Welcome

Here at SJF, we look forward to welcoming prospective candidates for First Holy Communion, who should be at least in year 3 (age 7 minimum).

We are currently enrolling candidates for the year 2023/4 and we look forward to hearing from you.

To book a place, contact Michelle and Mel at fhc@cambournerc.com
(this e-mail address sends copies to both Michelle and Mel)

Course information and details

The class runs on Saturdays from 3pm until 4:30pm (term time only), with a short break for refreshments. We would ask that you send your child with a bottle of water for this.

We will be following the I Belong First Communion preparation course from Redemptorist Publications. The parish will provide each candidate with their own copy.  There is a parent guide book which we would strongly recommend you get so you can give your kids informed support in their learning . During this course, there are many opportunities to read and dwell on the stories in scripture and we would encourage families to do so in preparation for classes and throughout their time on the course. We recommend that families invest in a child-friendly, complete Catholic bible. We will be using The Catholic Children’s Bible by St Mary’s Press, which we have found to be very accessible to this age-group and beyond. Links to both books are at the bottom of this page.

The expectation is that children will attend Mass each week throughout the duration of the course. Each session will end with enough time for children to have a short break, observe and be a part of the preparation for Mass. A founding principle of this course is that children belong to the Church family of God; part of belonging to that family is serving each other and we model that when we transform an empty room into a house of worship and community each week. To this end, the sessions on “To love and serve” have been deliberately placed after the First Communion Mass as a follow-on into community life. The first session will focus on the learning and relating the learning to the example of Christ; the other two sessions focus on allowing the candidates to shadow other community members in their various roles of service within the church.

We do ask for a commitment of time and talents from parents as well in organising the two cake sales for the year that contribute to the CAFOD Family Fast Day fund, and organising the community party following the Thanksgiving Mass in September, which marks the end of the First Communion programme.

In keeping with our strong theme of belonging to our church family, we have a tradition of allocating a prayer sponsor to each family, who will befriend and support each family during their time on the course, details of which will be given shortly after the start of the course.

There is Eucharistic Adoration following the 6:30pm Mass on the first Friday of each month. Because the Eucharist is the centrality of this sacramental preparation, and in line with the recommendations from the diocese, we strongly recommend that families make an effort to join us.

On first Saturdays, there is the community Rosary said in the church foyer. This is another excellent opportunity for children to observe and be part of community devotion. The First Communion class will end early each first Saturday to allow families to attend.

In addition, we will recommend other events as they become available which we feel would enrich your child’s faith journey.

Please take the time to read the diocesan guidelines for First Holy Communion candidates and parents linked at the bottom of the page.

All other details about the course will be shared at the Parent and Child meeting – details below.

Parental involvement

Programme

Date	Session title
28/10/23	Short parent meeting and candle-craft
3/11/23	First Friday – Mass and Adoration
4/11/23	In the name of the Father (First Saturday Rosary)
11/11/23	Lord, have mercy 1 (and CAFOD cake sale)
18/11/23	Lord, have mercy 2
1/12/23	First Friday – Mass and Adoration
2/12/23	Celebrating our rescue (First Saturday Rosary)
9/12/23	God helps us get it right
16/12/23	Glory to God in the highest
5/1/24	First Friday – Mass and Adoration
6/1/24	First Reconciliation prep (First Saturday Rosary)
13/1/24	Sacrament of Reconciliation
20/1/24	This is the Word of the Lord
2/2/24	First Friday – Mass and Adoration (First Saturday Rosary)
3/2/24	Bread to offer 1
10/2/24	Bread to offer 2
2/3/24	Fruit of the vine 1 (and CAFOD cake sale)
9/3/24	Fruit of the vine 2
16/3/24	Do this in memory of me 1
20/4/24	Do this in memory of me 2
27/4/24	Body of Christ 1
11/5/24	Body of Christ 2
18/5/24	Sacrament of Reconciliation
7/6/24	First Friday – Mass and Adoration
8/6/24	FHC preparation day (First Saturday Rosary)
15/6/24	First Holy Communion Day
22/6/24	To love and serve: Session plus introduction to Seeds of Change group
29/6/24	To love and serve: practical 1
5/6/24	First Friday – Mass and Adoration
6/7/24	To love and serve: practical 2 (First Saturday Rosary)
21/9/24	Thanksgiving Mass and community party

Links

Parents guide

Children’s Bible