St William's School shares and promotes the Vision for Religious Education articulated by Brisbane Catholic Education and the wider church. This vision emphasises the two dimensions of formation: of students' religious literacy and their personal faith.
Vision for Religious Education
The schools and colleges of the Archdiocese of Brisbane aspire to educate and form students who are challenged to live the gospel of Jesus Christ and who are literate in the Catholic and broader Christian tradition so that they might participate critically and authentically in faith contexts and wider society.
Religious Education
Religious Education consists of two distinct but complementary dimensions, namely an educational dimension and a faith formation dimension. The first dimension, most commonly referred to as the classroom teaching and learning of religion, is focused on Religious Education as an educational activity. It utilises a range of teaching and learning processes and resources. The second dimension, faith formation, is reflected in the religious life of the school, family and parish. The educational dimension and the faith formation dimension are inextricably linked. The classroom teaching of religion is one element in a complex web of experiences that have the potential to nurture the faith life of young people.
Further details can be found in the school's Religious Education Program document.
St William's Religious Education Program.pdf
Religious Education Curriculum at St William's
This key learning area has been organised into four strands, each with three distinct yet interrelated sub-strands:
- Sacred Texts: Old Testament; New Testament; and Christian Spiritual Writings and Wisdom
- Beliefs: Trinity (God, Jesus the Christ, Spirit); Human Existence; and World Religions
- Church: Liturgy and Sacraments; People of God; and Church History
- Christian Life: Moral Formation; Mission and Justice; and Prayer and Spirituality
These four strands are interrelated and their content is taught in an integrated way with the aim of developing the religious literacy of our students in light of the Catholic Christian tradition, so that they might participate critically and authentically in contemporary culture.
Teachers plan cycles of work from the Brisbane Catholic Education Religious Education Curriculum, with support from the APRE. All teachers are required to deliver 2.5 hours of Religious Education each week. The table below is a guide to the sequence of content that is taught from Prep to Year 6 at St William's.
Religious Life of the School at St William's
Teaching people to be religious, the second dimension referred to above, is identified with the religious life of the school and is a faith development activity focused on nurturing the religious, spiritual and faith growth of students. There are four Components for the faith development of students in the religious life of a school: Religious Identity and Culture, Evangelisation and Faith Formation, Prayer and Worship and Social Action and Justice. Beyond the school, the family, parish and local community also nourish and develop the faith of students.
Religious life of the school activities at St William's can include, but are not limited to, whole school masses and liturgies, year level and buddy masses, assembly, Sacred Singing, whole school prayer, classroom prayer and whole school meditation.
Parish Sacramental Program
Faith is primarily nurtured in the family. The Parish community desires to assist parents with their children's faith development. The Parish has a particular role in providing resources, support and encouragement for families in the immediate preparation of children for the sacraments.
The sacramental preparation is co-ordinated through the Parish office by the Sacramental Co-ordinator. A team of parents assists this co-ordinator with planning, at the parent meetings and arranging the celebrations which are held in the parish. Resources and assistance are provided for parents of children from both parish schools and all the other schools in the geographical area.
Students who have received the Sacrament of Baptism are eligible to enrol for the Sacrament of Confirmation in the year they turn eight (Year 3). In the year students turn nine (Year 4), students complete their initiation into the Catholic Church by receiving the Sacrament of Eucharist. Finally, after receiving all the Sacraments of Initiation, students are eligible to receive the Sacrament of Penance as individual confession and absolution (the first rite) in the year they turn ten (Year 5).
Commencement of sacramental preparation programs will be advertised in school and Parish newsletters. Each of the sacraments has its own preparation program, co-ordinated by the Parish.
Parents participate actively in their child's sacramental preparation. Parents are intimately involved in their children's lives and it is in the home where they live love, forgiveness, faith and hope. These experiences form the basis for all sacramental preparation. The immediate preparation in the months before the celebration is an opportunity for faith to be shared in the family. In previous times the school took care of this preparation. The Church recognises that parents are best qualified to decide their child's readiness and participate in the process of preparation.
Please consider carefully the seriousness and commitment involved in the preparation of your child to live as a fully initiated member of the Church.
Sacramental Policy.pdfSacramental Policy
» St William's Parish website
© Brisbane Catholic Education, St William's School (2023)
