Office of Life Long Faith Formation

For more information and to register, please contact the Faith Formation Office:
Phone - (716) 297-5010
Fax - (716) 297 - 4648
Email-sisterjoanne@yahoo.com
Director of Life Long Faith Formation: Sister Mary Joanne Suranni, CSSF ext. 202
Office Manager: Belinda Pappal ext 200 bpappalsvdp@gmail.com
 

• Places Families at the Center
• Encourages Active Discipleship
• Is a Lifelong Process of Growth

• To promote active discipleship in the faith community
• To help parents and children to develop a strong relationship with God through prayer
• To provide resources to learn and understand Catholic doctrine

• Sunday mornings 10:00 AM - 11:15 AM - grades kindergarten - 8
• Thursday evenings 6:15 PM - 7:30 PM - grades K - 8
• The Sunday morning and Thursday evening program for grades 6-8 is the EDGE program, a dynamic program of learning and youth ministry
• Confirmation Prep for Grades 9 & 10 are now offered on both Sunday afternoon from 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM twice a month or Monday evening from 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM twice a month.

The St. Vincent de Paul Faith Formation Program follows the guidelines of the Diocese of Buffalo in the content and implementation of its sessions. In order to meet the needs of families and students there are two options for each grade level of instruction.

Students in Grades Kindergarten through 5 meet on Sunday mornings from 10:00 AM until 11:15 AM or Thursday evenings from 6:15 PM until 7:30 PM under the direction of a classroom teacher.

The Kindergarten Program is optional, but we use engaging and child friendly materials from Our Sunday Visitor. We recommend that all children be enrolled beginning in first grade.

Concurrently, students in Grades 6 through 8 meet with a team of catechists where the EDGE program is used for instruction. This interactive program helps young people to dive deeper into their faith and unleash the person who they are created to be in Christ.

Grades 9 & 10 are geared toward preparing young people for the Sacrament of Confirmation. Beginning in fall 2023, we will use Alpha Youth to work with the young people. The Alpha Youth Series is designed to engage students in conversations about life, faith and Jesus. Discussion time is interspersed throughout the short talks to make it simpler for them to share their thoughts and questions.

St. Vincent de Paul Parish has implemented a NEW FAITH FORMATION CURRICULUM as directed by the Diocese of Buffalo called Forming Disciples. This curriculum looks at the six tasks of catechesis namely:

Catholic Doctrine: Knowledge of the teachings of the Catholic faith
Liturgy: How the Church celebrates the Sacraments and enters into the mystery of God
Morality: Living out God’s commandments
Prayer: Developing a relationship with God
Community Life: Love of God cannot be separated from love of neighbor.
Missionary Activity: Catholic Christians serve God by doing good works in order to build up God’s Kingdom on earth.