBoston.org, call 617-779-4104, or email TINE@sjs.edu.
Potential students may come any Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday evening during the school year and visit. TINE also offers non-degree
Certificates. The Foundational Certificates (Catechetical and Catholicism) can
lead to catechetical certification recognized by the Archdiocese of Boston.
Foundational Certificates meet one Saturday a month for eight months. The course
provides an intensive study of the Catechism of the Catholic Church and
also provides Skills Workshops that teach practical skills for catechesis and
evangelization. Tuition is only $250, and scholarships are available. To learn
more, visit http://tineboston.org/cc_index.html
Spanish Programs and Activities
The Office of Religious Education continues to serve the Hispanic Community
in the Archdiocese of Boston through a series of programs of formation in
Spanish for parish leaders involved in catechesis and other ministries. These
are some of the programs:
BASIC COURSE
FOR CATECHISTS
This course is offered to catechists who begin their ministry for the first time or those who are planning on sharing the gift of faith in a catechetical setting. Catechists meet for eight weeks to review the basics of their Catholic faith and also to acquire the skills to present the message of the Gospel in a more adequate manner.
INTERMEDIATE COURSE FOR CATECHISTS
This ten-week course is aimed to further the formation
received in the Basic Course. At the end of this Intermediate class the students
are invited to continue their preparation in the Archdiocesan Institute for
Ministry – Spanish track.
AIM PROGRAM IN SPANISH – INSTITUTO
DE FORMACIÓN DE LAICOS
The AIM program in Spanish is organized somehow differently from its counterpart in English. It consists in a program of four semesters in which the students receive theological, biblical, and pastoral formation. The students meet for ten weeks each semester and four hours each day. In the fourth semester they choose an area of pastoral specialization, according with the needs of their communities.
ARCHDIOCESAN CELEBRATION OF CATECHETICAL SUNDAY
(Spanish)
Every September more than 200 Latino catechists gather in one parish of the Archdiocese to celebrate Catechetical Sunday and to kick off the activities of the year. These catechists are sent out to their parishes with a special blessing and the support of the Office of Religious Education to accomplish their calling.
CATECHETICAL
CONGRESS – Spanish component
This yearly event gathers catechists from most parishes in
the Archdiocese. Normally, twenty workshops are offered in Spanish as well as
two keynote presentations. The participation of Latino catechists in this event
has increased significantly in the last few years.
Other opportunities for growth are:
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Lenten retreat for catechists
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Regular meetings with Directors and Coordinators of Religious Education
working in Spanish programs
To read about the offerings and calendar in Spanish, go
to Oficina
de Educación Religiosa
"For where two or three have gathered together in My
name, I am there in their midst." (Matthew 18:20)
"I get by with a little help from my friends." (The Beatles)
Working, praying, and sharing together, Clusters make the joys more joyful and the difficulties much easier to bear. Religious education Clusters will be impacted by reconfiguration; if you don't know what Cluster you belong to, please call our office. We can help you find your group.
The Good Samaritan is YOU!
The Office of Religious Education is
supported by the Catholic Appeal.
We are enormously grateful to all who have contributed or will contribute this year.
For more information about the Appeal or to donate online, click here: www.bostoncatholicappeal.org
Thanks to the kind folks at RCNet
for hosting this page
www.rc.net
This page was last updated May 7, 2013
Copyright © 2012 Archdiocese of Boston; all rights reserved
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