Organised by the Education Service in the Archdiocese of Southwark, our school was invited to attend a very special Mass, together with representative students and staff from no less than 175 other primary and secondary schools in the Diocese. St George’s Cathedral was completely packed and there was a unique, uplifting atmosphere from start to finish!

The Mass was celebrated by the Most Reverend John Wilson, Archbishop of Southwark and Metropolitan, together with four supporting Priests.

Archbishop John started by welcoming everybody and saying what an amazing sight it was to see the Diocese’s schools’ family gathered to celebrate our faith and to mark the start of a new academic year. The Mass date was chosen to fall on the Feast of Our Lady of Walsingham, which is the oldest place in England, notable for its religious shrines in honour of our Blessed Mother, Mary.

In his homily, Archbishop John asked the congregation to reflect on what it means to have hope, and he presented the Blessed Virgin Mary as a perfect example of Christian hope. The Archbishop also drew attention to the banners and imagery on the altar of the two recently canonised saints:

• Saint Carlo Acutis (English-born Italian Catholic teenager) and
• Saint Pier Giorgio Frassati (an Italian Catholic activist), both of whom he described as “Disciples of Hope”.

Archbishop John invited large numbers of students to go up to the Altar and express their view of what it is to be a Disciple of Christian hope, and they provided spontaneous and very thoughtful responses, including:

• “Our Lord Jesus WILL come again”.
• “Knowing that Jesus will always be with us”.
• “Mary brought Jesus into the world and trusted God completely”.

Archbishop John concluded his homily by affirming that nothing can separate us from the love of God, and asking the congregation to think about how each of us can bring hope to others.

Following the Liturgy of the Word, Archbishop John invited all the Headteachers, the representatives of the schools’ Governing Bodies, the Chaplains and the Education Service staff, to congregate around the altar to reconfirm and renew their commitment to their special roles, and to join together in the Prayer of Dedication for the year ahead.

Mrs D’Silva, Richard Challoner School’s Chaplain, felt privileged to join her fellow colleagues to renew her personal commitment and for the special blessing and Prayer of Dedication.