Mt Carmel School celebrated ‘Mount Carmel Day’ this week on Thursday. Students took part in various activities related to Our Lady of Mount Carmel such as trivia, art activities, and a word search.
(Photo at top Elizabeth Morris left and Bella Nagle on right)
Students were surprised with cupcakes at recess while they learnt about Mount Carmel Day and its significance to the school and within the Catholic tradition.
The Mount Carmel Feast Day is celebrated on the 16th of July in Catholic Churches and schools around the world.
This year, Mount Carmel Day fell during the school holidays on Saturday.
The Yass Catholic school celebrated Mount Carmel day during the first week back of term 3 with a day of fun and learning, including a whole-school Mass at St Augustine’s Church, led by Parish Priest Fr Peter My.
The Mount Carmel Junior Youth Ministry Team were actively involved in running the service.
Students partook in proclaiming the readings, reading the prayers of the Faithful, altar service, presenting PowerPoints, hospitality, participating in the entrance procession, and offertory presentation of the Gifts.
All students and staff actively participated through listening, responding and singing. ‘Students learnt that in Galilee, where Jesus lived, Mt Carmel is known as “the meeting place for God and His people.”
On Mt Carmel day in 1876, the foundation stone for the Convent of Mercy was laid. Jesus’ mother, Our Lady of Mt Carmel, has been a patron of our school since then,’ Religious Coordinator Ms Karakotas explained.
‘Our Lady of Mt Carmel helps, protects and cares for us. Also, students learnt background information about Our Lady of Mt Carmel.’ According to Ms Karakotas, students were most excited by participating in Mass, cupcakes, and completing activities with their buddies in other classrooms.
“My favourite part of Mount Carmel Day was the cupcakes and visiting the year 6 class,” year 2 Mt Carmel student Jasper Jones agreed.
The Mount Carmel Day Mass is part of the school’s year-long religious education program, where classes are assigned to lead a special prayer service celebrating a Feast day or important liturgical event.
During this term, there are four more prayer services for Saint Mary Mackillop, Assumption of Mary, Saint Augustine and Father’s Day. Our Lady of Mount Carmel, or Virgin of Carmel, is the title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary in her role as patroness of the Carmelite Order within the Catholic Church.
The first Carmelites were Christian hermits living on Mount Carmel in the Holy Land during the late 12th and early to mid-13th century who built a chapel dedicated to the Blessed Virgin.
The Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel was first celebrated in England in the late 14th century. Its object was thanksgiving to Mary for the benefits she had accorded to it through its difficult early years.
Southerly Jones
