Well done to all the boys and girls from Room 18,19 and 11 who made their Confessions in Ashbourne church last Thursday night the 9th of March. The children have been learning about the story of Zacchaeus. The gospel was read and Father Ciaran gave the following homily.
Like Zacchaeus in our gospel , we all make bad choices at times, and we sometimes hurt other people. We all need to be forgiven and to be reconciled with God who loves us. When Zacchaeus met Jesus he told him that he had made some bad choices. Jesus didn’t turn his back on him or judge him, but he stretched out his hand and told Zacchaeus that God still loved him, and that he would forgive him. When we are sorry for the wrong things we have done, God is always ready to forgive us. God loves us too, and God will always love us, no matter what we do. We will now tell God, who loves us like a loving mother, who cares for us like a loving father, about the times when we were lost and moved away from the love of others. We will ask God to bring us back to the love of those around us, and to forgive us for the wrong things we have done. We will tell God that we are sorry and we will try again.
The children then went up for their individual confessions.
Thank you to Ms Doran, Ms Quinlan and Ms Tobin who prepared the children for the sacrament. Also thank you to Ms Mc Gowan who taught the children the songs and accompanied them on the night.