To Love You More Dearly-Prayer and Liturgy Directory

"To Love You More Dearly" is a comprehensive Prayer and Liturgy Directory designed to support Catholic educational institutions in England and Wales. 

For our staff at Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, this directory offers valuable guidance to enhance the spiritual life of both pupils and staff.

Key Information:

• Integration of Prayer into Daily Routine: The directory emphasises the importance of incorporating communal prayer throughout the school day. This includes starting and ending the day with classroom prayers and beginning staff meetings with a moment of reflection. Such practices foster a sense of God's presence in daily activities.
• Guidance on Liturgical Celebrations: Teachers are provided with detailed instructions on organising and leading various liturgical events. This encompasses the effective use of music, the celebration of sacraments and the inclusion of traditional devotions, all tailored to resonate with primary school children.
• Development of School Policies: The directory serves as a resource for creating and refining school policies related to prayer and liturgy. It ensures that these policies align with Catholic teachings and are developmentally appropriate for young learners.
• Evaluation and Improvement of Practices: Teachers are encouraged to regularly assess their current prayer and liturgical practices. The directory offers criteria and reflective questions to aid in this evaluation, promoting continuous growth in the school's spiritual environment.
• Staff Formation and Development: Recognising the pivotal role of educators, the directory provides resources aimed at nurturing the spiritual growth of teachers. This personal development equips them to lead students more effectively in faith-based activities.
• Preparation for Inspections: The directory outlines standards and expectations for prayer and liturgy, assisting schools in readiness for Catholic School Inspections. This ensures that practices meet established benchmarks and reflect the school's commitment to its faith-based mission.

By integrating the principles and practices outlined in "To Love You More Dearly," we can enrich the spiritual journey of our pupils, fostering a vibrant and faith-filled school community.

Implementing the guidelines from "To Love You More Dearly: The Prayer & Liturgy Directory for Catholic Schools, Academies, and Colleges in England and Wales" can significantly enrich the spiritual atmosphere of a Catholic primary school. Here are the ways in which we incorporate this at Holy Cross:

1. Daily Classroom Prayer

• Morning and Afternoon Prayers: We begin and end each school day with age-appropriate prayers, fostering a routine that centres our children’s minds on their faith.
• Grace Before and After Meals: We encourage children to offer simple prayers of thanks before and after eating, instilling gratitude.

2. Liturgical Celebrations

• School Masses: We organise regular Celebration of the Word as well as School Masses aligned with the liturgical calendar, involving students in readings, offerings and hymn participation.
• Seasonal Observances: We celebrate key liturgical feast days and seasons such as Advent, Lent and Easter with special assemblies, prayers and activities.

3. Sacramental Preparation

• Reconciliation and First Holy Communion: We provide comprehensive preparation programmes, including catechesis and workshops, to ready students for these significant sacraments.

4. Prayer Spaces

• Classroom Prayer Areas: We designate areas in each classroom adorned with religious symbols, prayer books and student-created artwork to encourage personal prayer.
• Outdoor Classroom: We utilise this space for retreats for class reflections, small group prayers and religious meditation.

5. Staff Spiritual Development

• Prayer Before Meetings: We start staff gatherings with a reflective prayer or scripture reading to unify and inspire.
• Retreats and Workshops: Next year we will participate in spiritual retreats and professional development focused on enhancing the school's liturgical life.

6. Music in Liturgy

• Incorporate Sacred Music: We teach our children hymns and religious songs, integrating music into Celebration of the Word, Masses, assemblies and classroom prayers to enrich the worship experience.

7. Community and Parental Involvement

• Inclusive Celebrations: We invite families to participate in school liturgies and prayer services, strengthening the home-school faith connection.
• Communication: We share information about upcoming liturgical events, religious assemblies and encourage at-home prayer practices.

8. Evaluation and Reflection

• Regular Review: We assess the effectiveness of prayer and liturgical activities, seeking feedback from children and staff to foster continuous improvement.

By embracing these practices, our staff create a vibrant, faith-filled environment that nurtures the spiritual growth of the entire school community.

