First Holy Communion at Christ the King
Holy Communion is the most important sacrament, or outward sign of an inward grace, that the Church offers us in our Christian journey. Uniquely as Catholics we believe that at Mass, when the priest says the words of consecration, the bread and wine, though unchanged in appearance, become the actual Body and Blood of Jesus and when we receive Holy Communion, he comes to us in a special way and enables us to become more like Him and to share His love with others.
We therefore aim to prepare your child over a period of about eight months to receive Jesus for the first time with love, understanding and reverence.
Preparation for First Holy Communion at Christ the King involves the whole family, which means:
- Coming to Mass regularly, preferably on a Sunday morning at 10.30 am, forms part of the programme and please note that attendance will be monitored.
- Children attending classes most Sundays during term time from September – June. These are held before the 11 am Mass on Sunday mornings for 25 minutes from 10.30 – 10.55, after which the children will be taken across to the church for Mass.
- Children preparing for First Confession, which they need to do before First Holy Communion. This is held during Lent and there will be a further opportunity for Confession just before First Holy Communion in June.
- Encouraging and supporting the children with a small amount of written work from a workbook specially designed for their age group by Catholic parents.
Preparing to receive Holy Communion for the first time can be one of the most memorable experiences parents share with their children. If you would like to enrol your child, please see the separate forms which you will need to print and fill in. The first asks you for the details of yourselves and your child. You will see you need to attach a passport-sized photo to this form. Your personal details will be recorded on a computer database held by me and not used for any other purpose, which I trust is acceptable to you.
The other form is for Prayer Partners. Each child preparing for Holy Communion is allocated a Prayer Partner in the parish, normally a woman for a girl and a man for a boy. This person, who is a regular Mass attender, has undertaken to pray for your child daily throughout the year. Please could you and your child complete the whole page on the right, leaving blank the date of Communion. Please again add a passport-sized photo.
Please bring both forms, along with £20 enrolment fee, to a preliminary meeting in September, the details of which will be announced in the newsletter and sent to you by e-mail. Classes will start in early October.
I look forward to meeting with you. Please contact me on [email protected] if you have any questions.
Hilary Wrack
First Holy Communion Catechist