Activity archive

Why is this our Family Room activity today? The First Reading of today’s Mass reflects how in the early days of the Church, “there was not a needy person among them”, because the early Christians gave their money to the apostles, who shared it with those who needed it most. And Pope Francis’ prayer intention for April urges everyone to pray for those fighting to protect people’s fundamental human rights in all parts of the world.

What does “protecting fundamental human rights for all” mean? All of us, all over the world, are made in the image and likeness of God. And Jesus died for every single one of us, so that we could be with Him in Heaven for all eternity.

Yet in our world there are many people who do not have the same access to food, land, water, education, health care or work that we do – and people whose lives are in danger every day through abuse, wars, human trafficking and slavery.

As Christians, we are called to love, support and protect all people, especially those who are in need.

What can we do as a family? This week, we invite you to have a conversation together as a family about human rights – we have to understand what they are before we can protect them for ourselves and others. You can discuss as a family the small things that you can do together – like contributing to our Soup Run or local Food Banks, walking for water with CAFOD, or petitioning the Prime Minister to make sure the poorest countries of the world are placed at the heart of the COP26 Climate Talks later this year.

What we can all do is pray! We have written this prayer especially for our parish families to celebrate Easter this week.

A special note for First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion families: Chapter 2 (Lord have Mercy) of the “I Belong” book reflects on the stories of Adam and Eve, and the prodigal son, and teaches children about the Penitential Act within the Mass. The family time section includes a word search that highlights mercy, patience, love and kindness – all essential virtues for us when we work to protect the human rights of all people.

Why is this our Family Room activity today? Today is Easter Sunday, which marks the completion of Holy Week.

Why is Easter important? Holy Week is the most important celebration we have in the Catholic faith, and at Easter we remember how Jesus rose from the dead, opening Heaven to all of us so that we can be with him forever.

Jesus died on the cross for each and every one of us, to save us from original sin. His resurrection shows His divine nature as God the Son, and His victory over sin and death for all of us.

What can we do as a family? This week, we invite you to celebrate Easter together as a family. If you have Easter eggs, or hot cross buns, you might like to learn how these treats have a deeper spiritual meaning. You might like to have a conversation about the people who loved Jesus (Our Lady, Mary Magdalene, the Apostles and others), and how happy they must have been to learn of His Resurrection. And we encourage you to do something special to celebrate Easter – whether it’s watching a movie together, preparing a special meal, or having dessert.

What we can all do is pray! We have written this prayer especially for our parish families to celebrate Easter this week.

A special note for First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion families: Chapter 10 (Body of Christ) of the “I Belong” book reflects on the events of Holy Week, and particularly on the Resurrection.

Why is this our Family Room activity today? Today is Palm Sunday, which marks the end of Lent and the beginning of Holy Week, which is completed with the celebration of Easter.

Why is Holy Week important? Holy Week is the most important celebration we have each year as Catholics – it’s even more important than Christmas!

On Palm Sunday (today), we remember Jesus entering Jerusalem before Passover, and our Gospel reading reflects all the events of Holy Week.

On Holy Thursday, we commemorate the Last Supper, when Jesus instituted the Holy Eucharist, and then suffered His Agony in the Garden.

On Good Friday, we follow the sufferings of Jesus, remembering how He carried His cross through Jerusalem to Calvary, and how he was crucified and died to save all of us from our sins.

On Holy Saturday, we begin Easter at the Vigil Mass on Saturday evening – we celebrate how Jesus rose from the dead, opening Heaven to all of us so that we can be with him forever.

What does “preparing for Easter” mean? Preparing for Easter means celebrating Holy Week – not just today, on Palm Sunday, but all throughout the week. It is a way for us to share in the sufferings of Jesus, to accompany Him in our hearts and minds, and to be filled with joy at His resurrection.

What can we do as a family? This week, we invite you to prepare for Easter together as a family. You might like to complete this special Easter colouring page, or to virtually experience this special Stations of the Cross for Children together. And you can have a conversation together as a family about the meaning of Easter.

What we can all do is pray! We have written this prayer especially this week, and invite you to pray it together as a family as you prepare for Easter.

