Religious Education Program

REP News – Week of June 1st

CONGRATULATIONS
We will congratulate our departing faculty and staff members who are retiring – Mrs. Jan Myers, our Kindergarten teacher and Mrs. Halina Brittain, our PK Multi-Age teacher. We wish them good health and much happiness in their retirement. Their presence and experience will be missed.

SACRAMENTAL MASSES
As was posted in Fr Marat’s bulletin section last Sunday, the Chicago Archdiocese is in the process of reopening churches to offer baptisms, wedding, and funerals. Following that, there will be planning the resumption of Masses. Until we have clear guidelines as to how the Archdiocese wants to proceed for larger gatherings we unfortunately cannot add any plans to celebrate the postponed Confirmation and First Eucharist Masses which we had to delay with the shutdown. We will continue to keep families informed as soon as we have any information.

We strongly encourage viewing the OLW Mass celebration on Saturday, 5:00 p.m. as it is live streamed on Facebook with a recorded version on the parish website and our Youtube channel. Please see the parish website for further information. Other Mass resources can also be found on the parish website.

Mass can also be viewed live by watching Channel 7 (or the station call letters according to your media package) on Sundays, 9:30 with Cardinal Cupich.

VBS UPDATE
Like all, we follow administrative authorities guidelines for phasing in a return for being together and businesses reopening. The R.E.P. Office has made a difficult decision in light of all health restrictions and concern for our families that Vacation Bible School will not occur in June as has been previously offered.

Discussion and review is under way to determine if we can offer a modified version later in the summer – perhaps July or August – or if a Virtual VBS is a possibility. We are so grateful to Mrs. Megan Bauer and Mrs. Katie Utech, our VBS directors, for working to implement an offering. Please be patient as with everything, this is a work in progress for an unusual and very serious health crisis.

REGISTRATION FOR R.E.P. CLASSES
If you know of a family in which the student will be entering 1st grade or 6th grade, please advice them of the following:

• Students entering Grade 2 must have had formal religious instruction the previous year, otherwise they will be placed in Grade 1. Grade 2 is a sacrament year, as students will received the Sacraments of Reconciliation and Eucharist for the first time.
• Students entering Grade 7 must have had formal religious instructions in Grade 6 before being accepted into the Grades 7-8 Confirmation Preparation Program.

Parents whose children will be new to the program are asked to turn in their registration form along with a copy of their child’s Baptismal Certificate.  Forms can be found online at the parish website, here.