STUDENT CHAPLAINCY TEAM

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1 STUDENT CHAPLAINCY TEAM Editorial As members of Castleknock Community College s Student Chaplaincy Team, we strive to bring faith and belief in a divine power, no ma>er what religion or denomina?on, alive in a real and prac?cal way in the daily lives of our students. In so doing we try to help students cope with life, achieve and indeed succeed in their aspira?ons both inside and outside of school. The aim of our new school newsle>er is to inform students and parents of the empowering inspira?on that faith is. In this newsle>er we are not only discussing some elements of world religions but trying to show how this informa?on can help each of us to aspire to, and achieve great things in our lives. Invitation How do we live our faith? 1

2 During Lent we are hos?ng an informal sharing of life and prac?ces from the different faith tradi?ons. Students from the various faiths will share how they prac?ce their faith, focusing on the following: Monday 2 nd March Monday 9 th March Monday 23 rd March Holy Days, Fes?vals and when a baby is born Life Transi?ons and the Meaning of Life Prayer All students are welcome to a6end in the Medita<on Room and bring your lunch. Peace in our World - Five Major World Religions In the wake of recent terrorist acts and protest throughout Europe it is incredibly important that we look now for messages of peace in our world instead of the destruc?on and violence which features heavily in t he media each day. In rela?on to the world's major religions it must be acknowledged that each faith professes a similar outlook on peace in our world. For Chris?ans peace means following the words of Jesus in the Bea?tudes 'Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the children of God.' Peace is freely expressed in worship and involves finding inner peace, so that all of humankind can build the Kingdom of God or a complete, harmonic paradise on Earth. This is similar to the Jewish outlook on peace. Shalom, a typical Jewish gree?ng, is narrowly translate d as meaning 'Peace'. The Jewish idea of peace encompasses wholeness, completeness, soundness and prosperity. Buddhist holidays are a mixture of secular and religious practices. For Muslims peace salaam' is based on jus?ce and submission to the will of Allah. The word Islam is a loose interpreta?on of the Arabic word for peace.muslims believe in a peace based on equality and fairness and like Chris?ans wish each other peace in life. For Hindus peace is about the moral right and of respect for all other living things as outlined in the ahimsa. Without this peace Hindus believe in carrying their wrongdoing as karma into their next life due to reincarna?on. For Buddhists peace encompasses three ideals, inner peace and tranquillity (shan?), world peace and ecological/environmental peace. Buddhist reject greed, hatred and ignorance and promote medita?on as a path way to peace. Rebecca Ross, LC1 2

3 Chinese New Year Other countries celebrate New Years on the 1st January but in China it falls some?me between the 21st January and 20th February. Since this date follows the lunar calendar it varies each year.this spring fes?val is not just a Buddhist fes?val but a celebra?on for all! Buddhist holidays are a mixture of secular and religious prac?ces. This year is the Year of The Ram(sheep/goat). The Ram Year is known as the "Wood Goat according to the Five Chinese Element (earthly branch) and occurs every 60 years. Thursday, 19th February marks new year in This event is without a doubt a?me for families to spend together and to make more memories. In China, the ci?zens have eight days off work during the week of the Chinese New Year. The meal people have on New Year's Eve is called the "Reunion Dinner". During the day special lion/dragon dances are performed. Some also pray at the temple. That night many fireworks and sparks are let into the sky and everyone cheers un?l, one by one they disappear. Buildings, houses and streets are covered with red lanterns and red couplets. Red is said to be a auspicious colour and depicts images of prosperity. Instead of exchanging gihs, money kept in a special red envelope is giving to children or re?red elders. Special food represent special symbols e.g fish in Chinese sounds similar to surplus so it symbolizes a surplus of money and good luck. Another example is dumpling (which is shaped like a silver ingot- ancient money used in China) and it is supposed to bring money and wealth. Other food eaten are spring rolls, glu?nous rice cakes and sweet rice balls. Some supers??ons are also observed for example no 3

4 cleaning for the first and second day of the holidays, no crying, one must not wash one s hair on the New Year s Day and asking for a big loan is a no- no. Jenny Lin, 2nd Year LOVE Buddhism Karúna is compassion and mercy, which reduces the suffering of others, necessary for Enlightenment Chris<anity The greatest commandment thou shalt love the Lord thy God and thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Islam Muhammed said, you will not enter paradise un?l you believe, you will not believe un?l you love one another. Judaism Three words for love in the Hebrew bible Hebrew word ahab - spontaneous, impulsive love (250?mes in OT) 2. Hebrew word hesed - deliberate choice of affec?on and kindness 3. Hebrew word raham - to have compassion, brotherly love Similari<es and Contrasts All the major world religions see love as essen?al in this life and for life aher death. Buddhism and Islam both highlight the importance of love to achieve our goals and Chris?anity and Judaism both highlight the importance and benefits of love on earth. Cormac Kavanagh, LC1 4

5 Makar Sankranti Makar Sankranti is a Hindu festival that marks the transition of the sun into the zodiac sign Makar rashi [Capricorn] on its celestial path. It marks the arrival of spring in India and is a harvest festival. This year it was celebrated on the 15th of January. It is the day that the sun begins to move away from the Tropic of Capricorn. Throughout the nine days before the festival we put all the statues of all the Gods in one place and perform pujas and make vegetarian food called prassadam. We offer the prassadam to the Gods before we share it amongst ourselves. We sing songs and celebrate during these days. The day before Makar Sankranti is called Boghi. On this day people wake up very early and wash their hair and preform a puja [a ritual to worship]. In the evening all the relatives and neighbours gather in one place and have a bonfire. They sing songs, dance, play games and chat among themselves. On the day of Maker Sankranti people wake up very early to perform a puja on all the Gods and Goddesses. People wear colourful silk clothes on this day. Women and girls wear heavy gold ornaments. Ladies and girls create a coloured powder design called rangoli in front of their houses. Many of them have serious competitions to see whose is the prettiest. All the ladies and girls dress up the children and babies under the age of five in pretty clothes and sing songs while giving them blessings by putting flowers, berries and raw rice on their heads. Whoever comes to give the child a blessing receives a gift to take home with them. All children take their parent's blessings on this day. 5

6 There is a huge vegetarian feast for lunch including lentil soup, flatbread, vegetable curry, rice, curd and a huge variety of sweets. After this the men and boys go outside to fly kites and have kite flying competitions. The ladies and girls go to support them and cheer them on. Bhavya Mugawar, 2nd Year What World Religions hold in Common Judaism, Chris?anity and Islam are monotheist religions. Hinduism and Buddhism both share the belief in reincarna?on. The Torah in Judaism is very similar to the Old Testament in Chris?anity. All religions believe in personal and communal prayer. All religions value the family. All religions believe in peace. All religions believe in love. Eve McCann and Ruth Murphy 2 nd Year Student Chaplaincy Team The Student Chaplaincy Team openly discusses faith in a respectful and enjoyable environment. We welcome those of all faiths and none, simply to come, to listen and to learn from fellow peers. The Team gives students an opportunity to celebrate each other s beliefs and by being open to all, we can understand each other better and have fun. The Chaplaincy Team celebrates diversity and embraces the cultural background of all students in our school. The Team, like any other school club, is open to all students. Our thanks to all students who contributed articles for this magazine. We also wish to thank Bhavya Mugawar, Jenny Lin and Catherine Isiche who provided original artwork for this edition. Rebecca Ross, LC1 6

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