Through him,
with him and in him,
O God, almighty Father,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all glory and honour is yours,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
At the heart of our school life is joining Christ in praising the Eternal Father and, through the Holy Spirit, offering prayer and intercession for the world. Our daily prayer and liturgy not only honour God but also shape the spiritual and moral lives of both pupils and staff.
At St Michaels Roman Catholic Primary School, there is a range of prayer and liturgy: classroom prayer, meditation, assemblies, devotions, special services for times in the school year, and celebrations of Mass and the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
What is prayer?
"lifting up of the hearts and minds to God"
Mother Teresa described prayer as: “To think of God with love”
Prayer is simply a conversation with God—just like that daily conversation with someone we love. God wants to be close to us and have an intimate, safe, trust-based relationship with us. He is concerned and interested about what goes on in our lives. As with any conversation, we need to both talk and listen when we are praying.
Children need to be given the language of prayer and taught how to be still so that they can listen to God. They should be taught to pray in a range of different ways and for a variety of purposes. They should know that prayer can be silent or said aloud; prayers can be formal or informal; they can be learnt or made up. We can pray with our voices, our hearts or our minds.
There are 4 main types of prayer: Praise, Thanksgiving, Repentance and Intercession
Praise | Praising God for all His goodness | |
Thanksgiving | Saying thank you for our many gifts. | |
Repentance | Saying sorry for our sins | |
Intercession | Asking for ourselves and for others. Asking God to help us to be the best we can, to look after people etc. |