Schools week starts at St James

Our Schools Week got off to a great start at St James's this morning.

Over the next few days we are welcoming 15 classes of children from St James's School and Riverside Primary.

This year's theme is: 'ways God speaks to us.'

Each class visits three stations, to learn about the Bible with Jacob, Baptism with Paul, and Holy Communion with me.

For the Bible (right) children get to see the Bible in Hebrew and Greek; in an English version more than two hundred years old and a version that we read today. They learn that the Bible is like a light to show you the way; like honey; and like Gold and Silver. They get to colour a bookmark showing all the books of the Bible.

For Baptism they get to see how Baptism takes place at the font (above); to view the Baptism Register, with the names of all those who have been baptised at St James; and to make a badge bearing their own names, as a reminder that baptism is like a badge and that God knows us all by name.

For Holy Communion, the children learn about the special meal that Jesus had with his disciples on the night before he died. They get to see the silver flagon, cup, and plate from 1829 that we use each Sunday.

They get to kneel at the communion rail (left), and pretend receiving the bread and wine that we take to remember Jesus's great love in dying for us on the cross, then they stick to a paper plate pictures of the bread and the wine, together with the words that Jesus spoke at the Last Supper.

Afterwards we shared what we had learned about these three wonderful ways that God speaks to us of his love.

Thanks to St James Year 5 Twitter feed for the pictures.