From time to time on Sundays after Mass a speaker will address issues related to faith and his or her professional life. Topics to be announced in the bulletin.

CHILD BAPTISM AND PREPARATION

When a new member of the family is on the way, it is time to think about his or her initiation into the Catholic Christian family. The Church of Our Saviour would like to be a part of welcoming him or her into the body of Christ. Even if your child's baptism will be in your country of origin, it is important that you prepare for this sacrament. Please contact Fr. Sjaak at the Parish House if you will be welcoming a new child into your family. For Adult Baptism we refer you to the RCIA programme.

Guidelines for infant baptisms

CHILDREN'S LITURGY OF THE WORD

At Children's Liturgy the children listen to the Word of God and talk about how they can follow Jesus in their everyday lives. Each week we do an activity linked to the Gospel Reading and often the children bring back their work to decorate the church or to take home with them. The sessions take place during the Sunday Mass on most Sundays of the year. For any further information you can contact one of our new Coordination team:
Livia Lobo: e-mail
Ana Chavarria: e-mail


CHILDREN’S LITURGY FACTS

Question: Do you remember in the old days when you had to drag your children to Church? You don’t now, why?

Answer: Here is why they are as happy to go to church as if they are going to a party. Well, every Children’s liturgical session (CL) is a PARTY! In CL, we celebrate the word of the Lord with music, gimmicks (visual aids) and treats!

In CL, the Liturgy of the word is adapted specifically to make it relevant to the lives and experiences of young children. It is an attempt to tell the secret of the Good News to children at their own level.

The children’s liturgy starts when Fr. Sjaak invites them to the altar. He hands the children to ‘liturgists’ for their own celebration in a special room prepared for them. There are usually two liturgists, one leading and one helping with the music/crafts. There are also a minimum of two assistant-leaders. They help the children when needed.

A typical Children's Liturgy morning

WELCOME: the children are greeted warmly and the liturgist introduces him/herself and the other assistants. The liturgist says welcoming words such as ‘Thank you for coming forward to listen to God’s word’.

INTRODUCTION: The liturgist briefly introduces the Gospel of the Day.

SIGN OF THE CROSS: The children are reminded that making the sign of the cross helps us to remember that we are all brothers & sisters in the one family of God.

LIGHTING THE CANDLES: A simple altar is provided with a crucifix, word of the Lord book, candles and flowers. When lighting the candles, two children are asked to light them. The liturgist then says ‘Jesus is the light of the world, who speaks to us through the Gospel which we will listen to.

PRAYING TOGETHER: To help the children learn to reflect and to ask for God’s forgiveness, a variety of prayers, readings and simple songs to familiar tunes are provided e g ‘Dear Lord Jesus hear our prayers’ to the tune of Twinkle star:

CONFIRMATION PREPARATION

Preparation for the sacrament of Confirmation is offered to those students who have completed the Religious Education class years (up to Grade 8/Year 9/Klas 2). It is expected that these students will be between 14 and 16 years old. Older students are recommended to consider the RCIA programme. Meetings are held on various Sunday evenings at the church. Please check the bulletin for the precise dates of meetings. The Rite of Confirmation will be celebrated in early June. For information please contact the Coordinator
Rick Chasse e-mail
See also Youth Retreat

There is a total fee of 110 euro per candidate payable which covers the retreat, all materials and the Bishop's stipend.

FIRST COMMUNION PREPARATION

Children who are registered in Our Saviour's Grade 2 RE class and who have attended at least one prior year of religious education and who are at least 7 years of age, will be candidates for the First Communion celebration in May/June. For further details see below

MARRIAGE PREPARATION

Please get in touch with the Pastor as soon as you have plans to be married - ideally 6 months before the planned wedding. The Pastor will help with the documentation and liturgy preparations and the Couples Group with the pre-nuptial course. For information on the Couples Group CLICK HERE.

