CLASSES ARE STARTING SOON, REGISTER TODAY!

Registration for Families who Attended Class Last Year
Registration emails were sent out in the middle of June for Grades K-8. Please use the link in the email to register for Faith Formation Classes on Sundays (9-10:15am) or Tuesdays (3:45-5pm).
The cost for 1 Child is $130, the cost for 2 or more is $160.

Registration for our Confirmation Program (9th Grade) was emailed out in the middle of July.  Please use the link in the email to register for our Confirmation Classes which are held twice a month on Thursday evenings from 7-8:30pm.  The cost of the program is $135.

Students in Grade 2 should be registered for classes on Sunday or Tuesday as well as our Sacrament Program for First Penance & First Holy Communion.  First Penance takes place in December 2019 and First Communions will take place in May of 2020.  The fee for this program is $90.

Registration for New Families

If you know of any families with children starting 1st Grade in the fall, let them know about our program!  Children should begin attending classes in Grade 1, so that they can begin the two-year period of preparation for 1st Penance & 1st Holy Communion in Grade 2. New Families need to register by coming into the Parish Center (Monday-Thursday 9-4pm or by appointment)

If you know of anyone who has been away from religious education for a few years or has not yet gotten their child started in Faith Formation, have them call or email Anthony Armando.  Together, we can put together a plan to get them on track.

We Need Your Gifts & Talents

Our catechists are the heart of our program and we are so grateful for the time and talent that they give to the children of our parish. We need your help and support to provide quality religious education and provide the best classroom experience possible for our 400 students. We are looking for people who are willing to serve and share their faith as a Catechist or an Assistant Catechist. You do not need to be a theologian, you just need a servant's heart and a love for God, we can help you with the rest! If you are nervous about doing it alone, ask a friend and you can teach together as a team!!  We will equip you with the tools to help you pass on the faith and to help the students in your class. In addition to the rewards of sharing your faith and helping our parish, you will also receive a $50.00 discount off of the registration fee.

Celebration of Confirmation

Family Event - Sunday, June 9th

We Celebrate First Holy Communion

Here at St. Mary's, we have so many wonderful reasons to be joyful as we celebrate the reception of First Holy Communion with 61 of our young people. As a parish family, we get to share in the celebration of these boys and girls coming to the table of the Lord's Supper for the first time to receive Jesus' Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity.  

We have all heard the phrase, “You are what you eat.”   When we consume the Body and Blood of Christ, we become more like Jesus! If we truly became what we received each Sunday at Mass then the love of Jesus, the peace of Christ, the joy of the Risen Lord, would radiate out of us the same way the cherry blossoms radiate with beauty and color when they bloom.

Let us pray for our young people who will gather at the Table of the Lord’s Supper for the first time. Let us pray that the joy they experience today maybe the same joy that they find in their relationship with Jesus each day of their lives!

Our celebration of First Communion began on May 4^th & 5^th, when 33 of our children received the Eucharist for the first time. Our celebrations will continue on May 19^th at the 10:30am and 12 Noon Mass as we welcome and celebrate with our young people and their families. 

Holy Week & Easter Schedule

Lenten Penance Service at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church (Nutley)

Tuesday, April 16^th at 7:00pm

Prepare for the joy of Easter through the Sacrament of Penance

 

Holy Thursday

Thursday, April 18^th at 7:30pm

Mass of the Lord’s Supper

We celebrate the Institution of the Eucharist and the Priesthood as we pray and remember Jesus’ sacrificial offering of His Most Precious Body and Blood. Through the washing of the feet, we are reminded of Christ's call to humble service.

The Church will remain open until 11pm for Adoration and Prayer.

Good Friday

Friday, April 19^th

Living Stations of the Cross at 2:15pm in the Church

Join us for a moving presentation that will help bring us closer to Christ as we meditate on the great love He showed for us in His most sorrowful Passion.

Led by members of our High School Peer Leadership Group and the St. Mary’s Youth & Treble Choir.

Passion of Our Lord at 7:30pm

During this solemn service, we listen to the Gospel of Jesus’s Passion, we pray for a conversion of hearts, and we venerate the Cross of Christ.

Holy Saturday

Saturday, April 20^th at 7:30pm

Easter Vigil Mass

The Easter Vigil is the highlight of the ecclesiastical year. The lighting of the Easter candle in a dark church symbolizes Jesus, our only Light. That light is passed from one person to the next, as the candles of all the faithful are lit and the entire church is illuminated by candlelight.

We read from scripture about the relationship between God and his people. Two adults will be baptized and received into the Church and all the faithful will renew their baptismal vows. The Eucharist is then celebrated with a great sense of joy because of everything that Jesus has given us.

Easter Sunday
Sunday, April 21^st
Mass Times: 7:30am, 9:00am, 10:30am (with Children’s Liturgy), 12 Noon

Final Classes - Tuesday, April 2 and Sunday, April 7

We have reached the end of our Faith Formation year! During the past 25 classes, we hope that your child has had the opportunity to learn more about God's great gift to us, Jesus! We hope that by learning more about Jesus, they have been able to develop a relationship with him. Through a relationship with Jesus, we hope that our students discover who God has truly created them to be, how they are called to live, and how they are called to share their gifts and talents. We hope that in all that we do, we prepare them to be "disciples", those who are sent out to share the Good News of Jesus and the hope, peace, love and joy that he offers each of us.

I am especially grateful at this time of year (No...not because we have our last class) I am grateful to all of our parents and students for making faith a priority in their families. I am grateful to our volunteer staff of catechists, who pass on our faith. And lastly, I am grateful that we have our faith to sustain us in times of difficulty and to celebrate in times of joy.

Although classes are coming to an end, we encourage you to continue being active here at St. Mary's. 

• The Children's Liturgy at the 10:30am Mass will continue
  throughout the spring and summer (with just a few weeks hiatus in May for 1st Communions).  
• Our Living Stations of the Cross on Good Friday at 2:15pm led by our high school youth group members is a great way to focus on Jesus' passion, death and resurrection.
  
• In June, we will have our St. Anthony's Kid's Fest to celebrate another wonderful year at St. Mary's

You can like and follow us on Facebook or check out our redesigned Parish Website to see all that we are doing.

Our Online Registration for 2019/2020 will begin in June, emails will be sent out with instructions on how to register.