R.E Week – Walking with the Saints - 22nd-26th September 2025

This week, our classes have been studying the lives of the Saints and reflecting on how they can inspire us to live lives of faith, kindness and service.  In each class the children have been responding to their research, writing, artwork and prayer to choose a patron Saint for their class, which will become their class name for the year.  In a lovely assembly today, each class presented their chosen Saint, which they voted for as a class.

For this year, our class Saints are as follows:

Reception - St Rose of Lima St. Rose of Lima - Saints & Angels - Catholic Online

St Rose was born in 1586 in Lima, Peru to Spanish colonists, and named Isabel Flores de Olivia.

Her beauty was so great that she was nicknamed "Rose," a name that remains with her to this day. According to legend, a servant had a vision where her face turned into a rose. At her confirmation in 1597, she officially took the name of Rose.

From an early age, Rose wanted to become a nun. She often prayed and fasted in secret. She performed secret penances, some of which were painful and severe. She performed daily adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and took daily communion.

While St Rose was beautiful, she did not care for her beauty and was not vain.  In fact, she tried hard to disguise her beauty and spend more time in praising God.   It was said she slept only two hours per night so as to have more time for prayer.

St. Rose is the patron saint of embroiderers, gardeners, florists, those who suffer ridicule for their faith, and people who suffer family problems.  Her Feast Day is August 23rd.

 

Year 1 - St Martin de Porres  St. Martin de Porres - Saints & Angels - Catholic Online

St Martin was born in Lima, Peru in 1579.  He was the son of a Spanish noble and a freed slave.  Because he was of mixed heritage, Martin suffered from a great deal of discrimination.  He became a Dominican lay brother in 1603 at the age of 24. Ten years later, after he had been presented with the religious habit of a lay brother, Martin was assigned to the infirmary where he would remain in charge until his death. He became known for encompassing the virtues need to carefully and patiently care for the sick, even in the most difficult situations.

Martin was praised for his unconditional care of all people, regardless of race or wealth. He took care of everyone from the Spanish nobles to the African slaves. Martin didn't care if the person was diseased or dirty, he would welcome them into his own home.

St Martin was a great friend of St Rose of Lima. St Martin's life reflected his great love for God and all of God's gifts.

St Martin's Feast Day is November 3rd.

 

 

Year 2 - St Benedict  St. Benedict the Moor - Saints & Angels - Catholic Online

St Benedict was born a slave near Messina, Italy, in 1524. He was freed by his master and became a hermit., living on his own so he could praise God like St John the Baptist.  Later, he became a Franciscan lay brother. He cooked at St. Mary's Convent near Palermo. He became the head of his community but later he but asked to be relieved of his post and returned to his former position as cook.

His holiness, reputation for miracles, his ability to listen to others brought hordes of visitors to see the obscure and humble cook. He died at the convent, was canonized in 1807, and is the patron saint of African Americans.  His Feast Day is April 4th.

 

 

 

 

 

Year 3 - St Pope John Paul II  About St. John Paul II | Saint John Paul II National Shrine

St John Paul II was born in 1920 in Poland.  His early life was full of sadness as his sister, brother and mother died by the time he was twelve.  He was an excellent student and athlete.  During the second world war, John Paul had to halt his studies to become a priest, worked in a quarry, and was ordained in 1946.

St John Paul was elected Pope in 1978 and served as Holy Father for 26 years, until his death in 2005.  he was a great traveller and visited 129 countries as Pope.  His love of young people led him to found World Youth Day with millions of young people gathering to pray and celebrate their shared Catholic faith every few years since.

St John Paul was a famous scholar and wrote dozens of books and letters helping Catholics all over the world to grow closer to God.  One of his famous sayings is "Be not afraid. Never, ever give up on hope, never doubt, never tire, and never become discouraged"

He preached love for all and helped us to understand the Gospels and how they affect us in modern life.

His feast day is 22nd October.

 

 

 

Year 4 - St Carlo Acutis  St. Carlo Acutis

“To always be close to Jesus, that’s my life plan”

St Carlo Acutis is the first Millennial Saint.  He was canonised by Pope Leo on 7th September 2025.

