Volume XII Issue XXXXVI, November 27, 2023 | |
Reminder: Your Circle of Grace lessons/family events should be integrated and provided by December 15. If you require an extension, please contact your diocesan leader:
(Rhonda Rose, Robin Shipley or myself)
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Advent Resources 2023
For Children and Families
https://www.sadlier.com/religion/advent-resources Sadlier Advent Calendar, prayers, St. Nicholas Activity, Spanish and English
https://www.stnicholascenter.org/ Website all about St. Nicholas, Christmas around the world, crafts, etc
https://www.foryourmarriage.org/celebrating-advent-as-a-family/ Celebrating Advent as a family
https://www.eriercd.org/Jesse-Tree-Ornaments.html Diocese of Erie, Jesse Tree symbols and prayers for each of the Jesse Tree Symbols
https://www.catholicicing.com/advent-and-christmas-with-kid/ Advent and Christmas crafts, etc
https://www.thereligionteacher.com/videos/advent/ Advent videos for classroom or home
https://www.loyolapress.com/catholic-resources/liturgical-year/advent/ a myriad of Advent activities for classroom or home
General
https://www.usccb.org/prayer-worship/liturgical-year/advent Advent calendars, the O Antiphons, Blessing of an Advent Wreath… Spanish and English
https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/Advent/ Daily reflections, prayers, online retreats
https://www.catholicapostolatecenter.org/advent.html variety of resources, youtubes, etc
https://www.crs.org/advent-calendar Online advent calendar, reflections
https://www.ignatianspirituality.com/advent/ Prayers, Scripture reflections
https://bustedhalo.com/tag/advent-calendar Busted Halo (young adults) interactive Advent calendar
https://bustedhalo.com/ministry-resources/10-meaningful-advent-traditions-to-try-this-year 10 meaningful Advent traditions to start this year
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZP-bjpWo9U8
Bishop Barron Three Comings at Advent. 8 minutes....this one is my favorite of many he has done on Advent.
https://hallow.com/blog/advent-calendars/ Interesting write up on Advent calendars from Hallow, which is a free app
https://churchlife-info.nd.edu/praying-the-o-antiphons Praying the O Antiphons, sign up and receive free reflections.
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Join Robert Ellsberg, author of “Blessed Among Us” in Give Us This Day, for a conversation about some of the saintly witnesses of the Advent season whom he considers “friends and companions." Ellsberg is the publisher and editor-in-chief of Orbis Books, the author of “Blessed Among Us” in Give Us This Day, and the author of several award-winning books, including Blessed Among Us: Day by Day with Saintly Witnesses; All Saints: Daily Reflections on Saints, Prophets, and Witnesses for Our Time; Blessed Among All Women; and The Saints' Guide to Happiness.
All registered attendees will receive an exclusive 20% discount on Ellsberg's Blessed Among Us. Register now.
Register for Zoom link
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Adult Confirmation Opportunities
Bishop Pohlmeier will confer the Sacrament of Confirmation on Adults (over 18) who have received First Communion on the following dates:
Sunday, January 7, 2024 at the 5:30 pm Mass at Queen of Peace, Gainesville
Completed forms due by December 4th for inclusion.
Sunday, May 19, 2024 at a 2:00 pm Mass in the Cathedral Basilica of St. Augustine.
Registration forms for each are due 6 weeks prior. All information on forms is to be completed by a member of the parish staff and needs to be verified. We are not able to accept forms that are not completely filled out.
Norms for Adult Confirmation
Resources for Adult Confirmation
Parish checklist
Registration Form
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The dust has settled...
And we have a couple of liturgical year books left (for Year B). So, if you underordered or did not order...
First come first served at the regular discounts:
2 Spanish Ordos
1 English Ordos
1 Children's Daily Prayer Book
5 English Lector workbooks
Email Erin at Erin's Email
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Catechesis of the Good Shepherd
We had another discussion on this programming at the Catechetical Leader gathering week before last. A couple of summers ago, we had the opportunity to bring the training to DOSA, but we did not have any interest at that time. It seems that there was some interest shown at the meeting. We currently have 2 Atriums in our parishes, one at Holy Family, Jax and one at St. Patrick, Gville.
Youtube introduction (6 minutes)
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd
History of CGS in the U.S.
Training is being offered in the Diocese of Palm Beach with 3 weekend sessions. If you are interested, I would explore the concept, discuss the space and money needed with your pastor and consider taking the training. Here is the brochure for the training with dates and costs:
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Your completed lists of names and addresses for invitations to the Rite of Election are due by January 8th. The Jotform will be live next week for those who are currently on the schedule. | |
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Eucharistic Revival Local Resources
A large project of the local committee has been to take the tapes from the live presentations on the Mass and break them down into 15-minute smaller segments for various parish and school groups. These are found on the main page of the diocesan website. There are discussion questions after each segment:
Link to videos These are large files. It will be helpful if you download separately to your device.
Sacred Silence
One of the videos introduces another resource being provided in this pivotal third year of Revival, a Gudie for Sacred Silence:
(Bishop Erik Pohlmeier)
Guide for Prayerful and Sacred Silence before Mass:
St John of the Cross taught that silence is the sacred place where we hear the Word of God. However, our parishes can easily lose the atmosphere of prayerful and sacred silence before Mass. The committee is providing a mini-series of lector announcements and a sacred silence guide that you can customize and print.
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Series of Lector Announcements: 10 minutes before each Sunday Mass, the priest, deacon, or lector can give a short announcement. There are a total of four announcements that can be given over four consecutive weeks. It is advantageous for the announcement to be given several minutes before Mass to allow people time to pray.
