Sacramental Preparation

In the Archdiocese of Boston, preperation for the Sacrament of Confirmation is a two-year process. Teens typically begin preperation their freshmen year of high school but are welcome to begin the process later if needed. In the Holy Rood Collaborative, St. Mary's holds a spring Confirmation and St. John's & St. Margaret's hold a fall Confirmation. Participation in parish sacramental preperation is required of all teens including those who attend Catholic schools. Those who have not recieved faith formation either through parish faith formation or Catholic schooling in the years leading up to Confirmation may be asked to participate in supplementary instruction as part of their Confirmation preperation process. 

Curriculum

Confirmation Prep uses Chosen: Your Journey to Confirmation by Ascension Press. Chosen brings together twelve of the most talented and inspiring presenters in the Church today, and is filmed at more than fifty locations, Chosen is designed to capture the attention of our youth and present the faith to them in new and unexpected ways. The program seeks to connect with the hearts and minds of our young people on an intellectual, emotional, and spiritual level. Each week, teens will be engaged, challenged, and inspired as they are guide toward a deepening relationship with Christ and a life of committed discipleship. 

Components

Mass
As Catholics, we believe that the Holy Mass is the source and summit of our faith. Regular Mass attendance (i.e. at least every Sunday and on Holy Days of Obligation) is an expectation of our faith formation families. The Confirmation class timing is designed to be in conjunction with a Mass, taking place before the evening Mass at St. John's. However, families are welcome to attend any Mass that works for them and their schedule. Mass engagement is encouraged throughout the year through Mass Tickets and Mass Reflections.  

Class
Confirmation meets once or twice a month during the faith formation year for a total of 12 classes. Classes are held in the St. John Parish Hall. Youth are split into small groups that sit together at tables with adult facilitators. A lead teacher presents material to the large group which is reinforced and explored further in activities and discussion conducted in the small groups.

Parent Participation 
Parent engagement is crucial when it comes to passing on the faith to the next generation. It is important that parents model faith practices their children. This is why our collaborative has a family-centered model for Faith Formation with parents praying, learning, and growing in their faiths along with their children. We also know that beginning to take on more responsibility for their faith lives is important for Confirmation Candidates. Therefore, we will not be asking parents to attend every Session, as we do for the younger grades. Instead, parents will be expected to attend 3 Sessions throughout the year. This will include the 1st Session of the year and 2 additional sessions of their choosing. Parents can attend whichever Session works best for their schedule or whose topic most piques their interest. Parents will be placed at Parent Tables together where they will be able to discuss the faith and raising kids in the faith with other Catholic parents. We ask that, if possible, parents please sign-up for the sessions they wish to attend ahead of time so we can make sure we have enough materials available. 
Link to Sign-Up For Confirmation I 

Link to Sign-Up for Confirmation II 
Deep Dives
A common component to all grade levels in family faith formation, Deep Dives are a chance for families to experience faith together through prayer, service, etc. A wide variety of Deep Dives will be offered throughout the year, allowing families to pick ones that fit with their schedules and interests. Confirmation Candidates are asked to complete AT LEAST 4 Deep Dives each year. 2 of these should be done with their families and 2 can be done on their own or with friends. 
Link to Deep Dive Calendar

Chosen:
This is Your Faith Faith Formation for Teens

Life-Changing.

Chosen: This Is Your Catholic Faith takes young people on a journey through the entire Catholic faith in all its richness and vitality. Teens will be captivated by the story, from Creation all the way through salvation history, and they will come to see how the sacraments, prayer, and discipleship are the keys to a happy life. The goal of this 24-lesson program is nothing short of winning over the hearts of teens and making them lifelong disciples of Christ.

Chosen’s carefully designed methodology features highly effective and engaging material conveyed through videos, student workbooks, and classroom experience. Featuring twelve of the top youth experts in the Church today and filmed in more than 50 locations, Chosen is unlike any program available in the Church today.

• Calls teens to a personal encounter with Jesus Christ.
• Visually stunning, fast-paced videos, filmed in more than fifty locations throughout the U.S. and internationally.
• Featuring twelve top youth experts presenting the faith in new and unexpected ways.
• Effective methodology based on the RCIA model (i.e., pre-evangelization, evangelization, catechesis, and discipleship) and grounded in the Catechism and Scripture.
• Easy to implement, with step-by-step leader’s notes and flexible scheduling options.
• Connects with teens and inspires them on multiple levels—intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually.

