Bishop Pat Storey launched a new Confirmation resource at General Synod on 12 May
For the last number of months, Amy McCrea and Andrew Frame from the Church of Ireland Youth Department have been working on a new Confirmation Resource called ‘I Believe’ to be used by Rectors and those involved in preparing young people for Confirmation.
‘I Believe’ has been created in response to a perceived need for this type of resource. The Youth Department are regularly asked for help or advice on Confirmation Preparation and the alternatives currently available are either outdated or not specifically relevant to Confirmation in the Church of Ireland.
The resource is 12 sessions long and is based round the Confirmation Service, the Ten Commandments and The Apostles’ Creed. Topics include ‘Who is God?’, ‘Why we need a Saviour’, ‘The Sacraments’ and ‘Serving God/Serving others’.
Each session offers a blend of teaching, games, worship and prayer activities and discussion questions. The sessions are aimed to last between forty and ninety minutes at the discretion of the facilitator and the resource offers the flexibility for sessions to be tailored to the needs of the particular context.
In commending the resource, Bishop Pat Storey (CIYD’s President) wrote, “it is current, fresh and orthodox in its presentation and teaching.” and also “this is the first all Ireland resource specifically written for the Church of Ireland. It is our hope, as a Youth Department, that this will be of great help to clergy and youth leaders, from Derry to Cork, and everywhere in between!”
As well as a well-designed Leader’s Manual, an interactive Participant’s Guide has been developed to complement the course and it is hoped that young people will enjoy using this as they undergo their Confirmation preparation.
The resource will be launched at General Synod in May. Each Parish will receive a complimentary copy of the Leader’s Manual and a Participant’s Guide. Further copies will be available for purchase through the CIYD office and other outlets.