We recommend an excellent site to help marriage preparation. It is www.gettingmarried.ie , produced in Ireland. It deals with all aspects of the matter -- what are the first steps to take, possibilities for adapting the service to your needs, a full print out of the nuptial mass right through to ideas for creating your own wedding booklet, notions for decorating the church and so on. For those of you planning your wedding, it's a great place to start.

RCIA

The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults is for people who are interested in finding out about the Catholic faith. It is also for those adults who have been baptised but have not yet received first Communion or Confirmation or for those who have not attended church for a long time and feel they would like to be part of our community once more. Sessions are held on Thursdays at 19.30 in the Pastoral Centre. Contact: Sally Williams, 070-368 4959.

RECONCILIATION
Children in Religious Education grade 2 and higher will learn about this sacrament in their weekly classes. All are welcome to reconcile when they feel ready for it. Appointments for reconciliation can be made by phoning the Parish Office during office hours. Alternatively there is an opportunity for reconciliation at the church from 16.30 - 17.00 on most Sunday evenings before the Mass (not if Fr Sjaak is absent). There are also Reconciliation Services during Advent and Lent for communal reflection and forgiveness. First Reconciliation is not a pre-requisite for First Holy Communion.

RELIGIOUS BOOKS

We have a book stall near the coffee area which sells a good selection of spiritual reading matter, as well as Bibiles and Missals, after Sunday Mass. Contact Frank and Francesca van Duren (070-346 2866) either for information or to offer help in running the stall.

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

The RE Coordinator & Catechist Trainer for 2011-12 is Elizabeth Boddens Hosang, e-mail.

Religious Education classes are held in the upper floors of the Pastoral Centre. Classes are from 11.30-12.15 for children from 5 years up to Confirmation.

RE Classes will start again on 2nd October. You can download a registration form here Please return the completed form to the parish office, Koningin Marialaan 2, 2595 GB Den Haag. Forms can of course be found at church - on the Welcome Table.

The schedule of classes through the year takes into consideration the various school vacations, and the year traditionally runs from September through May. You can download this year's calendar here. The children are taught by volunteers, most of whom are parents with children in the programme.

There is an annual fee of 60 euro for each child registering for classes

If your child is making his/her First Communion this year, please contact the coordinators for special instructions.

First Communion Preparation
Coordinator Amanda Trommel e-mail
Children must have completed at least the 1st grade of a Religious Education programme and now be attending the 2nd grade or above. A copy of the candidate’s baptismal certificate must be on file with the RE office before the celebration of the sacrament. Please submit as soon as possible. Older children who have not yet celebrated the Sacrament of the Eucharist are welcome in the programme if they have several years’ experience with Religious Education classes. The programmme is family-centred, and guidance and materials are given to the parents so they may prepare their child for the reception of the sacrament. Information about workshops for the parents will be published in the church bulletin. Note that the regular class time on Sunday is devoted to general material for the children in the class, and the 2nd grade curriculum is not exclusively about the Eucharist. The class material is, however, a beautiful reinforcement of the sacramental preparation material, and the children are expected to attend the Sunday classes.

There is a fee of 40 euro per child for this programme.

Volunteers are always welcome !!

RETREAT FOR ADULTS

“YOUR FACE I SEEK O LORD”
Do you need some time out for yourself? Some time to reflect or pray, some time to be quiet? No children, no boss, no meetings? If this sounds tempting join the parish retreat 10th - 12th February (Friday 15.00 – Sunday 14.00). Places are limited but a €50 deposit will guarantee your place. The total cost of the weekend is €140 p.p. The retreat is open to all adult parishioners and the Retreat Director will be Fr Fons Eppink, Coordinator for the Mill Hill Missionaries in The Netherlands. More details from Helena Schröder (e-mail)

RETREAT FOR YOUTH

Each year a Retreat is organised predominantly for our Confirmation candidates. Its form varies but for the last year or two has been held at the Don Bosco Centre in Rijswijk. Details are always published in the church bulletin.