A special note for First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion families: Chapters 9 (Do This in Memory of Me) and 10 (Body of Christ) of the “I Belong” book are focused on the Holy Eucharist, and reflect on the events of Holy Week.

Why is this our Family Room activity today? Friday 19 March was the feast of Saint Joseph. He was the foster father of Jesus, and the husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In 1870, Pope Pius IX named Saint Joseph as the patron of the Catholic Church, and Pope Francis dedicated 2021 as a “Year of Saint Joseph” to celebrate the 150th anniversary of this proclamation.

What does “caring like Saint Joseph”- mean? During his lifetime, Saint Joseph wasn’t rich or famous. He was a carpenter, and his hard work supported Jesus and Mary. He was a refugee, taking his family to Egypt in order to escape from King Herod. He was a man of faith, who believed the message of God’s angel to him that Jesus would save the Jewish people. He was a father, and a husband.

Saint Joseph tried in his ordinary life to be a good father and husband, always acting ‘with a father’s heart’ as it says on the logo for this year of St Joseph, to care for, love and look after Jesus and Mary. For us, ‘caring like Saint Joseph’ means loving those around us, and often putting their needs before what we would like in the things that we do.

What can we do as a family? We invite you to have a conversation this week about Saint Joseph – each person can share a way that they think Joseph cared for Jesus and Mary during his life. Then you can talk together as a family about how you can act ‘with a father’s heart’ towards the people in your own lives.

What we can all do is pray! We have written this prayer especially this week, and invite you to pray it together as a family.

Why is this our Family Room activity today? Today is Mothering Sunday, a day when we remember and celebrate mothers. This special day started hundreds of years ago in the Middle Ages, inspired by the Mass readings for the Fourth Sunday of Lent, also known as Laetare (Rejoicing) Sunday. On Monday 8 March we celebrated International Women’s Day – an event since overshadowed by the tragic murder of Sarah Everard….so this week is a very good time to honour all women.

What does honouring mothers – and women – mean? The concept of honouring someone is to think about and treat them with respect, dignity and admiration, and to give special recognition to them.

What can we do as a family? This week, we invite our families to do something special for Mothering Sunday – whether for a mother, grandmother, aunt, or a woman in your life who is special to you as a family. You might like to make a card, organise a family activity, or a special meal or dessert. We also encourage families to have a conversation about what it means to honour women – whether family members, or women generally – and to treat them with respect.

What we can all do is pray! We have written this prayer especially this week, and invite you to pray it together as a family. You might also like to pray the Holy Rosary together one day this week, as a way of honouring Mary, who is Mother to us all.

Why is this our Family Room activity today? Today’s First Reading – from the Old Testament – shares the story of how God gave the Ten Commandments to the Jewish people, as a way of guiding them on how to live a good life. And Pope Francis’ prayer intention for the month of March is about the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

What is the Sacrament of Reconciliation? Reconciliation is one of the seven Sacraments we receive as Catholics. There are times when we all freely choose to do the wrong thing. Reconciliation – also known as Confession, or Penance – is God’s way of helping us put things right. We think about the things we have done that are wrong (examination of conscience), share them with the priest in the confessional (act of confession), tell God we are sorry and will really try not to do them again (act of contrition), receive God’s forgiveness through the priest (absolution) and follow the priest’s suggestions to show we are sorry and will try to do better in the future (act of penance).

Why is reflecting on the Sacrament of Reconciliation important? As Pope Francis explains in this video, Reconciliation – or Confession – is a way for us to experience the mercy and love of God. “The centre of Confession is Jesus who waits for us, who listens to us, and who forgives us” It is not about the sins we declare but the divine love we receive of which we are always in need. As we continue our Lenten journey this year, reflecting on the Sacrament of Reconciliation is a wonderful way to bring ourselves closer to Jesus, who died on the cross for us so that all our sins might be forgiven.

What can we do as a family? This week, we invite our families to have a shared conversation about the times you have forgiven each other, and the sense of peace and love that it has given you. Then consider together how experiencing the Sacrament of Reconciliation can provide that same sense of peace and love with God.

What we can all do is pray! We have written this prayer to help our families reflect on the Sacrament of Reconciliation this week in the context of Lent.

