September 17, 2020

Dear Parents & Guardians,

The past seven months have been quite difficult and trying for all of us. The COVID-19 Pandemic has affected us all in some way and we are stronger because of it. Surely, it will be a memory that will last several generations; just like the faith that we pass on to our children.

In years past, we have had in-person religious education programs that have been diligently taught by our dedicated catechists (teachers). However, because of the pandemic we are going to be moving in a direction where we are going to empower you, the parents, to be the teachers of your children. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) # 2223:

“Parents have the first responsibility for the education of their children. They bear witness to this responsibility first by creating a home where tenderness, forgiveness, respect, fidelity, and disinterested service are the rule. The home is well suited for education in the virtues. This requires an apprenticeship in self-denial, sound judgment, and self-mastery-the preconditions of all true freedom. Parents should teach their children to subordinate the ‘material and instinctual dimensions to interior and spiritual ones.’ Parents have a grave responsibility to give good example to their children. By knowing how to acknowledge their own failings to their children, parents will be better able to guide and correct them.”

For students in Grades 1-8:

The curriculum that we will be giving you is called “Project Nazareth” which has been developed by the Archdiocese of Boston and is free of charge for all families within the Archdiocese. This video from the Archdiocese explains the program. This will be for students for grades 1-5, but we feel as though it will benefit students in grades 1-8.

For students in Confirmation: 

The curriculum that we will be using is called Chosen, which is put out by Ascension Press. A video describing it can be found here. We will also be using a completely remote option for this coming year. The students who are in 9^th & 10^thGrade should register for this option.

I will be meeting with all the parents by grade level on a monthly basis to check in and see how you are doing. This meeting will be done via Zoom.  You can of course always reach out to me via e-mail at [email protected] or by calling the office at 617-666-2087.

To register please fill out the webform at:

https://www.stsmartinparish.org/faith-formation-registration\

May God continue to guide us in these difficult times.

God bless,

Adam Dupré