The Christian Community at The Shrine of St. Joseph

The Christian Community
[ An Intentional Eucharistic Community ]
at
The Shrine of St. Joseph

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Community Education Ministries

[ Spiritual | Outreach | Social | Service ]

Education ministries provide Community members of all ages with various ways to further their realization of spirituality and to deepen their experience of faith within the Community.

FIRE Program
The Christian Community has chosen to use the Family-Centered Intergenerational Religious Education (FIRE) Program to implement our Faith Formation ministry. This program, developed by Kathleen Chesto, has the following goals:

To support families as primary educators
To share the Gospel message and the tradition of the Church
To support a life of prayer and service
To foster healthy family living

The program is implemented via a series of small-group and large-group meetings of families and individuals spanning all generations. The program contains five major discussion and learning topics:

Becoming Community
Celebrating Community
Responding Community
Believing Community
Living Community

To join and participate:

FIRE Meetings are usually held on Sundays following liturgy. See the Community Calendar for the current meeting schedule and meeting topics.

For questions, or more information about participating in the program, please contact the FIRE Program coordinators.

Adult Education
Adult Education provides an opportunity for adult education and growth. Its aim is to offer input and stimulation to further the realization of spirituality and to deepen the experience of faith in the Community. It is our belief that social outreach, whether individual or communal, will flow from such experiences. The Adult Education committee recognizes that it is the Sunday Liturgy that is the primary occasion for adult education in the Community. The committee seeks to supplement that education by offering two series a year. These typically meet on four Friday nights in the Spring and Fall. Our present format is hospitality, presentation, followed by large-group and/or small-group discussion. Presentations are offered by Community members and by qualified people from outside the Community.

Children's Sunday Liturgy
The Children's Sunday Liturgy Program reflects our commitment to helping our children participate as fully as possible in the Liturgy of the Word each Sunday. While members of our adult community meet to share the Liturgy of the Word and dialogue in the Auditorium, our children from ages two through Grade 5 meet to hear and discuss the Word of God, bringing with them their unique insights and interpretations. For our two-, three-, four- and five-year-old children who do not yet participate in the CCD Program, this is their opportunity to meet each other and begin to develop their first sense of "community". There is no Children's Liturgy Program on the last Sunday of each month, which is reserved as Community Sunday, a day in which our entire Community worships together. Participation in the Children's Sunday Liturgy Program is optional. Volunteer Community members teach monthly and are essential to our program. New volunteers are always welcome.

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