Come and See
At St Peter’s, we follow a Catholic R.E. programme called Come and See. Come and See offers the opportunity to search, explore, discover, and respond. This is part of what it is to be human: children Come and See the wonder of all that is within them and beyond them; God offers the invitation to Come and See; and teachers facilitate the opportunity for children to Come and See.
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Come and See is developed through three themes: Church, Sacrament and Christian Living. Each theme is explored through different topics in each age group. Below outlines the themes throughout the year.
Church
Church themes occur in each season time and each theme gradually builds on the understanding of the previous theme.
AUTUMN– My story~ my family~ Domestic Church. To start the year Come and See begins with my story: within a family. The Church honours the family with the title Domestic Church because it is there that parents ‘by their word and example are the first (teachers) heralds of faith with regard to their children.’13
SPRING– Our story~ local Community~ Local Church. After Christmas the children explore the theme of local Church which is our story. The parish is where people gather together to celebrate and practice care and love for each other.14 The diocese is the community of the Christian faithful.15
SUMMER– The story~ the world wide community ~ Universal Church. The year finishes with the story of the worldwide community; the universal Church. In the Church, God is calling together his people throughout the world.’16‘ The order and harmony of the created world result from the diversity of beings and from the relationships that exist among them ’17
Sacrament
The Sacramental themes occur once in every season time and each theme gradually builds on the understanding of the previous theme.
AUTUMN– Belonging ~ born into Christ’s life. Following on from an understanding of belonging to a family the theme of Baptism introduces the understanding of being initiated into belonging to the Christian Church during key stage 1.‘The faithful are born a new by Baptism, strengthen by the sacrament of Confirmation, and receive in the Eucharist the food of eternal life.’18 At key stage 2 children will learn about the Sacrament of Confirmation, whereby the baptised are more perfectly bound to the church and are enriched with a special strength of the Holy Spirit, the Sacrament of Ordination for the service of the Church and the Sacrament of Marriage, perfecting the human love of wife and husband.
SPRING– Relating ~ God’s love in our lives~ Eucharist. In the Springtime after learning about the local Church community, the Sacrament of the Eucharist is explored. This is the Sacrament of communion with Christ and the Church. This sacrament is at the heart of Come and See since it is at the heart of Christ nourishing his people.
SUMMER– inter-relating~ service to the community ~ Reconciliation. The Sacrament of Reconciliation forms part of the work of the summer time when there an opportunity to learn about the joy and challenge of relationships and God’s love and mercy celebrated in this sacrament. At key stage 2 children will learn about the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick, which strengthens, forgives and unites the ailing person more closely to Christ.
Christian Living
The Christian living themes occur in each season time and each theme gradually builds on the understanding of the previous theme.
AUTUMN– Loving celebrating ~life Advent Christmas. The
Advent Christmas theme considers the gift of God’s love in Jesus. Christmas and our preparation celebrate the wonderful gift of Jesus and offers the witness of loving as a way of life. ‘The Word became flesh so that we might know God’s love.’19
SPRING– giving– the cost of life–. In the Spring season, Lent and Easter are explored, Jesus’ love for human kind knows no limit. Jesus offered his life and gave an example of giving as a way of life. ‘Easter is not simply one feast among others, but the feast of feasts.’ The Resurrection… remains at the very heart of the mystery of faith as something which transcends and surpasses history.’
SUMMER– serving in love– feasts to celebrate– Pentecost. The study of the Ascension and Pentecost completes the Easter story and shows how the gift of the Holy Spirit strengthens the community and enables Christians to give witness to a life of joyful service. ‘In this age of the Church, Christ now lives and acts in and with his Church, in a new way appropriate to this new age.’