Year 1 led a beautiful Celebration of the Word on the theme of Meals, reflecting on the special meals we share and the most important meal of all – the Mass.

Through prayers, songs, and scripture, the children thought about how Jesus shared meals with his friends and gave us the gift of the Eucharist. They shared their own memories of special meals with family and friends, reminding us of the joy of coming together.

Year 4 has been learning about the celebration of Mass as part of the Eucharist topic.  We visited Fr Bill in church who took us into the chapel to explain in more detail the parts of the Mass and what happens at each stage of the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

Fr Bill showed the children some of the books used throughout the Liturgy of the Word and the sacred vessels used in the Liturgy of the Eucharist.  They were even allowed to taste the unconsecrated host.

The children were very knowledgeable and asked lots of good questions.

Year 4 invited Mrs Brown, a member of the parish and former dinner lady of St Bede’s, to come and talk to them about the role of the laity in St Bede’s parish.

Mrs Brown talked to the children about what she does in church and the role of the laity in the parish.  She also gave the children a Mass sheet and talked them through the various roles that parishioners undertake throughout the Mass.

Mrs Brown spoke to the children about the various roles within the parish.  These include:

• Sacristans – People who get the altar ready for Mass.
• Welcomers – Someone who greets people at the door of the church.
• Altar servers (there are 2 servers who carry the candles and 1 who carries the crucifix).
• Readers – the main reader (who processes in with the priest and altar servers). The 1^st person reads the First reading and psalm and the 2^nd persons reads the Second reading and the Bidding Prayers.
• Offertory – parishioners who take the gifts of bread and wine to the priest.
• Parishioners who do the collection during the Offertory – money raised goes towards raising money for the church.
• Eucharistic Ministers – who share the body and blood of Christ with the congregation.
• Catechists – People who help children and young people prepare for their First Holy Communion and Confirmation.
• Stewards – show people where to sit.
• Choir and Organist
• Bulletin preparation – people are involved in preparing, printing and folding the newsletter.
• Flower arranger
• Volunteer – takes food and money that has been collected from parishioners in the coffee mornings to the food bank
• Funeral Server – Master of Ceremonies – carries the cross at funerals

Some of the Year 4 children made their First Reconciliation yesterday evening – they were a little nervous initially but came away from their chat with Fr Bill full of smiles.  We were all so proud of them!

Year 1 explored the story of the Christingle and created their own as part of our Advent preparations. We began by learning about Bishop John de Watteville, who shared the first Christingle with children in his village to teach them about God’s promises.

Through the story, we discovered that:

• The orange represents the world, created by God and full of goodness.
• The red ribbon wrapped around the orange symbolises God’s love encircling the world.
• The four sticks symbolise the four seasons, and the treats on them remind us of the gifts God provides.
• The candle signifies Jesus, the Light of the World, shining in dark places.

The children thoroughly enjoyed making their own Christingles, carefully assembling each part and reflecting on its meaning. We concluded our lesson with a special Christingle Celebration of the Word, where we shared the story of the Christingle and talked about how we can share God’s love with others.

The flickering light of the candles reminded us all of the importance of kindness and hope, especially during this season of Advent.