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At St. Mary, we believe, profess, and affirm that:

“The disciple of Christ must not only keep the faith and live on it, but also profess it, confidently bear witness to it, and spread it.” (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1816) 

"Christ's disciples are to conform themselves to him until he is formed in them (cf. Gal 4:19). 'For this reason we, who have been made like to him, who have died with him and risen with him, are taken up into the mysteries of his life, until we reign together with him.'" (CCC 562)

"The family, called the domestic Church,  is often the first place where one experiences and is formed in the faith... It is through the example of mothers and fathers, grandparents, siblings, and extended family members that one most concretely witnesses how to live a Christian life. 'Family members learn more of the Christian life by observing each other’s strengths or weaknesses than by formal instruction. Their shared wisdom and experience often constitute a compelling Christian witness.'" (Disciples Called to Witness, Part IV. The Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis, USCCB.)

"Parents should initiate their children at an early age into the mysteries of the faith of which they are the 'first heralds' for their children. They should associate them from their tenderest years with the life of the Church... Education in the faith by the parents should begin in the child’s earliest years. This already happens when family members help one another to grow in faith by the witness of a Christian life in keeping with the Gospel. Family catechesis precedes, accompanies, and enriches other forms of instruction in the faith. Parents have the mission of teaching their children to pray and to discover their vocation as children of God." (CCC 2225-2226)