Must one have ccd classes before communion?

[n8isgr8]

Hi I have a nine year boy who has not yet recieved as his father and I were going through a divorce, a non practicing catholic. I have always taught my son religiously and he attends church with me when he is not with his father. his father and I do not have set visitation and he sees his son mostly on Sunday. His father doesn’t think church is important, I do. that being said, I would like my son to be able to recieve, the ccd classes are every Sunday after mass when my son is with dad, also they are second grades which makes my son very upset. Can I let him recieve If I continue to teach him at home? Is that a sin? What am I supposed to do in this situation? Are there any private lessons for my son? thank you for your insite?
Sincerely,
a concerned mom

 

[pigtown]

You’d have to talk to your priest about this. Your son would probably have to attend classes and make his First Communion. See what your priest has to say about this. Would it be possible for your ex-husband to have your son on Saturdays instead of Sundays? Or does your church have CCD classes during the week that your son could attend? Your priest would be the one to lead you in the right direction.

 

[Brenda_V]

You’d have to talk to your priest about this. Your son would probably have to attend classes and make his First Communion. See what your priest has to say about this. Would it be possible for your ex-husband to have your son on Saturdays instead of Sundays? Or does your church have CCD classes during the week that your son could attend? Your priest would be the one to lead you in the right direction.

This is good advise. Know that many children are going through what your son is and often has not made his Sacraments at the age the “average” student does in any given Parish. My Parish is so big that we have a special class just for those who are older than 8 for receiving First Communion so they have a combined class (anything from 4th grader to 8th grader, if in High School they join the Adults in RCIA). Remember that he must go to Confession first - if you are in a very small Parish and these resources are not available to you your Priest may allow you to homeschool your son the lessons on these two sacraments with the books used in the regular classroom or with books you have found from Seton or Kolbe homeschools or even Catholic Heritage Curriculum.

For more information on homeschooling visit the Parenting Forum. You will find more parents there who may be in the same situation you are in and how they dealt with it.

Brenda V.

 

[BeeSweet]

Yes, your son should be catechized before first Holy Communion, and ideally (especially considering his age) he should have first Reconciliation before Holy Eucharist. If your parish has a religious education program, find out who the director of religious education is there, and ask them for their help. Private tutoring should be available. You might consider volunteering your time as a catechist. Teaching will enrich your own knowledge.

Please also make a concerted effort to ensure your son does get to mass at least once a week. If not on Sunday, then the Saturday vigil if possible, and if not then, some other weekday. Speak with your priest or director of religious ed about this if it is not possible for you to take your son to mass once a week.

God bless you in your efforts, may the Holy Spirit lead your son, and may your ex husband find his way back to God and His church.

 

[HelenRose]

Concerned Mom,

I think the best advise given so far is the one about taking your son to Mass during the week. I have notice that Week day Masses are intimate and kind. The same people will come week after week and it is easier to become acquainted. Over time you will also become more aquainted with the priest.

It may just be my imagination but I see sort of a “comradarie” atmosphere between people who have a chance to see each other on the week days. Sometimes the priest is not so hurried, and the people are not in a hurry to be about Sunday dinner and Sunday activities.

Then when you can take him to Mass on Sunday, he will feel an “ownership” to the Church and not be so overwhelmed by it all.

 

[Hesychios]

Yes, your son should be catechized before first Holy Communion, and ideally (especially considering his age) he should have first Reconciliation before Holy Eucharist. If your parish has a religious education program, find out who the director of religious education is there, and ask them for their help. Private tutoring should be available. You might consider volunteering your time as a catechist. Teaching will enrich your own knowledge.

The regulations of the Latin church are not universal, they are the regulations of just one of the more than twenty Sui Iuris Particular churches under the Pope. If the inquirer is a Latin catholic then of course he should consult the local pastor and observe the local custom, but the concept of Holy Eucharist is much broader than this.

For those unaware, Byzantine Catholics are communed from the day of baptism and throughout their childhood. No catechesis possible or required at that age. Eventually they will reach an age when they must start making confessions and of course, there will be catechesis before that and long afterward as they grow in the Faith.