Announcements for Sacred Silence (English)
Announcements for Sacred Silence (Spanish)
Sacred Silence Pew Card (English)
Sacred Silence Pew Card (Spanish)
Sacred silence Pew Card (Vietnamese)
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Printable Guide: Each parish can customize and print the guide above as needed. It teaches people three different ways of prayer: Anima Christ/Family Prayer, Lectio Divina, and P.A.C.T (petition, adoration, contrition, thanksgiving). One side is more oriented for individuals and the other for families. Erin McGeever in the Office of Christian Formation has a good and reasonably priced printer and is offering to help print out large quantities for parishes.
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The International Day of Persons with Disabilities is Sunday, December 3. To celebrate, NCPD is hosting a "Where Faith and Disability Meet" panel on Friday, November 30, from 2 - 3 p.m. E.T.
Register for free here
Our panelists will share their experiences of disability in light of their faith, answering these questions: What breaks your heart? What brings your heart joy? How can the Church improve? We will hear from:
Andrea Kaneb
Andrea is the creator of gatheringsound.com. She is a founding member of the Audiology Leadership Council at MA Eye and Ear Infirmary, where her lifelong experiences with hearing loss inform patient-centered care. Andrea is also an NCPD Catholic Disability Foundation Board Member.
Bob Furtado
Robert, who is blind, has been a member of the Knights of Columbus for nearly twenty years and a lifelong Catholic. He is a current member of the Institute on Theology and Disability and a Committee member of the Status of Professionals with Disability with the American Academy on Religion.
Justin Boatner
Justin is a disability rights activist who started advocating for persons with disabilities in high school through Best Buddies and Athletes Without Limits. He has multiple disabilities, including autism, PTSD, generalizing anxiety disorder, and signs of muscular dystrophy. He was baptized at the Easter vigil this year.
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A couple of Pop-Up Opportunities:
New:
Saturday, December 2, 2023
9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Catholic Center Auditorium
Liturgy and Sacraments
Basic Beliefs
Brown bag your lunch
Jotform for December 2, 2023
Saturday, December 9, 2023
9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Catholic Center Auditorium
Faith Development
Catechetical/Legal
Brown bag your lunch
Jotform for December 9, 2023
The next "All in Two Weekends" will be held at Corpus Christi Parish in St. Augustine on the weekends of January 13-14, 2024 and January 27-28, 2024
January 13 Faith Development and Catechetical Legal
January 14 Role of the Catechist and Practical Skills
January 27 Scripture and Church
January 28 Liturgy and Sacraments and Basic Beliefs
Jotform to register
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The excellent presentations by Dr. Ansel Augustine on racism, "Leveling the Praying Field," and Joe Meyer on Laudato Si, "Caring for our Common Home," are now available online for your personal viewing. Consider using these video presentations with leaders in your diocese or parish.
Leveling the Playing Field
Laudato Si 2.0
January 18-19, 2024
Free Online Conference
January 18: 1-3 pm ET
Emerging Trends in Ministry with Youth
Emerging Trends in Ministry with Young Adults
Presenter
Paul Jarzembowski
Associate Director for the Laity, USCCB
January 19: 1-3 pm ET
Practices and Models of Family Catechesis
(Reporting on the research NCCL is doing on effective models of family catechesis)
Implementing Family Catechesis in Parishes
(Strategies for implementing family catechesis in your parish)
Presenters
Paulette Chapman, Joan Weber, and John Roberto
Registration will open in December.
We selected topics based on your input from the summer NCCL survey and the interest finder at the Fall NCCL Convocations.
Catechesis on Prayer &
Prayer Practices
John Michael Reyes
Tuesdays February 6 & 13
Leadership Skills & Practices
for Catechetical Leaders
Dr. Dan Ebener
Thursdays March 7 & March14
Building Intercultural Competence in Catechetical Ministry
Sr. Ruth Bolarte, D.Min.
Thursdays April 11 & 18
Inviting, Forming, and Supporting Parish Catechists
Jayne Mondoy
Tuesdays May 7 & May 14
Tuition for each course is $50. Registration information coming soon.
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Continuing Formation (Level III) Opportunities | |
Taking Video Games Seriously and Evangelizing to Our Virtual Generation
Bobby Angel
November 28th 3:00 PM
Video games are a $200 billion industry that encapsulates everything from Candy Crush on your phone to Hollywood-quality console experiences, and the majority of young people now under the age of thirty-five are playing some kind of video game. This generation is also checking out of organized religion and serious belief in God, but their human needs for connection and purpose can still be profoundly felt. How do we evangelize in this digital space where so many young people live today? How do we connect a young person's love for the virtual world to the God who is real and loves them deeply? In this webinar, YouTube presenter, author, and former teacher Bobby Angel will offer insight into where video games intersect with a life of faith in God—how games echo Christ's call for our heroic holiness, and how we can lead young people to respond to that call in an integrated and flourishing way.
Go to this webinar
Finding the Hidden Joy of Tending to Grieving Hearts
M. Donna MacLeod
December 5th 3:00 PM
If we are to be bearers of hope, our sacred work of ongoing Catholic grief support calls for the spiritual gift of joy. For every work of love we do must come from a full heart that brings the brokenhearted closer to God. Join M. Donna Macleod, bereavement ministry specialist, bereft mom, and author of Seasons of Hope Leader’s Guide: Bringing Comfort through Catholic Grief Support and Journals, for a lively talk on the joy and happiness factor of sorrow, Jesus’ model of joy-filled serving, and the fruit of joyfully offering Seasons of Hope in our Church.
Go to this webinar
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