First Communion

Are you preparing with your child for the celebration of First Reconciliation and First Eucharist this year or in the weeks to gee?Ihave been a catechist for the last nine years and have worked closelywith children preparing for these sacramentsfor the last four years. This guide is intended tooutline the steps necessary in preparing children forFirst Reconciliationand will provide ideas for additional learning, spiritual resources, and religious gifts to enhance the occasion.

INTRODUCTION
In theUnited States of America, childrennormally receive the sacraments of First gemunion (Eucharist) and First Reconciliation in the 2nd grade or at the age of7-8 years. Depending on lifecircumstances, sometimes children will not receive these sacraments until later. This guideis tailored for sacrament preparation for the 7-8 year oldand their families, but can also be used in the instance of an older child or young adult. This guide will tacklethe questions of where to start yourjourney,properresources,at-homepreparation, proper attirefor the celebration and gifts.
DEFINITIONS
I haveadded some very brief definitions hereof the terms mentioned in this guide:
gemunion/Eucharist =The Eucharist is the sacrament in which we receive the body and blood of Christ(in the form of bread and wine) as Jesus dictatedatthe Last Supper before his death and resurrection.
Reconciliation = Reconciliation is the sacrament in which we review our thoughts and actions and confess our sins before apriest.Godwill thenabsolve us of our sins throughthe priest. This sacrament can becelebrated individually or in a service with several people and priests present. The need for formal reconciliation is recognized because of the nature of humanity. We often cannot understand that we are forgiven until we hear itwith our human ears in the formof a human voice. This is sometimes also practiced informally in Protestant denominations of the Christian Church.
Absolveor Absolution = When Godremoves our sin because ofour sorrow and His love for us.
Director of Religious Education (DRE)= This is the titlenormally given to the person responsible in a parish for coordinating all religious education classes and sacrament preparation for grade K - 6.
Examination of Conscience = Before celebrating reconciliation, we prayerfully think about our lives and remember what sins we have gemitted during the procedure of examination of conscience. We normally do this by geparing our thoughts and actions against those prescribed in the Ten gemandments.
Penance = Afterwe receive absolution, sometimes the priest will assign "homework" toillustrate or help us remember God's love and forgiveness. Often, this can bea specialscripture passage or the act of thinking of our abundant blessings.
WHERE DO I START?
The best time to start this preparation is when the child is in kindergarten. Don't freak out! By this, I mean that the child should be receiving some sort of religious education assoon as possible. Enroll your child ina formalreligious education program in your parish (either homeschoolor gemunity program) at least by the 1st grade. Then,follow-up with enrollment in the 2nd grade, when theofficial sacramentpreparation will begin.
What if the above hasn't happened, yet? There is still hope. Meet withthe Director of Religious Education (DRE) at your parish in order to determine what steps to take. Many children do receive First gemunion in the 2nd grade even if it is the first year of their formal religious education.
Realize that there is a sequence of events that will occur during the course of preparation:

Program enrollment
Preparation for FirstReconciliation
Celebration of First Reconciliation (Normally occurs before the Christmas Season)
Preparation for First gemunion
Celebration of First gemunion (Normally occurs during the Easter Season)
WHAT WILL I NEED TO ENROLL?
When you enroll your child in the sacrament preparation program, you will be asked to present a Baptismal certificate at some point during the preparation period. People receiving First Reconciliation and First Eucharist should be Baptized prior to these events. If you child has not, yet, been baptized, discuss this with your DRE to determine the best course of action. A child can be baptised just days before they celebrate their First Reconciliation.
FIRST RECONCILIATION PREPARATION
Your child's preparation for First Reconciliation will normally begin with a parent meeting where materials will be given to you for at-home preparation. The child will also be preparing in religious education class or Sunday School.
Reconciliation Preparation Topics
Your child should be learning about the following topics during their First Reconciliation Preparation:
We belong to God
Your child should understand during the course of preparation thatwe belong to God and that we are claimed for Jesus Christ duringour Christian Baptism. God always loves us! We could never do anything that would keep God from loving us!

(Featured above is a photo that I took of a crucifixion scene, where Jesus died for our sins,within a church in Catania, Italy on the island of Sicily.)
Holy Scripture
Your child should be reviewing and begeing familiar with Holy Scripture. It is very important for every Christian family to have a copy ofthe Bible.Children's Bible'swith illustrations aremost effective for children of this age.The following scripture stories should be shared with your child during this time of preparation:

