In the Spirit of God, we never stop growing until we grow into "the full stature of Christ." This is a lifelong process. Journey in Faith at St. Luke's understands that we all need to continue growing in our knowledge and love of God throughout our lives. We also understand that this process occurs best when we mingle with each other across generations. Our online resources acknowledge this and provide as many opportunities for growth as possible and encourage young people, parents and our elders to find in one another opportunities to grow in knowledge and in wisdom. Here we provide resources both for developmentally specific points in our lives and for "mixing it up" as best we can. we hope that you find these resources helpful. We appreciate any observations and comments on your experiences here.
For Children and Their Parents
Being a parent can be a daunting task, even in the best of situations. In today’s society, parents have to deal with many challenges: consumerism, technology, the media, and many other issues. As parents we are responsible for the moral and faith formation of our children. Nothing and no one can replace the influence of parents on the spiritual life of a child. Parishioners may recall from our visioning process a few years ago that, as this word picture shows, we were all fairly convinced that our parents were the first and most influential people i bringing us to faith.
Religion is much more than a school subject. We believe that it is a way of living. We can show children the importance of a God-centered life especially by taking the time to pray - both at home and in Church - as a family. St. Luke's offers parents resources and opportunities for learning about Christian faith and prayer in this section of Journey in Faith. We hope that you will take every opportunity to use these resources to fulfill your responsibilities as Christian parents. The staff and others who serve on the Christian Formation Team are ready and wiling to help in any way that they can.
Religion is much more than a school subject. We believe that it is a way of living. We can show children the importance of a God-centered life especially by taking the time to pray - both at home and in Church - as a family. St. Luke's offers parents resources and opportunities for learning about Christian faith and prayer in this section of Journey in Faith. We hope that you will take every opportunity to use these resources to fulfill your responsibilities as Christian parents. The staff and others who serve on the Christian Formation Team are ready and wiling to help in any way that they can.
Very Young ChildrenWe begin learning about God from a very young age. This is the time when we first start hearing and understanding our parents' search for meaning, significance and purpose.
Very young children will begin to recognize words like, “God”, or “Jesus” or “Church” even though they may little practical understanding of these words. The attitude we have when using these words will have an impact on how our children will approach the concepts as they grow. Whatever a child feels toward mom and dad will influence the way a child will feel toward these faith objects. In other words, example becomes the best way of teaching a very young child about the faith: the way we use the words, the way we pray, the attitude we express when discussing these things with other adults and older children. |
School age ChildrenOnce children begin school (kindergarten and up) they begin to learn about how the adults in their life discover opportunities to find meaning in the events of life. At this time in a child's development, bible stories, stories about saints and heroes in faith, morality tales, all begin to communicate significant truths in a simple manner, especially when they resonate with their emotional life. Think about the impact of stories about the baby Jesus at Christmas time and how such stories relate to a child's experience of life. One thing we need to remember is that these stories are important to our children primarily because they are “our stories” -- stories about things "we" believe, especially as a family. Journey in Faith offers a special section to help parents of school age children learn about the faith. Other programs, like Godly Play, and other events will try to support and empower parents as they help their children grow.
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Our faith develops largely from the way we pray. We provide you with resources rooted in our rich tradition of worship to help form your children as Christian disciples.
Click here for resources in the current liturgical season.
Click here for resources in the current liturgical season.
For Youth
With and for Youth, Journey in Faith seeks to fulfill the following goals
- To empower young people to live as disciples of Jesus Christ in our world today.
- To draw young people to responsible participation in the life, mission and work of the faith community through their respective Family Community / Parish Community / School Community / Service Community.
- To foster the total personal and spiritual growth of each young person
For Young Adults
Connections seeks to form a welcoming, informal community of young adults, roughly between the ages 18-40, committed to supporting one another in their journey of faith and facilitate an encounter with the living God. All young adults, wherever they are in their faith journey, are welcome to attend our programs and events. We find that young adults yearn for the same things as other people of faith: a joy-filled community life, accessibility to a rich spiritual life, engaging preaching and teaching, mentorship, and guidance in discernment of life decisions. We hope that the resources found on these web pages help with the types of responsibilities and life experiences for individuals in this stage of life.
Click here to see our plans for Young Adult Ministries.
Click here to see our plans for Young Adult Ministries.
For Adults
St. Luke's hopes to engage the particular needs and interests of adults in our community by offering a comprehensive and systematic presentation and exploration of the core elements of Christian Catholic faith and practice. This integration of life experience, diverse adult learning needs, the study of Scripture, and the teaching of the Church's tradition will create a vibrant learning environment.
Click here for more information on formation programs specifically for adults.
Click here for more information on formation programs specifically for adults.
For each of these groups, there is a special moderated Facebook interest group.
To join the group, you must be a member of Facebook and send a request to St. Luke's for permission to participate.
To gain access to one of these groups, send us an email request here.
To join the group, you must be a member of Facebook and send a request to St. Luke's for permission to participate.
To gain access to one of these groups, send us an email request here.