Dear Pastoral Assistants of Faith Formation,

The Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord reminds us of the manifestations of God in Jesus through the gifts that the Holy Kings brought him: gold (Jesus is King and Lord); incense (Jesus is Priest) and myrrh (Jesus is man).
As agents of faith formation, our work to transmit the Word of God to the families and children who participate in our programs makes sense: this is the best gift we can give them.
 
The Kings searched for the child and traveled long distances for several days to worship him. Our journey is also long and sometimes difficult, especially in 2021 because of the pandemic.
 
Thank God you have shown resilience and have continued your catechetical work overcoming many barriers. Your faith is bigger than any fear. I hope that in 2022 our work will continue to give us the opportunity to celebrate in person the reception of the sacraments for which we are preparing.
 
May the manifestation of God as King, Priest and Man continue to motivate us to follow Jesus by being an echo of His Word.

Carlos Carrillo
Director of Faith Formation
FAITH FORMATION NEWS
Directory for Catechesis Virtual Session Recordings
For those who were not able to attend the six-session virtual event or would like a refresher on the new Directory for Catechesis, we have made all of the recorded sessions available with the corresponding handouts.
Visit the Faith Formation Online Resource website, select "Recorded Resources" in the topic menu to access the information - click here to go directly to the page.
NEW! Catholic Prayer Book for Children
With the support of our Archbishop and the Office of Communications, this month we will have available an updated edition of the Catholic Children's Prayer Book in digital format in English, Spanish and bilingual options. It can be downloaded, printed and used in both parishes and schools. This is an alternative to the previous version provided by St. Mary's Press. We hope that this new edition will make it more accessible for you and the youth of your parish and school communities!
Rite of Election 2022
Review the Rite of Election 2022 packet which includes information on the upcoming Rites and the
 
Parishes are asked to submit their completed forms to the Liturgy Office by January 31st.
The Archdiocese of Seattle is migrating all parishes from PDS (Parish Data System) to WeGather by Ministry Brands. WeGather is a tool that is more than an online database. It includes a community portal that pastoral leadership and parish staff can use to facilitate deeper engagement with parishioners and their families. Over the next few months, the C2P and the Faith Formation Newsletter will include articles specifically focused on parish ministry. For more information, click here.
Synod of Synodality 

Pope Francis invites all the baptized around the world to walk together in a global listening process called "For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission".

This global consultation process will provide guidance to the Church to discern "the signs of the times and interpret them in the light of the Gospel" (SG, 4). We look forward to participating in this process!

To learn more about how the Archdiocese of Seattle is participating and how you and your parish can be involved, click here.
Evangelization and Catechesis Mandate - The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has new pages in English from the Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis. "In these pages you will find a summary of the ongoing work in Evangelization, Catechesis, Stewardship, and World Mission of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. As successors to the Apostles, we bishops continue the work of Evangelization and Catechesis through our episcopal ministry, our witness and our service ". Visit the new webpage.
The following guidelines have been established for Faith Formation and Sacramental Preparation programs.


For more information visit the Archdiocese COVID webpage
Confirmation Scheduling for 2022 and Confirmation Retreats
We have received information from several parishes selecting preferred dates for the retreats listed below. If you have filled out the survey, you will be contacted directly with next steps and additional information about the retreats shortly.
January 29, 2022 (Middle School at Camp Don Bosco)
March 5, 2022 (Middle School at Camp Hamilton)
March 26, 2022 (High School at Camp Hamilton)
April 23, 2022 (Middle School at Camp Hamilton)
There is space available for the January 29th middle school retreat. If interested, please contact Carlos at carlos.carrillo@seattlearch.org.
PAFF Support Meetings -
Please join us for our January PAFF support meeting. Please note the dates and join other PAFFs and the Faith Formation staff for networking and collaboration opportunities!
Meeting Dates & Zoom Link
Meeting time: 12:00 noon
January 11
February 8
March 8
April 12
May 10
June 12
SIX TASKS ~ ESSENTIAL CONCEPTS ~ LITURGICAL CALENDAR
The Epiphany of the Lord - January 2
Most Holy Name of Jesus - January 2
Elizabeth Ann Seton - January 4
Betty Bayley Becomes a Saint
The Baptism of the Lord - January 9
The Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle - January 25
Thomas Aquinas - January 28
John Bosco - January 31
ONLINE RESOURCES PAGE UPDATES
Be sure to check the Liturgical calendar pages in both English and Spanish. These pages will contain who and what the Church celebrates specifically in the month of January.
Please note: If you receive this newsletter before the beginning of the next month, content on the webpage will not update until the 1st of each month.
FAITH FORMATION IDEAS
Essential Religious Education Concepts
We would like to once again begin to share with you and provide resources for the essential concepts that are covered in religion education curriculum for both parish and schools.

For the month of January we feature Task 3 - Moral Formation.
Please feel free to use these resources linked below in your lesson planning and use our Faith Formation resource page - each essential concept has a dedicated page of resources for you to share.
TASK 3 - MORAL FORMATION - Students develop a moral conscience that is informed by Church teachings and conformed to Christ, as modeled in a personal life of virtue, and demonstrated in service of the Gospel's demands for society.

THE HUMAN COMMUNITY
A Prayer for the New Year
Learning to Walk by J. Bradley Wigger

O God of steadfast love,
trusting you, we devote our hearts to learning
and our lives to walking.
Teach us truth, that we may walk with courage.
Teach us mercy, that we may walk with humility.
Teach us forgiveness, that we may walk with compassion.
Teach us grace, that we may walk with strength.
Teach us wonder, that we may walk with praise.
Teach us goodness, that we may walk with those in need.
O God of steadfast love,
Learning from you, may we walk well.
Amen.

From Together we Pray: A Prayer Book for Families (Chalice Press, 2005)
UPCOMING EVENTS
Annual Faith Formation Retreat - Save the Date: March 24-25, 2022 at Archbishop Brunett Retreat Center, Federal Way

Annual PAFF Conference - Save the Date: June 2, 2022 at Archbishop Brunett Retreat Center, Federal Way
ARCHDIOCESE OF SEATTLE
Office of Faith Formation