St. Matthew faith formation initiative
CHARLOTTE — Nearly 3,000 children in St. Matthew Church faith formation programs recently participated in “Love Your Neighbor,” an outreach initiative in partnership with Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte.
Young people in preschool through the eighth grade donated thousands of items to fill “blessing bags” and “blessing buckets” to aid people in need in Charlotte and those affected by a recent tornado in Greensboro.
Pictured: Children in St. Matthew Church’s faith formation program assembled 300 “blessing bags” and 90 “blessing buckets” to distribute to people in need, praying as they filled each one with cleaning supplies and personal care supplies. (Photos provided by Kelly Matsey)
Each of the 300 blessing bags was filled with a toothbrush, toothpaste, bar of soap, shampoo, conditioner, lotion, deodorant and a washcloth. Ninety blessing buckets containing laundry detergent, household spray cleaner, toilet bowl cleaner, sponges, paper towels and dish soap were also assembled.
“The items were collected as part of our Lenten prayer time,” explained Diane Kiradjieff, the parish’s religious education director. “The children were all asked to bring in the various items (which) we assigned by grade to ensure we had enough of each item.”
When it was time to put the blessing bags and buckets together, the preschool children rolled the washcloths and made “Thumbody Loves You” fingerprint cards. The other classes, divided into grades K-3, 4-6 and 7-8, then rotated through the gym to assemble the blessing bags and buckets.
After a brief introduction from Catholic Charities staff on who they are and who they serve, there was a prayer “service” time. Each class made a prayer circle, and within the circle were enough items to build two to three blessing bags or a blessing bucket. A modern-day parable based upon the Good Samaritan was read, describing a family displaced from their home by violence or a natural disaster. The passersby in the parable were different towns who either ignored or made the family feel unwanted, until in a third town the family was recognized as God’s children and received help from the community.
Following the parable, different scripture verses were read alluding to the items that would fill the bags and buckets. The children decided which item was needed and began filling the bags and buckets. Before they finished, the children placed their hands on the bags and buckets and prayed for the families that would be receiving them.
In total, 2,969 young people collected more than 6,000 items to fill the blessing bags and blessing buckets.
“In a faith formation program, it is too easy to get so focused on the learning that we sometimes forget about the doing,” Kiradjieff said. “One of the biggest challenges for catechists is to make sure what we are teaching is relevant to the students’ life – that they are able to take their Catholic faith into their daily life and live it to the fullest.”
She explained that the three goals with the project were: to do as Jesus asked in loving one’s neighbor and helping people in need, remembering that one’s “neighbor” is all of God’s children and not just those within a particular community; to help the children understand that they can make a difference, and it is their responsibility as Catholics to do so; and to spread peace and love through their actions, especially in bringing together the individual classes as one faith formation community.
“Our faith formation team is intentional about making the connection between faith and works of mercy for our students and their families,” noted Father Pat Hoare, pastor of St. Matthew Church. “Our faith is a living faith. The Lord is not only someone to “learn about.” He sends the Holy Spirit, allowing us to make the love of God present in the world.”
“I encourage the children to not only bring in toiletries or make sandwiches, but to remember in prayer the people they are serving, because God loves each of them very much,” he said.
“This service project at St. Matthew Church was a tremendous success in connecting the faith formation of our young people with the charitable works of mercy,” said Dr. Gerard Carter, executive director of Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte.
“Many of the items collected by the children were able to be transported to Greensboro to help those impacted by the recent tornadoes. This reinforces that we are one community of the faithful helping out those in need across many miles.”
“It is our hope that similar opportunities will be taken up by parishes across the diocese,” he added.
Kiradjieff said the Catholic Charities project “gave us the chance to be His hands and His feet, and truly be able to live out what we learn in our faith formation classrooms and from the Church.”
— SueAnn Howell, senior reporter