First Reconciliation and First Eucharist for Grades 2-4
Our program for Elementary students preparing for the sacraments of First Reconciliation (also called Confession or Penance) and First Eucharist (also called First Communion) use the St. Mary’s Press curriculum Go, Seek, Find, which utilizes the Catholic Children’s Bible. This curriculum provides good opportunities for parents and their children to interact through the bible and prepares the children to receive God’s grace in the sacraments of Reconciliation and Eucharist.
Preparation for First Reconciliation and First Eucharist is a two-year process that begins as a student enters their first year of Religious Education. Children whose first year of Religious Education is Grade 1 (Young Disciples) will receive their First Reconciliation and Eucharist in Grade 2 (Seekers), but children whose first year of Religious Education is Grade 2 will receive their sacraments in Grade 3 (and so forth). To know which BCRE program your child should be registered for, please click here to go to our Frequently Asked Questions response. We require two years for sacramental reception in order to provide foundational faith formation before undertaking the additional preparation of preparation for these important sacraments.
- Separate materials, supplemental to the regular class materials, are used for First Reconciliation and First Eucharist preparation, administered at home by parents/guardians, with assistance from the Coordinator of Religious Education.
- Students preparing to receive sacraments, accompanied by a parent/guardian, are required to attend both a First Reconciliation workshop and a First Eucharist workshop. A mandatory information meeting will also be scheduled for the fall for the parents/guardians of those preparing to receive these sacraments.
- Mandatory rehearsals are required for all First Eucharist children, who will need to be accompanied by a parent/guardian.
- Separate and distinct preparation for these sacraments apart from their grade-level curriculum serves the following purposes:
- It allows grade-level class time to be used for the regular curriculum (though the Seekers program will reinforce the home-based sacramental preparation)
- It allows for students not in Grade 2 to better integrate into the sacramental preparation process
- It allows for students in our Home Study program, or attending Catholic Schools, to prepare for sacraments in the parish
- It allows grade-level class time to be used for the regular curriculum (though the Seekers program will reinforce the home-based sacramental preparation)
Melissa Gozzo is the Coordinator for Young Disciples, Seekers, and First Eucharist / First Reconciliation (Gr. 2-4). Please contact Melissa to sign up for the First Reconciliation Workshops, Reconciliation Sacramental Experience, First Eucharist Workshops, or your First Eucharist Mass. She can be reached at 978-667-3733 x444.