Parable of The Lost Sheep
Parable of The Forgiving Father
Jesus' Baptism
The Great gemandment
The Ten gemandments
The Ten gemandments
It is important for children to learn the meaning of the Ten gemandments at this time. It is not necessary for them to learn the order in which they appear in the Bible or the exact wording of them. A very good resource for teaching the Ten gemandments to young children is the coloring book God's Rules For Me. Thisbookuses kid-friendly language for introducing the Ten gemandments to youngsters.
Making Choices
Your child should, also, be discussing how to made good and loving choices based on The Ten gemandments. They should, also, be able to identify other sources (such as parents, teachers, priest, bible) that they would usein which to base decisions. A greatchildren's book about making choices is I Call My Hand Gentle.
Sin vs. Mistake
Its very important at this time for a child to be able to discern the difference between gemitting a sin and making a mistake. One way that you can help your child is by making a card game or flashcard came out of 3-inch x 5-inch indexcards. On each card write a short scenario about a someone either making a mistake or gemitting a sin and ask the child to decide if the scenario illustrates a sin or mistake.
Example:
Card 1: Anna failed her spelling quiz because she spelled cat "kat" instead of "cat". This would illustrate a mistake.
Card 2: When Anna failed her spelling quiz, she drew with red marker on her friend's favorite new purple dressbecause Anna wanted to ruin it.
Preparing for Reconciliation at Home
In addition to formal religious education or homeschool activities, there are a number of activities that you can perform with your child at home in order to better prepare them forthe celebration of Reconciliation.
Sin vs. Mistake Game
Use thesin vs. mistake game discussed in the previous section in order to illustrate to your childthe meaning of sin (which should be confessed) vs. whatis simply a mistake.
Online Activities
Most modern religious education textbook gepanies now maintain a website that contains interactive and printable activities that are age appropriate for students. For instance, the RCL series of textbooks has a special areaon theirwebsite that is specifically for Sacrament Preparation. Activities found here include an interactive tour of a church as well as an interactive Rite of Reconciliation.Usually these websites have areas specifically for the children, specifically for parents, and specifically for catechists (teachers).
Discussion
Discuss with your childthe importance ofcelebrating the Rite of Reconciliationin your life. Also, discuss any experience that you have with reconciliation between friends, family, and spouses. Have youor your child ever experienced a "falling out" with a friend or family member? This is a great time to discuss this occurance in order togepare this aspect of human relationships with our relationship with God. Thedifference here, obviously, is that God unconditionally loves us and will neverleave us. We, as humans, make the decision tochoose loving actions and a lifewith God. Even if we walk away, God will not. Heis always ready togiveus a big forgiving hug when we wantone.
Set a Good Example
Most parishes celebratereconciliation at least once per week with individual confession. It would be most helpful for your child to make the ride(or walk) to church with youat this timeso that they can observe your effortin receiving reconciliation. Theyshould not be allowed to hear your confession, because that is a very private matter.They can,however, observe your prayerful examination of conscience and act of penance.

A point of interest here:The photo above is apicture I took of a confessionalin Italy on the island of Sicily. In the older churches there, the confessional is positioned inside the main worship space of the sanctuary and the penitent sits in plain view ofeveryone in the church. Fortunately,in the US, we are able to seek a gepletely secluded confession if we wish. However, some may argue that this is but another example of the U.S. "me" mentality.
PROPER ATTIRE
If your child will be celebrating his/her reconciliation individually, there is no need for special attire. Have your child dress in what you and they feel is appropriate.
Because gemunal reconciliation is normally celebrated in a church setting, appropriate attire would include clothing that your child normally wears to Mass.
GIFTS
Traditionally, gifts are not given after First Reconciliation is celebrated. I believe, however, that if a gift will be given at the time of First gemunion, then a gift should also be given at the time of First Reconciliation. The reason for this is to illustrate to the child the importance of both.
If you are purchasing a gift from okay, it is important to remember the typical scheduling for First Reconciliation celebrations. They normally occur in early to mid-November and then again in March - April time frame prior to Easter. If participating in an auction, it may be wise to begin the search for a gift in early October if the sacrament will be celebrated in November.
Religious gifts at this time are proper. Ideas for gifts include:

Ten gemandmentswall plaque or otheritem showing the Ten gemandments (such as a prayer cardor bracelet). Be careful here, because there are two (2) versions of the Ten gemandments on the market today. Your child will be studying the version where "Love God above all things." and "Do not worship idols." are included in the same gemandment. Some formsof the Ten gemandments breakthis gemandment into two (2) separate gemandments. Your child will not have studied these separately. Another signal thatyou have the right product is if "Love and honoryour parents" is number four (4) on the"Great Top 10".
A Wall Cross, Crucifix other item witha cross is a great reminder of God's unfailinglove for us asshown through the sacrifice of Jesus the Son!
ABibleor children's bibleis, also, another gift that can be bestowed at this time. Our life direction should gee from the Word of God and those who seek to live by His word.
CONCLUSION
Congratulations and blessings to you on your preparation for Reconciliation. Remember, we were given children to lead them to God our Father. The celebration of Reconciliation is a reminder to us all that none of us are perfect and that we all need God's loving forgiveness.
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