Students at St. Christopher School pray ‘Living Rosary’ as part of Catholic Schools Week

Each year, during Catholic Schools Week, school administrators and faculty put forth activities and celebrations that allow the children to take a break from the everyday classroom routine and have fun, and bond together as schoolmates and a community.

But many activities also keep the focus on Catholic faith, the anchor of the courses and curriculum. Such was the case Thursday, Feb. 1 at St. Christopher School in the Town of Tonawanda. Students there participated in praying the Living Rosary. 

“We wanted to do something special, and we wanted to do something focused on vocations, because today the theme of Catholic Schools Week is celebrating vocations,” said Anita Herr, Math Specialist at St. Christopher, who organized the event inside the adjacent church. “We decided we would do a Living Rosary and emphasize the vocations of the Catholic Church.”

Small electric candles represented rosary beads. Groups of 10 students represented each bead in a Hail Mary decade while adults represented the single beads on which one prays the Lord’s Prayer and “Glory Be.” As the prayer progressed, each participant would pass a wireless microphone to the next person to continue. 

The school chose the Luminous Mysteries for their Living Rosary.

“The Luminous Mysteries are the mysteries of light,” explained Principal Denise Cronyn. “They highlight special events in Jesus’ public life as He revealed himself as the Light of the World. We think about Jesus’ teaching and healing ministry to those in need, and we reflect on how God calls us to proclaim his kingdom through our words and deeds. In a special way in this rosary, we pray for vocations. Vocations to the single life, vocations to marriage, vocations to religious life, and vocations to priesthood.”

The Luminous Mysteries are the Baptism of Jesus, the Wedding in Cana, The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God, The Transfiguration, and The Institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper.

As each decade was completed, the students and adults sat down. Upon the conclusion of the Living Rosary, the students, teachers, and volunteering adults found themselves sitting in a ring of candles aligned on the church floor.

Catholic Schools Week activities at St. Christopher School that day also included Bible trivia led by Father Michael LaMarca. There were also fun and games to be played, of course. Earlier in the week students and staff took part in volleyball games. On the final day of the school week, they held a lip-synch contest. 

Herr suggests the values-oriented education and an environment of kindness among the students have been appealing to parents who enroll their children at St. Christopher.

“Our world is a little difficult right now. And we always want to go back to our Catholic values,” Herr said. “And what would Jesus do? He would love.”

Click here to listen to Michael Mroziak’s report.