A special note for First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion families: Chapters 3 & 4 in the “I Belong Book” (Celebrating our rescue and God helps me get it right) are dedicated to the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and are great additional references for your conversation, or for questions your child / children may have.

Why is this important today? Today’s Gospel reading tells us of the Transfiguration, when Jesus was transfigured in front of the apostles Peter, James and John, and Moses and Elijah appeared before them. A voice came from Heaven saying, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him”. So this week is a great chance to follow the words of God the Father, and listen to Jesus.

What does listening to Jesus mean? We aren’t lucky enough to hear the words of Jesus directly. But we can listen to his words in the Gospel at Mass. We can hear Him in the silence of our hearts when we pray. And we can hear Him saying “Love one another as I have loved you,” and see Him in those around us.

What can we do as a family? We encourage our families to reflect together on today’s Gospel reading. Then, perhaps, you might like to choose one night during the week to have a conversation over dinner as a family about the different ways you are working to listen to Jesus.

What we can all do is pray! We have written this prayer for all our families to ask God to guide us this week in listening to Jesus as we continue our Lenten journey.

What is Lent, and why is it important? Lent is a time of 40 days that we use each year to prepare for Easter – when we celebrate the death and resurrection of Our Lord Jesus. Lent gives us a chance to focus on what Jesus did for all of us, and how by His death and resurrection, He freed us all from original sin.

How is Lent observed? Traditionally, there are three main ways that Catholics observe Lent: prayer, fasting (giving up food or other things that we like), and almsgiving (giving our money, time or effort to those who are less fortunate than us).

What can we do as a family? This week, we encourage you to share a family conversation about how you can observe Lent together. To get your discussion started, we offer you this message from Pope Francis, which suggests a different way of fasting this year – rather than fasting from food, it suggests a way to “fast” from negative actions and emotions. And you may also like to join CAFOD’s Family Fast Day, which takes place on Friday 26 February.

What we can all do is pray! Prayer is one of the three ways we observe Lent. You might like to use this prayer, which reflects on the beginning of Lent, and has been written especially for families.

Why is this our activity this week? Normally on Ash Wednesday, we would mark the beginning of Lent – our time of getting ready for Easter, by having the priest mark our forehead with a cross of ash either at church or at school. The ash is a very old sign that we are sorry for the times we turn away from God and to show that we intend to turn back and follow the way of life His Son Jesus has shown us.

So for many Catholics it is important to ‘receive the ashes’ but this year, because of the covid pandemic, it would be very difficult to do this safely and so we are all being encouraged to have our own family Ash Wednesday Service.

What can we do as a family? This week, we encourage our families to use this Ash Wednesday service shared by our neighbouring Parish of St John Vianney, West Green and then perhaps to talk together about what we can do to make Lent a special time – usually this is by praying, fasting – often people give something up, and helping he needy – ‘alms giving’.

Why is this our activity this week? Today is the 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time. In today’s Gospel, Jesus has started His ministry – teaching the people around him – and his disciples come and say to Him “Everyone is looking for you.” We want to be like the people who are looking for Jesus.

What does ‘looking for Jesus’ mean? For the people who lived at the same time as Jesus, looking for Him was easy – they could see and hear Him right in front of them! For us it’s harder – we can visit Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist in our churches, we can pray to Him in our hearts, and we can hear His teaching in the Gospel readings at Mass. But another way of looking for Jesus is to see Him in others, as absolutely everybody is made in His image and likeness, and to see His love and kindness in the good deeds that we – and those around us – can do.

What can we do as a family? This week, we encourage our families to reflect together on how they have looked for Jesus throughout the week. This could be making (and noticing!) acts of kindness towards each other within your family, or talking about those who are caring for us – everyone in the NHS who is working so hard to care for the sick and roll out the vaccine, the key workers who deliver our groceries and our mail, and those who are supporting the Soup Run and our other parish ministries.

In reflecting on all the people in whom we see Jesus we recommend this short video made for last Thursday’s first ‘International Day of Human Fraternity’. And on Monday we celebrate he feast of Saint Josephine Bakhita, one of the saints in our new porch window, who found Jesus, despite being stolen into slavery at the age of 7.

