Preparing to Celebrate in Schools

Liturgical formation requires work, and the obstacles to good celebration in schools are all too clear: poor environment for liturgy, too many children, "crowd control," and confused expectations. Problems abound when we transplant the liturgy into this new environment. Yet school celebrations can be the source of much joy and spiritual enrichment for all concerned.

Preparing to Celebrate in Schools addresses problems at their source. In this way it helps you both to avoid the difficulties in school liturgy and to build toward a strong program of liturgical formation in the school—a program which will lead to full, conscious, and active participation by the students in the liturgical life of the Church. Specific examples of how to apply these principles in schools and develop a long-range plan of action are included.

Discussion questions and a summary conclude each chapter. Chapters include "What Are We Celebrating?" "How We Celebrate Is Who We Are," "When Should We Celebrate?" "What's a Great Liturgy Doing in a Place Like This?" "How Can We Keep From Singing?" "The Directory for Masses with Children—Definitely Not the Yellow Pages!" and "Where Do We Go from Here?"

Margaret Bick, religious education consultant for the Metropolitan Toronto Roman Catholic Separate School Board, Canada's largest Roman Catholic school board, holds a master's degree in liturgy from the University of Notre Dame. She gives workshops in various areas of liturgy and writes on liturgy for several Canadian publications.