"Religious Education is the core of the core curriculum in a Catholic school" (Pope St John Paul II). Placing RE at the core of the curriculum in Catholic schools helps us to fulfil our mission to educate the whole person in discerning the meaning of their existence, since Religious Education is concerned not only with intellectual knowledge but also includes emotional and affective learning.
Religion can be considered the most important influence on the lives of everyone in the world. It affects a great many aspects of our everyday lives, wherever we live. Religious belief has been with humanity since the very beginning. It is an attempt to explain those things for which we do not otherwise have an answer: why are we born, why do we suffer, what happens to us when we die?
When we study religious values, beliefs, and practices we shed light on the sources of some of humankind’s most difficult problems and conflicts. We study religion in the hope that such knowledge may assist in the human quest for peace, justice and compassion.
- Mr D Hayes – Head of Department
- Mrs P Hughes
- Miss C Newbound
- Mrs V Robinson-Powell
- Miss R Thomas
In years 7and 8, pupils follow the new Archdiocesan Programme of Study "People of God". The programme includes topics that explore and allow for reflection and debating Catholic life and values. It also gives opportunities to discuss and reflect on the big questions young people often ponder about. Students will be able to discover what it means to part of a multi-faith society and appreciate the beliefs, practices and important celebrations of many of the worlds religions.
In years 10 and 11 students follow the Edexcel GCSE course: Faith and Practice in the 21st Century (Specification A) with Roman Catholic Christianity and Judaism as the two religions studied. Students will study the beliefs, teaching and practices, sources of authority and how followers of both religions express their faith in their ways of life. Students will also, have the opportunity to investigate moral and ethical issues that challenge them to consider the answers so life’s big questions.
The course aims to enable students to:
- Adopt an enquiring, critical and reflective approach to the study of religion.
- Enhance their personal, social and cultural development, their understanding of different cultures locally, nationally and in the wider world, and contribute to social and community
- Reflect on and develop their own values, opinions and attitudes in light of their learning.
All students attending All Saints Sixth form will take part in a general RE lesson once a week. In Year 12 students will explore many issues such as Matters of Life and Death, Capital Punishment and investigating current affairs from a moral and ethical perspective. In Year 13 students explore of a variety of moral and ethical dilemmas in a multicultural and multi-faith society. Students investigate a modern application of the Common Good in the local, national and global community in the 21st Century.