Christian Formation through education is one of our top priorities at Christ Church.  
The part of our mission statement that calls for spiritual nurture is grounded in the belief that 
our faith is based on having a place where questions are valued and we have a chance to work 
through the doubts and questions that accompany our journey to experience the Divine. 
We have programs for children and adults.

The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd (CGS) is a new way of Christian education that presents the most important realities of the Christian faith to the youngest members of the Church. This manner of Christian education assumes that young children have religious potential. That is, God having already made himself present to them in their deepest being_, they are capable of developing both a conscious and intimate relationship with God. They only need the guidance and vocabulary to enable them to become aware of their relationship with God and give expression to it.

The presented environment, called an atrium, contains materials that are models of things used in the Church's worship such as altar, Eucharist, Baptism, liturgical colors_, etc. The environment also contains materials relating to the proclamation of the faith such as parables, prophecies, geography of Israel, and the life of Christ. These are manipulatives for use by both the catechist and the child.

The trained catechist makes presentations to the child using the materials. These presentations are chosen to convey the essentials of the faith in a manner appropriate to the child's development. The child is then invited to internalize and respond to the presentation by working with the materials themselves. The catechist does not give answers or impart information. The catechist presents the reality and asks questions. The catechist assists in the child's own discovery of the meaning. The motto of CGS is "Help me fall in love with God by myself.”

We believe that there is a deep bond between God and the child that produces in the child the desire to draw near to God. The catechists role is to prepare the environment and to make presentations that "call forth" the child's response rather than "pour in information." They listen with the child and together ask "God, who are you? How do you love us?" The adult is a co-wonderer with the child as they together enjoy meditating on the questions generated by the Scriptures with the prepared environment as a developmental aid.

In the words of Dr. Sofia Caveletti, who developed the program, "If we want to help the child draw nearer to God; we should with patience and courage seek to go always closer to the vital nucleus of things This requires study and prayer The child, himself will be our teacher if we know how to observe him."

Adult Education takes several forms based on the interests and time commitments of the participants. Every year we offer a 20 week class called "Disciples of Christ in Community," known as DOCC. The class begins every year in September and finishes in February of the following year.

Disciples of Christ in Community (DOCC) is a 21 week program of adult Christian education/formation that adapts well to the cycle of the church year. Participants learn the basics of faith, have an opportunity to deepen their spiritual life, and enhance skills in areas such as effective communications and active listening. DOCC challenges participants to identify and practice daily skills in ministry as part of the process of Christian formation as a life-long process.

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