Each class has an allocated saint whose example they try to follow:

Our Lady is the School's Patron Saint.

• Reception – Saint Juan Diego
• Year 1 - Saint John Paul 11
• Year 2 - Saint Josephine Bakhita
• Year 3 - Saint Bernadette
• Year 4 - Saint Pedro Calungsod
• Year 5 - Saint Miriam Thresia
• Year 6 - Saint Oliver Plunkett

We also recognise other important saints whose lives help us to follow in Jesus' footsteps.

Our Lady

Our Lady, also known as our Mother, the Virgin Mary, is a lady that had no sin and that's why God chose her to be Jesus' mother.

At first, Joseph didn't believe Mary when she told him about the visit from the angel. To finally understand the truth Joseph needed to see the dreams of an angel telling him what had happened.

Mary's parents, Joachim and Anne, were loyal people in front of God. They prayed every night asking God to give them a child. Six years after they were married, they had welcomed Mary into their lives and they knew that she was a special gift from God.

When Mary was three years old, Joachim and Anne took her to the temple and gave their child to God. Mary spent nine years in the temple.

She was a wonderful mother to her son, Jesus. She also cares for each one of us.

Reception - Saint Juan Diego 

St. Juan Diego (1474 - 1548) was a poor man who saw Mother Mary while on his way to Mass. Our Lady asked to have a church built. St. Juan told the Bishop who did not believe him. So, St. Juan went back to our Lady and she gave him some roses. When St. Juan held the roses in his coat, a miraculous painting of Mary appeared! The Bishop and everyone fell to their knees and they told everyone about the wonderful things that happened. St. Juan Diego’s feast day is on 9 December.

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, Your love reaches out to all people. Give me a heart to love and respect everyone I meet. Amen.

Year 1 - Saint John Paul II

Pope St. John Paul II (1920 - 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church from 1978 to 2005. He was an inspiring leader with great faith and love for the people of God. He travelled to many countries to bring the message of Jesus to the world. He even forgave the person who tried to hurt him!

He loved children and young people, and they loved him too!

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, I am inspired by Pope St. John Paul II, who brought Your Love and Gospel to many people and nations. I pray that I too can bring You to my friends. Amen.

Year 2 - St Josephine Bakhita

St. Josephine Bakhita (1869 - 1947) was kidnapped as a young girl in Sudan and sold as a slave. She suffered bullying and hardship under different masters. One took her to Italy where she met the Canossian Sisters. She learned about Jesus and became a nun later. She led a holy life of humility, service and charity, inspiring everyone especially her African people. She also forgave her captors and those who caused her much suffering. She is the patron saint of Sudan. Her feast day is on 8 February.

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, St. Josephine Bakhita forgave those who caused her to suffer. Give me the grace to forgive those who have hurt me. Amen.

Year 3 - St Bernadette

St. Bernadette Soubirous (1844 - 1879) came from the village of Lourdes in France. When she was 14, she saw a vision of Mother Mary while gathering firewood. Nobody believed her at first until miracles began to happen. She continued to see visions of Mother Mary who wanted people to turn back to God. St. Bernadette became a nun later and suffered from illness until her death at 35. She remained joyful through her sufferings. She is the patron saint of sick people. Her feast day is on 16 April.

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, I want to love You and Mother Mary, like St. Bernadette did. I will always thank God whether I am happy or sad. Amen

Year 4 - St Pedro Calungsod

St. Pedro Calungsod (1654 – 1672) was a teenager from the Philippines. He went to Guam to help a Spanish Jesuit priest, Blessed Diego Luís de San Vitores, preach about Jesus Christ to the people there. Indeed, many believed in Jesus and this incurred the jealousy of some of the locals. Pedro and Father Diego were wrongly accused of putting poison in the baptism water. When they tried to baptize a newborn baby, the villagers attacked them. Pedro could have escaped but he bravely stayed on to help Father Diego. They were both martyred for their zeal to evangelize the Gospel. St. Pedro is the patron saint of Filipino youth. His feast day is on 2 April.

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, St. Pedro Calungsod bravely upheld Your Truth despite his youth. Give me the courage to share the truth of Your Love with others. Amen.

Year 5 - St Miriam Thresia

St. Miriam Thresia (1876 - 1926) came from a village in Kerala in India.