He came from an Italian family but was born in London. HE moved with his family to Milan  where he developed an early interest in computers and video games, teaching himself programming and web design and assisting his parish and school with digital projects.

Acutis showed an interest in the lives of saints, especially St Francis of Assisi, St Anthony of Padua, St Bernadette and St Mary Magdalene. This led him to set up a website for other young people to help them understand the lives of the saints and how prayer, especially the Rosary and Eucharistic Adoration leads us to be closer to God.  His evangelisation through the internet speaks to all peoples.

When he was 15, Carlo Acutis was diagnosed with Leukaemia and suffered greatly.  When asked by his doctor if he was in great pain her replied "There are people who suffer much more than me."  Because of his faith, Carlo was not afraid to join God in heaven.

Because he loved video games, St Carlo is known as the first 'Gamer saint'.  He is the patron Saint of internet users. His Feast Day is 12th October.

 

 

Year 5 - St Joseph

 

St Joseph was the husband of Mary and stepfather of Jesus.  When it was revealed to Mary that she was to bear God's son, Jesus, he protected her and raised Jesus through His childhood.  An angel visited Joseph to tell him that Jesus was God's son and Joseph accepted God's will and his mission.

An angel came to Joseph in a dream and told him, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins," he did as the angel told him and took Mary as his wife. (Matthew 1:19-25).

Joseph, while humble, was descended from King David, which is why the family travelled to Nazareth for the census while Mary was pregnant which was the town of David .  Joseph looked after Mary and protected Jesus and loved him.

St Joseph was a carpenter which is why he is the Patron Saint of Workers.  He is also Patron Saint of the Universal Church, Fathers, Families, Immigrants and travellers.

When the angel came again to tell him that his family was in danger, he immediately left everything he owned, all his family and friends, and fled to a strange country with his young wife and the baby. He waited in Egypt without question until the angel told him it was safe to go back (Matthew 2:13-23).

His Feast Day is 19th March.

 

 

Year 6 - St Oscar Romero  Who was Saint Oscar Romero?

Oscar Romero was the Archbishop of San Salvador from 1977 until he was assassinated in 1980. He was initially regarded as a conservative choice as archbishop, but he became increasingly outspoken about human rights violations in El Salvador, his country of birth.  He was canonised by Pope Francis as is recognised as a martyr.

During his three years as archbishop, Romero repeatedly denounced violence and spoke out on behalf of the victims of the civil war. In a time of heavy press censorship, his weekly radio broadcasts were often the only way people could find out the truth about the atrocities that were happening in their country. He defended the right of the poor to demand political change, a stance which made him a troublesome adversary for the country's rulers.

Romero is, in particular, an inspirational figure to hundreds of millions of Catholics around the world. He didn’t simply talk about the need to love your neighbour, but courageously named the injustices that plagued his country. He reminded us that Christ is found in people living in poverty, and that we cannot ignore the suffering of our brothers and sisters in need.

We can all celebrate Romero’s legacy by following his example: by challenging injustice wherever we see it and by refusing to stay silent about the issues that keep people in poverty. For example, the climate crisis is the single biggest threat to reducing poverty in the world today.

St Oscar Romero's Feast Day is on March 24th.

 

 

 

 

Loving God,
Thank you for this special week where we have learned about the Saints — holy people who walked closely with you.

Thank you for showing us that Saints were real people, just like us — people who loved, helped, forgave, and followed Jesus, even when it was hard.

Help us to walk in their footsteps and let their lives inspire us to be kind, brave, and full of love.

We thank you for each of the Saints our classes have chosen:

• St Oscar Romero, who spoke up for the poor and showed great courage
• St Joseph, who cared for Jesus with quiet strength and love
• St Carlo Acutis, who used technology to share his faith with the world
• St John Paul II, who taught us about peace, hope, and forgiveness
• St Benedict the Moor, who served others with great humility and joy
• St Martin de Porres, who treated everyone equally and showed deep compassion
• St Rose of Lima, who lived a life of prayer, kindness, and care for the poor

May these Saints walk with us every day.
May we listen to their stories, follow their example, and try to become Saints in our own way.

Saints of God...
Pray for us.

Amen.