RE at SJE: Where Faith Takes Root

The program for students and families is underway!

Students enjoy their Confirmation Retreat at Camp Lawrence in August 2026

The Holy Spirit is within us.

One month into the Religious Education year at St. John the Evangelist and the signs are pointing in a very positive direction. There is energy in the classrooms, excitement among the students and catechists, and most importantly, a growing desire to know and love Jesus. One of the sweetest examples is a young woman who will be confirmed this year. Abigail “Abby” (Ruth) Ochsenfeld enjoyed her own experience in RE so much that she decided she wasn’t quite ready to leave it behind. This year, she is back—not as a student, but as an aide in the classroom alongside her mom.

Why come back? Because Abby discovered something in RE that she wanted to share. She experienced the joy of growing in love with Jesus, and that experience made her want other young people to have the same opportunity. She didn’t simply learn more about her Catholic faith; something happened in her heart. Her faith became something worth giving away. And that is exactly what we hope Religious Education will do.

We want our young people to fall in love with Jesus.

Claire Leonard is another student who is already discovering that joy. She says she truly loves her class and describes her catechist as one of the most joyful people she knows. That joy has become part of Claire’s experience of learning about the faith.

And then there is the young student who recently shared that he simply can’t wait for the upcoming Youth Event—and that he is definitely bringing a friend. That is the kind of excitement we love to see.

Director of Religious Education, Amy Goggin says the upcoming Youth Event will focus on St. Carlo Acutis, the young millennial saint whose love for Jesus and the Eucharist inspired him to use his gifts to share the Gospel. There will be activities, crafts, and snacks, but underneath all the fun is something much more important: helping young people discover that holiness is possible for them, too.

SJE offers Youth Events throughout the year for both Religious Education and SJE School students. These events are intentionally designed to present the faith in a fun, engaging, and age-appropriate way. RE students are encouraged to invite friends who are not enrolled in the program, because the joy of knowing Jesus is something we want to share—not keep to ourselves.

At the same time, there is structure to our program, because formation matters.

Each month, our students encounter a saint, a virtue, and a devotion. These become the foundation for the month’s classes and events, giving students real examples of holiness, practical ways to grow in virtue, and beautiful Catholic traditions that can help lead them closer to Christ.

RE Students participate in two or three classroom days each month. During these sessions, catechists present the curriculum through stories and discussion, much as Jesus Himself taught His disciples. We want students asking questions, listening, sharing, and making connections rather than simply memorizing information.

There is important knowledge that every Catholic should have, which is why students learn and are tested on Basic Catholic Teachings and prayers. These give them the foundation—the “head knowledge”—to understand and articulate what the Church believes. Students preparing for the sacraments are also tested before receiving them.

But head knowledge is only part of the picture. Our ultimate goal is the heart.

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Information about the Shroud of Turin was presented at a Family Faith Event last year.

We want our children to know about Jesus, but even more, we want them to know Jesus. We want them to develop a relationship with Him, recognize His voice, turn to Him in prayer, and discover the joy of being loved by God. We are trying to form saints.

And forming saints takes both grace and commitment. That is why accountability is part of our program. Not because we want to make things difficult, but because we believe what we are doing is important. When we ask families to show up, participate, and make faith a priority, we are saying that their children's relationship with Jesus matters.

There is one expectation that stands above all the others: regular attendance at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

Mass attendance is a requirement for both RE and school students because the Eucharist is not simply another part of Catholic education. It is the source and summit of our Christian life. We don't teach children about Jesus so that they can someday become Catholics who occasionally attend Mass. We bring them to Mass because Jesus is truly present.

At Mass, our children encounter Christ in the Eucharist. They hear the Word of God proclaimed. They worship alongside their families and the larger parish community. They begin to understand that they are not simply attending church—they are part of the Body of Christ.

Class attendance is important, too. Regular participation allows students to build relationships with their catechists and classmates, follow the formation of the program, and grow throughout the year. Our primary measure for retaining a student's status in the program is simply regular attendance. Beyond that, what we ask is an open heart and a willingness to learn and encounter Christ.

We know the Catholic faith asks something of us. But that is not because we want to make faith harder than it needs to be. It is because Jesus asks us for our whole hearts.

Jesus never promised that following Him would always be easy. He told His disciples to take up their crosses and follow Him. In John 6, when some disciples found His teaching difficult, they walked away. Jesus did not water down the truth to make it easier to accept. Instead, He turned to the Twelve and asked, “Do you also want to leave?” Peter answered, “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” That is what we hope our children will eventually be able to say.

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The world will give them countless voices telling them what to believe, how to live and where to find happiness. We want to give our students something deeper: Jesus Christ. We want to give them a faith strong enough to withstand the world, tender enough to recognize the hurting, and courageous enough to live the Gospel.

We are, in a very real sense, forming soldiers for Christ—members of the Church Militant who are learning to fight not against people, but against sin, discouragement, and anything that keeps them from Christ. And we pray that these young disciples will one day join the Church Triumphant in Heaven. In fact, “Church Militant” and “Church Triumphant” are among the BCT’s they learn. But none of this is possible through a program alone.

The Holy Spirit is the One who transforms hearts.

Our job is to teach, invite, encourage, pray, and create opportunities for our young people to encounter Christ. Then we trust the Holy Spirit to do what only He can do. And there are encouraging signs that something beautiful is happening.

More than 85 percent of families remain at SJE after their children receive Confirmation. That doesn't mean every family has the same experience or that every faith journey looks the same. But it does tell us something important: when families make a meaningful commitment to their faith, it can create a deeper sense of belonging and a lasting love for the parish and the Church.

The Spirit is alive here.

That same spirit extends beyond weekly RE classes. Families participate in five Family Faith events throughout the year, because we believe a child's education in the faith begins at home. Parents are asked to attend and participate alongside their children in experiences such as the Living Rosary led by our First Communicants, the May Crowning led by our Confirmandi, service projects and faith presentations.

We also offer sacramental formation retreats for First Reconciliation, First Holy Communion and Confirmation. These retreats are designed to help students approach the sacraments prepared, inspired and genuinely excited to encounter God's grace.

And for those who sign up, our LoveEd program gives parents and children an opportunity to learn about the beauty of God's plan for human sexuality while honoring what we believe firmly as Catholics: parents are the first teachers of their children. The parish and school are here to support that role, never to replace it.

And even our youngest disciples have a place at SJE. Through Lil Disciples, children ages 4–7 can join us during the 10 a.m. Mass for a Gospel lesson, crafts, songs and fun, learning from an early age that Jesus loves them and that the Church is their home.

All of these pieces—classes, prayers, Mass, family events, youth activities, sacramental preparation, service, and opportunities to grow—fit together for one reason.

We want our children to know that they are loved by God.

We want them to know the beauty of their Catholic faith. We want them to recognize the voice of the Holy Spirit. We want them to have the courage to live differently when the world asks them to conform. And we want them to experience the joy Abby experienced—the joy that makes you want to come back, serve and share what you have discovered with someone else.

That is the heart of Religious Education at SJE. We are not trying to make Catholicism difficult. We are trying to make it real. We are not simply trying to prepare children for a sacrament.

We are preparing them for a lifetime with Christ.

And that requires commitment, discipline, and accountability, which we believe it is worth it—because our children are worth it, their faith is worth it, and Jesus is worth it.

Our prayer is that years from now, when these young people look back on their time at SJE, they won't simply remember what they learned. We pray they remember how much they loved Jesus—and how much they knew they were loved by Him.