ST JAMES’ CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL
DECEMBER NEWSLETTER 2022
MESSAGE FROM THE HEADTEACHER
Welcome to the December Newsletter. When I last wrote we were at the very start of our Advent preparations. The season is now in full swing and our liturgical assemblies have reminded us all, of the messages of: Hope, Love and Joy that are the themes of the first three weeks of Advent.
You will see in the newsletter that we have welcomed the return of both, our senior citizens Christmas party and our Christmas concert. These were both wonderful events and a real opportunity for the wider St James’ community to come together. Can I thank all of those staff members for giving of their time so willingly, to ensure these were both such successful events.
Please do take the time to look through the newsletter and see some of the many other wonderful events and activities that have taken place over recent weeks.
May I end by wishing you all a happy and Holy Christmas.
God bless.
Mr Ellul
Headteacher
MESSAGE FROM OUR HEAD STUDENT
As we draw nearer to the end of the year, preparations for, and celebrations of, Christmas are everywhere, from the lighting of the advent wreath, to Christmas parties, to the annual Christmas concert.
On the penultimate day of term is International Day, a day for us to celebrate how multicultural St James' is, as well as the teachers vs. sixth form students football match, for the sixth form to prove their superiority at football.
The first term of this academic year has been filled with hard work and great achievements, and the Christmas holidays will be a well-deserved break, and an opportunity for reflection with friends and family.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Aoife Oliver
Head Student
'I HAVE COME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT TO THE FULL' JOHN 10:10
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'I HAVE COME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT TO THE FULL' JOHN 10:10
UPCOMING EVENTS
'I HAVE COME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT TO THE FULL' JOHN 10:10
Jack Petchey Winner - Noah Zakarian
Well done to Noah in Year who won a Jack Petchey Award for December. The Jack Petchey Foundation was set up by Sir Jack Petchey to inspire and motivate young people across London and Essex to do their best and reach their full potential. Noah was nominated by his Head of Year Ms Agolli. 'Noah has has a positive attitude to learning at all times. He really embodies our Veritas Values!'
'I HAVE COME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT TO THE FULL' JOHN 10:10
Advent
The word “advent” means anticipation of the arrival of a person or an event. Advent is the season that reminds us of the arrival of something great. As a season in the Church, it is placed at the beginning of the Church year. It is the beginning of a new spiritual journey for each of us.
We are reminded once again that the promise God made about our salvation has come. This promise is the true hope beyond any other hope we have. We build our traditions around this time to remind us of that great mystery of Christ’s coming for our salvation.
Pope Francis previously said on the eve of Advent that some people live their lives full of fear; “Fear of neighbour... fear of the other... fear of violence... fear of not making it. Fear of not being accepted... fear that it is useless to work hard. Fear that we cannot change the world... Fear of not finding a job.”
He goes on to say that Advent responds to this with the ‘Gospel of anti-fear
“If fear makes you lie on the ground, the Lord invites you to get up; if negativity pushes you to look down, Jesus invites us to turn our gaze to heaven, from where He will come. Because we are not children of fear, but children of God,”
During Advent and beyond let us banish all fear from our lives. Let us reflect in our service on the promise of hope that Advent brings.
First Advent Candle - Hope
'The first Advent candle symbolises a shining light in anticipation of the coming of Christ. It represents God's forgiveness of man's sins. Purple is traditionally the most important of the Advent candle colours. It is the colour of liturgical garments used for vestments and is associated with prayer, contemplation, repentance, and hope.
The night is nearly over.
Free us from greed and selfishness.
Lead us out of inequality and injustice,
to your kingdom of justice and mercy
to a transformed world,
where peace is built on understanding,
not weapons, and everyone can live their lives to the full.
Amen.'
Secound Advent Candle - Peace
It reminds us of the Holy Family's experience in Bethlehem. The colour of the second Advent candle is associated with royalty and reminds us that Christ is the 'King of Kings.' We await the coming of a new King from Bethlehem.'
'Wake us up, Lord!
Open our eyes to the dignity of all people
and our ears to the cry of the earth.
Let us walk in solidarity with the poor
and cleanse our world from oppression.
Let us shout for justice for all
and renew our hope for change.
Amen
Third Advent Candle - Joy
'The third candle is the Shepherd's Candle, as we remember to rejoice in Christ's birth, like the shepherds on the first Christmas Eve. The Pink coloured candle is associated with joy, and it is on the third Sunday of Advent we turn from repentance towards the celebration of Christ's birth.'
'Lord, wake us up!
Stir within us a desire
to fight for the integrity of creation
and to treasure the immense
beauty of the earth.
