Maȟpíya Lúta High School recently completed its second-quarter Prayer Week, a spiritual tradition held once each quarter to strengthen student-led prayer, unity, and cultural connection. Developed by the Spiritual Formation team and high school leadership, the week is designed to move students from learning about prayer in the classroom to practicing it together as a community.
For many students, this mid-year Prayer Week arrives at the perfect time. Senior Kinley shared, “Prayer Week is encouraging and helps me finish out the year with motivation because this time of year can be hard. So it helps re-energize a lot of us.”
To complement the spiritual focus, students participated in daily themes celebrating Native American Heritage Month. Throughout the week, they wore braids or scarves, showcased Maȟpíya Lúta gear or their favorite Native designers, and highlighted moccasins, beadwork, ribbon skirts, ribbon shirts, and other traditional attire. These themes added a vibrant and meaningful cultural presence to each day’s activities.
Highlights from the Week
Monday – Lakota Prayer Flags
Students and staff opened the week by creating class-specific Lakota prayer flags. Each class identified a collective prayer intention, and every student contributed their own prayers to their class flag. Staff also offered intentions on designated flags. The Spiritual Formation team then bound the flags, which were later incorporated into both the School Mass and the inípi ceremony—symbolizing the shift from instruction into lived practice.
Tuesday – Rebuilding the Sweat Lodge
Students in Spiritual Formation classes rebuilt the student sweat lodge in preparation for Thursday’s ceremony. This hands-on work allowed them to apply teachings learned in class while deepening their understanding of the cultural meaning, symbolism, and purpose of the inípi.
Wednesday – School Mass
The entire high school gathered for a morning Mass, where the collective prayers created on Monday were lifted once again. The service reinforced the week’s focus on unity, intention, and practicing prayer in community.Thursday – Inípi and Cultural Activities
Prayer Week concluded with an afternoon inípi ceremony, accompanied by cultural activities such as nature walks and tipi raising. These experiences gave students additional opportunities to connect with culture, land, and one another.
Spiritual Formation staff member Josh Del Colle reflected on the moments that brought the school together, noting, “When we make the prayer flags together and during Mass—those are the times the entire school is together, saying a prayer together, and doing it in unity. It’s really grounding to witness the unifying of everyone.”
Prayer Week offers meaningful opportunities for students to move from learning about spirituality to living it through practice, strengthening identity, community, and cultural understanding at Maȟpíya Lúta High School.