Pupils and staff are welcome in the chapel throughout the school day. At break time and lunch time pupils can spend time in the chapel reflecting, praying, talking, or playing board games. Kasia our chaplain is always available for anyone who needs spiritual or pastoral guidance.
There is a designated prayer wall and prayer box for people to add their prayers to. We have a ‘Grief Garden’ murial, where people can add stickers of flowers, butterflies or birds with the names of their loved ones on them.
There are some clubs in the chapel: on Mondays we have Faith in Action, and on Thursdays we have Chapel Chat with members of The Mount church. On Wednesday mornings pupils and staff are welcome in the chapel to take part in our Morning Worship.
LOURDES 2024!
Applications are now OPEN for Lourdes 2024!! If you are in Y10 or above and are thinking about going please speak to Kasia, who will be a staff member on Coach 9, and watch this video about the 100 year anniversary of the Youth Pilgrimage in Summer 2023! (Please apply to Coach 9)
WORSHIP WEDNESDAYS
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Every Wednesday morning from 8.10am. Come to the chapel for worship and prayer. Very soon we will also be able to offer Catholic Mass and an Anglican Eucharist Service once a month at this time!
Catholic Mass – First Wednesday of the month (6th December) 8.10am
Anglican Holy Communion – Third Wednesday of the month (22nd November) 8.10am
CHRISTIAN WORSHIP IN THE CHAPEL
On Wednesday 4th October we had our first Catholic Mass in the chapel! As a Joint Denominational Academy we want to give space to staff & students to celebrate their faith as well as respecting each others. Fr. Benedict from the parish of St. Mary and St. John came to celebrate Mass with us, where we celebrated the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi. We will be having an Anglican Communion Service on the 18th October with Rev. Chris from All Saints church.
FAITH IN ACTION
On Tuesday 3rd October, 6 of our Year 10 Faith in Action Gold group led a Whole School Collective Worship at Wargrave Primary school!
Pupils had planned the worship session on the theme ‘I am The Vine’, which is one of Jesus’ ‘I Am’ statements. They included grape tasting and dramatic re-enactments with audience participation, so that pupils could understand the message that we need to stay connected to Jesus in order to be the best version of ourselves!
Pupils at Wargrave loved the Collective Worship session, and headteacher Mrs Epstein thought the Year 10s did a wonderful job to speak and lead a session in front of the whole school. Pupils were also overwhelmingly positive about the worship and their behaviour in the hall reflected this. Well done!
CHAPEL CHAT
7 Advent Workshops: 27th November – 8th December 2023
This week, Year 7 have been visiting the chapel to take part in Advent Prayer Stations with Kasia our chaplain! Pupils have heard the Christmas story, then looked at different aspects of it in detail over 6 work stations. Pupils have thought and prayed about those born into poverty, refugees, and for people suffering on the margins around the world, as well as putting themselves in the shoes of the Holy Family on that first Christmas night. Pupils have also, like the three kings, shared the priceless gifts we can all give to others, and created images for their RE classroom showing how they can bring light into the lives of others!.
Well done to all who have taken part so far. It has been an absolute pleasure welcoming you to the chapel each day, and I am looking forward to the rest of the classes coming to the chapel next week!
St. Paul of the Cross Feast Day 19th October 2023
On Thursday 19th October we celebrated the feast of St. Paul of the Cross with students who went to St. Paul of the Cross Primary school! Students had a feast during Inspire of croissants, pan au chocolat, and hot chocolate!
We look forward to celebrating the feast days of our other primary schools in the future.
Welcome Revd. James Taylor!
Mrs Adams and Kasia our Chaplain were invited to the Licensing Service of Revd James Taylor on Thursday evening at St. Peter’s Church. He will now be part of the Newton Team Vicars, ready to serve our community through his ministry. It was a joyous event and the church was full with well wishers from the congregation, the local council, schools, and local scouting groups. The service was led by the Rt. Revd John Perumbalath, Bishop of Liverpool, and the Venerable Simon Fisher, Archdeacon of St. Helens and Warrington.
Revd James will be a welcome guest to Hope Academy, sharing his wisdom and worship with us as often as he can. He is delighted to be able to work with us, and looks forward to visiting Hope Academy and getting to know our students and staff!
Welcome Revd. James – we wish you all the best as you start your new ministry here in the Newton Community!
CHAPLAINCY BLOG: Friday 1st December 2023
This week in Inspire our students have been working with the theme ‘Families and Relationships’. The Bible is positive about families; the family was God’s idea – an integral part of being human. God affirms families. He intended them to be something powerful for good, places of belonging and trust, of learning and loving.
Time and time again, we are told in the Bible that God isn’t distant or remote. He sets us an example by being the model parent who cares for and nurtures us. God is everything that a father should be – perfectly good, faithful, true and trustworthy. He can always be relied upon. He’s the ultimate parent, like the closest, most caring guardian or gentlest mother, and he particularly cares for those who are broken by their upbringing.
You may feel that the idea of God as our role model is a hard act to live up to, yet the wonderful truth is that not only does God command us to be like him, through the power of the Holy Spirit he also enables us to be more like him.
Lord God,
I give you all the members of our family. You know them all so well and love them all. I ask that you cover us with hope.
Hope that draws us together to work out our differences.
Hope that helps us to celebrate together and care for one another.
Hope that overcomes adversity and gathers strength to overcome.
Hope filled with love, faith, and peace.
Amen