Classes are held on Monday evenings from 4:45-6:00pm
Starting the third week of September and Ending the third week of March.
Write your Welcome to St. Raymond Religious Education Program
Religious Education Apostolate for Christian Handicapped. REACH provides simplified religious education lessons at a slower pace using a smaller student-to-catechist ratio. This program also prepares students for the sacraments of reconciliation, the Eucharist and confirmation.
Volunteer to be a Catechist / Aide
WHAT IS A CATECHIST?
The official teachings of the Church are called the Catechism of the Catholic Church. A catechist is a person of faith who leads others in understanding the faith teachings according to those official teachings. The role of the catechist is a vital ministry to the St. Raymond Parish.
WHAT DOES A CATECHIST DO?
The primary goal of a Catechist is to model God’s love to others. As a result, the primary requisite of a catechist is a love for God and a love for children.
A catechist develops a lesson plan and uses that plan to teach in the classroom. By creating the lesson plan, the catechist ultimately designs and structures experiences for students that help them grow in their personal faith and spirituality. The catechist passes on to students a set of shared meanings and values that are Catholic. A catechist also initiates others into the faith community, into its life, its worship, symbols and practices.
WHAT DOES AN AIDE DO?
The primary goal of an aide is to assist the Catechist in their role of helping our children come to know God and know their beloved identity as God's child.
WILL I RECEIVE TRAINING AND SUPPORT?
Yes
ARE THERE TEACHING AND RESOURCE MATERIALS?
St. Raymond provides teaching and resource materials.
WHAT IS THE TIME COMMITMENT?
We ask catechists to commit to teaching a class for an entire academic year. St. Raymond Religion Education Program begins in September and ends in March.
WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO VOLUNTEER IN THIS ROLE?
We are so blessed to have such an active and engaged community of parents, grandparents, and friends supporting our faith formation programs through volunteering. We welcome any person of faith who wishes to lead others to grow in faith and understanding the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
For the safety and protection of our parish children, any adult who wishes to volunteer to work with children at St. Raymond in any capacity must comply with the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops’ Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, and the Best Practices for the Parishes of the Catholic Diocese of Joliet, all volunteers must: complete an online session of “Protecting God’s Children", a course in child abuse prevention and "Mandated Reporter training", a course in reporting suspected child abuse in addition to a background check.
WHO DO I CONTACT IF I AM INTERESTED IN BECOMING A CATECHIST?
Please contact our Director of Faith Formation, Christine Pershey at 815-722-6653 ext. 225 or via email at christine@straymond.net.