Parent Involvement 
The Parent's Guide to Chosen is a wonderful resource for parents as they prepare their children for Confirmation. The guide includes an overview of each Lesson in the program, along with "Converstation Starters" aimed to assist parents in having faith discussion in the home. The Holy Rood Collaborative provides parents a copy of this guide with the hope that parents will feel empowered to journey with their children as they prepare for Confirmation. 

Parents are also encouraged to follow along with the Chosen curriculum as their child works through it at class. Directions for online access to Chosen including a digital version of the workbook and access to the Chosen videos can be found below. 

Directions for Ascension Online Access 
Simply click on the below link to create a new account with an email and password of their choice (or login into an existing account). You will be able to view all study videos, as well as a digital workbook, through our online platform called Thinkific. Please note that after creating a password, the registration is completed when you click on “complete your purchase,” but you do not need to pay for access, the amount due will be zero. 

Create Ascension Account

Make-Up Work
If your child misses a class, please have them complete the Lessons they missed (schedule found on below). For weeks with Chosen Lessons those lessons can be completed online using the Chosen's online access via Thinkific. This platform will walk them through the prayers, readings, and videos for the missed Lesson. Thinkific provides a progress report letting us know that they have completed the Lesson. Directions are found below.  For weeks with Prayer Lessons, make-up directions will be sent via flocknote.  

Directions for Ascension Online Access
Simply click on the below link to create your Thinkific account with an email and password of your choice (or login into an existing account). Once signed in, you will be able to view all study videos—as well as a digital workbook. Please note that after creating a password, the registration will NOT BE COMPLETE until you click on “complete your purchase.” NOTE: you are not require to pay for access.. the amount due will be $0. 
Create Thinkific Account

Lesson Schedule 

• October 2, 2022 
  • Chosen Lessons 1&2: “Why am I here?” (An Introduction to Chosen)  & "What makes me happy?" (Discovering God as the Source)
• October 23, 2022 
  • Prayer: Planning for Prayer (Setting and meeting goals for prayer) 
• November 13, 2022 
  •  Chosen Lesson 3: “What’s Your Story God?” (A Look at Salvation History) 
• December 4, 2022 
  •  Prayer: Prayer Personalities (Exploring differenent approaches to prayer) 
• December 18, 2022 
  • Chosen Lesson 4: "How do I know God is real?" (Understanding Divine Revelation)
• January 22, 2023 
  • Prayer: Who do you say that I am? (The roles God plays in our lives and prayer)
• February 5, 2023 
  • Chosen Lesson 5: “Who is Jesus?” (The Person and Mission of Christ) Lesson 6:
• February 26, 2023 
  • Prayer: Going Deeper with Rote Prayer (Making it more than going through the motions) 
• March 12, 2023 
  • Chosen Lesson 6: “Why Be Catholic?” (Discovering the Church Jesus Founded) 
• April 2, 2023 
  • Prayer: Physical Aids for Prayer (Material helps for the spiritual life)  
• April 30, 2023 
  • Chosen Lesson 7: “Where am I going?” (A Look at the Last Four Things) 
• May 21, 2023  
  • Prayer: Challenges in Prayer (Overcoming obstacles to and in prayer) 

Make-Up Work
If your child misses a class. Please have them complete the Lessons they missed (schedule found on below) at home using the Chosen's online access via Thinkific. This platform will walk them through the prayers, readings, and videos for the missed Lesson. Thinkific provides a progress report letting us know that they have completed the Lesson.  

Directions for Ascension Online Access
Simply click on the below link to create your Thinkific account with an email and password of your choice (or login into an existing account). Once signed in, you will be able to view all study videos—as well as a digital workbook. Please note that after creating a password, the registration will NOT BE COMPLETE until you click on “complete your purchase.” NOTE: you are not require to pay for access.. the amount due will be $0. 