What we can all do is pray! We have written this prayer about looking for Jesus, which you can pray together as a family throughout the week.

A special note for First Holy Communion families: This week’s activity is a good opportunity to talk with your child about how Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist. For those who are coming to Mass at St Peter’s, you may consider making a visit to Jesus in the tabernacle after Mass.

Why is this important today? Today is the 4th Sunday in Ordinary Time…and it is also Racial Justice Day, a day that is set aside by all the Christian denominations in the United Kingdom – including our Catholic Church – to further the journey towards racial justice. This year’s theme for Racial Justice Day is “A Time to Act”. The theme reflects the racial issues and inequalities that were identified in the UK and around the world in 2020, and the importance for all of us to act on them.
Why is Justice important? We believe that everyone is created in the image and likeness of God. Justice helps us figure out what is fair, what is right and what is wrong…and then to do (or act) in a fair and right way. Justice is so important that, as Catholics, we consider it to be one of the “cardinal virtues” – the most important qualities for a good life. This is because when justice is working, everyone feels like they are being treated fairly. Justice is not just something that is “out there”, it is something that we need to practice everyday! How?

• Respect all people, even if they are different from you
• Help others if they are being treated unfairly
• Think what is best for everyone instead of just what is best for you
• Include others in your activities; don’t ignore people
• Be honest and fair in all that you do

What can we do as a family? Sometimes we might think that what we do is too small to make a difference…but each small, positive action that we take has the potential to add up together to actions that can change the world! This week, we encourage all our families to discuss what small actions you can take together as a family to support justice, especially racial justice. You can use the “practice justice list” we’ve shared above to start your conversation. For families with older children, we also recommend watching this video from the UK Zimbabwean Catholic Youth Community, or “The Hill We Climb” (published on our parish website).

What we can all do is pray! Our prayer this week has been written especially for Racial Justice Day – we encourage you to pray it together as a family during the week.

A special note for Parents: Discussing concepts like justice, racial injustice and racism can be complicated and daunting for parents. You can find some great suggestions on how to start these conversations with younger children in this video.

Why is this important today? Today is the 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time. In 2019 (3 years ago), Pope Francis announced that each year this would be the Sunday of the Word of God, devoted to the “celebration, study and dissemination of the Word of God”.

What can we do as a family? Each Mass includes the Liturgy of the Word, when we listen to readings from the Old and the New Testaments, and to the Gospel. Today is a chance for us to reflect on how “through the proclaimed biblical readings in the liturgy, God speaks to his people and Christ himself proclaims his Gospel.”

You might like to have a conversation as a family, and share your favourite Bible readings with each other. Or you could have a family discussion reflecting on how Jesus is called “the Word”, and how He taught God’s message during His time here on earth.

What we can all do is pray! This prayer reflects on the importance of the Word of God in all our lives – we encourage you to pray it together as a family during the week.

A special note for Parents: This family activity is a good supplement to Chapter 6 – “The word of the Lord“ – which reflects on the Liturgy of the Word during Mass.

Why is this important today? Today is the 54th World Day of Peace, also known as Peace Sunday. Each year the Pope writes a World Peace Day Message. This year, Pope Francis wrote about how caring for one another and for creation is important if we want to work for peace. He said that by teaching us how to look after other people, Jesus shows God’s love and care for us.

What can we do as a family? We encourage you to have a conversation together as a family about Pope Francis’ message, and how we can look after those around us. You might also like to download the children’s activity sheet and colouring-in sheet that have been developed by Pax Christi.

What we can all do is pray! This prayer is based on Pope Francis’ message this year – we invite you to pray it together as a family this week, and also to especially pray for those who live in conflict, whether domestic or political.

A special note for Parents: If you are interested, you can read Pope Francis’ full message for the 54th World Peace Day here.

Why is this important today? Today is the feast of the Baptism of Our Lord, when Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist in the River Jordan. This is traditionally considered the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry, and for this reason marks the end of the Christmas season – so after today we take down the crib and our Christmas tree.

What is baptism? Baptism is the very first sacrament that we receive as Catholics – it is how we are welcomed into the family of God, and the communion of saints. You can watch this video to help you understand baptism more.

