From the APRIM
Dear Families
I hope you had an enjoyable term break.
Celebrating the Sacraments
Last Sunday, Ava, Brayden, Cecilia, Connor M, Elka, Hailey and Lauryn were confirmed by the Vicar-General, Father Dean Marin at the Parish Mass. They also received Holy Communion for the first time. As we congratulate them, we pray that they will always know the peace of Jesus, the light of his love, and the joy of his life within them.
End of Year Thanksgiving and Graduation Mass
We are so excited to be able to once again gather as a community to celebrate this special event in the church. It will be held on Tuesday 6 December and all students are expected to attend. Families are warmly invited to attend to join us in giving thanks for our achievements, our graduating students and staff who are leaving.
School Masses
The school will host Thursday Masses on 27 October, 10, 17 and 24 November. In times past, parishioners have attended which has been a great encouragement to the students. We invite parishioners to attend, to be role models for our Nativity students. Seeing adults other than their parents at Mass helps them to understand how important worshipping, praying and receiving communion is, that it is something we do together as a community. We look forward to seeing you there!
What to do?
During the break, my husband and I travelled around Victoria, marvelling at the way the sea and wind had sculpted the cliffs along the Great Ocean Road. We watched the waves pound against the coast and looking at the horizon, marvelled that there was virtually nothing between us and Antarctica. We drove through beautifully forested areas and admired the colourful canola crops. I was lucky that it wasn’t my turn to drive through the heavy rain and we kept a close watch on the flood warnings. We were fortunate but also careful that we missed all the danger spots. We did see the swollen Lodden river and were thankful that we were leaving before the situation got worse.
Once home, we watched the people in these areas working together sandbagging, building levees, checking on each other and comforting those who had been affected. The Archbishop of Canterbury recently toured the flood affected areas in the Diocese of Lismore, saying that “he had been guided by the Catholic Social Teaching Principle of ‘the common good.’” He said, “we care for justice. And we believe that all things God gives us are for all people. I feel overwhelmed with the grief that people have suffered, deeply moved by their courage, their loyalty to one another and their resilience.”
What can we do? We can donate funds to one of the flood appeals that has been set up to support communities in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. We can also pray.
Eternal God,
let the waters recede and spare your people.
We ask for your mercy
on those affected by the floods in Australia.
We pray for those who have died,
and ask that your send your Spirit to console their loved ones.
Pierce our hearts with compassion for those
who have lost their homes, businesses or animals.
May they have the courage and energy
to face the long road ahead:
the clean-up, the rebuilding and the difficult decisions.
Keep our hearts and minds on the needs of those impacted,
both now and in the months ahead.
We make this prayer through Jesus Christ. Amen
www.ncca.org.au
Grace and blessings
Sharyn Black
Assistant Principal – Religious Identity and Mission
