New ministry seeks to support faith formation among homeschooled families

With the goal of supporting a growing number of homeschooled families across the Diocese of Metuchen, Bishop James F. Checchio has formed a new ministry.

“It is my hope that this ministry will provide homeschoolers across the Diocese the opportunity for connecting and collaborating in the Catholic formation of their children,” said Father Gilbert Starcher, parochial vicar, St. Joseph, North Plainfield, who has been appointed to serve as the ministry’s coordinator. “In addition, the program will also serve as a resource for pastors and catechetical leaders, assisting homeschoolers as they provide for their children’s formation in the faith and for the reception of the sacraments.”

Father Starcher, who along with his siblings was homeschooled himself, conducted research on the prevalence of homeschooling throughout the Diocese. He presented his findings to the Bishop, who has had the opportunity to meet many homeschooled families in parishes he has visited.

“He finds their faith and devotion truly edifying,” he said, “and it is his hope that this new ministry will provide them support as they educate and form their children in our Catholic faith.”

The ministry will be hosting a kick-off event in January in St. Theodore Parish, Port Murray. The initial event will introduce families to the Franciscan Catechetical Institute’s program that the Diocese has made available as a tool to support spiritual revival and enrichment.

Regular events – bi-monthly, to start – will be held after the kick-off, and organizers already have a wide range of activities in mind. These include homeschool curricula reviews and exchanges, an art contest, robotics competition, Our Lady of Sorrows devotion and procession, and architectural tour of diocesan churches.

The diocesan Homeschooling Ministry will be part of the Secretariat for Family & Pastoral Life – led by Secretary Jennifer Ruggiero – and will include collaboration with the Office of Discipleship Formation for Children and the Office of Family Life, with director Jill Kerekes.

“This new ministry will serve as an important bridge between families and their parishes, fostering a deeper understanding in the parish of the goals and realities of homeschooling families,” said Ruggiero. “We also hope to provide opportunities for increased connection among homeschool families of the Diocese and with the diocesan Church, especially in the areas of devotional life and faith formation.”

Kerekes will support the Homeschooling Ministry by introducing families to the Franciscan at Home formation platform, which she said includes a multitude of resources and tools that can assist homeschool parents.

“Homeschooling has become much more common in the last several years for a variety of reasons and continues to be a growing movement,” said Kerekes. “Diocesan outreach serves to acknowledge the growth of the movement and provides for an additional level of community support for the homeschooling families.”

She added her hopes that families will learn about the new outreach and take advantage of the support.

“I hope the faithful become aware that the ministry exists and that those homeschool families in need of support and community will reach out,” she said.

The event in St. Theodore Parish, Port Murray will take place on Tuesday, Jan. 14 at 6:30 p.m. Those interested in attending can visit https://diometuchen.org/homeschool-ministry-1 to register online.