Year 9 Day of Reflection

On Wednesday Year 9 spent a day off regular timetable to explore the theme of justice. They began by engaging in lively discussion about injustice in the local and global context and then considering what we mean by ‘justice’. Young people have a sharp sense of justice and a great desire for it which is most heartening to witness. We expanded our knowledge and understanding of injustice by looking at some statistics illustrating the great divide between rich and poor and other areas of injustice. From there we explored some possible solutions to redress the balance, such as the work of Emmaus, an organisation which addresses the causes of homelessness while at the same time focusing on care of the planet by undertaking recycling.

Some role play explored the reasons why some people are trapped in poverty while others thrive and we discussed the ways in which these situations can be changed by timely and effective interventions. We added to the ‘chain of commitment’ made by Year 9 students in previous years by writing an action we will undertake to contribute to justice in the world on a link in the chain.

Having concluded that war and conflict are major causes of poverty and deprivation, we considered what we understand by the concept of peace. Peace can mean many different things to different people but there are some basic requirements for peace in anyone’s life. ‘War begins in the heart of man, so that is where peace must begin’ is a proclamation by the UN so we pondered how we might bring about peace in everyday situations of disagreement or conflict. Students worked together to produce some lovely posters expressing their vision of, desire for and commitment to spreading peace.

The day ended with a reflection in the chapel.