What can we do as a family? Watch the video together as a family, and reflect on your own baptisms. This is a wonderful opportunity to look at family videos and photographs, and see the people who celebrated your welcoming into the Catholic Church. You may also like to bring out your baptismal candles – if you have them – and light them as part of a special family meal together.

What we can all do is pray! We have included a prayer that is prayed on today’s feast that you can pray together as a family. You might also like to pray especially for your godparents, who were with you at your baptism, and promised to help your parents raise you in the Catholic faith.

A special note for First Holy Communion families: We encourage you to use this week’s Family Activity to reflect on all the sacraments, including the sacrament of Holy Communion that your children are preparing for.

Why is this important today? Christmas is now only a few sleeps away!. As we continue our preparations for this Christmas, we remember that it is often described as a “season of peace and goodwill”, and we reflect on how we can share the peace of God with others – to be, like Saint John the Baptist from today’s Gospel reading, “a witness to testify to the light”.

What does this mean? A witness is a person who sees something take place, and who gives testimony – like in court where we have to be truthful. In the context of our Catholic faith, when we witness, we declare our faith in Jesus – not just through our words, but also through our actions. And that means not just talking about the peace and goodwill (kindness) of God, but also acting on His behalf to those around us.

What can we do as a family? Have a conversation as a family about how you can share the peace and goodwill of God with others as you prepare for Christmas. As you put up your crib (if you haven’t already done so), think of what the innkeeper did for Mary and Joseph – he didn’t have room in his inn, but he let them stay in his stable. Think of those who are homeless, or refugees. What can you do for them? You might consider buying a hamper or present for a poor family. Or donating to the Soup Run during the Christmas period. Or donating to Cafod.

What we can all do is pray! We can always pray for others – even those whose names we don’t know. This week, we invite you to pray this prayer together as a family each time you light all four candles of your Advent wreath. Ask God to help your family share His peace and goodwill with others during the Christmas season.

A special note for First Holy Communion families: We encourage you to supplement this week’s Family Room activity with Chapter 11 of the I Belong book, “To love and to serve”. Reflect together on how Holy Communion is a sign of how much Jesus loves us, and consider how you can share His love and peace with those around you.

Why is this important today? Today is the third Sunday of Advent, traditionally known as Gaudete or Rejoicing Sunday. This week, we are invited to consider how this season has helped us “come to realise that so great is Jesus’ love for us that He became one of us, so that we in turn might become one with Him.”

What does this mean? Jesus loved us so much that He chose to born as a human person. Not a rich and powerful person, but a tiny baby, born in a stable and surrounded by farm animals. God’s love and generosity should fill our hearts with joy – the joy we have when we experience something very special.

What can we do as a family? This week, we encourage you to do small things to joyfully prepare for Christmas. Put up your Christmas crib, if you haven’t already done so. Write Christmas cards to your loved ones. Play Christmas hymns in preparation for the birth of Jesus. And talk about how you can share the joy of Christmas with others.

What we can all do is pray! We invite you to pray this prayer together as a family each time you light three candles of your Advent wreath. Ask God to fill the hearts of all your family with joy as you prepare for Christmas.

A special note for First Holy Communion families: Chapter 5 of the I Belong book – “Glory to God in the highest” – reflects on the birth of Jesus as the fulfilment of God’s promise to us. When we receive Holy Communion, we are like the shepherds seeing the glory of God. Sometimes we can experience the glory, but sometimes it is hidden. Talk with your child about how special receiving Holy Communion is, as they continue to prepare for the Sacrament.

Why is this important today? Our Gospel reading today talks about how we need to “Prepare the way of the Lord”, and our First and Second readings also reflect on being ready for God when He comes.

What does this mean? When we prepare for a special visitor to our homes, we will often clean the house, put on special clothes, and sometimes buy or make something nice – a cake, or biscuits, or other special food. Today’s Readings are about preparing our insides, rather than our outsides – preparing our hearts for Jesus, who will be born on Christmas Day.

What can we do as a family? Have a conversation as a family about how you can prepare for the birth of Jesus. Think about Mary and Joseph, who travelled to Bethlehem, and about how they would have prepared for that long journey with hope for the baby who was to be born. And this week, you can light the second candle of your Advent wreath!

