Assemblies

Assemblies are an excellent opportunity to come together as a school community and hear to Word of God. Each assembly is based on the Sunday reading of the week and is linked to various catholic values and mission of the school. All assemblies end with a prayer and mission for our students to fulfil.

Assemblies are regularly led by pupils. The Yr12 Catholic leadership recently led an assembly on Red Wednesday, a day to spread awareness of today’s persecuted Christians.

 

 

Students from the Y13 prefect team presenting on a topic that is very important and close to our hearts; St Josephine Bakhita and Modern Day Slavery. We feel that it is essential to make everyone aware about this as it is a big issue in our society today.

 

Yr13 Leadership team led assemblies on the Beatitudes, and how they reveal the Christian pathway to obtain happiness, each leader spoke on their 2 favourite teachings. Jessica spoke on our calling to be poor in spirit, to know we need God in every aspect of our lives and His desire for us to completely lean on him.  

 

Liturgies

A liturgy is a collective prayer, during the high points of the churches liturgical calendar such as Advent and Lent, we mark the period with a whole school liturgy, a period of time to reflect on the season. Annually we have a Christmas, Ash Wednesday, Good Friday and End of year liturgy for all students.

Christmas Liturgy

On the last day of term all students attended a Christmas Liturgy in anticipation of Christmas day reflecting on why Jesus chose to come to humanity as a babe child.  

 

After the gospel reading, a number of students performed a ‘Spoken Word’, a modern spin of the Christmas story set in Hackney!  

 

The school choir ended the liturgy with singing a powerful Latin hymn ‘Gaudete’. 

 

Ash Wednesday liturgy

Ash Wednesday marks our first day of Lent, a period of 40 days that focuses on prayer, fasting almsgiving. Students receive ashes on their foreheads and reflect on the words ‘You are dust and to dust you shall return’ 

Our liturgy started off with acknowledging the Lord of all creation with the hymn ‘I the Lord of sea and sky’.   

 

The gospel was proclaimed by a student in each year group and reflection was delivered by the school Chaplain.  

 

Students and staff were invited to receive ashes on their foreheads and reflect on the words ‘Repent and believe in the Gospel’. 

 

The talented choir sang Ava Maria as the students left the liturgy to embark on their own personal 40 days in the wilderness.    

Good Friday ‘The Passion’ Liturgy

The whole school reflects on the theme of sacrifice and compassion in our Lenten services. Last year a group of our students performed a powerful piece of poetry ‘One man didn’t’ in addition to ‘The Passion’ play.