St. Joseph Catholic Church desires the ongoing catechesis and faith-training of all its members. In doing so, it seeks to build up our Catholic faith in wisdom and knowledge so as to radiate God's beauty, truth, and goodness for the world. Please inquire as to how we can assist you or your family with faith formation. The submenu on the left offers various programs and ministries within the parish so as to grow in the Catholic faith tradition.
WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN “RELIGIOUS EDUCATION” AND “FAITH FORMATION”?
When faith is reduced to a subject (as in a classroom at school), the power of the Holy Spirit is stifled. Catholicism is not a subject; it is a way of life. In other words, faith is about culture. Our goal for faith formation here at St. Joseph Catholic Church is to transcend the status quo and bring the living spirit of faith into the lives of our parishioners. Our faith is not an idea about truth, God, heaven, etc. It is an encounter with a person, the living and glorified, Resurrected Christ.
In order to stress this living encounter, we are intentionally steering our language away from "religious education," and especially "CCD." Faith is caught not taught. When we do teach it, the goal of our catechetical leaders is to bring their own living and vital relationship with Christ into every teaching opportunity. We don't teach the faith, we share it. We prefer the word formation over education, since mere knowledge is never enough.
First, we must personally be formed in the Catholic way of life. By living our faith (making it the animating principle of our culture), our religious knowledge is given a face, and our relationship with Christ grows. Only then can we effectively pass it on.
Formation means lifelong transformation as a disciple. If our formation stops at Confirmation, we're stifling the movements of the Spirit when they're only beginning to flourish. If ever we stop growing in prayer and in wisdom, we underestimate the marvelous work God is doing in us.