But as a matter of principle, it is not absolutely necessary to have an intellectual grasp of the Faith before one may participate in the Holy Eucharist. The sacrament is efficacious whether or not the participant understands, it is the work of the Holy Spirit.

Michael

 

[Hesychios]

Yes, your son should be catechized before first Holy Communion, and ideally (especially considering his age) he should have first Reconciliation before Holy Eucharist. If your parish has a religious education program, find out who the director of religious education is there, and ask them for their help. Private tutoring should be available. You might consider volunteering your time as a catechist. Teaching will enrich your own knowledge.

The regulations of the Latin church are not universal, they are the regulations of just one of the more than twenty Sui Iuris Particular churches under the Pope. If the child is a Latin Catholic then of course he or she should consult the local pastor and observe the local custom, but the concept of particpating in Holy Eucharist is much broader than this.

For those unaware, Byzantine Catholics are communed from the day of baptism and throughout their childhood. No catechesis possible or required at that age. Eventually they will reach an age when they must start making confessions and of course, there will be catechesis before that and long afterward as they grow in the Faith.

In the case of the original poster, it appears that the child has reached an age when the ability to make a confession is important. Not merely on the basis of age alone (nine is pretty advanced), but he seems to be upset about being put in with younger children, that indicates something about his thought processes at this age, and a sense of natural human pride he exhibits. Regardless of which Catholic tradition he belongs to, he is quite rational and it seems that he should ideally be prepared to make a good confession before approaching.

But as a matter of universal principle, it is not absolutely necessary to have an intellectual grasp of the Faith before one may participate in the Holy Eucharist. The primary condition is that one must not approach unworthily. The sacrament is efficacious whether or not the participant understands, it is the work of the Holy Spirit.

Michael

 

[Hesychios]

Yes, your son should be catechized before first Holy Communion, and ideally (especially considering his age) he should have first Reconciliation before Holy Eucharist. If your parish has a religious education program, find out who the director of religious education is there, and ask them for their help. Private tutoring should be available. You might consider volunteering your time as a catechist. Teaching will enrich your own knowledge.

The regulations of the Latin church are not universal, they are the regulations of just one of the more than twenty Sui Iuris Particular churches under the Pope. If the child is a Latin Catholic then of course he or she should consult the local pastor and observe the local custom, but the concept of particpating in Holy Eucharist is much broader than this.

For those unaware, Byzantine Catholics are communed from the day of baptism and throughout their childhood. No catechesis possible or required at that age. Eventually they will reach an age when they must start making confessions and of course, there will be catechesis before that and long afterward as they grow in the Faith.

In the case of the original poster, it appears that the child has reached an age when the ability to make a confession is important. Not merely on the basis of age alone (nine is pretty advanced), but he seems to be upset about being put in with younger children, that indicates something about his thought processes at this age, and a sense of natural human pride he exhibits. Regardless of which Catholic tradition he belongs to, he is quite rational and it seems that he should ideally be prepared to make a good confession before approaching.

But as a matter of universal principle, it is not absolutely necessary to have an intellectual grasp of the Faith before one may participate in the Holy Eucharist. The primary condition is that one must not approach unworthily. The sacrament is efficacious whether or not the participant understands, it is the work of the Holy Spirit.

Michael

 

[Aramis]

Hi I have a nine year boy who has not yet recieved as his father and I were going through a divorce, a non practicing catholic. I have always taught my son religiously and he attends church with me when he is not with his father. his father and I do not have set visitation and he sees his son mostly on Sunday. His father doesn’t think church is important, I do. that being said, I would like my son to be able to recieve, the ccd classes are every Sunday after mass when my son is with dad, also they are second grades which makes my son very upset. Can I let him recieve If I continue to teach him at home? Is that a sin? What am I supposed to do in this situation? Are there any private lessons for my son? thank you for your insite?
Sincerely,
a concerned mom

Canon law for the Roman Church does not require classes, per se. It requires that he be taught the meaning of Communion and the Faith, and that the Church, through the Bishop (or his designated representative, the Pastor) ensure that the requisite teaching has occurred and is occurring.

