RE at St Thomas More School

This is what I wrote last year (my, how time flies! Which is what our priest was saying at church today – Advent is a time of waiting, but then we look back and ask where has the time gone?!):

An Advent Calendar is a popular way of counting down the days to Christmas. Nowadays, many Advent Calendars are filled with chocolate, and are decorated with popular cartoon characters, but traditionally they have a picture of a nativity scene, and each window opens to reveal a small image that has something to do with the story of the first Christmas.

Here is a link to the Woodlands Junior School’s Advent Calendar. By visiting this calendar each day, you will learn more about Christmas around the world.

There is also an interactive Advent Calendar aimed at younger pupils – perhaps you have a younger brother or sister who would enjoy playing the games on this calendar?

Finally, you could visit the Culham Institute’s 2007 Advent Calendar When you click on the day, you find out more about St Nicholas, as well as revealing part of an icon of that saint. There is then a link to an Advent activity. For the 2008 Christmas feast, click here. For the 2009 Advent Calendar, the Yule Lads and Lasses, click here.

You can find many more Advent resources on the REEP Advent Resources page.

An historical Advent calendar can be found at the Geffrye Museum.

Have fun – and happy Advent!

(The photo above was taken from the Calendars for Christmas website.)

You can watch TV programmes with a religious or ethical theme, or listen to relevant radio programmes, by clicking here. Leave a comment if you find anything particularly good!

I’m afraid it’s a bit late, but I hope you all had a happy Easter! Click here to read the BBC’s page on Easter. Click here to read the BBC’s school page on Easter, which has other links to help you learn more about Easter.

Today is Good Friday, the day that Christians remember Jesus dying for them on their cross. For more information, have a look at this BBC link.

The Catholic Church has named Archbishop Vincent Nichols, who is currently the Archbishop of Birmingham, as the new Archbishop of Westminster. Archbishop Vincent will take over from Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor as the new leader of the Catholic Church in England and Wales. You can read more about this new appointment here, at the BBC website.

The Diocese of Westminster is holding a competition to encourage young people to write about their faith. The first prize is a cheque for £200. The competition is for young people aged 16-19. The Diocese website writes:

On the theme of ‘My Faith Matters’, if you are aged between 16 and 19, it offers you a chance to write about what your Catholic faith means to you and why it is important to the way you live your life in the 21st Century. The Writing Competition is open to all Catholic young people aged between 16 and 19 who either live or study in the Diocese of Westminster.

The rules are:

1. You must be over 16 or under 19 years of age on 1 August 2009

2. The title of your article must be ‘My Faith Matters’ and it should be on the theme of why your Catholic faith is important to you.

3. The article must be no longer than 1,000 words and should be typed, include a word count and be submitted on A4 paper.

4. The article must be sent by post, to arrive no later than 1 August 2009, to: WR Writing Competition, Archbishop’s House, Ambrosden Avenue, London SW1P 1QJ

5. The article must be accompanied by a completed entry form which can be found below.

6. If you require acknowledgement of your entry, you must enclose a stamped addressed envelope. Entries will not be returned, so please keep a copy!

7. The Diocese of Westminster reserves the right to publish the winning entries in its newspapers, websites or other media/publications.

8. The winning entries will be announced no later than 30 September 2009.

For more information, and to download the entry form, visit the Diocesan Website.

I hope you have all made good use of your Snow Day today … and I am sure by now you will have heard that there will be no school tomorrow (Tuesday) either. Enjoy! (And if you have GCSEs coming up … Revise!)

An Advent Wreath is another popular symbol used during the four weeks of Advent. You could make your own one at home, or perhaps your form class could make one. My church gave out instructions on how to make an Advent Wreath, so I am going to share them with you, in case you want to make one too.

You will need the following items, many of which can be bought from a florist:

1 plate sized base.
An oasis, which you will need to fit into the base, then soak well.
4 candle holders, which will fit into the oasis.
Some evergreen leaves, cut into small pieces, which will fill up the oasis and round the base.
A piece of purple ribbon, to tie around the base.

(If you can’t get those items, why not make your own Advent Wreath like this one?

This is the meaning of the Advent wreath:

1. The circle is a symbol of eternity. God has no beginning and no ending.
2. The evergreen is a symbol of the never changing love of God. He always loves us.
3. The four candles – there is one candle for each week of Advent. As Christmas draws nearer the light gets stronger. The light is a symbol of Christ, the Light of the World.
4. The purple ribbon (and the purple vestments worn in church) is a sign of the pain of our longing for Jesus’ Spirit to come into our lives, so that we may be like him, a little light leading people to God.

You could use the Advent wreath at home in the following way:

1. The family gathers around the wreath.
2. The candle(s) is (are) lit by one member of the family. (Take turns!)
3. A hymn is sung.
4. Each member of the family prays.
5. Pause for thought.
6. All say the Our Father and the Hail Mary.

This is taken from my church newsletter:

During the season of Advent we think about the coming of Jesus into our world. The readings on Sundays are taken from the parts of the Bible which tell us about God’s special people, the Jews, longing and waiting for the Messiah. This name means Saviour, that is, someone who saves and makes whole. We know that Jesus is the Saviour and he has shown us how we can be saved. We believe that he is Risen and Alive, helping us to be saved. We allow him to come among us every time we are forgiving, kind and patient. We meet him in others when they are kind to us.

Let us, during these four weeks of Advent, help to bring Jesus to everyone we meet by sharing our love with them. After all, Jesus said: “Whatever you do to others you do to me.”

Have a fun and happy Advent!

An Advent Calendar is a popular way of counting down the days to Christmas. Nowadays, many Advent Calendars are filled with chocolate, and are decorated with popular cartoon characters, but traditionally they have a picture of a nativity scene, and each window opens to reveal a small image that has something to do with the story of the first Christmas.

Here is a link to the Woodlands Junior School’s Advent Calendar. By visiting this calendar each day, you will learn more about Christmas around the world.

There is also an interactive Advent Calendar aimed at younger pupils – perhaps you have a younger brother or sister who would enjoy playing the games on this calendar?

Finally, you could visit the Culham Institute’s 2007 Advent Calendar (I can’t seem to find a 2008 one yet – perhaps someone could help me out?) When you click on the day, you find out more about St Nicholas, as well as revealing part of an icon of that saint. There is then a link to an Advent activity.

You can find many more Advent resources on the REEP Advent Resources page.

An historical Advent calendar can be found at the Geffrye Museum.

Have fun – and happy Advent!

(The photo above was taken from the Calendars for Christmas website.)

Here is a link to the Diocese of Bath and Wells’ annual Jesse Tree. Jesse was one of the ancestors of Jesus, and the tree is used to remind us of the story of God’s relationship with the world, from the creation of the world to the coming of Jesus at Christmas.

Here is the “Jesse Tree prayer”. Perhaps you could say it with your family or your class?

Thank you, God, for our family.
Help us as a family this Advent season to prepare to celebrate Jesus’ birthday at Christmas. As we think about his family tree, may we grow to love him more and to love our own family more. Amen.

(I found the image at this website. If you follow the link, you can find out more about the Bible readings and the symbols for each day during Advent. Why not make your own Jesse Tree?)