Our Lady of
HOPE
C AT H O L I C C H U R C H
Celebrating First H
Sacrament Draws Young Pa
T
he Sacrament of First Holy Communion is a special milestone that our second-graders were blessed to receive on April 24. After months of diligent preparation, the children were excited to faithfully receive Jesus in the Eucharist for the first time. The parents and catechists who helped prepare them for this sacrament had a great responsibility as well as a unique window into the children’s faith. In our parish, we have several First Communion classes — some second-grade children attended on Sunday morning while older children attended a class on Wednesday evening. The school children had their classes during the school day and were taught by Yvonne Evans, who has been preparing children for their First Communion for 56 years. “This is not just a school project or a Sunday morning project,” Yvonne says. “This is preparing the children for the rest of their lives. This takes help from the parents as well.” Yvonne started by preparing the children for their First Reconciliation. “I love for the children to realize that when they do things wrong, we forgive them and their parents forgive them,” Yvonne says. “Certainly, Jesus forgives them and He doesn’t remember what they did wrong after He has forgiven them. They’re excited to go to reconciliation.” Parents had a major role in helping their children prepare for First Communion. Yvonne sent home letters to the parents explaining what their children were learning and how they could help them prepare, as well as some take-home activities that they could do with their child. “Sometimes parents will come back and say that it has awakened their faith,” Yvonne says. “Children do that to us — they bring us to prayer.” Yvonne also encouraged the children to send a letter to their godparents, asking them to pray for them as they prepare for their First Communion. She had them act out stories from the Gospels, bringing the stories of Jesus to life for them. The children also studied the parts of the Mass. As Easter approached, Yvonne planned a Holy Thursday service for the school children and the second-graders had a special role as they participated in the
continued on page 5
4