Teach Us To Pray – 

"Jesus was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray..." { Luke 11:1 }

The Prayer and Liturgy Lead at Holy Cross is currently participating in the ‘Teach Us To Pray’ pilot which is an accessible and practical guide to Prayer & Liturgy for Catholic Schools, led by Jo Boyce from CJM Music.

The pilot is made up of various modules, each of which is a concise, stand-alone, mini course covering a different aspect of prayer and liturgy in the context of a Catholic school. The content is rooted in the teaching of the Church (as presented in the new Prayer and Liturgy Directory); and draws on Jo Boyce’s 25 years of practical experience leading prayer, music and liturgy in schools and parishes across the UK and beyond.

The Modules are as follows:

Singing the Mass

Understanding the Mass

Proclaiming the Word

Planning Non-Eucharistic Liturgies

Marian Prayers and Devotions

Morning and Evening Prayer

The Art of Liturgical Prayer

Our staff are also participating in Jo Boyce’s online workshops titled, ‘The Art of Liturgical Prayer’ in order to develop their practice of creating meaningful, well-structured non-Eucharist liturgies and Celebrations of the Word that engage young people and help them to understand the Church’s tradition of liturgical prayer.

Ten Ten Prayer and Liturgy: Loving Jesus

At Holy Cross, we use the Loving Jesus resource from Ten Ten as part of our daily prayer and liturgy. This beautiful and engaging resource helps children grow in their relationship with Jesus through thoughtful prayer, scripture and reflection.

Each week, children are invited to explore a different theme centred on the life and love of Jesus, helping them to deepen their understanding of the Gospel and apply it to their own lives. The sessions include:

Gospel Assemblies: Rooted in Sunday’s Gospel, these assemblies bring scripture to life in a way that is meaningful for children.

Daily Classroom Prayers: Short, age-appropriate reflections and prayers that help children start each day with faith and focus.

Interactive Resources: Videos, storytelling, and music that help children connect emotionally and spiritually with Jesus’ message of love.

The Loving Jesus resource supports the Catholic life of the school and complements the liturgical year, encouraging children to live out Gospel values such as kindness, compassion, forgiveness and love for one another.

By using Ten Ten’s Loving Jesus, we are nurturing pupils’ spiritual development and inspire a lasting love for Jesus in their hearts.

We make use of the following resources:

Let Us Celebrate –  a Celebration of the Word assembly

Let Us Pray – Daily Classroom Prayers

Let Us Lead –  Pupil Prayer Portal resources

Let Us Support Staff – a Staffroom Prayer resource

CAFOD: Celebration of the Word

As part of our commitment to Prayer and Liturgy, Catholic life and mission, our school regularly uses CAFOD’s Celebration of the Word resources to guide children in prayer, reflection and action.

These resources help children encounter the Word of God through age-appropriate liturgies that connect scripture with real-life issues of justice, compassion and global citizenship. Rooted in Catholic Social Teaching, each Celebration of the Word invites pupils to:

Listen to Scripture and reflect on its meaning

Pray together as a school community

Respond through action, thinking about how we can care for others and our common home

CAFOD’s liturgies link with the Church’s liturgical calendar and global events such as Lent, Advent Laudato Si’ Week and World Day of the Poor. They are designed to nurture faith, promote solidarity with those in need and inspire children to live out the Gospel in their daily lives.

By engaging with CAFOD’s Celebration of the Word, our pupils grow in faith and develop a deeper understanding of what it means to be a follower of Christ in today’s world.

Children’s Liturgy

At Holy Cross, we use these Gospel reflections, prayers, songs and activities to help our children explore their faith.

https://cafod.org.uk/education/children-s-liturgy 

Pupil Led Celebration of the Word

We use these Celebration of the word resources to support prayer and liturgy in our school.

These prayer and liturgy resources from CAFOD for Catholic schools enables pupil-led Celebration of the word, and Celebration of the word for Feast days and Catholic Social Teaching.

https://cafod.org.uk/education/primary-teaching-resources/celebration-of-the-word-primary