JUSTICE
Justice means more than making things ‘fair’. In order for people to live together well in a just community, it is important to have rules or laws that everybody sticks to.
Perseverance
Very little that is really worthwhile
in life can be achieved without
perseverance. An athlete may train
for years before they are ready to
compete at the highest level. A
musician must practice every day,
sometimes for hours at a time, if they
are to really master their instrument.
• Can you give an example of
something you have achieved by
determined perseverance?
• Is there a skill that you think you
could improve with perseverance?
‘Count your blessings’ is an old saying, but it reminds us to be thankful and not take things for granted.
As a family you may like to talk about:
- Remembering to let other people know when you are thankful
- Not taking things for granted
- Practical ways of showing gratitiude
- How it feels when someone thanks you!
The Value for Term 5 is Friendship.
Learning to be a good friend, someone who can be trusted and is loyal, takes a lifetime.
Friends come in all shapes and sizes. Some are young, some are old. Some are always there, some we see only occasionally. Questions we can ask ourselves.
• How do we choose our friends?
• What makes a good friend?
• Are we a good friend to others?
The value of term 4 is Forgiveness.
Everyone makes mistakes, it’s part of being human. Sometimes our mistakes hurt others and then we need to say sorry. Sometimes mistakes made by other people hurt us. When this happens we need to be able to forgive. Forgiveness can be difficult and costly but without it a new start is impossible.
“Without forgiveness there is no future…. If you can forgive, then you can move on and even help the person you are forgiving to become a better person”
Desmond Tutu
The value of the term is Courage. Being courageous can mean different things to different people. For example, one person may think it easy to speak in front of a large audience, whilst another would need to find lots of courage to do this. Everyone faces challenges from time to time, and we have to find courage to overcome them.
Compassion is about ‘standing in someone else’s shoes’ when they are having a hard time. In other words, trying to understand how they might be feeling and doing our best to try to help.
When we think about generosity we usually think about being generous with money or possessions. However, we can also be generous with our time, our gifts and our abilities. Generous people often say that they receive much more than they give. Perhaps this is because when someone is generous to us, it makes us want to be generous in return.
To be truthful with others, you must first be truthful with yourself. A truthful person can be a source of both guidance and inspiration to others. A truthful person gains respect, regard and love of other people. Truthfulness makes people more humble and responsible towards society.
Value for term 5 was: Service
Words relating to ‘servant’ and ‘service’ are central in Christian theology. The parable of the Good Samaritan shows we should serve those in need, whoever they are. Such service is not offered to gain some advantage for ourselves. ‘Going the extra mile’ involves sacrifice, putting ourselves out for someone else’s benefit.
Value for term 4 is: Justice ‘Be fair and do what is right’ When thinking about ‘justice’, some people may first think about giving wrongdoers the punishment they deserve. ‘Justice’ evokes ideas of ‘just deserts’, ’the punishment fitting the crime’, ‘an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth’. However, that would be a one-sided picture of justice. Justice also means giving all people – particularly the poor and oppressed – what it is right and fair for them to have: life, health, freedom and dignity. It is about acting out of a concern for what is right and seeing right prevailing. It is about social justice, especially for those who suffer most and are least able to protect themselves.