Why teaching the sacraments still belongs in our schools

If sacramental preparation moves out of schools, the first and hardest hit will be those on the margins—the children whose families are already struggling with poverty, instability or fractured relationships with the Church writes Roisín Coll

My final class of the semester met this week. It was a room full of soon-to-qualify Catholic primary teachers, all about to begin their final twelve-week placement in school. We were closing our course on teaching the sacraments and the atmosphere had that unmistakable ‘end-of-semester’ intensity-the kind that appears when students realise they might soon be assessed teaching a P4 First Communion class and their own theological competence is about to become very real.

Their frustration is understandable. Every May, churches are filled with families who may not return the following Sunday”

Halfway through the session, one student relayed a story she’d heard from a friend: a parish priest refusing to allow children to receive First Communion because he had never seen them at Mass. What followed was not the gentle academic conversation I expected but a full-blown debate. Opinions flew. Assumptions were challenged. And, mercifully, much of what they said drew directly on the principles we had studied all semester. (At least something had gone in.)

For decades, schools have been the heart of sacramental preparation. First Confession, First Holy Communion and Confirmation are threaded through the life of every Catholic primary school, shaping the rhythm of the year and the identity of the community. In many countries, teachers cannot lead sacramental preparation without a recognised qualification in Catholic Religious Education. Recently, the Irish Bishops even reviewed student teachers’ RE courses to ensure their theological and pedagogical rigour.

Yet a growing number of priests and committed Catholic families now argue that sacramental preparation should be removed from schools altogether and reserved only for children who regularly attend Mass. Their frustration is understandable. Every May, churches are filled with families who may not return the following Sunday. Priests admit to feeling worn down by a kind of “cultural Catholicism” with families approaching each sacrament as a milestone, unaccompanied by any ongoing commitment.

Schools remain the most effective, most inclusive and—yes—most realistic place for preparing young people for the sacraments”

But withdrawing sacramental preparation from schools would be more than a mistake. It would be a theological and pastoral own goal. Schools remain the most effective, most inclusive and—yes—most realistic place for preparing young people for the sacraments. There are three reasons why.

Community—the Church at its best

Pope Francis reminded us that “it takes a village to raise a child.” In sacramental preparation, that village actually appears. School, parish and family gather around a shared purpose, and in that gathering something powerful takes shape: lapsing families can feel welcomed; priests and teachers can collaborate; children can discover that faith is lived, communal and embodied—not a private hobby. Remove preparation from schools and the carefully woven bond between home, school and parish unravels. With it goes a defining marker of Catholic school identity.

Consistency—formation over pot luck

Catholic teachers are trained in both pedagogy and sacramental theology. Their qualification guarantees a baseline of competence that cannot be assumed at parish level. Teachers know how children learn. They know how to translate complex doctrine into meaningful understanding. Shift this entirely to parishes and the landscape becomes uneven overnight. Yes, some parishes will thrive but others will flounder. Children will receive vastly different levels of preparation-the opposite of the Church’s intention.

Justice—the option for the poor made real

If sacramental preparation moves out of schools, the first and hardest hit will be those on the margins—the children whose families are already struggling with poverty, instability or fractured relationships with the Church. Schools hold these children close. They know their stories. They have earned their trust. During sacramental preparation, that trust becomes a pastoral bridge to grace. Remove it, and the sacraments risk becoming the preserve of the already-confident and already-connected. That is not the Gospel.

Of course, the ideal I describe doesn’t always materialise. Priest–teacher relationships can strain. Teachers can feel underprepared. Priests can feel overstretched. These tensions are often cited as proof that sacramental preparation should be taken out of schools.

I believe the opposite. These tensions are precisely why the Church must invest more deeply in supporting teachers, not retreat from them. Strengthen formation. Provide ongoing professional development. Encourage priests to cultivate sustained, not occasional, relationships with schools. Where communication has fractured, repair it. Good leadership-pastoral, patient and mission-focused-can transform sacramental preparation from a burden into a shared ministry of welcome.

If the sacraments truly are encounters with grace, then they must remain moments of invitation, not exclusion. Schools, parishes and families each hold part of the mission. When they work together—even imperfectly—the Church is at its strongest.

Roisín Coll is a Professor of Catholic Education at the University of Glasgow