By Andy Drozdziak
A Catholic education mission has ‘big plans’ for the coming year as it strives to reach over 30,000 school children per week through online liturgies.
The Mark 10 Mission was founded by Catholic teacher Greg Finn in 2020 to help children in his school hear the Gospel during the pandemic. With the help of a small team, including Catholic lay-missionary Pippa Baker and a number of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, the project has grown into a national ministry with upwards of 30,000 children joining Mark 10 each week.
Greg Finn is hoping that the mission will reach ‘every Catholic school.’
“God has taken our small offering and created something beyond anything we could have expected,” he told the Universe.
“Our prayer is that Mark 10 will grow and can ignite revival in every Catholic school across the country.”
He also outlined the purpose of the mission and his ‘burning desire’ for young people to grow in faith. “Mark 10 is a ministry which serves Catholic schools with free weekly Gospel liturgies online,” he said.
“September has seen the Mark 10 Mission launch into another year of bringing the children of the UK to Jesus. At the heart of their project is the burning desire to help children to encounter Jesus in their classrooms and nurture a relationship with him.”
The Mark 10 mission is inspired by the passage in Mark 10:13-15, in which Jesus says: ‘Let the little children come to me. Do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs.’
Mr Finn said that their ‘big plans’ include ‘gaining charity status, in person training for school staff and collaboration with ministries such as Aid to the Church in Need.’
He said that feedback to the liturgies has been very encouraging, with many “teachers, headteachers, even retired teachers” commenting on how their classes are engaging with prayer and becoming “quiet and engaged.”
Mark 10 have already released their first videos of the new academic year, including the official school liturgies for the popular St. Bernadette Relic Tour.
Find out more information about The Mark 10 Mission on their website: www.themark10mission.co.uk