The 1st Holy Communion camp was held from Saturday, 20th until Sunday, 21st October 2018, a 2 days 1 night camp.  A total number of 22 children participated in this grace filled camp. The theme was ‘JESUS, I  LOVE YOU’.

The camp started with registration and breakfast at 8.30 am. All teachers and children helped to set up the altar for the bible enthronement and prayer, inviting Jesus and the Holy Spirit to be with us. Simple camp rules were set to ensure these children are protected and at the same time teaching them to be responsible.

The opening session was ‘God’s Love’ conducted by Sister Mary David, a Canossian sister from the Jinjang Convent. The session entails

• Video of Life before Birth (baby’s life cycle in the womb)
• Video of Life cycle of a butterfly
• Video of Dinosaur’s existence

followed by a workshop on creating and decorating a family photo frame. This activity allowed the children to think about the life process and at the same time to wonder on how did they come out from their mother’s womb. They had the opportunity to talk about their family and it was amazing to see how these little children value their family.

The second session was on ‘The Eucharist’. Each child received a round shaped card with the name of the apostles. They were told to write down the names of friends who had the same characteristics or who reminded them of the apostles. And on the centre of the card, the face of Jesus was pasted to give the message that they have the one and only true friend who will be with them always until the end of times.

After lunch, Sister Mary spoke about ‘forgiveness’, on how to forgive others as God forgives us. Then, the children were brought out to play 5 lesson games on ‘forgiveness’ by their teachers. By playing these games, the children learnt to build relationships with their fellow friends. The objective was to get the children to admit when they have done wrong. The game called ‘Big Step’ challenged the children with the question “Am I careful with what I am doing?”

By tea time, everyone experienced an atmosphere filled with love, happiness and excitement. This camp had taught the little ones to be independent too. 

Next was a community song which they had learnt to dance to followed by prayer.  Teacher Puspa gave a brief explanation on ‘Eucharist’ where the children listened attentively. After the session, Teacher Celestine helped them with a meaningful and decorative artwork on the Eucharist.

After dinner, a prayer gathering “Taize”, where all children had to light up a tea candle and place it near the altar. They knelt and prayed reverently. The ambiance was totally calm and peaceful.

On Sunday, all children including teachers attended Rosary and Mass. The last session was about the ‘Sacrament of Reconciliation and a Parent-child relationship’. Sr. Mary lead the session as she spoke about reconciliation, she made the children recall the games played and relate it to the session. She told the parents about the importance of their children’s participation in Mass.  

We were thankful for a great journey towards loving Jesus.

By Amanda Pumala

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