Volume XV, Issue XI March 16, 2026 | |
Echoes~
Your Weekly Catechetical News from the
Office of Christian Formation
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Nominations are open for the 10th Annual Sr. Celinie Catechetical Awards
Sr. Marie Celinie Joubert, SSJ, was one of the original 8 religious sisters who came to Florida at the request of Bishop Agustine Verot. Her ministry extended not only to the original mission of educating the African American population in St. Augustine but to some of the early outposts in Fernandina Beach as well as to Jacksonville’s north side. Her mission was to teach African American students first in St. Augustine, then at St. Catherine School on Main Street in Jacksonville. Over the years, this school moved often and eventually became the location we know today, St. Pius V (1921). Sr. Celinie and two other Sisters also went north to found St. Michael School in Fernandina Beach. When the yellow fever epidemic struck while the Sisters were on retreat in St. Augustine, they returned to visit and care for the sick in Fernandina. Sr. Celinie died on September 22, 1877, while tending to the needs of the victims of yellow fever.
Nominations of suitable candidates will be accepted from pastors, Directors of Religious Education, and Catholic School principals for this annual award for Excellence in Forming the Faithful.
The full letter of introduction to the award as well as the nomination form can be found below:
Letter of Explanation to pastors, DRES, and principals
Nomination Form
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Order of the Anointing of the Sick and of Their Pastoral Care
The Office of Christian Formation, in collaboration with the Liturgical Commission, will offer a workshop on the new Order. This event will occur on Tuesday, April 14 from 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm at Sacred Heart Parish, 5752 Blanding Blvd. A session for clergy will be held in the church and a session for laity will be held in the family life center. Registration is necessary, although this offering is free.
Jotform to register
There will be a limited number of these ritual books available for sale at the workshop.
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Register of Catechumens
The Order of the Catechumen registry books are in. If you ordered from the office, you should expect them within the next week or so. Please note, all parishes must have a registry, which is a sacramental registry so kept in your parish safe. The unbaptized, when they enter this celebrate this rite of the OCIA are recorded here. This has always been part of the OCIA/RCIA, but it is now normative. See below from the OCIA ritual:
REGISTRATION OF INITIATION-RELATED ACTS
Norm 14 §1. The register of those who have entered the catechumenate is to be kept in the parish archive.
§2. In addition to those things required by OCIA 46, the pastor is to see that the date and place of birth of the catechumens are inscribed in the register.
The date of entrance into the Catechumenate, which is to be a minimum of one liturgical year starting at Easter, will be verified when you submit the information for the Rite of Election next year.
If you have baptized Catholics in your OCIA process, delegation is needed for the pastor to confirm them at the Easter Vigil/Easter Season. The OCF provides a form letter for you to use:
Delegation (English)
Delegation (Spanish)
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18th Annual Summer School of Theology
For obvious reasons, we invited an Augustinian to provide this year's Summer School of Theology. Fr, Gary McCloskey, O.S.A., Ph.D is a well-known leader in Augustinian spirituality and pedagogy having shared his ministry on 6 of the 7 continents. He is a frequent retreat master.
Our theme will be: "Before all else, Christ came so that people might learn how much God loves them." The week will be guided by the pastoral insights of Pope Leo XIV as he laid forth in his Address to Educators on the Occasion of the Jubilee of the World of Education, St. Peter's Square, October 31, 2025:
"I would like therefore, to share my experience with you by focusing on the doctrine of Doctor Gratiae (the Doctor of Grace ~ St. Augustine) that I consider fundamental to all Christian education: interiority, unity, love, and joy."
The 5 days, June 22 -26, will have a daily focus:
Monday: Introduction to Pope Leo's insights
Tuesday: Interiority
Wednesday: Unity
Thursday: Love
Friday: Joy
Schedule each day is 9:00 am - 3:30 pm with Mass celebrated each day prior to lunch
Registration will open next week.
This is a Level III (Continuing Formation Opportunity)
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Discover Your Path to Service, Leadership, and Faith Formation ~ the Diocesan Ministry Formation Program
The Diocesan Lay Ministry Program (MFP) is a path for those who desire to be recognized leaders in faith formation in the Diocese of St. Augustine. Now entering its 35th year, the MFP has formed several hundred of the faithful for service to the mission of Jesus Christ.