Be with us, Lord,
that we may be people of hope and joy.
Amen.'
Fourth Advent Candle - Love
'The final Advent candle marks the beginning of the final week before Christmas and is a time of prayer. The candle represents purity, peace, and justice brought to the world by Christ.'
Lord, wake us up!
A we prepare to celebrate your birth,
we pray once more
for the light to remain with us.
May we be greedy, not for material
possessions
Christmas Hampers
This year we are aiming to return to our support of families in our school and local parish by supplying families with a Christmas hamper presented on behalf of St James’ community. In order to make this successful we needed each form to work together to support this drive by bringing in items to fill these hampers. We made 20 Christmas hampers and 15 food boxes to be kindly donated to our St James families.
A huge thank you to all the food donations received from the parishioners of the Annunciation Church, Mrs Reid from Kingsbury Community Group, Morrisons, St James’ families and Staff.
Mrs Signorini
Chaplain
'I HAVE COME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT TO THE FULL' JOHN 10:10
1ST PLACE
Natalia Jankowiak 8C
SECOND PLACE
Sofia Moreno Ezeagbor 9S
THIRD PLACE
Chelsea Wong 8A
Each winner received an Amazon Gift voucher as a prize. The winning design from Natalia has been turned into a Christmas Card, which has gone our to all our Staff, Governors, Primary Schools and local parishes! Congratulations to our top 3 entries!
'I HAVE COME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT TO THE FULL' JOHN 10:10
It is with great excitement that the senior citizens’ party has been reinstated at St James’ after a three-year hiatus due to the pandemic. This celebration takes place every year during the festive season, whereby senior citizens from the local community are invited for a three-course Christmas dinner hosted by St James’ Sixth Form students. Guests are entertained by our wonderful school choir and musicians. A raffle also takes place and everyone who attends wins a prize!
This event is organised and paid for solely through donations; our students raise money for the party through ‘Own Clothes Day’ where students pay £2 to wear their own clothes. Everyone really looks forward to attending this event and, for some, this is one of the few chances to eat a Christmas dinner and socialise during the Christmas period.
Click the link below to see a video of the event
“We are always happy to welcome the senior members of our community into our school at Christmas time, to interact with them and share in the Christmas cheer. It is wonderful to see how invested our students are in our senior citizens having a good time and the interactions between them. We thank everyone for their generosity in giving to support the organisation of this event and our Sixth Form students for hosting.” ~ Mr Ellul
'I HAVE COME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT TO THE FULL' JOHN 10:10
A close sell-out crowd gathered for what has become a highlight in the school calendar, the Christmas Concert. During the evening, the audience was treated to a wide range of musical and theatrical acts admirably performed by St James' students.
Various musical performances, as well as a sneak, peek of our upcoming Musical 'Adam Family'. The music performances ranged from classical piano recitals, through the era of pop and musicals, to a rousing finale of Christmas carols.
Special thanks to Ms Williams, Mr Howlett-Reeves and Mr Edmondson, for so willingly giving up their time and expertise to help the students prepare for such a great showcase of talent.
"Teaching and Learning in music are always exciting at St. James’. In this busy term, we have been running a choir, orchestra, and drumming club, supported students through individual and small ensemble performances, and have begun rehearsals for the Addams Family production due to take place in March. We are proud to demonstrate the achievements made in music to you all during our event. Together we look forward to our performing and learning opportunities in the New Year 2022." ~ Ms Williams and Mr Howlett-Reeves
'I HAVE COME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT TO THE FULL' JOHN 10:10
We held an International Day today as students from all year groups gathered in their houses to take part in activities such as quizzes, puzzles and games, creating Christmas cards and making displays for their representative countries. There were winning prizes for each category and the best international display for 'Integrity' was form class 8M!
'I HAVE COME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT TO THE FULL' JOHN 10:10
Subject Ambassadors Event
Well done and thank you to our Subject Ambassadors who have supported our Year 11s by giving them an insight into our broad and inclusive key stage 5 curriculum, through our 'speed dating' event. This event helped Year 11 get ready for our 6th Form Open Evening.
'I HAVE COME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT TO THE FULL' JOHN 10:10
Extra-Curricular Timetable
'I HAVE COME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT TO THE FULL' JOHN 10:10
House Points
'I HAVE COME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT TO THE FULL' JOHN 10:10
Contact Us
Email: admin@st-james.barnet.sch.uk
Website: www.st-james.barnet.sch.uk
Location: Great Strand, Colindale NW9 5PE
Phone: 020 8358 2800