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By Harry Marston As I child and throughout my teenage years, Good Friday was always a day of uneasiness for me. I didn’t like the fact that things were different – church looked sad with the statues covered up, with the altar bare; at home we ate simple food and generally had a (suitably) miserable day. To me it felt like a day wasted of the holidays. As my faith and understanding grew, I began to appreciate the importance of this day and began to become irate when Tesco prod

By Harry Marston The Road to Emmaus (Lk 24:13-35) is a crucial revelation of Christ in terms of the Sacraments. The passage is an important reflection on both the Sacrament of the Eucharist and the Sacrament of Reconciliation. It is also a powerful example to illustrate to the children that nothing in Sacred Scripture is random - everything has a deeper meaning - this passage explained to the children should help ignite an inquisitive view on Scripture. Firstly, Jesus walking

By James Walsh How can we ensure that every child is truly included in the life of the Church? A few months ago, we were honoured with an extraordinary invitation to travel to Rome to deliver a presentation and workshop titled Faith, Inclusion, and Digital Accessibility: A CatholicPlus Mission for Every Child at the prestigious Kairos Forum event: Value, Neurodiversity and Education: Looking back, the invitation feels like more than a professional milestone. It was a moment o

By Harry Marston Even amongst lapsed Catholics, Rosary beads tend to be a feature in family homes. They seem to be a sign that, “We are a Catholic family”. In films and popular culture, Rosary beads tend to be a way to show somebody’s identity as being Catholic. Amongst the explosion of Faith amongst Gen Z, again the Rosary holds a prominent position. Since 2016, it is estimated that the attendance increase at Rosary rallies has been more than 1000%. I was fortunate to attend

By Harry Marston This question came to me five minutes before teaching Year 5 about the Great Commandment. I feel the deepest questions come at the most inconvenient times. With time running out, I thought this time let’s see what Year 5 think . I told my class that before we begin the lesson, we need to know exactly what love is. “But Mr Marston, love is an abstract noun” and this highlighted the problem. The children are told often that they must love God and love their nei

By Harry Marston After a recent Year 5 visit to a local care home, one comment from a pupil stopped me in my tracks. He simply said, “Mr Marston, thank you for giving me the opportunity to be kind.” Just two hours earlier, sixteen children had been busy making Christmas cards to share with residents. For many, spending time with older people was unfamiliar territory: they approached the trip with a mix of curiosity and nervousness. When we arrived, we were kindly welcomed int