She is described as:

• A woman of vision – who saw, centuries before her time, the potential of women, the need for their education, her compassionate heart was moved by the pathetic situations in the families and she decided to do all that she could to save the suffering souls as much as possible.
• A woman of courage – Years ago Blessed Mariam Thresia and her companions fought the prejudices of their time to follow the call of Christ according to the model of the Family of Jesus.
• A woman of prayer – whose deepest longings found fulfilment in God.

As a young girl, the little Thresia learned to love Jesus from her virtuous mother Thanda. The mother used to tell her the stories of the Bible and some incidents from the lives of the saints. When she was only three years old, on hearing the bell rung for the Angelus, she inquired and learnt from her beloved mother about the meaning of making the sign of the cross, and the prayer Hail Mary etc. The mysteries of the Holy Trinity, the Annunciation, and the Passion of Christ were also the subjects of her inquiry. In her life there are many proofs that Thresia meditated and treasured these in her memory.

 When Thanda died in the year 1888, Thresia was only 12 years old. She adopted the Blessed Mother as her own mother and found consolation.

 Thresia grew to be a remarkable person and a social reformer. She came from a family that had lost all its wealth paying the dowry of seven aunts, and grew up in poverty even though she came from a famous family lineage.

Her work grew with families affected by difficulties, and violence. She worked at a time when women were not encouraged to go outside the home. Mother Mariam Thresia founded a religious order with three friends, who took care of the poor and the needy. There was a great deal of objection to their work in the beginning. But she persisted and the accent of her work was on families, mainly poor suffering families.

Mariam Thresia suffered stigmata or had wounds like those received by Christ on the Cross and had been a mystic. Mother Mariam Thresia was raised to the honours of the Altar on April 9, 2000 and canonized as a saint on October 13, 2019 by the Church.

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, help me to love my neighbour like St. Miriam Thresia. Grant me the courage to share your love with families and recognize the dignity and value of all boys, girls, men and women. Amen  

Year 6 - St Oliver Plunkett (1625-1681)

Oliver Plunkett was born in Loughcrew, County Meath, Ireland in 1629. His family came of Norman Irish stock, that is, of those Norman families who, over the years, had accepted Irish customs and speech. He had many relatives such as Lord Dunsany and the Earls of Roscommon, Fingall and Louth. Oliver’s paternal uncle, Patrick Plunkett the Abbot of St. Mary’s in Dublin, directed his education to his 16th year.

In 1645 the young Plunkett left Ireland for Rome to study for the priesthood. Plunkett’s studies, in which he was described as brilliant, began in 1647 in the Irish College in Rome and he was ordained in 1654 and appointed the representative in Rome of the Irish bishops. His studies continued and in 1657 he became a professor of theology. During his years of study, the position of the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland worsened.

Persecution of the Irish Catholics

The Confederate Armies were defeated by the Cromwellians who then proceeded to punish and penalize the Catholics of Ireland. Guerrilla war, murder, plague and starvation decimated the population. The Church and its institutions were banned and almost completely destroyed. The clergy was hunted down like animals.

When the Monarchy was restored there was a relaxation of the anti-popery laws. Oliver returned to Ireland 1670 and proceeded to found schools for children and also for the retraining of priests. Within 3 months of his return, he administered the Sacrament of Confirmation to 10,000 of the faithful and by 1673 he was able to inform Rome that in all he had confirmed no fewer than 48,655 people. He was reported to have walked the length and breadth of the country to reach his flock.

With the introduction of the Test Act 1673, persecution was renewed against those who refused to receive Holy Communion after the Anglican fashion. Oliver Plunkett refused and immediately became a hunted man with a price on his head. His college in Drogheda was destroyed and his schools scattered. He remained free but hunted for the next six years then in 1679 he was seized.

He was also named by the fabricator Titus Oates as being the leader of a plot to invade Ireland by the French. The judge at this trial was Chief Justice Pemberton who ruled that there is no greater crime than to endeavour to propagate the Catholic faith

“there is nothing more displeasing to God or more pernicious to mankind in the world”

He then sentenced Oliver Plunkett to be executed at Tyburn by hanging, drawing and quartering. Oliver responded with “Deo Gratias” in a loud and vigorous voice.

 On 1st July 1681 was removed to Tyburn for execution. Vast crowds bore witness to his serene acceptance of death and admired him for his bravery. Before the act of execution, he publicly forgave his tormentors during an edifying discourse.

Oliver Plunkett was the last of the Catholic Martyrs at Tyburn. His feast day is 11th July.

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, I want to follow you always. I want to grow strong in faith like St. Oliver Plunkett. Help me to allow my faith to flourish. Amen.