Prayer of St. Ignatius of Loyola

Prayer of St. Ignatius Loyola

Dearest Lord,

teach me to be generous;

teach me to serve You as You deserve;

to give and not to count the cost,

to fight and not to heed the wounds,

to toil and not to seek for rest,

to labour and not to ask for reward

save that of knowing I am doing Your Will.

Sing A New (Easter) Song to the Lord

We cannot gather in our churches to worship God but we can still lift our voices in songs of prayer and praise.

Trumpets herald the arrival of Jesus in ‘May Way, Make Way for Christ the King’ at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tK6XuYhL7JI

‘Jesus our Teacher and our Lord’ is a Last Supper/New Commandment hymn with an easy-to-learn refrain at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUx3IVS3e_4

Sing ‘When I Think about the Cross’ on Good Friday. with Brereton Primary at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVYXdbJcRZM&t=38s

‘See What a Morning’ by Keith and Kristyn Getty reminds us that love wins and Christ has conquered at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18_PDY22Sck

‘Easter Jubilation’ is a joyful song by Helen and Mark Johnson. You can listen to a sample at https://www.outoftheark.co.uk/songs-for-every-easter.html

How to Make An Ojo de Dios Cross

1. Place two sticks or short branches together to make the frame. 
2. Secure the sticks with a glue dot or double-sided tape. Tie on the wool (the knot will be at the back of the cross). 
3. Hold the cross in one hand and with the other, wrap the wool over and around one arm, then over and around the next, and so on. 
4. Pull the yarn tightly each time and push the yarn down snugly toward the centre.
5. Add a new colour by knotting the two ends of the wool or use multi-coloured wool.
6. Pull/push loose ends to the back with a needle. Add a loop of ribbon or for display.

Good Friday Story, Stations of the Cross and Crafts

Friends, you are invited to journey with Jesus this Holy Week through the Easter Gospel story, children’s Stations of the Cross, hymns, prayers and a range of craft activities. 

Watch ‘The Easter Story – The Beginner’s Bible’ (21 minutes, to ‘Have you heard the news?’) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PSgoPdKQFQ or ‘The Story of Easter – Jesus’ Sacrifice’ (5 minutes, aimed at juniors) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HL8R158Ujp4

Read the gospel accounts of the Easter story in  Matthew 26:17 – 28:8, Mark 14:12 – 16:8, Luke 22:7 – 24:12 and John 13:1 – 20:18.

Reflect on ‘The Way of the Cross’ with four children from the Catholic Christian tradition at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2lAR8tODQE (stop at 24 minutes). Why did Jesus have to suffer and die? How does God show love to the world? How can we find hope and joy in these challenging times? Pray the Lord’s Prayer.

Sing ‘Make Way, Make Way’, ‘When I Think About the Cross’, ‘Servant King’ and ‘Easter Jubilation’ (hymn/song sheet on the website).

Make Easter biscuits, complete the Holy Week wordsearch, make an Ojo de Dios cross, create an Easter basket or a bunny box and decorate a Bible text.

Share God’s love, your hope/joy and your crafts with your family at home and your friends and family/community online via Facebook.

God bless,

Fr Paul and the Pastoral Communications Team

A locked church 

Ah my dear Lord, the church is locked

but let my heart be open to your presence;

there let us make, you and I,

your Easter garden;

plant it with flowers,

and let the heavy stone be rolled away.

by Alan Amos