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St. Sophia

St. Sophia

Religious Education Ministry

Background

In today’s world, we face major difficulties in having a parish Religious Education Ministry. Irregular attendance, a culture that is hostile and unsupportive, pressures on a family such a finances, strife between family members and additional pressure from social media. With this in mind we have tried to find a practical approach that considers the following.

  • Considerations
    • No additional attendance requirements
    • Greater density by minimizing instructional group divisions
    • Using online resources to allow parishioners flexibility to read/prepare and use the time together on Sunday for discussion/learning.
    • Recognize/respect the time pressures on families by keeping sessions under 30 minutes
    • Families/individuals must engage with the material for the Ministry to have any meaning
    • Start simple to be successful – add topics and groups based on initial experiences

Structure

  • Sessions
    • Separate sessions after each Liturgy – 2 sessions after the 8:30 liturgy and then repeated after the 10:30 liturgy. 1 for Children and 1 for Adults
    • Children’s expected to last 10 minutes – Adults expected to last 20 minutes
    • Children’s will be immediately following the conclusion of Liturgy to be held in the church
    • Adults will begin after getting food/refreshments
      • After 8:30 Liturgy session to be held in the picnic area or inside depending on weather
      • After 10:30 Liturgy session to be held in picnic area or inside (hall or church) depending on weather and attendance

Programs

  • Children’s Program
    • Each Week’s Gospel
      • The Gospel lesson will be delivered online in story format using a word level appropriate for children.
      • There are a few discussion questions provided with the story for family discussion
      • There is a simple craft activity (coloring/drawing) to download and do
      • At Sunday’s liturgy when the Gospel is read, the children are encouraged to display their craft
      • Following the liturgy, parents and children will remain in church to talk about what they learned and discuss any questions that the children might have.
  • Adult Program
    • The Divine Liturgy
      • The intention is to have a less formal, more collegial activity. First get food and refreshments, find a place to eat, then begin the session
      • A member of the Clergy will discuss a particular topic regarding the Divine Liturgy.
      • Questions and Answer period to follow for those who wish to engage further.

Remarks

Given our size, available resources and time pressures, starting simple and being successful would be a proud accomplishment. We build on success and learn from failures. Looking forward to everyone’s help to make this relevant and meaningful which is our ultimate goal. FDM

Social Media
соціальні мережі

YouTube

St Sophia

Fr Matthew

Worshipping
Поклоніння

Your First Time/Ваш перший раз

The Divine Liturgy/Літургія

Receiving Communion/Євхаристія

Uniting for Ukraine

Interested in sponsoring Ukrainians who have fled the war? Click on the link below to access the instructions for participating in the program as established by the US State Department .

Click Here to Access Instructions

Music
Музика

  • Liturgical Music
  • Christmas
  • МНОГАЯ ЛІТА - MNOHAYA LITA

Parish Features

  • We Pray for a Miracle (photo journal essay)
  • Pictures from the Dedication

St. Sophia Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church - Serving Greater Raleigh-Durham North Carolina