Our New Children's Programme for Sundays in 2009 Catechesis of the Good Shepherd (CGS)

What is so special about the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd?

CGS assumes young children have a religious potential: that God is already present in their deepest being and that they are capable of developing a conscious and intimate relationship with God and they need only guidance and vocabulary to realise that relationship and give expression to it.

At Onslow Anglicans we will be offering CGS on the first and third Sundays of the month from Sunday 1st March. Sessions begin at 9.45am and the children may be collected after Morning Tea at the parent's leisure. The programme takes place in an Atrium with a trained catechist whose sources are scripture and liturgy. Our Atrium will be at Box Hill Kids, the parish's Early Childhood Centre, in the lower part of our hall immediately behind St Barnabas Church, Khandallah. The Atrium contains models of items used in the church's worship as well as parables, prophecies, maps of Israel and the life of Christ. The child prepares for involvement in the larger worshipping community. The catechist "calls forth" the child's response instead of "pouring in" information. They listen with the child as a "co-wonderer" who enjoys meditation on the questions raised by the Scriptures.

Where does my child fit in?

Level One is for children three to five years old. The child of this age is particularly capable of receiving and enjoying the most essential elements of our faith: the announcement of God's love in the person of the Good Shepherd who died and is risen!

Level two is for children six and seven years old. At this stage children are captivated by the image of the True Vine, "I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me, bears fruit in plenty, for cut off from me you can do nothing." It answers the child's need for relationship with God, family, friends and the community.

There is also level three for children eight to eleven years old but we are not yet able to offer these sessions.

Training for Catechists

In working towards this goal, we are bringing out Carol Roth from Australia to run a level one, part one training course in May. This will be held at All Saints' Ngaio, May 18-22nd. Please prayerfully consider whether this is a ministry that you feel called to &emdash; we are still looking for more keen Catechists.

Introduction for Parents

Carol has also agreed to run an introductory one-off evening session on Sunday 17th May with an overview of CGS and how it differs from our usual approaches of Sunday school and Children's Services. It will also be a chance for the skeptics among you to ask questions.

For further information please contact the parish office