Journey Home (formerly Faith Formation)
Dear St. Maximilian Kolbe parish families,
We pray this letter finds you well and enjoying the MN summer with your family!
Living as a Catholic family in the world has always been tough, but today it seems like it is harder than ever. Then, add a pandemic on top of that… what to do!?! We don’t want “faith formation” to be another thing that stresses you out or that takes you away from your family.
This past spring, as we began to prepare our parish formation program for next year, the world changed very quickly. We have all had to look at things differently; thinking and rethinking the path forward. The uncertainty of how the use of parish facilities will look this fall has inspired us to ask questions and step back to really examine our faith formation program. Knowing change was inevitable, we decided to capitalize on the opportunity. We formed a committee of parents and past catechists focused on one goal: offering a dynamic faith initiative involving the entire family that focuses on joyfully living out our Catholic Faith and striving for Heaven.
We are excited to talk with you about this new initiative we are planning for our parish families. We are focused on building faith within our homes, organizing events and smaller family groups to build community, and offering ways to support & inspire our parish families all year long. Eric Russek, Director of Parish and Family Life, will be meeting with every family individually to discuss how best we can serve your family and meet your faith needs.
Your faith and relationship with Jesus must be something you desire. We do not want the religious formation of your children and family to be another box to check or task to complete. Our experience, and statistics, show us that one hour a week of academic-style religious programming does not meet the mark in transferring the faith. One hour a week cannot deliver what a lifetime of family faith routines will. The conclusion of a study titled, Growing Up Religious, by Robert Wuthnow said this: “Effective religious socialization comes about through embedded practices; that is, through specific, deliberate religious activities that are firmly intertwined with the daily habits of family routines, of eating and sleeping, of having conversations, of adorning spaces in which people live, of celebrating the holidays, and of being part of a community.” Therefore, in order to foster this “effective religious socialization,” we have decided to intentionally unlink our initiative from the academic style and calendar.
Eric will meet with your family to go over these changes. Be on the lookout for a sign up link to reserve your time. Not only will we be discussing the next year, we will also be registering your family at this meeting. We ask that, if possible, both parents attend this meeting; children are welcome. To help prepare for your meeting with Eric, please fill out the attached Family Faith Survey and mail or email it to Eric one week before your meeting.
Eric is very much looking forward to sitting down one on one and visiting with you. Great things are ahead for us, together!
Peace to you and your family,
The Journey Home Team
Nancy Bandzuch Crystal Bushey Heather Triplett Eric Russek
Brian Marketon Kailyn Conway Amanda Roff
Director of Parish and Family LIfe
eric@delanocatholic.com
763-972-2077 x251
Sign Up Genius Link
http:// https://delanocatholic.com/Resources/News/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/3744/Journey-Home-Sign-Up-Genius-Link