Adult Faith Formation

Baptismal Preparation

Sessions are offered on an as-needed basis. All first-time parents are required to complete a session prior to the baptism of their child. Call the Parish Office at 724-863-2626 to register for a session.

Marriage Preparation

Marriage preparation in the parish is offered in the form of either the “Sponsor Couple” program (a one-on-one program meeting with a Sponsor Couple) or Engaged Encounter Weekends (available several times a year and at a cost to the couple).

As soon as a couple is ready to start planning their marriage, they should contact the parish office at 724-863-2626 to speak with the priest at least one year in advance of the wedding.

Weddings take place on Saturdays at 2:00 p.m. Couples must also complete their choice of one of two marriage preparation programs available in our Diocese: Sponsor Couple Program (a one-on-one program with a Marriage Sponsor couple) or the Diocesan Engaged Encounter Weekends (available periodically and at a cost to the couple).

Also needed are married couples willing to be trained as “Sponsor Couples” to work with engaged couples.

RCIA – Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults

Are you searching for…
A deeper understanding of God?
A faith community?
A greater sense of purpose and meaning for your life?

Have you been curious…
About the difference between the Catholic and Protestant Bibles?
About why priests cannot marry?
Or why women are not ordained?
About how Catholics relate to Mary and the saints?
What Catholics believe about same-sex marriage, homosexuality, or contraception, and why?

Sign up for our RCIA program and get the answers to these questions and more.  The program involves weekly meetings from September through Easter with our RCIA team and others interested in learning more about the church.  While it is the formal program for initiation into the Catholic Faith, the ultimate decision to join the church is not made until the end of the sessions just before the Easter season.

For more information on the next RCIA session and/or the Sacraments of Baptism, First Holy Communion and/or Confirmation, call the Parish Office at 724-863-2626.

Generations of Faith

Generations of Faith provides on-going catechesis and faith formation for children and their parents.  This interactive and hands-on faith formation program meets on one Friday each month (September through May) and includes teachings, activities and take-home projects.  More information can be found on the Family and Youth Faith Formation page.

Occasional and Special Studies

Saint Agnes uses any number of Adult Faith Formation programs throughout the year.  These are usually held on the same evening over several weeks or for several days and involve scripture study or other faith-based content provided by a Catholic organization or speaker.  We also use Flocknote to deliver mini-courses on subjects such as “40 days to Lent,” Novenas, “Facts about (Pope) Francis,” “American Catholic History,” and more.  Some of these have been saved and can be viewed individually on our Flocknote site.  We also have the content for several should courses saved here on our web site.  Please feel free to enjoy any or all of the following:

• Deacon Bill’s Diary: short talks on Catholic living – our permanent deacon Bill Wilson shares his wisdom on Faith at Work, the Call to Conversion, God and Money, and a reflection on Adoration.
• The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults – is information about the steps a person may take while contemplating becoming a Catholic.
• Unraveling the Mysteries of Holy Mass – is an in depth look at the Mass and the Eucharist which was written by parishioner Ray Takacs as part of his formal theological studies.  Ray made it into a presentation for fellow parishioners and developed it into a short self-study mini-course.