Children's Liturgy Program

CHILDREN’S LITURGY OF THE WORD PROGRAM

PRETZELS FOR LENT

Next Sunday, March 23, we will be able to have a coffee and hospitality time in a portion of the Church Hall, after the 10 am Mass. At that time, parishioners will be able to access the Hall via the elevator, or through the door at the front of the Church.

The children participating in the Children’s Liturgy Program next Sunday, (March 23) will be baking pretzels to share at the hospitality time after Mass.

The baking of pretzels is a Lenten tradition in the Church, dating back to the Middle Ages, when monks in Germany, Austria and Poland would bake pretzels as a form of Lenten treat for the people. The shape of the pretzels is the shape of human arms crossed in prayer. Pretzels remind us that Lent is a time for prayer.

A small handout with a pretzel recipe and prayer will be available after Mass next Sunday to anyone who is interested.

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Location Changes

During the time period when the Holy Name Parish Church Hall is being rented by Elections Ontario, our Children’s Liturgy groups, at the Sunday 10 am Mass, will meet in alternative locations.

The 3-6 age group will meet in the Chapel, and the 7-11 age group will meet in the Parish Room under the Rectory.

The children will go to their programs through the door at the front of the Church, on the west side. At the offertory, the children will return to the church through the same door.

Please note that if your arrive at the Church after the children have gone to their programs, you can reach their program rooms through the Chapel entrance on Gough Avenue.

This alternative arrangement will continue for as long as the Elections Ontario rental continues, and may continue until June if the Church Hall is subsequently rented by Elections Canada.

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The Children’s Liturgy of the Word Program, at the Sunday 10 am Mass, re-started today, for the 2024-2025 school year.

The children aged 7 to 11 (Grade 2 or higher) experience the Liturgy of the Word, adapted to their age level. The children hear the Sunday Gospel and have discussion, activities & prayers to reflect on the meaning of that gospel.

The younger group consists of children aged 3-6. Their program includes a Bible story, most often the Sunday Gospel, and a craft designed to support that gospel or Bible story.

All of the children return to the congregation in time for the Eucharistic Prayer.

Please pray that this ministry to children, which has been offered at Holy Name Parish since 1985. will continue to be able to serve the needs of the children of the Parish and their families.

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The Children’s Liturgy of the Word Program, at the Sunday 10 am Mass, will start again next Sunday, September 22, for the 2024-2025 school year.

A reminder to parents about the format & purpose of the program, which is divided into 2 age groups:

The children aged 7 to 11 (Grade 2 or higher) experience the Liturgy of the Word, adapted to their age level. The children hear the Sunday Gospel and have discussion, activities & prayers to reflect on the meaning of that gospel.

The younger group consists of children aged 3-6. Their program includes a Bible story, most often the Sunday Gospel, and a craft designed to support that story.

All of the children return to the congregation in time for the Eucharistic Prayer.

If parents prefer to keep their children upstairs for the Liturgy of the Word, that is perfectly fine.

NEW VOLUNTEERS ARE WELCOME:  We welcome any of the middle school and high-school aged youth of the parish to consider volunteering as a student helpers with the younger group. We also welcome parents or other adults to volunteer to become teachers or helpers in our program.

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This has been the first season of the Children’s Program since the pandemic where we were able to offer the program in 2 age groups (ages 3-6 and 7-11) for the full year. This allowed us to provide a better program for the younger children of the parish.

On behalf of the Parish, we sincerely thank all the volunteers who have served as teachers and helpers in our program since September :

Deirdre Fernandes, Erin Callery, Michele Mellow, Kimberly Martin, Amelié Brown, Ludovica Lacetera, Vanessa Nicholas Schmidt, Sheila Spencer, Anna & Earl Totten, Mary-Ellen Cascone, Valerie Kenny, Kristiana Bordokas, Tom Broadhurst.

We especially want to thank all the student volunteers who were recruited by Sheila Spencer, and who served the program very faithfully this year:

Elisa Fesseha, Janyse Anacta,

Abigail & Hannah Hart, Michael Perry

Sebastien, Gisele, and Samuel Patterson,

Kyle Ann & Prasad Shanmugasundanam

The Children’s Liturgy Program will resume near the end of September, 2024.