What is a Grade Level Mass?

At a Grade Level Mass students participate in various roles in the Mass such as Greeters, Gift Bearers, Readers and Basket passers.  Parents receive an email about a month prior to the Mass with information about volunteering, students are chosen to participate by a lottery and then about a week prior to the Mass parents are emailed with participation information for their student.  All students in our Religious Education program, regardless of whether they attend class in-person or do lessons at home, can participate.  Students sit in reserved rows at the front of the church.  They also participate in the discussion of the Gospel reflection based on a lesson that was facilitated at a previous Religious Education class.

What is an Enrollment Mass?

At an Enrollment Mass students preparing to receive a sacrament (Sacrament 2 or Confirmation 2 students) are acknowledged, celebrated and officially "enrolled" in preparation for the sacrament.  The names of each student are read, they are given a blessing and parishioners are asked to pray for the students.  The preparation students participate in the Mass in various roles.  Families are encouraged to attend and be part of the celebration.

What do I do if my child has to miss class?

You do not need to let us know when your child will not be in class.  Religious Education is ultimately in the hands of parents and it is up to you to prioritize classes for your child.  If your child is in a sacrament preparation year and we feel they have missed an important activity we will reach out to discuss that with you.   Please note that if you would like some make-up work for your child we have at-home lessons for each grade that include activities you can do with them at your convenience.  Students can only attend classes in their designated program - so you cannot attend a class on Sunday to make up for a missed Wednesday class and vice-versa.  We do not have the space or organizational structure to have students moving back and forth between programs.

For our Confirmation Preparation program we have provided all of the lessons for each class.  Parents should work with their students to complete these lessons at home.  For all other grades we do not have the same lessons in our at home programs as we do in the classroom, as they are facilitated quite differently and don't exactly translate to at home learning.  However, if you would like to review any of the online lessons with your student please know that they will complement any of our in class lessons.

My child is in a sacrament preparation grade (1, 2, 9 or 10) can we do At-Home lessons?

We encourage in-person participation for our Sacrament and Confirmation preparation programs.  If you have a particular circumstance that makes that challenging for your child please contact Linda at Linda.Messore@sjspwellesley.org to talk about options.   Please note that this DOES NOT include Project Nazareth or our Cluster program, as they do not specifically address sacrament preparation.

Would virtual Mass attendance or attendance at an outside parish qualify for 'regular attendance?

Yes!  If you do not attend a Mass at St. John or St. Paul, therefore cannot scan in, you just complete the Mass Attendance Recording Form on the program pages of the Religious Ed website or on the Religious Ed page of the Collaborative website.

How do I view only the calendars that pertain to my students?

Here is a link to a video walk-through: "how to view limited calendars"

Will we have a Christmas Pageant?

Our Collaborative will have one Pageant every year, it will involve the first graders (for the time being) and it will rotate between parishes depending on the timing of Christmas and it will be at the Family Mass on the Sunday before Christmas (unless it is very close or on Christmas/Christmas Eve).  

Can I pick up my child early from class?

We have a limited number of classes and encourage students to participate for the full lesson to get the best understanding of the lesson and help keep the class focused with limited disruptions.  If there is an instance where students need to be dismissed early we ask that a parent or guardian send a note for the teacher in with the student and subsequently retrieve the student from the classroom to be dismissed.  We do not have enough staff to manage early dismissals and the parking lot is busy, so we feel it is important for students to be supervised as they leave for safety purposes.

Where are classes held?

GRADE 1-5 PROGRAM:  Due to space constraints we cannot hold the number of classes needed on the St. Paul campus so all classes are held in the St. John Parish Center at 39 Washington Street.  The building shares the parking lot with St. John school and is the building closest to the street.

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROGRAM:  This program is run with large and small group activities and not in classrooms so we utilize St. Paul Hall.  St. Paul Hall is off of the Atwood Road parking lot in back of St. Paul church.

CONFIRMATION PROGRAM:  Due to space constraints we cannot hold the number of classes needed on the St. Paul campus so all classes are held in the St. John Parish Center at 39 Washington Street.  The building shares the parking lot with St. John school and is the building closest to the street.  The Pizza & Prayer component of the evening is held in various spaces in the church depending on the activity, but begins in Powers Hall in the basement of St. John church.

What day/time is class?

GRADE 1-5 PROGRAM:  Sunday program: 10:15-11:15 am; Wednesday program: 3:30 - 4:30 pm

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROGRAM:  Sunday 6:15 - 7:30 pm 

CONFIRMATION PROGRAM:  Sunday 6:00 - 8:00 pm