Diocesan inspection report said:
Pupils’ response to the present school prayer opportunities is outstanding, in terms of willingness to participate and a real sense of engagement in the life of the Spirit.’
Our Mission at St. Mary’s
Learning to live out our calling with compassion and love.
‘Christ has no body on earth but ours; ours are the hands through which He heals; ours are His eyes, His feet, His lips; ours are the hearts through which He loves.’
As part of our calling to carry out God’s work on earth, we seek to draw our inspiration from periods of worship and reflection. These spiritual moments are essential to build the strength needed to carry out our vocation in today’s world.
Collective Worship refers not only to whole school gatherings but to those acts of worship which take place in a number of different settings and groupings of people in and around the school:
Assembly
An assembly is a gathering of people. Strictly speaking, it is not a religious activity and is a means of communicating information to a group of people.
We take part in weekly assemblies where we reflect on the Sunday Gospel. We each write a mission task to show how we are going to live out our calling in relation to the Gospel reading.
Prayer and Liturgy
Liturgy is the worship lived and practiced by the Church. Liturgy encompasses all of the seasonal elements of the Church’s year (The Liturgical Year), the structure of daily prayer, specific rites such as the Funeral Mass and the celebration of the Sacraments. For schools, Liturgy is worship which incorporates elements of the rites and rituals, signs and symbols of the Church.
We conduct weekly worships in each classroom, with themes selected and planned by the children. Look at some examples of these below…
Prayer and Liturgy Gallery
We follow the four part structure of:
Mass
For Catholics, the Mass is central to practice of the faith. At Mass, the Last Supper is remembered but also recreated. Bread and wine are transformed into the body and blood of Christ. This belief (transubstantiation) is what distinguishes us from many other Christians. This sacrament is above all others because as members of the Church, “We receive the Body of Christ and are increasingly being transformed into the Body of Christ.”
Prayer
Deepen a personal relationship with God, prayer will help the pupils to become aware of God’s presence in their lives and of His love for them, by leading them to respond to Him.
Prayer Bags
We recently launched our wonderful prayer bags for children to take home each week and share in meaningful prayer and liturgies with their families. We ask that families try to link their prayer session to either something close to their hearts or the Liturgical Seasons.
Prayer and Liturgy Guidance
Amazing Examples of Home Liturgies
Year 1
Somdolma and Dougie
Year 2
Florence and Jack
Year 3
Jathusa and Sydney
Year 4
Elizabeth and Mason
Year 5
Janetta and Jeevan
Year 6
Kezia and Gab
✨ Year 6 Celebration of the Word – Theme: Family ✨
Today, our Year 6 pupils took part in a beautiful Celebration of the Word focused on the theme of family.
As part of the reflection, each child was invited to go outside and choose one stick, bringing it back to place on the prayer table. These twigs came together to form the branches of our Year 6 family tree.
While placing their twig, the children paused to think of a family member they wanted to pray for – someone special to them, someone they love or someone they felt needed a little extra prayer today.
The finished family tree became a symbol of how each person is an important and valued part of something bigger. 🌳❤️
A simple but powerful reminder that, just like the branches of a tree, we are all connected, supported and strengthened by our families.
#y6stm #celebrationofthewordstm #prayerandliturgystm … See MoreSee Less
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🙏Remembrance Day Celebration of the Word🙏
Today, each class held a Remembrance Day Celebration of the Word.
Earlier in the day, we observed two minutes of silence to honour and remember those who have died. The children also brought in poppies to remember loved ones, reflecting quietly and prayerfully on their memories.
During our Scripture reading, we were reminded of the hope we have in the resurrection and God’s promise of eternal life.
Each class took time to pray together, and the children took home the Eternal Rest prayer to share with their families, keeping the memory of their loved ones close in their hearts.
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
and let perpetual light shine upon them.
May they rest in peace. Amen.
It was a special day of reflection, prayer and hope and we are proud of the thoughtful way our children remembered those they love.
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This week, we’ve been focusing our learning on Black History Month. We began with a beautiful Celebration of the Word, where the children reflected on inspirational figures from Black History and on St Paul’s message that we are all one body in Christ Jesus. The children then wrote about the kind of future they hope for and joined their ideas together to create our paper chain prayers – now proudly displayed on our prayer area. #prayerandliturgystm #celebrationofthewordstm #BlackHistoryMonth … See MoreSee Less
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Today, Year 5 have taken part in a ‘Celebration of the Word’ about Creation.
We reflected on the words from the Book of Genesis and said a collective prayer about the wonderful things that God has given us.
The children were sent forth with a mission to:
“Take care of God’s Creation.”
Thank you to Freddie, Emia, Jessica and Jewel, who led these in their classrooms.
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Good evening,
Starting from this week, I will be sending out a PDF document of 'The Wednesday Word – A Gift to you and your family from your Catholic School.' This is a resource based on the previous Sunday's Gospel that can be shared as a family.
Please note this is by no means compulsory and is not a homework task that needs to be handed into school but it is a lovely way to engage with God's word as a family.
There are also some activities such as word searches etc. for the children to enjoy.
Thank you,
Mrs. Wrigley
wednesday-word.paperturn-view.com/thankfulness?pid=MTA101634&v=186.9
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Thankfulness – Magazine – Page 1
wednesday-word.paperturn-view.com
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This week, Year 2 came together to celebrate the season of Harvest. It is a time to give thanks for the abundance of food that God provides and to remember those who work tirelessly on land and sea to nourish us. #year2stm #celebrationofthewordstm #prayerandliturgystm … See MoreSee Less
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