Create Thinkific Account

Lesson Schedule 

• October 16, 2022 
  • Prayer: Priorities (How can we put God first in our lives?)
• November 6, 2022 
  • Chosen Lessons 12 & 17: “Who is the Holy Spirit?” (Meeting the Third Person of the Trinity) & “Who’s Calling?” (Vocational Discernment)   
• Novmeber 20, 2022 
  • Prayer: Prayer Personalities (Exploring different approaches to prayer)  
• December 11 2022 
  • Lesson: Vocations & Chastity 
• January 8, 2023 
  • Prayer: Who do you say that I am? (The roles God plays in our lives and prayer) 
• January 28, 2023  
  • Chosen Lessons 9 & 14: “When did my journey begin?” (Baptism, Your Initiation Into God’s Family) & “Why have I been chosen?” (Seal and Sent in Confirmation)  
• February 12, 2023 
  • Prayer: Going Deeper with Rote Prayer (Making it more than going through the motions) 
• March 5, 2023 
  • Chosen Lessons 23 & 21: “How do I build the Kingdom?” (Saying Yes to the Mission of Christ and His Church) & “Do I have what it takes?” (Building Virtue- Your Spiritual Workout) 
• April 23, 2023 
  • Chosen Lessons 20 & 24 : “What would Jesus Do?” (The Beatitudes as a Path to True Happiness) & “Where do I go from here?” (The Journey Continues) 
• May 7, 2023 
  • Prayer: Set the World on Fire (Be Who You Were Made to Be) 

Sacramental Paperwork

The below sacramental paperwork (Sacramental Records, Saint Name Form, Sponsor Form, and Letter to the Bishop) is all due by February 12, 2023. Saint and Sponsor forms should be filled out online and a hard copy of the Bishop Letter should be brought to the February 12th class.  

Sacramental Records 
Both Baptismal and First Eucharist records should be on file with the parish. Candidates who made their First Eucharist at one of our parishes can assume that we have these records unless informed otherwise. 

Saint Name Form 
Candidates may choose a Confirmation Saint name. Information on how to choose a saint name, as well as the Saint Name Form, is provided via the below link. This form should be filled out by the Confirmation candidate. 
Saint Name Form

Sponsor Form 
Candidates will need to choose a Sponsor for Confirmation. Being a Confirmation sponsor is a great honor, but also a responsibility that should only be given to someone who can serve as a model and mentor in our Catholic Faith. Sponsors MUST be a confirmed and practicing Catholic who is at least 16 years of age and NOT a parent of the confirmand. The Sponsor Form is provided via the below link, and should be completed by the Confirmation candidate. 
Sponsor Form

Letter to the Bishop 
Please refer to the directions on how to write a Letter to the Bishop via the below link. A hard copy of the letter should be turned in at class, or mailed to the collaborative offices. Please retain an electronic copy until after Confirmation.  
Bishop Letter Directions
 

Additional Confirmation II Expectations

Sponsor & Candidate Evening 
Candidates and their sponsors—or parent if their sponsor is not local—need to attend a Sponsor & Candidate Evening. These evenings are scheduled from 7-9 pm on the following dates  and locations:

• January 19, 2023 at St. Mary
• February 15, 2023 at St. John
• March 16, 2023 at St. Margaret

Candidates and sponsors can attend the evening that best fits their schedule, regardless of the parish in which they will be confirmed. Please register via the below link.
Sponsor/Candidate Registration

Interview with the Pastor 
Fr. Brian has requested that all confirmation candidates complete a 15 minunte interview with a priest before receiving confirmation. This is not meant to be an intimidating event, but merely a chance for all teens to talk with a priest and for our priest to get to know the youth a little better. Interviews will be schedule for the month before each specific parish’s Confirmation ceremonies. 

Retreat & Rehearsal 
A retreat with rehearsal will be held the evening before the Confirmation ceremonies from 4:30-9:00pm at St. John's. The last hour of the retreat will be Mass and family and friends are welcome to join us for Mass. All Confirmandi are required to attend with their sponsor.  

Confirmation Ceremony 
The St. Mary’s Confirmation ceremony will take place on Sunday, May 28 at 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm. The St. John’s and St. Margaret’s confirmation ceremony take place in the fall of 2022. Exact dates/times will be provided as soon as we receieve them from the Bishop.