Confirmation (part 1)
Manage episode 355427420 series 3322256
This month’s episode, hosted by Shelli Haynes, features a discussion with DCE Heidi Koelher (St. Andrew’s Lutheran in Cape Girardeau, MO) about Confirmation instruction and her church’s perspective that Confirmation instruction is a valuable aspect of discipleship and faith at home. Heidi’s program is six years along and includes instruction of parents in both the Bible and Catechism. The instructional time for parents provides kids a time to hang out with other kids during a youth group time. Because of this set up, even though normally sixth and seventh grade students’ families are part of the program, no one out of coordinators knows the actual students enrolled. This opens the confirmation process up to older and younger children participating, without feeling out of place, since parents are in class learning and students are deepening their personal connects to each other. Each instruction time is followed up with time for parents and their children to talk about what has been learned so that parents aren’t just talking about a TV show or soccer game anymore. Instead, they train and equip parents to take every opportunity to pass along faith to their children and regain a Biblical lens in their family’s conversations. There is also a monthly accountability check-in with mentors who may be family members of those already Confirmed or other members of the congregation. The goal is to open the entire Confirmation process to the whole congregation so that as many people as can be involved in a process of transferring head to heart knowledge are. Not without struggles, Heidi shares a few challenges in her congregation including there begins to be a large chasm between those kids whose families buy into the impact of the program, and those who do not. Overall, Heidi is thankful the shift in instruction has moved them from consumerism to a partnership with families and conversations about growing in the faith are now more abundant. So, enjoy this beginning conversation in our series about how churches are using more impactful Confirmation strategies to learn and keep the faith.
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