So, if the pastor is willing (And the bishop has not prohibited such), it may be possible for the pastor to examine the child’s knowledge of the subject. It is always possible for the Bishop to choose to examine the child.

On the other hand, a few bishops have specifically demanded participation in a church-sponsored class situation of their diocese. In such cases, the appeal is to the bishop.

Note also: most of the Eastern Churches in Union with Rome (and most of the Orthodox as well) consider first communion to be part of the process of entry to the church for infants… they are baptised, confirmed, and communed in one morning, unless health issues preclude this.

 

[Joe_5859]

Hi I have a nine year boy who has not yet recieved as his father and I were going through a divorce, a non practicing catholic. I have always taught my son religiously and he attends church with me when he is not with his father. his father and I do not have set visitation and he sees his son mostly on Sunday. His father doesn’t think church is important, I do. that being said, I would like my son to be able to recieve, the ccd classes are every Sunday after mass when my son is with dad, also they are second grades which makes my son very upset. Can I let him recieve If I continue to teach him at home? Is that a sin? What am I supposed to do in this situation? Are there any private lessons for my son? thank you for your insite?
Sincerely,
a concerned mom

Welcome, Concerned Mom!

The best advice I can give you is talk to your priest!

Each diocese sets the requirements for sacramental preparation, and your priest should know what those are (and sometimes a parish may require more than the diocesan requirements). It’s not up to any of us to take the initiative to start allowing our children to receive the Eucharist. You should make every effort to work something out with the priest. I have no doubt that you won’t be the first person to approach him with a schedule conflict. The priest probably has a backup plan for people just like yourself. That might include one-on-one catechesis, or perhaps even going through a neighboring parish’s program if they have their classes at a different time.

Does your parish have a Saturday night Mass? Even if your (ex) husband won’t take him to Mass on Sunday, you can still make sure your son gets there!

God bless! You are in my prayers!

 

[Lhhs]

My understanding is you can prepare him and then put him at the communion rail.

CCD is not a requirement:blush:

Hi I have a nine year boy who has not yet recieved as his father and I were going through a divorce, a non practicing catholic. I have always taught my son religiously and he attends church with me when he is not with his father. his father and I do not have set visitation and he sees his son mostly on Sunday. His father doesn’t think church is important, I do. that being said, I would like my son to be able to recieve, the ccd classes are every Sunday after mass when my son is with dad, also they are second grades which makes my son very upset. Can I let him recieve If I continue to teach him at home? Is that a sin? What am I supposed to do in this situation? Are there any private lessons for my son? thank you for your insite?
Sincerely,
a concerned mom

 

[puzzleannie]

one must be prepared according to guidelines established by the bishop of your diocese, and receive communion (preceded by first confession) in your parish. You need permission from the pastor to go to another parish, which is usually easy to get.

The individual must be the age designated by the bishop (age 7 minimum) and prepared to the extent that they know what is happening in the sacrament, that Jesus is really present, the difference between ordinary bread and wine and Jesus present in the sacred species, and that he desire to receive the sacraments and be able to communicate his readiness and desire.

the preparation can be through the Catholic school, through CCD, PSR or whatever religion classes are offered in the parish for his age group, or through homeschooling. The parish can give you resources for you to do that at home, and he will probably have to attend some kind of retreat or other event in the parish so they can evaluate his readiness.

It is very common for us to have children who attend classes on alternate weeks at different parishes because of split custody, or for them to attend only every other week because a non-Catholic parent has custody. My practice is to give the Catholic parent the book so they can teach the missed lessons at home, and bring in the completed tests or evaluations for credit.

Our diocese also requires 6 hours of preparation class for the parents and sponsors (only the Catholic parent needs to attend).

talk to your pastor who will help you, or refer you to the responsible person, to make arrangements that work for your family.

No Catholic child who is of age and properly disposed can be kept from the sacraments, but it is the pastor’s responsibility to ascertain that the child is prepared.