first communion information
First Communion Mass Info/Key Dates/Banners
First Communion Mass is Full
Our First Communion Mass on Saturday, May 8 at 10:00 am is full. Please email Kevin Chears at kchears@stgertrudechicago.org if you have any questions about this.
This Mass will be live-streamed on our parish Facebook page then posted on our parish's YouTube channel.
First Communion Banners & Key Dates
Beginning Tuesday, April 20, First Communion families are asked to stop by the Rectory during office hours to pick up kits to make First Communion banners. The Rectory office is open from 9:00 am-2:30 pm Monday-Saturday, and 8:30-11:30 am on Sunday. Please call us at 773.764.3621 before coming.
These banners will feature each child's name and various First Communion symbols and will be hung on pews during the First Communion Mass. We ask they be completed by Saturday, May 1.
On Saturday, May 1 at 10:00 am, Father Mike Gabriel will lead a Zoom meeting for kids and families. Fr Mike Gabriel will talk about the symbols of baptism and give the First Communicants a chance to talk about their banners.
There will be an in-person rehearsal for First Communion on Thursday, May 6 at 6:30 pm in the church. Lasting about an hour, the kids will practice the processional, recessional, and how to come forward for Communion. Families are asked to bring the banner they made, it will be hung on the pew reserved for your Communicant and family. The banners will stay at church until after the First Communion Mass.
First Communion 2021
Registration for First Communion is FULL
First Communion will be celebrated on the Saturday before Mother’s Day, Saturday, May 8 at 10:00 am. Families of those students making their First Communion this year were asked to register to attend the celebration. The Mass is now FULL. Please call the Rectory office at 773.764.3621 with questions.
As always, attendees will need to wear masks and follow our COVID protocols, including using the Granville entrance to the church, checking in, having temperatures taken, being shown where to sit, and maintain safe-distancing protocols by observing the markings on the floor and in the pews which give directions for spacing and traffic flow.
Please note, this Mass will be live-streamed on our parish Facebook page then posted on our parish's YouTube channel.
Live-Stream Info
Our First Communion Mass on Saturday, May 8 at 10:00 am will be live-streamed on our parish Facebook page then posted on our parish's YouTube channel.
First Communion Info
Date Announced for First Communion Celebration for Spring 2021
We will continue our tradition of celebrating First Communion on the Saturday before Mother’s Day, Saturday, May 8. Parent meetings regarding First Reconciliation and First Communion will be held in January.
Students must have completed two full consecutive years of classes either at a Catholic school or by taking Religious Ed before celebrating their First Communion and First Reconciliation.
Please fill out this sacramental form and email it to kchears@stgertrudechicago.org.
Sacramental Forms Required
Please fill out this form and email it to kchears@stgertrudechicago.org.
First Communion
First Communion Info - Saturday, May 8
Sacramental preparation is an integral part of the curriculum for children making their First Communion. Students must have completed two full consecutive years of classes either at a Catholic school or by taking Religious Ed before celebrating their First Communion and First Reconciliation.
First grade is considered the first year of preparation for the Sacraments of First Reconciliation and First Communion, and second grade is the second year of sacramental prep.
Second graders receive First Reconciliation and First Communion in the spring of 2021 (Saturday, May 8) if they have completed two years of classes. Some third graders who attended Religious Ed for the first time in the 2019-2020 school year will also make their First Communion.
