Welcome to Saint Thomas More Parish Religious Education Program!
P.R.E.P.
We at Saint Thomas More & Our Lady of Mercy are dedicated to sharing our faith with our parish family. A faith journey is life long and begins with our Baptism. By living the Word and sharing your faith you make it stronger. As Pope Francis eloquently stated, “Life grows when we give it away.” As does faith.
Children need a solid foundation of faith and here at the Parish of Saint Thomas More we help lay that foundation. But we cannot do it alone. While we may be the building blocks the family is the cement that holds it all together.
Growing in faith and forming a lasting relationship with Jesus is the ultimate goal. Being part of a community in Christ is a blessing.
Thank you for joining us in bringing the love of Christ to the children.
God’s Good Blessings,
The Religious Education Staff
Registration Process
You must pre-register at Parishsoft before you can register for classes. Please click one of the links below to begin that process or to watch a short (3 minute) tutorial (You cannot use a cell phone):
PLEASE NOTE THAT YOU MUST HAVE THE "MY EDUCATION TAB" WHEN YOU LOG ON TO PARISHSOFT IN ORDER TO REGISTER. IF YOU DO NOT, PLEASE CALL THE OFFICE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE SO WE CAN CORRECT THE ISSUE
You can make a payment for tuition using the link below
2023-2024 Program Details: This is still in the planning stage so changes can and will be changed. :
Supported Home Study Program:
Children in grades 4 & 5 who are enrolled in the Home Study program will complete their books at home. They will complete a 5-10 question chapter review online and have the results sent to a dedicated email address to track progress.
Children in grades 1, 2 & 3 will participate in an exciting new program. They will be our Faith Explorers. They will be invited, at regular intervals, (not every week) to attend the 11:30 Mass on Sunday and then join us for a Bible Adventure or church exploration. We will sit together during mass. There will be two sessions per month. The children will be encouraged to explore our faith through hands on experiences as well as listen to stories from the bible.
Children will be expected to attend at least 6 of these special sessions during the year. The program will begin in July with our first sessions being held on
July 9, 2023 & July 23, 2023.
Children in the 6th grade will participate as our Church Goers. They are expected to attend mass at least 2 times each month. Beginning in July there will be a book for them to sign in the church. Please do not have them sign for anyone but themselves.
Children in the 7th grade will also participate in a new program. The program is the start of Confirmation preparation. They will attend once a month seminars. The children will also be involved in charity work. We are adopting two charities: Naval Weapons Station Earle and an orphanage in Peru.
The Confirmation/8th grade program has been changed. All students who are to receive Confirmation in March must join a ministry for the year. Please click below for a list of ministries and to sign up.
In addition, all students will be required to attend seminars. We will offer one or more seminars each month. Some seminars will be mandatory.
We are asking that the students have a personal email address (it cannot be their school email since the school servers block our communications.) We will always include the parents in any email transmission that is sent to the students.
Click the link below to see the ministries that are available to the candidates:
Summer 2023 Program:
Each program session will be for one week from 8:00-2:00.
Students will attend mass every the morning. On Friday, parents will be invited to attend mass (time to be determined).
There are two Sessions: A: June 26-June 30
B: August 21-August 25
All 8th graders will be required to teach during the Summer Program. We will train those students before the Summer. There will be an adult in the room as well to offer guidance.
All 7th graders are asked to bring either a tablet, laptop or smart phone each day.
They will be preparing a research project to be presented to the younger grades at the end of the week.
Books can be picked up from the Religious Education office weekdays between the hours of 8:30am - 3:30pm Monday-Thursday & Friday 8:30-1:30 . Please use the playground entrance.
Program Fees for the Supported Home Study Program 2023-2024 PREP year:
(Fees are subject to change each year)
1 Student: $165.60
2 Students: $258.75
3+ Students: $336.37
Program Fees for the Summer Program 2023-2024 PREP year:
1 Student: $280
2 Students: $450
3+ Students: $600
Please note that there is a $20 gown fee for 8th grade.
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The Mass is a hallmark of our faith. It is a gift from God. At mass we receive Jesus in the Eucharist to fill our hearts and soul with His love and devotion.
ALL CHILDREN are required to submit a bulletin signed by a deacon or priest, at least once a month (mass attendance should be every week). After mass pick up a bulletin and ask either the priest or deacon to sign it. You can bring the signed bulletin to the religious education office or submit it electronically. Be sure that your child's name is on the front of the bulletin. One bulletin per family each month. In addition, families are asked to attend at least 4 church events each year.
As an alternative to the bulletin, the children can submit their intentions during Mass. The intention cards can be picked up at in the rear of the church by the stained glass. They will be invited up during mass to drop their intentions in the basket on the steps of the sanctuary.
All 6th, 7th, and 8th graders need to sign the books that will be in the back of the church after each mass. These students should attend mass at least 2x a month.
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We encourage the use of FORMED.org. It is a premier on-line platform filled with over 4,000 Catholic studies, movies, cartoons, audio dramas, ebooks, and talks--and it's free for every parishioner.
Use these simple steps to subscribe to FORMED:
- Enter our parish zip code
- Enter your name and email address. You're in!
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Communion
First Holy Communion is a sacrament of initiation and serves as a welcome to our faith. Receiving Communion is enrichment for our soul and mind as we partake in the True Body and Blood of Christ. It offers us strength and conviction of faith. The absolute best way to prepare your child(ren) for the reception of the sacrament is to attend mass each week.
This year Communions will be celebrated on April 13 & April 20 at 9:00am & 11:00am.
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CONFIRMATION
"Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, and patience, forbearing one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive." (Colossians 3:12-13)
Confirmation is a sacrament of initiation. It, along with Baptism and Communion is our welcome into the faith and invites us to form a lasting relationship with God.
As good Catholic Christians we are all called to give of our time and talents to help others. All Confirmation candidates are required to join a ministry for the year.
Confirmation Forms:
Confirmation will be celebrated on March 7, 2024. There will be one ceremony at 4:00 pm. The sacrament will be celebrated in Petri Hall with Bishop O'Connell therefore, there will be a STRICT limit on who can be in the hall. Any overflow guests can go into the church to watch the livestream of the ceremony.
"Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received."
Peter 1:10
