In Holy Week and Easter Week school communities across the state gathered to mark the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
At St Joseph’s, Hectorville, children, staff, family members including grandparents came together to pray the Stations of the Cross and for Easter celebrations. Christians have used this very special prayer for hundreds of year as they recall what happened to Jesus along the way to his crucifixion and resurrection.
At St Joseph’s, each class from Reception to Year 4 prepared a station and students from Year 5 to Year 7 narrated. A prayerful liturgical dance was included after the 12th Station, where we recall Jesus' death on the cross and his resurrection. Some children shared their responses to their preparation and participation:
“Acting out something Holy in Holy Week is very special. It helped to know what it was like for Jesus”, said Lucas.
“I understood what happened to Jesus and ….. it helped us to think about how Mary felt, when she saw her son Jesus suffer”, said Kayla.
“It was very good to act a part in the Stations and some children had never had that opportunity before. We acted the part of the women who loved Jesus”, said Zarah, Harper, Daniella and Isabella.
“When dancing El Shaddai, we wanted it to flow, be slow and reflective, peaceful and prayerful”, said Mikayla and Alyssia.
In this Easter week schools are celebrating Easter, including Resurrection prayer times, liturgies as well as sending their contributions to Caritas Australia in response to Project Compassion.
Four Catholic schools across South Australia have been awarded $6.34 million in grants for capital works to improve learning spaces, increase opportunities for disadvantaged students and cater for more diverse learning needs.
The State Government grants — $6.34 million for Catholic schools and $6.38 million for independent schools — are for building projects to commence over the next year.
Introduced in 2018 to ensure all students have access to a first-class education, the latest funding under the scheme has been approved for four projects at Catholic schools and 103 smaller projects at independent schools.
