Friends on the Way
Children’s Catechumenate Resource

Everything your children’s catechumenate catechists need to feel confident they are teaching the faith of the church.

free sample

benefits

A simple, concrete, comprehensive catechesis for child catechumens

Designed for your child catechumens: This isn’t an adaptation of something originally designed for adults or Catholic sacramental preparation. It has been written, from the ground up, for unbaptized child catechumens.
Comprehensive: The program includes a dismissal session and a catechetical session for every Sunday of the liturgical year. In the course of the year, children learn about the entire mystery of faith.
Flexible: Each unit is designed so that you can proceed to the catechetical session immediately after the dismissal session on Sunday. Or you can facilitate the catechetical session sometime later in the week.
Intergenerational: We all know that older, unbaptized children often have parents who might need a good deal of formation themselves. Every session of Friends on the Way includes an optional intergenerational activity to help the parents help their children grow in faith plus a take-home handout for families to use at home to help them pray, share faith, and live that faith in their household.

Engaging: Author and designer Janet Miller has been teaching children for 45 years. She serves in the children’s initiation ministry in her parish. And she has 10 grandchildren! She knows how to keep a child’s interest.
Easy to use: The sessions are clearly outlined and include illustrations when necessary. You can put this in the hands of your children’s RCIA catechists and have confidence they will succeed.
Scriptural and liturgical. Every dismissal and catechetical session flows from the Sunday readings of the liturgical year.
Linked to the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Every catechetical session includes a direct reference to the Catechism.
Economical: Because it is sold as an e-resource, production costs are low. Sessions are sent to you as download links. You have them on your computer and may use them as needed year after year. You only pay for them once. And your purchase entitles you to make as many copies as you need for use within your own parish.

How Friends on the Way works

In this 50-minute video, Janet Miller provides an overview of the great features of Friends on the Way with lots of Q & A from the participants on children’s catechumenate issues.

What others are saying about Friends on the Way

Thank you for creating this. Since the resource we had been using has been discontinued, we have been putting together sessions from multiple sources which is time-consuming and confusing. Thank you so much for putting it all together in one resource.

— Charlene Dumitru
Director of Adult Faith Formation and RCIA
St. Norbert Church, Orange, CA

I checked out the resource, and I love it! This is an answer to prayer.

— Terri McDermott
Youth Group Coordinator
St. Joseph Church, Philadelphia, PA

Meet Janet Miller

Janet Miller is the author and designer of Friends on the Way: A Children’s Catechumenate Resource.

She has an MA in Catechetics from Santa Clara University, and she brings 45 years of faith formation experience to this project. Some of her many roles have included being a catechumenate and liturgy director, faith formation facilitator, Catholic school teacher, and facilitator for catechist, youth ministry, diaconate, and master catechist formation.

Janet shared her knowledge of the children’s initiation process by writing for and editing Celebrating the Lectionary. She is the author of Family Advent-ures, Family Prayers and Activities: Weekly Guides and Catechizing For Justice: A Six-Session Program To Promote the Gospel Mission. She is the lead editor of FaithDays! and Forming Ministers for Whole Community Faith Formation, selected by the Library of Congress for its social significance.

Janet has contributed to publications including Ministry and Liturgy, Catechist Connection, and Eucharistic Ministry. She was a regular panelist and guest host on the television program Breaking Open the Word and featured on Yesterday, Today, and Forever and Grapevine on KNXT, Fresno. She has been a speaker at the East Coast Conference on Religious Education and at ministry formation conferences for the dioceses of Alaska and the diocese of Oakland.

Janet has been married for 40 years, raised four children, and helps with ten grandchildren. With faith formation a top priority, she currently serves with the children’s initiation team for St. Joseph parish in Los Banos, California.