All students start each day with Sacred Time either in their form group or in their weekly Collective Sacred Time Assembly. We believe that starting each day in prayer is important because it is where we receive our strength and nourishment for the day ahead. Sacred Time also gives us the opportunity to join together as a community to worship and reflect. We recognise that each student is on a unique faith journey, and we meet them where they are, encouraging them to explore questions of purpose and faith through Sacred Time.
Our carefully planned programme for Sacred Time allows our students to explore their own spirituality and faith through a calendar of themes that follows the Liturgical Year of the Church and includes important national or international events. You can find a link to our whole school Sacred Time Calendar below.
So that all members of our community, particularly our parents and carers, can be involved in the prayer life of St Cuthbert’s, please see our Sacred Time Rota and resources below. We encourage all parents and carers to talk about and reflect on the themes of our weekly Sacred Time.
Each year group has a Collective Sacred Time Assembly every week. These are planned and lead by a variety of staff members or by our students themselves. Our Collective Sacred Time Assemblies follow the same pattern each morning and are a celebration of the word of God. The central part of each assembly is the proclamation of the Gospel reading that was read in all Catholic Churches worldwide at Mass the Sunday before. This sharing of the Gospel allows our school to connect to the universal Catholic community. Once the Gospel has been shared, we explore and reflect upon its meaning and message for us today.
The pattern we follow during our Collective Sacred Time is:
Gather: Gather together as a community as one with God. Creating a sense of a special time of prayer. Music may be played or a hymn sung. The sign of the cross is made and the Sacred Time candle is lit on the sacred space focal point at the front.
Word: The Gospel reading is read, which is at the heart of our time together.
Response: We explore the meaning of the Gospel reading and how it applies to our lives. This is done through a variety of mediums such as stories, videos, dramas, music, examples of real people, silent reflection, etc.
Send: We finish our time together as year group by thinking about how we can respond to Jesus’ teachings and apply it to our lives. This may involve making a promise and reflecting on the difference we are going to make. We conclude with a final prayer before the Head of Year gives messages and addresses their year.
Having time to pray and worship is an embedded part of morning form time routines here at St. Cuthbert’s. Sacred Time resources follow the theme of the week and include a variety of styles of prayer. We make use of traditional Catholic prayers, for example Lectio Divina. We also use music, video, story, real life situations and modern styles of prayer to ensure that Sacred Time is relevant, accessible and engaging for all students, regardless of their own worldview. Form Sacred Time is often planned and led by our students themselves.
