abbot

Injured George Abbot pupil back at school after 'stabbing'

The George Abbot School pupil allegedly stabbed in the back by a fellow student has returned to classes, the school has said.

The 14-year-old boy suffered a single puncture wound to the back after reportedly being assaulted with a pair of scissors on March 6 at the school in Woodruff Avenue, Burpham .

George Abbot School confirmed on Friday (March 15) that the pupil had since returned to lessons and staff are continuing to offer support to students.

A spokesman for the school said: "We have been monitoring how our students have been responding to the events that took place, and they are clear that this was an isolated incident.

"Support and counselling continues to be available to our students should they need it.

"A full review of all events has taken place with input from multi-agency teams and the school is reassured that this distressing incident was managed with appropriate actions and procedures."

A 15-year-old boy was arrested and taken into custody following the incident.

He has since been bailed pending further enquiries.

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Benedictine abbot leads pope, curial officials in Lenten retreat

ROME — When Pope Francis asked 50-year-old Benedictine Abbot Bernardo Gianni to lead his Lenten retreat, the abbot said he told the pope he felt “very inadequate.”

“The pope responded to me that that was a great precondition for doing it well,” the abbot of Florence’s Abbey of San Miniato al Monte told the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano.

Francis and 64 members of the Roman Curia left the Vatican March 10 and were driven out to the Pauline Fathers’ retreat house in Ariccia, about 20 miles south of Rome, for the retreat, which was to run through March 15.

Before leaving the Vatican, Francis prayed the Angelus with visitors in St. Peter’s Square and asked them to remember him and his collaborators from the Curia in prayer.

During the retreat, Gianni was scheduled to give 10 meditations. Most of the rest of the time, the pope and curial officials were to spend in silence. They would celebrate Mass together each morning and end the day with eucharistic adoration.

Francis met Gianni in 2015 when the Benedictine helped organize the national pastoral convention of the Catholic Church in Italy, and Francis gave several major talks there.

For the theme of the Lenten retreat, the abbot chose a verse,  “The city of ardent desires,” from the late poet Mario Luzi, as well as ideas from Giorgio La Pira, a former mayor of Florence whose sainthood cause is underway.

Gianni told L’Osservatore that by combining Luzi and La Pira with the teaching of Francis in “The Joy of the Gospel,” he planned to focus on the Christian vocation to transform cities and other earthly realities into places where people would experience God and God’s blessings.

It is not unlike what Benedictine monasteries are called to do, he said. The monks are dedicated to “witnessing love for time, the care of spaces, diligence in work, fraternal life and welcome.”

Everyone in the Church, “from the pope on down,” is called to ignite “ardent desires” — holy desires and a longing for virtue — in cities, towns and communities, he said.

03

Raiders ladies ready for crucial play-off clash at Newton Abbot

It has been a tough season for the Plymouth Raiders Ladies this year, with a number of games not going their way - but the team managed to dig deep and finished third in the table, qualifying for the Exeter and District League play-offs, writes Jack Hodgetts .

At the start of the 2018/19 season, the ladies' team came under the professional umbrella of the Plymouth Raiders, and head coach Ben Fox was appointed. The RAF careers in Plymouth have been proud sponsors throughout the campaign, and have shown the players great support.

The team finished the season in Taunton last week and after that result, cemented third spot in the League to earn themselves a play-off spot and a match away to Newton Abbot on Tuesday, March 12, with a 7.15pm tip-off.

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Ben Fox said: "I am really proud of the way the ladies have conducted themselves this year, especially in the short amount time we have had together. They have worked hard and come together through tough moments of the season, and have thoroughly deserved making the play-offs.

"Our aim now is to throw everything we have at our play-off game, in order to make the final. The team has really thrived this year after coming under the Plymouth Raiders umbrella, and the future looks very positive for the ladies' set-up."