Sacraments

The journey of initiation into the Catholic Church begins with the Sacrament of Baptism.

The Sacramental Program at St John’s is parish based and is run in small groups of 8-10 children who each have a parent attend with them. The child works with their parent through learning material which is supplied. The program focuses on the parent sharing faith with their child. Parents usually find that this is a valuable one-on-one time with their child.

Current practice is for the children to receive the sacraments in the following sequence:

• Confirmation (confirming their baptismal promises and receiving the Holy Spirit to strengthen them)
• Reconciliation (preparation for receiving Eucharist)
• Eucharist (the child becomes a full member of the Church)

In Year 3 the children complete a unit based on the sacrament of Confirmation which is run in co-ordination with the Parish Sacramental Program.

In Year 4, there are two special units based on Reconciliation in Term 1 and Eucharist in Term 3 and again, these are run in conjunction with the Parish program.  (For 2022 only, both sacraments will be run in Term 3.)

Of course, there is no requirement for your child to receive these sacraments in these years and families are encouraged to make the decision based on their child’s readiness.

Sacramental Program information evenings are advertised in the weekly Parish Bulletin and in the weekly “What’s Happening”. Alternatively, please call the Parish Office on 9982 6536.