THE DOMESTIC CHURCH

Our Roman Catholic Tradition has always stressed that faith both begins and is nurtured in the family and the home. "The family is, so to speak, the domestic Church. In it parents should, by their word and example, be the first preachers of the faith to their children...."(Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, paragraph 11.)

The Declaration on Christian Education, paragraph 3, also states, "As it is the parents who have given life to their children, on them lies the gravest obligation of educating their family. They must therefore be recognized as being primarily and principally responsible for their education. The role of parents in education is of such importance that it is almost impossible to provide an adequate substitute. It is therefore the duty of parents to create a family atmosphere inspired by love and devotion to God and their fellow-men which will promote an integrated, personal and social education of their children. The family is therefore the principle school of the social virtues which are necessary to every society. It is therefore above all in the Christian family, inspired by the grace and the responsibility of the sacrament of matrimony, that children should be taught to know and worship God and to love their neighbor, in accordance with the faith which they have received in earliest infancy in the sacrament of Baptism. In it, also, they will have their first experience of a well-balanced human society and of the Church. Finally it is through the family that they are gradually initiated into association with their fellow-men in civil life and as members of the people of God. Parents should, therefore, appreciate how important a role the truly Christian family plays in the life and progress of the whole people of God."

At St. Paul Parish we recognize, appreciate and support the primary role of parents in their children's faith formation, and the importance of the domestic Church. All parishioners are encouraged to place a holy water font in a prominent place in their home, and to keep it filled with holy water taken from our parish's baptismal font. In fact, each parent presenting a child for baptism receives a holy water font as a gift from the parish. Parents are encouraged to bless themselves and their children daily with water from this font, and to teach their children to do the same. This enables children, from the earliest years, to understand that we live out our baptism each and every day and to make the connection between the parish church and the domestic (home) church.

Prayer in the home is central. As a parish community we strive to provide the best of resources to our parishioners to foster prayer in the home. We provide a Catholic Bible, as well as the lectionary based resource At Home With the Word (Liturgy Training Publications) to our parishioners. Seasonal meal prayer cards are regularly provided to parish households. We encourage the use of such resources as Catholic Household Blessings and Prayers (NCCB/USCC). This resource is available for loan from our Parish Catholic Resource Library, or may be purchased at our parish office.

Prayer and living our faith in the home is fostered by the rich and full way we celebrate the cycle of feasts and seasons here at St. Paul's. Weekly Sunday Bulletin inserts give background information on saints, feasts and seasons and how to keep these special days in our homes. Our parish celebration of these feasts and seasons also always include and model ways to celebrate our faith fully in our homes - such as the opportunity for parishioners to make their own Advent wreath at our Advent Family Day, the blessing of home prayer candles on the feast of the Presentation of the Lord (Candlemas), etc. We also provide parishioners each year with the Liturgical Calendar to post on their refrigerator as a daily reminder of the faith we celebrate and share.

Many wonderful print, audio and video resources for family members of all ages are available on loan to parishioners at our Parish Catholic Resource Library.

For more information on any aspect of celebrating the faith we share in homes and families, please feel free to contact our parish office at 836-7535.

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