On Monday, 15 September, over 2,500 primary and middle school children, plus school staff, from 20 schools across Somerset took part in the first of what will be a regular opportunity to join together online in worship throughout the academic year.
Ed Gregory, Director of Education says, “Over 35,000 children attend Church of England primary schools across Bath and Wells, to date they haven’t had the opportunity to come together and see they are part of that community. We hold our wonderful Moving Up Days for school leavers each year so we wanted an opportunity for us all to come together to worship regularly throughout the school year. We were delighted with the number of schools who joined us for today’s ‘trial’ session – from Bath to Exmoor, Bridgwater to Yeovil, from Axbridge, North Curry and Taunton. We can’t wait for our next one in December, which we will be opening up to even more schools.”
Bishop Michael joined the online worship, lighting the candle to mark the start of the service, before answering some questions about what it means to be the Bishop of Bath and Wells (he’s a shepherd, but to people not sheep) to what he likes to do when he isn’t being the bishop (tending his bees that he keeps in his garden). After the children heard the story of Zacchaeus, with the help of Lego illustrations, Bishop Michael shared his reflections with the children.
Bishop Michael says, “One of the favourite parts of my role as Bishop of Bath and Wells is visiting our church schools, and it was equally delightful to join so many of them for an online Collective Worship. I really valued sharing my reflections on Zacchaeus. It’s one of my favourite Bible stories. It tells of someone who was actively disliked by his community, for good reason, but who Jesus chose to engage with rather than exclude, and whose life was changed as a result. It’s a story that tells us that God never gives up on us, whoever we are and whatever we’ve done. All of us are always welcomed into God’s family. And that is a really important message for our children to hear.”
During this first collective worship of the academic year, schools were also encouraged to share some highlights of the school year so far, with responses ranging from ‘the canteen food’ to ‘making new friends’, and ‘being voted onto the school council’ to ‘meeting new teachers’.
The next diocesan online collective worship session will take place in December. Schools can sign up to attend using the online form.
Prayer
Dear Lord, as we begin this new school year, we ask for your guidance and help. Open our minds to learn, our hearts to love, and our spirits to grow. Help us to make good choices, to be kind to one another, and to work hard. Give us the strength to overcome challenges and the courage to pursue our goals.
Amen
Resources
Lego Zaccaeus in the tree image
Lego Jesus stops to talk to Zaccaeus image