Interim Staff:
For the past two years, students at the Halton Catholic District School Board, just west of Toronto, comprised of the cities of Burlington, Oakville, and Halton Hills, have prayed the Lord’s Prayer each morning due to an initiative of trustee Helena Karabela.
Karabela, who represents Oakville, told supporters through email in late January that students across the board have prayed the “Our Father” for about 500 days. She informed supporters that she brought forward the motion to reintroduce the Lord’s Prayer into the opening exercises of all schools in the HCDSB.
“This motion was successfully passed, and as a result, thousands of students have been praying the Lord’s Prayer every day at school,” she wrote to her email list.
Karabela told LifeSiteNews that “The Lord’s Prayer is taught to us by Jesus” and, “In confusing and difficult times, it shows all of us, at any age, that God the Father loves us and is looking out for all our needs.”
She said that “Prayer has a ripple effect. It can transform the individual but also impacts the school community and beyond.” Karabela explained, “Praying, especially the Lord’s Prayer, brings Jesus into our friendships and culture.”
“The power of praying together is found in Jesus’ own words: ‘For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them’,” Karabela said quoting Matthew 18:20.
“It is an important duty of all people responsible for Catholic education to make sure the students are getting the instruction they need, not just in the maths, sciences and arts, but especially in formation (through) prayer and Catholic teaching,” she said.
There are approximately 36,000 students in the HCDSB.
