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Volume 7, Number 5 January 28, 2026
2026 ORE CALENDAR
Jan 31 INTRODUCTION TO THE MINISTRY OF THE CATECHIST
(Parts 1-3)
Sat 8 am - 3 pm Our Lady of Vilna Parish, Worcester
Feb 3 INTRODUCTION TO THE MINISTRY OF THE CATECHIST
Tues 6-9 pm; continued on Feb 10, 24, 6-8 pm
Location: St. Denis Parish, Douglas
Registration Deadline this Friday, January 30th
Feb 14-16 Catechesis of the Good Shepherd (CGS)
CGS, Level I Part 1a
Sat-Mon 9-5 pm; Our Lady of the Lake, Leominster
Feb 15 Adult Confirmation
Sun 3 pm
Cathedral of St. Paul, Worcester
Feb 18 Ash Wednesday
Feb 22 Rite of Election and Call to Continuing Conversion
Sun 3 pm
Cathedral of St. Paul, Worcester
Feb 27- Mar 1 CGS, Level I Part 2a
Fri-Sun 9 am - 5 pm
Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish, Milford
Mar 7 CGS -- DAY OF DISCOVERY
Sat 9 AM - 1 PM
St. Joseph & St. Stephen Parish, Worcester
Mar 8 LENTEN Day of Reflection FOR CATECHISTS
Sun 2 - 8 pm
St. Denis Parish, Douglas
Registration Deadline February 27th
Mar 25 Mass for Life
Wed 10 am
Cathedral of St. Paul, Worcester
Mar 31 Chrism Mass
10:30 am - 12:30 pm
Cathedral of St. Paul, Worcester
Apr 5 Easter
Apr 14 CREED--Basic Level
Tues 6 - 8 pm; continued on April 21, 28, and May 5
Location: TBD
April 18 - 20 CGS, Level I Part 1b
Sat - Mon; 9 am - 5 pm
Our Lady of the Lake Parish, Leominster
May 15 - 17 CGS Level I Part 2b
Fri - Sun; 9 am - 5 pm
Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish, Milford
Adult Confirmation
Cathedral of St. Paul, Worcester
February 15, 2026----3 p.m.
Sunday, February 15, 3 pm, Cathedral of St. Paul
Please register all candidates by Monday, February 9th. If you are scanning and emailing the form and baptismal certificate, please send both sides of the long form baptismal certificate.
CONFIRMATION ROBES – Spring Confirmations
We recently learned that the Rose Therese Company will no longer be renting Confirmation robes, nor have the Spiritus robes available. For $1.00 more, they will be selling the white Dove robes to parishes -- $15.95. The fabric of these robes is a better quality, front zipper rather than the snaps and Velcro, and an embroidered red dove outline on the shoulder. These robes can be laundered/dry cleaned. In the long run, we will probably make out better with this arrangement. Churches can send in their orders as they have in the past.
If you have any questions, please email or call www.rosetherese.com, Toll Free: 1-888-266-4696or 508-586-5812. Our contact is Terrence McGillivray.
Circle of Grace--New Deadline
Due to recent weather cancellations, the upcoming vacation week and the beginning of Lent, the deadline for Circle of Grace reports has been postponed to
MARCH 20TH .
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd
NEW Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Level I Part 1 Course
The Office of Religious Ed will be offering a NEW Level I Part 1 Catechesis of the Good Shepherd this spring. It will take place on
Feb. 14, 15, 16 and April 18, 19, 20, 2026
Our Lady of the Lake,
1400 Main Street, Leominster, MA 01453
.
Please register by Feb.1st using the following Link:
This course will prepare catechists to work with children ages 3, 4, and 5.
For more information, please contact Mary Pat Heelan at mheelan@worcesterdiocese.org
For more information, please contact Mary Pat Heelan at mheelan@worcesterdiocese.org
Do you want to learn more about this program for our 3 – 6 year olds? This day is an
introduction to Catechesis of the Good Shepherd. Twenty-one parishes in our Diocese have implemented the program. Come and see!
St. Joseph and St. Stephen Parish,
355 Grafton Street, Worcester, MA 01604.
355 Grafton Street, Worcester, MA 01604.
Sat. March 7, 2026 from 9-1
Please register using this link.
Catechist Training
The Office of Religious Ed will offer TWO Intro. to the Ministry of the Catechist courses this winter. Together, we will contemplate our vocation as catechists and then catechists will consider concrete information to help them grow in their teaching skills - developmental stages of the learner, lesson planning, classroom management, and more.
The course ends with a retreat focusing on the spirituality of the catechist. (This course is required for all levels of Catechist Certification.)
The first is a one-day course on Sat. Jan. 31 at Our Lady of Vilna parish in Worcester. Catechists can register for this course online using this link. https://worcesterdiocese.org/schedules-and-registration-forms
The second is a three evening course at St. Denis in Douglas. This course will take place on Tues. Feb. 3, Tues. Feb. 10 and Tues. Feb. 24, 2026. Catechists can register online for this course using this link:
Facilitated by Marry Pat Heelan and Darleen Farland
Registration for either course is
$45
Spirituality of the Catechist Lenten Retreat
St. Denis Parish, 23 Manchaug Rd, Douglas, MA 01516,
Sunday, March 8, 2026 from 2-8 PM
Facilitated by the staff of ORE Includes: guided reflections, faith sharing, quiet time for personal prayer, supper and Evening Prayer. (This course is required for all levels of Catechist Certification.) The first is a one-day course on Sat. Jan. 31 at Our Lady of Vilna parish in Worcester. The $40 registration fee includes dinner. Catechists can register online using this link:
NEW Text Revisions Coming!
Both Sadlier and RCL Benziger have alerted us to new editions of their texts. Sadlier has a new edition of We Believe: Living Your Catholic Identity, K-8 program which includes a new Theology of the Body feature and an enhanced Family Faith component. RCL Benziger has new editions of both Blest Are We and Be My Disciples with expanded digital resources.
WHO IS THE CATECHIST?
As a matter of policy, the ORE does not approve any “plug and play” curricula for children or youth. Let us be mindful of the importance and the role of our live, generous, volunteer catechists – see Directory for Catechesis #113, especially #113 C.
There are many wonderful video-based programs for adults – Bishop Barron’s Catholicism, FORMED, Augustine Institute offerings, ALPHA – to name just a few. But, let us be mindful of the difference between adult learning, and the context of child/youth learning. Adults are free to choose how, what and when they learn.
Children and youth, however, learn best from someone who “knows them by name” and who accompanies them in real life. One “plug and play” program we reviewed included 540 minutes, 403 minutes of which are devoted to watching the DVDs and responding to very simple recall questions. Who is the catechist? Video clips can certainly, enhance, stimulate and reinforce learning, but, “Plug and play” catechesis week after week can become just as deadly as “Open your books to page 35 and let us read the lesson.” Videos AND books are tools. Let us not abdicate our roles as the primary catechists.
This is also why we offer training and support. Let us build catechetical communities who have the knowledge and skills to “tell the Good News.”
In support of the Inventories
Learning the names of the seven sacraments
A FREE matching game from Loyola Press.
Sacraments Matching Game | Loyola Press
Sacraments Matching Game | Loyola Press
Catechesis for Mass
Also from Loyola Press:
FREE Articles to assist catechists in forming children for Mass.