St. Joseph's Academy November 28th Weekly Newsletter 2014

Ben Davis, Acting Headteacher Grassyards Rd Kilmarnock KA3 7SL

ST. JOSEPH’S ACADEMY Weekly Newsletter

01563 526144

ISSUE 10.3

www.saintjosephsacademy.co.uk Twitter: @StJoAcad

NOVEMBER 28TH 2014

INSPIRE AND TRANSFORM: NURTURING FAITH-FILLED WORLD CLASS LEARNING

FOR PARENTS, CARERS, FAMILIES & PARISHES

Our Girls’ Singing Group, supported by Mr. Cowan and Mrs. Todd, performs for the Interfaith Scotland conference held at the Grand Hall, Kilmarnock,for the launch of Interfaith Week.

A Week of Interfaith Prayers

Thursday: A Muslim prayer

From Tuesday - Friday we prayed using an adapted prayer from other faiths and included our usual daily intention..

This was contributed by Maryam Chaudry in S5. In the prayer we have changed the word ‘Allah’ to ‘God’. The prayer is called the Rakat of Nafal of Thankfulness.

Tuesday: A Hindu prayer.

All praise is for God with whose blessing all good things happen and are completed. All praise is for God in all situations. All praise is to God, the Lord of the World.

May all in this world be happy, may they be healthy, may they be comfortable and never miserable. May the rain come down in the proper time, may the earth yield plenty of corn, may the country be free from war, may our faith be secure.

Daily intention: former pupils who have passed away Wednesday: A Buddhist prayer.

May those frightened cease to be afraid and may those bound be free. May the powerless find power and may people think of befriending one another. May those who find themselves in trackless, fearful wildernesses - the children, the aged, the unprotected - be guarded by angels.

Special intention: peace and understanding between people of different faiths Friday: A Bahai’ prayer.

Be generous in prosperity and thankful in adversity. Be fair in your judgment, and guarded in your speech. Be a lamp for those who walk in darkness and a home to the stranger. Be eyes to the blind, and a guiding light for the feet of the lost. Be a breath of life to the body of humankind, a dew to the soil of the human ear and a fruit upon the tree of humility.

Special intention: Scotland and it’s people

Special intention: Bishop-elect Nolan

Nine Lives of Roddy Hogg We were delighted to welcome to the school the company theatre & who performed for us an excellent and thought-provoking play entitled ‘The Nine Lives of Roddy Hogg.’

The story centres on a young man whose sister is killed in a road accident. It cuts between simple family moments and reflections on life before and after the crash. In doing so it encourages pupils to consider their attitudes to road safety and the part they can play in keeping themselves and others safer.

All of S1 were shown the play and they responded very well to the mix of humour, music, hard-hitting statistics and visuals that combined to deliver a powerful message. The play was followed by a question and answer session that afforded the pupils an

opportunity to explore some of the issues in greater depth and interact with the cast.

Road safety is a key part of the Curriculum for Excellence Health and Wellbeing experiences and outcomes.

If you are the parent of a child in S1 we would strongly encourage you to discuss the content and message of the play with your son or daughter as part of a wider discussion about road safety and sensible conduct around traffic.

Each year, in Scotland the greatest number of road deaths occur to young men in the 16-24 age group., often in rural areas. The play aims to prevent the behaviour that leads to such tragedy.

Pictured above is the cast of the play with a number of S1 pupils.

THE BIG PICTURE: THIS WEEK AROUND THE SCHOOL

Character education in Modern Languages: S1 posters in French on inspirational people

Working on the Day of the Dead in S2 Spanish

THE BIG PICTURE: THIS WEEK AROUND THE SCHOOL S4 pupil Coby Malcolm was a ballboy at the recent Scotland v Tonga rugby international at Rugby Park (above and below)

S4 pupil, Blair Gallagher, shows off his icing skills this week

Rockers In Hindsight performed this week to S1 and S2 pupils entertaining them as well as teaching them about their rights and responsibilities to stay safe online.

THE BIG PICTURE: THIS WEEK AROUND THE SCHOOL Type to enter text

Paul Murray (S6, right) and Matthew Cowan (S5) who performed in the annual Rotary Club Young Musician competition at the High Laigh Kirk. Both were commended for their excellence.

THE BIG PICTURE: THIS WEEK AROUND THE SCHOOL

Our excellent volleyball team, unbeaten East Ayrshire Champions after a series of wins at the competition at Stewarton Academy.

Our girls’ netball team - defeated but happy.

Showing great character and positivity.

S4 Basketball team stop press: the boys were narrowly defeated 50 - 42 by an older team from Kilmarnock College.

Very proud of them all! (team not pictured)

IMPORTANT DATES...................................................................

December 16th Christmas Concert, 7 pm

December 2nd Christmas Fair, 7 pm

December 17th Strictly Come Dancing

December 9th Interdisciplinary Learning

event

Day (S6)

December 19th School closes for

December 9th Christmas Fun Night, 7 pm

Christmas holiday, 1 pm.

WEEKLY HOME ROOM REFLECTION: INTERFAITH WEEK This week, across Scotland we celebrate Interfaith Week, the theme of which is Journeys of Faith. It is all too easy to have a very negative view of faith and religion – many people see them as the source of much of the conflict and unhappiness in the world. Certainly, the violence and inhumanity we witness in parts of the Middle East and Africa, for example, would seem to confirm this view. Much closer to home the UK has seen the impact of sectarianism and religious hatred, most notably in Northern Ireland. Interfaith week challenges us in a positive way, however, to embrace five themes: friendship, co-operation, dialogue, respect and understanding. Imagine how different things would be if those five words replaced ‘hatred’, ‘conflict’, ‘isolation’, ‘disdain’ and ‘ignorance’. We all have a reasonable expectation that our voices will be heard, we will be listened to and respected, regardless of our faith, background or point-of-view, so we must extend the same openness to other people. As a Catholic school our faith asks that we extend a hand of friendship to others, that we listen without judging and that we show unconditional love. The same values exist in other faiths and religions (as the Golden Rule poster demonstrates) and Interfaith Week is an ideal opportunity for us to dwell on common ideas and shared values, to build bridges between communities rather than repeat the mistakes of the past and focus on differences. All religions share a commitment to working for the greater good, to being part of something greater than ourselves, to showing love and care for others and for the world around us and to trying to understand the journey we all make through life. Rather than making this journey by ourselves, we should try to make it together with others of different faiths and be aware of our common humanity. Let us pray: We pray for people of all faiths, and those of none, that, bound by common values and a desire to work for a better world, we are all able to unite in peace, whilst understanding and celebrating our differences. Amen PARISH MASS TIMES St. Matthew’s: 9.30 am, Fr. Chambers !

St. Michael’s: 4.30 pm (vigil) ! !

St. Paul’s: 11.30 am, Fr. Chambers !

St. Sophia’s: 6.00 pm (vigil) Fr. Chambers St. Francis Xavier, Patna: 5.00 pm (vigil)!

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St. Joseph’s: 6.00 pm (vigil), 11.00 am Fr. Latham Our Lady of Mount Carmel: 9.30 am, Fr. McGhee Our Lady of Lourdes and St. Patrick: 6.00 pm (vigil), Fr. McGrattan St. Thomas the Apostle: 9.00 am, Fr. McGrattan St. John the Evangelist: 10.45 am, Fr. McGrattan