What we can all do is pray! We invite you to pray this prayer together as a family each time you light two candles of your Advent wreath this week. Ask God our Father to bless everyone in your family with hope during this Advent season.

A special note for First Holy Communion families: We encourage you to supplement this week’s Family Room activity with page 102 of the I Belong book with your child (part of Chapter 9, “Do this in memory of me”). Talk together about how receiving First Holy Communion gives each of us “strength for the journey” of our whole lives, and is a sign of God’s great love for us.

Tell us what you did: Share what you did with us either as an email to Fr Sean or on our Facebook page.

Why is this important today? Today is the First Sunday of Advent, the beginning of the four weeks we use as Catholics to prepare for Jesus’ birth at Christmas.

What does this mean? Saint John Henry Newman explained Advent in one of his homilies as: “a time of waiting, a time of joy”. And Pope Francis describes Advent as a time of “preparing to welcome not a fairy-tale character, but the God who calls us, involves us, and before whom a choice is imposed”…the choice to believe in Him, love Him, and serve Him

What can we do as a family? We invite you to make your very own Advent Wreath as a way of preparing for Christmas. Advent Wreaths are circles made out of evergreen leaves and foliage, with four candles that are lit over the four weeks of Advent as a symbol of the light that the birth of Jesus brings to all of us. Traditionally, an Advent Wreath has three purple candles and one pink one, but you can use any colours that you like. On the first Sunday one candle is lit, on the second two, on the third Sunday we add the pink one and on the last Sunday light all four. So you can light the first candle, a purple one, this week – just once, or each evening as a family. You can also put a fifth candle, usually white, in the centre which is lit on Christmas Day itself. You can find out more about the origins and symbolism of the Advent Wreath here.

What we can all do is pray! We invite you to pray this prayer together as a family each time you light the first candle of your Advent wreath.

A special note for First Holy Communion families: This week’s Family Room activity is a good opportunity for you to talk with your children about fasting before receiving Holy Communion. You can explain that, in the same way that we use Advent to prepare us for Jesus being born at Christmas, fasting is something we use to prepare us for receiving Jesus in the Holy Eucharist.

Tell us what you did: Share what you did with us, if you made an Advent Wreath send us a picture either as an email to Fr Sean or on our Facebook page.

Why is this important today? Today we celebrate the Feast of ‘Our Lord Jesus Christ – King of the Universe’ and in the Gospel, Jesus tells his followers what they and we need to do in order to serve and please Him and so win a place in His Kingdom, the Kingdom of Heaven.

What does this mean? Last Sunday we heard a parable, a simple story, about how God generously pours out His gifts or talents on us and how we should use them to serve everyone. Today we hear Jesus telling us directly that, when we care for the needy – the thirsty, the hungry, the stranger, the poor, the sick and those in prison, we are caring for Jesus Himself and He will reward us with a place in His Kingdom, a place in Heaven. Jesus is telling us that it is the things that we actually do with the talents he has given us that will please Him.

What can we do as a family? Well, begin with a prayer…….

….. and then, as a family, you can talk about what you can do that will please Jesus. But the talk needs to lead to action, to doing something. Perhaps you already do things like giving food or volunteering for our Parish Soup Run, donating to local Food Banks, shopping or keeping in touch with someone who is frail, befriending someone who is lonely or with a disability – helping at our Seeds group when it can open, giving time or money to help the homeless or refugees…. What else can you think of that you can practically and realistically do? When you have talked about what you are doing or what you could do, make a list and put it up somewhere that everyone can see it!

What we can do is pray! Finding what we can do is often not easy. One answer is to pray, and discern what needs call to us, what are our capabilities and then make a choice. Remembering that anything we do for others in need is done for Christ.

A special note for First Holy Communion families: This week’s Family Room activity is the perfect companion to Chapter 11 in the I Belong book, which is “To love and to serve”. We encourage you to talk with your children about how receiving Jesus in Holy Communion is a sign of His great love for us, and how they can show their love for Him by serving those around them, as we are encouraged to do in today’s readings.

