In the year following the Jubilee Year of Hope, Bishop Patrick’s priority for us all will be missionary discipleship.
Bishop Patrick said that missionary disciples “…bear witness to His [Christ’s] love in our service of our brothers and sisters, especially those most in need.”
This is a priority for the whole diocese and you can read more about Bishop Patrick’s vision here.
You can read more generally about the themes of Encounter, Discipleship and Missionary Discipleship here.
Bishop Patrick McKinney invites us to find opportunities to encounter Christ in all that we do and to grow closer to Him through these connections.
From Advent 2023 up until Christmas Eve 2024, we journeyed through a whole year of Encounter. This tied in with the Year of Preparation for the Jubilee and focussed on prayer in its many forms.
At Saint Norbert’s we encounter God in many ways; through our regular timetable of prayer, through spontaneous prayer and time for meditation and reflection, through singing, through scripture, through Mass, by interacting with sacred spaces around school, through voluntary prayer groups (such as Rosary Club, Lent Prayer Club or Advent Activity Club) and through retreat days. We also encounter God through His wonderful creation, through the way to treat one another and through the policies of our school which are rooted in Catholic teaching.
The theme of Discipleship was our focus during the Jubilee Year, which began on Christmas Eve 2024 and lasted until the Feast of the Epiphany (6th January) 2026. The Jubilee Year 2025 was dedicated to the theme of Discipleship, and we will explored some of the themes of the Jubilee such as care for creation, food poverty, forgiveness, and rest and worship.
This year, with a greater recognition of, and openness to, the help, guidance, and inspiration of the Holy Spirit, we will all try to become Missionary Disciples; faith-filled, joyful, and outward-looking Christians. At Saint Norbert’s, we are Missionary Disciples when we bear witness to His love through our service of our brothers and sisters, especially those most in need. Our pupils are always incredibly generous, and we are delighted to be able to support a range of charities throughout the year such as CAFOD and our local foodbank Project Saint Thomas.
The theme of Missionary Discipleship will be our focus from 7th January 2026 until the end of Ordinary Time (28th November 2026) at which point we will return to the termly cycle of Encounter, Discipleship and Missionary Discipleship.