As we begin our initial recruitment for suitable candidates for the Class of 2029, we invite pastors and current leaders to help us look for these individuals and to invite them to at last learn about the benefits of commissioned lay ministry. if we are planning for the current and future mission of the Church, we need capable and formed people to lead the way.
The MFP Office is hosting 6 information sessions across the diocese for people to learn more about the program, its benefits, its requirements, and to begin a period of discernment for this upcoming year that begins in August.
Last session currently will be held:
March 24 at Sacred Heart, Fleming Island 6:30 pm- 8:00 pm
A RSVP is very helpful, but not absolutely necessary. Please share.
Email Ann at Lay Ministry Email
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Pleased to announce this Conference on Inclusive Formation
In partnership with the National Catholic Partnership on Disabilities (NCPD) and the Catholic Foundation, the Office of Christian Formation will be hosting this bilingual opportunity for all who work in formation and education in the Diocese of St. Augustine.
There will be 4 workshops offered in both Spanish and English. The Spanish workshops are partially sponsored through a Lilly Grant.
You will be able to sign up for 1, 2, 3, or 4 workshops. Lunch will be provided for those who sign up for the entire 2 days.
Jotform to register
| | | Still looking for a few locations that are willing to accept students from other parishes at their Confirmation retreat. Please email Erin Email with details. | | |
Adult Confirmation
The next celebration of adult Confirmation will be celebrated by Bishop Pohlmeier in the Cathedral Basilica of St. Augustine on Pentecost Sunday, May 24 at 2:00 pm.
This celebration is for Catholics who are baptized and received First Communion in their youth but for whatever reason were not confirmed. Formation sessions should start now and these begin with the verification of current sacramental status.
Completed, typed registrations are due 6 week prior to the celebration. All information, including correct spelling of names, must be provided!
Registration form (TYPED, please)
Adult Confirmation check list for parishes
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March 18 @ 11:00 am - 12:30 pm EDT
The family is the first and most important introduction to faith formation for children. In this webinar, dedicated faith formation expert Dr. Kathie Amidei shares 10 things she discovered about family formation and discusses the important role that parishes and schools play in supporting parents in their God-given vocation as formators. Break-out groups will give you the opportunity to brainstorm religious education solutions in your parish with like-minded DREs.
Level III
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You're Invited to Participate. . .
NCCL Study on Family Faith Formation
There has been a tremendous growth in new parish initiatives in family faith formation over the past five years. Many parishes across the country are adopting a family catechetical model where the entire family gathers to learn together. There is an emerging movement towards engaging the whole family in learning together.
To learn more about what parishes are doing in family faith formation NCCL is conducting a national study to identify how parishes are implementing family faith formation in their parish communities. The survey explores how parishes practice parent and family formation, what programs and activities they offer, and, if they conduct a catechetical program for the whole family, when do they gather and what themes do they address.
NCCL will produce a report of the findings and follow-up with parishes to develop profiles of parish family faith formation that will be available to all parishes.
Our hope is to develop a network of parishes engaged in catechetical programming with the whole family (or are planning to do so) so they we may connect with each other for mutual support and resource sharing.
We really appreciate your help in this project. It will only take 10 minutes to complete the survey. Click on the button below to go to SurveyMonkey. Please respond by March 25.
Thank You!
Roberto
NCCL Executive Director
Family Formation Survey
| | Basic Certification (Level I) | | |
Basic Certification (Level I)
Summer Offering:
Catholic School Special~ St. Paul, Jacksonville Beach, June 15 -18, 2026
Registration is now open:
Jotform to register
Dates and locations for next year are in the works. If you location would like to host, please contact Erin at Erin's Email We ae obligated to cover the 17,000 square miles of the diocese, so...
| | Standard Certification (Level II) | | Continuing Formation (Level III) Opportunities | |
Conversations That Matter | Dying Well: Medicine, Ethics, and Dignity at the End of Life
Efforts to expand physician-assisted suicide, often called Medical Aid in Dying, or MAiD, are gaining momentum around the country. Twelve states currently allow assisted-suicide and an additional thirteen are currently considering legislation that would legalize it. The Catholic Church has long stood in opposition to physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia as acts which undermine human dignity and “the moral relationship that unites us with others who share the gift of life and the meaning of existence” (SB, §1).
In this two episode series, we will discuss a range of philosophical, medical, ethical, and theological issues entangled with assisted-suicide and explore the ways Catholics and all people of good will can recover a vision of what it means to live and die well.
Register here (FREE)
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