Welcome to our Children’s Liturgy (Junior Church) Page

On this page you can find out a little about the way we hope to make the experience of children in our parish meaningful, as they grow their faith together at St. Thomas’.

What Is Children’s Liturgy?

‘Children’s Liturgy’ is actually the ‘Liturgy of the Word for Children’. We cover the Sunday Gospel and readings at a level the children can understand and enjoy. We enrich this with discussion, prayers, crafts and songs. We also try to raise awareness of God’s love, the humanity of Jesus, the Seasons of the Church, the understanding of symbols in the Mass and the context of the Bible.

Our aim is to make the children’s experience of church meaningful, whilst helping them to grow in the faith of the Catholic Church and develop as full and active members of our Parish Community.

Why Children’s Liturgy?

The first half of the Mass is the Liturgy of the Word where we listen to readings from the Bible, followed by the Homily. However, we all recognise that both of these are generally aimed towards the majority of the congregation which is essentially adult. This proves to be of little interest to a young child who may become bored, making church a negative experience.

When do you hold the Liturgy?

Children’s Liturgy is held every Sunday during term time at the 9:00am Mass. The children are asked to come forward after the opening prayer of the Mass and then they process to the Beckett Centre where the Liturgy takes place. They return to join the full congregation at the offertory. Any work they have done is brought up during the offertory as their gift to God and the Community.

Who can attend Children’s Liturgy?

Children’s Liturgy is open to all children of primary school age.

Who runs Children’s Liturgy?

Children’s Liturgy is run by parents and adults in the parish who are keen to pass on their faith to the children. They use a variety of resources and each session is based on the Gospel reading of the day.

Please do come along with your child and give Children’s Liturgy a try.

You will be most welcome and we would love to see you there.