The Vision for Religious Education as stated in the Religious Education Curriculum of Brisbane Catholic Education gives voice to what St Mary's hopes for its students in terms of their religious literacy and faith formation.
“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"
The following model identifies two distinct, but complementary, dimensions of Religious Education in a Catholic school context. The fullness of the Vision for Religious Education is realised through the intersection of both dimensions.
Whilst elements of both aspects take place within the context of a Catholic school, this model presupposes a broader context, namely a whole lifetime. At St Mary's we acknowledge that parents are the prime educators of their children and we aim to work with parents in the religious education of their children.
This broad Vision for Religious Education emphasizes the complementarity of the two dimensions and articulates our school's aspirations for students in terms of their religious literacy and faith formation. St Mary's acknowledges and embraces the symbiotic relationship between these two aspects of Religious Education in a Catholic school and takes every opportunity to allow students to develop both their religious knowledge and religious experience.
Through engagement with both dimensions of Religious Education, students at St Mary's are challenged to be cultural agents of change in light of the Gospel message by participating in a plethora of religious experiences including ways of talking, acting, creating, communicating, critiquing, evaluating, learning, participating, ritualising, theologising, worshipping, reading, reflecting, and writing with others in a variety of religious and secular contexts. Central to all of these experiences is the person of Jesus Christ.
Whilst knowledge and understanding of religious concepts is important, the truths and beliefs to which a student adheres must have some consequence in everyday life. The Vision for Religious Education challenges our students to be a religious voice in the world and to live the gospel of Jesus Christ in everyday in every way.
At St Mary's our classroom religion program for each year level is based on the Religious Education Curriculum developed by Brisbane Catholic Education. The final draft of this curriculum was released in October, 2013 and updated in 2020. It describes the knowledge and skills that should be addressed by students in each year level of their schooling in a Catholic school in our Archdiocese. This curriculum is the starting point for planning, teaching and assessing in Religion.
The curriculum is organized under four strands: Sacred Texts, Beliefs, Church and Christian Life which are further subdivided into three areas. The content and skills are interrelated across the strands and are taught in an integrated fashion.
The Religious Life of the School syllabus is organized under four strands: Religious Identity and Culture, Prayer and Worship, Evangelisation and Faith Formation and Social Action and Justice which are further subdivided into three areas.
Each of these four components has a distinctive focus but all are interrelated and mutually reinforce each other and the classroom teaching of religion.
Please click here for a full outline of our Religion program.
Faith Community
St Mary's Catholic Primary School is a community enhanced by our devotion to Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Mary was a faithful disciple, a model of strength, courage, commitment, gentleness, humility and tenacity in the face of overwhelming difficulties. Above all she is a model of faithfulness to God and her son, Jesus.
Through our prayer, liturgical life and our relationship with the parish community, we grow in the knowledge of Christ and in attentiveness to the presence of God in our lives according to the Catholic tradition.
Religious Education at St Mary's Catholic Primary School has its groundings in the strong traditions of the past, enhanced by current best educational practice. Education in religious literacy of the rich and varied tradition of the Catholic faith, a deep prayer life, participation in celebration, liturgy and the sacraments and an emphasis on social justice and action are areas of emphasis of our Religious Education program. The school community nurtures the Catholic Identity of the school and promotes Christian action.
Our faith is expressed in a variety of ways at St Mary's Catholic Primary School including:
- Our formal Religious Education Program
- School and class liturgies, celebrations and individual prayer
- Links to the Parish Sacramental Program
- Fortnightly whole school assembly
- Positive relationships
- Pastoral care
© Brisbane Catholic Education, (2023)