Various sacred spaces throughout St Agatha's School provide students, staff and families with spaces for prayer, contemplation, reflection and meditation in accordance with our Catholic Identity. Sacred spaces can vary from traditional spaces through to more modern recontexualised spaces. Recontextualisation describes any formal process whereby something is placed in a new context, thereby receiving renewed meaning and plausibility. It involves the re-imagination of the Catholic tradition in our contemporary context.
St Agatha's Church
Opened in 1925, St Agatha's Church was built in a time when the population of Brisbane was expanding quickly. However the Romanesque style Church underwent further expansion in 1957 for 2 years and now features; two side chapels, barrel vault ceilings, ornate stained glass windows, parish library, choir stalls and a collection of Christian iconography.
The St Agatha's Church is the centrepoint of our Catholic community and provides classes and the whole school a sacred place to gather and celebrate Mass, Liturgy and the Sacraments of Initiation.
Prayer Walk
Designed by students and staff in 2019, the St Agatha's prayer walk is a walk that classes and students can enter into and pays worships to the many important elements of our religious school life. This prayer walk includes a series of recontextualised crosses that each class created. The crosses place the stories of St Agatha, Mary MacKillop and Nano Nagle as well as the sacraments and separate biblical stories that classes explore into a recontextualised piece of art in the form of a cross. By placing these significant people, Saints and biblical stories into a new context students are provided with a renewed meaning and how they can live more like Jesus.
Garden of Grace
Designed in 2018 the Garden of Grace is located close to the heart of our school and the Presentation Centre. This contemplative garden provides students and classes
an opportunity to gather in communal or individual prayer and allows for a sense of calm, renewal and thankfulness. The garden focuses on the three pillars of our school community. Mary MacKillop for her commitment to growth, Nano Nagle for commitment to friendship and St Agatha for her commitment to faith. A Statue of Jesus the Sacred Heart is at the centre of the garden to represent Jesus at the core of our Catholic Identity.
Nano's Place - Labyrinth
Established in 2017, the labyrinth sacred space is located at the Crombie Street amphitheatre and is used for liturgies such as reconciliation, communal prayer services and student meditation. The students are welcome to walk the labyrinth during playtime, before school and after school.
The labyrinth is an ancient symbol that relates to wholeness. It combines the imagery of the circle and the spiral into a meandering but purposeful path. The Labyrinth represents a journey to our own centre and back again out into the world.
A prayer labyrinth is used to facilitate prayer, meditation, spiritual transformation and reflection as one walks the labyrinth. Starting at the entrance of the Labyrinth with an intention in mind participants walk the Labyrinth by following the path in a reflective and unhurried manner until they reach the centre. At the centre, the participant can take their time to pray, reflect on their intention, meditate or to be still in the moment. The participant then exits the centre the way they came until they walk back through the entrance.
© Brisbane Catholic Education, St Agatha's Primary School (2023)