While the catechesis offered within the family is ordinarily informal, unstructured, and spontaneous, it is no less crucial for the development of the child's faith.  "In a certain sense nothing replaces family catechesis, especially for its positive and receptive environment, for the example of adults, and for its first explicit experience and practice of the faith."

- National Directory for Catechesis, 48.E.1

One of the best ways for families to form faith is to simply talk about the Sunday readings together.  Check here each week for discussion prompts. 

This material is copyrighted and provided by license from The Pastoral Center.  Parishes and other organizations need to purchase their own license before distributing this material with their parishioners.  As such, the material may not be reposted to a parish website or social media page without the parish obtaining an individual site license.  To purchase a parish license, please visit The Sunday Flock and/or Questions of the Week.

Questions of the Week:

Adults:

• To whom could you bring the assurance of Christ's love this week?

• Jesus fed the crowds today.  How does he offer you spiritual nourishment?

• Word of the Week (To Purchase License)
• Breaking Open the Word (To Purchase License)
• Bringing Home the Gospel for Parents (To Purchase License)
• The Hands-On Gospel (To Purchase License)
• The Gospel Stories of Jesus (To Purchase License)
• Worship  @ Home (To Purchase License)
  • Introductory Video

• Eucharistic People are People of Abundance! from Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers
• The Feeding of the Five Thousand:  A BIble Story for Kids from Jared Dees
• Catholic Kids Homilies
• Sunday's Gospel from Pflaum
• Children's Liturgy of the Word 
• Discussion Questions on the Sunday Readings from TeamRCIA
• Order of Mass and Spiritual Communion from RCL Benziger
• Order of Mass and Spiritual Communion (Child/Youth Version) from RCL Benziger
• Praying at Home on Sundays

• Las Historias Evangélicas de Jesús (Para Comprar Licencia)

• ¡Denles ustedes de comer! desde Maryknoll Padres y Hermanos
• Evangelio Dominical desde Pflaum
• Niños Cathólicos
• El Ordinario de la Misa desde RCL Benziger
• El Ordinario de la Misa (Jovenes) desde RCL Benziger
• Oración Dominical en Casa

• Praying at Home on Sundays

Check out our the new section of our website on "Faith Themes."  While it remains a "Work in Progress," this is the place to visit for curated resources on a variety of Faith Themes.  

Most of the material is written on the adult level, so parents are encouraged to preview resources and share as appropriate.  Families may benefit from talking about the issue with one another.

These Lessons and Articles are offered as responses to the current Coronavirus situation.  Families may benefit from talking about the issue with one another.

• Coronavirus Response Lesson from Loyola Press
• Helping Kids Cope with the Coronavirus from Teaching Catholic Kids.com
• Just for Kids:  A Comic Exploring the Coronavirus
• My 5 Basic Rules for Talking to Young Students about Coronavirus from Education Week
• Talking to Kids about the Coronavirus from Child Mind
• Faithfully Navigating Coronavirus with your Kids from The Pastoral Center
• How to Handwash - Catholic Style (Our Father) from the Diocese of Dallas
• How to Handwash - Catholic Style (Apostle's Creed) from the Diocese of Dallas
• CoviBook from MindHeart (Spanish)
• Care for your Coronavirus Anxiety from Shine
• Parent/Caregiver Guide to Helping Families Cope with Covid-19 from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network
• Pardon This Interruption:  Flexibility for Families During the Covid-19 Pandemic from the Search Institute
• Life Under Lockdown:  8 Ways to Handle Staying at Home from US Catholic
• Ten Guideposts for Christians in the time of the Coronavirus Pandemic from Archbishop Vigneron of Detroit.
• Building Developmental Relationships during the Covid-19 Crisis from the Search Institute
• That Discomfort You're Feeling Is Grief from the Harvard Business Review
• Sew Homemade Masks for Healthcare Providers - Guidance from the Iowa Department of Public Health
• Celebrating the Easter Season at Home from FaithCatholic
• Building Up the Domestic Church During Covid-19 and Beyond
• Overcoming the Trauma of Covid-19
• Meet a Saint Like You from Tiny Saints
• You Do Not Need to Worry
• Trinka and Sam:  Fighting the Big Virus from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network
  • Fighting the BIg Virus:  Trinka and Sam's Questions 
• Covid-19 Resources from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network

• Navegando con fe el coronavirus con sus hijos from The Pastoral Center
• Como lavarse las manos al estilo Católico from the Diocese of Dallas
• Trinka y Juan Luchando Contra El Gran Virus from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network
  • Luchando Contra el Gran Virus: Las Peguntas de Trinka y Juan

• How to Handwash - Catholic Style (Vietnamese) from the Diocese of Dallas

Vibrant Faith @ Home is an ecumenical resource from Vibrant Faith that offers family resources that can be used either in the home or in gathered faith formation sessions.  


 

Catholic Family Faith is curated by Faith Formation leaders from across the country to help catechists and ministry leaders accompany parents and families in faith.








vCat (Video Catechism) is a ministry and resource of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston and Outside da Box.  It offers videos and discussion guides for the Four Pillars of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.  While designed specifically for teens, this resource can be used by entire families.




Loyola Press shares a wealth of resources and ideas on its Family, Fun and Faith page.  They also have articles about various aspects of our faith on their Our Catholic Faith page.

The Leadership Institute of the Diocese of Bridgeport offers several resources for families:  

• Family Bible Challenge
• Catequizem
• Family Movie Night
• Lifelong Lessons

Discover Your Neighbor, an interactive education program sponsored by the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers, offers lesson plans reminding us of our call to be Missionary Disciples and learn from our neighbors.

• Faithfully Navigating Coronavirus with your Kids
• Navegando con fe el coronavirus con sus hijos
• Worship @ Home:  Dynamic Family Liturgy of the Word Services
• How to Lead Vacation Bible School * Even in a Year with Covid-19