Blessing the Christ Child

– jacilluch via photopin cc

On December 22, our younger religious education students participated in an Advent Blessing of the Baby Jesus commonly used as the center piece of each family’s crèche. This was similar to a blessing given in Rome each Advent when the pope invites all the local children to St. Peter’s Basilica to bless them and their ‘bambini’ (Child Jesus statues).

Our religious education children, grades pre-k to grade 5, assembled in church at 10:10 a.m. following a shortened religion class carrying the family’s own statue of the child Jesus. There were slides and a presentation before mass. The actual blessing was given at mass.