Tell us what you did: Share what you did with us, if you made a plan of things to do to help the needy send it to us either as an email to Fr Sean or on our Facebook page.

Why is this important today? Today’s Gospel reading is about a man going on a journey, who gives his money to each of his servants to look after. When he returns, he rewards the servants who used his money wisely.

What does this mean? We call the story that Jesus tells a parable, a simple story used to illustrate a spiritual lesson. The lesson in this story is that God gives each of us different talents, or gifts. Some people will be lucky enough to have many talents, others may have only one. The most important thing is not how many talents we have, but rather what we do with them, and how we use them to serve those around us.
What can we do as a family? Have a conversation together as a family, considering the talents or gifts that God has given each of you. Perhaps you could write them down as a Word Cloud of all your family’s talents – like the one shown above. Following our Family Room Activity last week, think about your loved ones who have died, and reflect on their gifts. You might also like to consider the Pope’s special prayer intention for this month: praying that progress in robotics and Artificial Intelligence (AI) “be human”. You can watch a message from Pope Francis here, and then discuss as a family how robotics and AI can make things better for humanity or how, perhaps, they could make things worse.

What we can all do is pray! We invite you to pray together as a family, asking God to work in you and through you to help you see and use the talents He has given each of you. We also invite you to pray for the Pope’s prayer intention throughout November that technology is always used to bring about good.
A special note for First Holy Communion families: This week’s Family Room activity is a great supplement to Chapter 7 in the I Belong book – Bread to offer, and specifically to support you in discussing how the gifts of bread and wine in the offertory reflect the gift of ourselves (page 75).

Tell us what you think: Share your thoughts on using your talents with us – if you make a Word Cloud send us a photo – either as an email to Fr Sean or on our Facebook page.

Who are the “Holy Souls”? The Holy Souls is a phrase we use to describe everyone who has died. Every year on 2nd November, we remember them on All Souls’ Day, and throughout the month of November we pray as a parish community for our family and friends who have died.

What is “Remembrance Sunday”? Every year on the second Sunday in November, we commemorate and honour those who have sacrificed themselves to secure and protect our freedom – the British and Commonwealth military and civilian servicemen and women in the two World Wars and later conflicts.

What can we do as a family? Spend some time this week remembering your loved ones who have died – share good memories with each other, and pray for them together as a family. If you haven’t already done so, we invite you to share the names of family and friends who have died with us, so that our whole parish can pray for them throughout the month of November. And you may be interested in some of the special Remembrance Sunday ideas that the British Legion have suggested.

What we can all do is pray! As part of your celebrations, we also invite you to take a moment to thank God for all the people who have loved Him, and who are now with Him in Heaven. And ask the saints to help you as a family each and every day.

Tell us what you think: Share how you have remembered the Holy Souls and commemorated Remembrance Sunday with us either as an email to Fr Sean or on our Facebook page.

Who are “saints”? A saint is a person who recognised as being holy and close to God. As Catholics, we believe that anyone who is in Heaven is a saint. We also honour specific people, individuals whom the Church recognises as being good examples to us. Some of these saints are reflected in the statues and stained glass windows that are in our church, and in our beautiful porch window.

What kind of people are the saints? In the Gospel for our Mass today, Jesus tells us what characterises saints. It is a well-known piece of scripture usually called the ‘Beatitudes’. Click on this picture to learn more!
Why is this important today? We remember individual saints on particular days throughout the year. But every year on 1st November, we remember every single person who has died and is now in Heaven with God. Pope Benedict wrote that these “may include our own mothers, grandmothers or other loved ones (cf. 2 Tim 1:5)” who may have not always lived perfect lives but “amid their faults and failings they kept moving forward and proved pleasing to the Lord”.

What can we do as a family? This week, we invite you to celebrate All Saints together as a family. Whether it’s eating a nice meal, having dessert, watching a movie or organising a family activity that you can do together, make All Saints Day special!

What we can all do is pray! As part of your celebrations, we also invite you to take a moment to thank God for all the people who have loved Him, and who are now with Him in Heaven. And ask the saints to help you as a family each and every day.

Tell us what you think: Share how you have celebrated All Saints with us either as an email to Fr Sean or on our Facebook page.