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Family Caring Trust |
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The
Family Caring Trust is a
charity founded in 1986 by Michael & Terri Quinn of Newry, Northern
Ireland. The Trust produces a range of materials to support parents
including two faith-based resources: Enjoy Praying and
What does God expect of Parents?
These
can be ordered by contacting
the Trust directly.
First published in 1991 this practical prayer programme
enables small groups of people to come together to support each other as
they practise a variety of methods of prayer. No number is too small but
more than ten is not recommended. Where possible, groups meet in
comfortable, pleasant surroundings, often in someone’s home, if it is
reasonably free from distractions. A Facilitator’s Guide accompanies
the participant handbooks. The facilitator is not there to be an expert
in prayer and ideally this role will be shared between two participants.
Besides the course books, a Bible, music and candle are required. This is quite a simple book, aimed at anyone, young or old, who wants to
learn to pray, to grow in friendship with God – and also to improve
the quality of their life, including their family life and their other
relationships. Parents, teenagers, single adults, grand-parents…
anyone who wants to gain a sense of what is important – and
the energy to go on loving amid the pressures and conflicts of
day-to-day living. Discover how enjoyable prayer can be and experience
the benefits of prayer in daily life. (from the Participants’
Handbook) It is in praying that we learn to pray. We learn, not by reading about
prayer or by hearing about it, but by trying it. The purpose of the
course is to allow people to experience a variety of methods of prayer
so that they may discover what works best for themselves and what
suits their individual personalities. The handbook facilitates and
reinforces learning… and also helps answer the need for some solid
catechesis on prayer and spirituality. (from the Facilitator’s
Guide) Session
themes and Scripture Participant Feedback
What
does God Expect of Parents?
Down to earth support
for today's parents in confirming their children's faith. Published in
2002, this resource was developed in collaboration with the Diocese of
Armagh Family Ministry Team.
The resource includes leaders guides, parent handbook and dvd. Material
is provided for four sessions to accompany parents whose children are
being prepared for confirmation; three separate simultaneous sessions
are available for the young people. Extract from Chapter 2: Late one night a
little boy was crying, frightened by the darkness. His mother came into
the room and spoke to him, “Don’t worry, Andy,” she said, “God
is watching over you to keep you safe.”
“I
know God’s here,” Andy said, “but I want someone with some
skin.” His mother then got
in beside him and cuddled him. The
mother laughed the next day when she told her friends the story.
What she did not realise was that she really was God with skin. The
Real Presence of Christ starts with our real presence to our children
– being there for them! That
is what it means when we say that Christ is alive today.
He is present in us ordinary folk, in the people around us and in
our families – for we are the Body of Christ on earth.
And the work of the Holy Spirit (drawing us closer together in
Christ) is to help us to be ‘God with skin’ to one another.
This happens through Baptism, Confirmation and the weekly
Eucharist, but the Spirit also expects us to work at being
closer, more caring families. Is
it about ‘me’ or about ‘us’?
Many of us miss that point. We
find it hard to believe that the way to God is through our families.
We even think we need to get away from our families in
order to find God and ‘inner peace.’
But holiness is being like God – who is not one
individual person but three persons in love.
We are not much of an image of God when we are ‘me’ centred.
We are a much better image of three persons in love when we work
at being a close family, a ‘church of the home.’
That
word ‘church’ may strike you as a strange word to apply to a family.
But it is a very good word once we stop thinking of a church as a
building and begin to think of it as a group of people who have four
signs – one, holy, catholic and apostolic.
So it can be helpful to look with fresh eyes at what these four
words mean when we apply them to a family. Parents' Feedback:
Who
we are
Bulletin bullet points
Links
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