To celebrate the gift of family and grow in faith through prayer, formation, service and community, these family-friendly days included inspirational talks from Cardinal Collins and families, prayer, praise and worship, Saturday morning Mass, and hands-on activities.

These events were hosted by the Archdiocese of Toronto’s Office of Formation for Discipleship and have included collaboration with our partners in the lay movements: BLD Toronto, Couples for Christ, Focolare, and Teams of Our Lady.

The Office of Formation for Discipleship will continue to partner with parishes and the lay movements to seek out new ways to inspire and enable connections among Catholic families and offer resources to help build the Domestic Church.

Family at the Heart of Formation

Held virtually on Saturday, November 28, 2020

Celebrating the Domestic Church, families across the Archdiocese and in the lay movements gathered on Zoom for Family at the Heart of Formation – our first virtual family festival. Our theme centered on faith formation in the family and developing authentic family culture. 

Our family day began with an interactive meeting of households with praise, singing, dancing, prayer, games, scripture, teaching, and a Q&A session with Cardinal Collins. During the afternoon, families spent offline time together working on family activity challenges. The day closed with a parent session, featuring a talk by lay evangelist, Patrick Sullivan (creator of Me and My House Catholic Parenting Program) and small group discussions on Zoom, to encourage parents in their mission as primary educators of their children in the faith.

Family at the Heart of Prayer

Held on Saturday, June 22, 2019, at St. Maximilian Kolbe Parish in Mississauga

We were so blessed to be joined by families comprising of parents, grandparents, and children from across the Archdiocese and in the lay movements for our Family at the Heart of Prayer festival. Cardinal Collins led us in a Lectio Divina, inspiring us to practice meditating on the scriptures at home as a family. Whether at Mass, during the prayer activities, at lunch, or visiting our exhibitors, families benefited from meeting each other and sharing their faith. It is such an encouragement for families to see the many different ways prayer can be lived out in family life.

The major take-away from this event is that participants are thirsting for more family events like these, whether organized by the Archdiocese, individual parishes, or in the lay movements.

Family at the Heart of Service

Held on Saturday, November 17, 2018, at Our Lady Queen of Poland in Scarborough

Families from across the archdiocese came out to our Family at the Heart of Service festival to listen to inspirational talks from Cardinal Collins and families, to pray together, to enjoy praise and worship, and participate in hands-on service activities. Our service activities encouraged families to grow in the stewardship of time and talent by making rosaries for hospital patients, gifts for other families, care packs for the homeless, and Christmas cards for those helped by St. Vincent de Paul Society.