Our First Communion Prep

Thank you, Celeste, for sharing what you have been doing with your two to prepare for this beautiful day we have coming up. When Father mentioned he wanted to do it on Mother's Day, I immediately thought it would be such a special occasion, to have the children receive our Lord on a day we remember mothers, earthly and heavenly:)

As you know, we hadn't been planning for Cate to receive her First Holy Communion this year. I always assumed it would be next year, when she will be 7. As new comers to our traditional mass parish, I soon learned that there isn't always a formal catechism class, and when Father announced this one, I thought it would be wonderful for Cate to have his wisdom and preparation, and that I'd better take the opportunity while it was on offer:)  I am still such a newbie Catholic, and learning so much myself. I knew I needed his help to prepare her for this special day. And how glad I am that your two have been in our class and are receiving alongside my girl. They are such sweet friends.

Our formal prep has been lighter than yours, since we still officially in Kinder, and I hadn't been planning for this year to be a communion prep year. But I think we are ready. Here's what we've been doing:

The Mass Explained to Children is such a lovely book, so beautifully and edifyingly written. We have almost completed it, and have been supplementing with YouTube videos of the traditional mass to help us really see what is happening on the altar. Gorgeous.

New Testament stories. We love The New Catholic Picture Bible, and we have especially lingered over the wedding at Cana, the miracle of the loaves and fishes (my girl's favorite), and the story of Jesus calling the little children to Him. All speak of the love found in the mass and the Eucharist.

Angel Food stories. I used these stories quite a bit, and I concur with you, Celeste...they could seem heavy-handed, but they are very sweet and Cate does indeed love them:)

First Communion Catechism. We worked through these chapters together and Cate also read them on her own. We went over the questions and answers, and memorized them.

Confession. We came up with a list of her commonly committed sins, discussed how to make a good confession, what the different parts of the Act of Contrition mean, and did several days of good old-fashioned play acting, where I was Father and she was herself:) She's got it down.

Prayer. Each day this week we've prayed the rosary for the grace to make a good confession and to worthily receive Our Lord, and I've been praying for her myself, using the two prayers you mentioned. In addition, I've stepped up the use of sacramentals (holy water, blessed salt, blessed oil). I think this is a key time to prevent any evil intrusion, when our sweet little ones are on the brink of communion with the Lord.

Fun. We have yummy food planned, a pretty cake to enjoy, and family coming to join us. Cate's godparents will hopefully be here too: her godmother is due with her first baby next week, and already experiencing intense contractions...could be any moment! Please offer her your prayers for a safe delivery and healthy little boy. Maybe he'll arrive on Mother's Day!

I think Cate is ready for her First Holy Communion. She's on the younger side, only 6 and a few months, but she's a pretty mature little one, with a humble, contrite heart, and a desire to receive Jesus, body and blood, soul and divinity. Of course, there's much to learn, and I imagine this summer and in first grade, we will deepen our study and her understanding with many of the resources you suggested, Celeste. I already ordered a few of them:)

Blessings on all our First Communicants this weekend!