Project Compassion 2022

Now that Lent has begun for this year, we are turning our focus to the Caritas Project Compassion fundraiser for 2022. The Theme this year is “For all Future Generations”. Our support of Caritas Australia this Lenten season will help support vulnerable people around the world, now and For All Future Generations. Each class has been given a Project Compassion box that will allow students to donate money to Caritas over the Season of Lent. We encourage you to discuss this with your child and consider allowing your child to make a donation to the box that is on their classroom prayer table.

Reconciliation 2022

The preparation for the Sacrament of Reconciliation continues. A big thank you to the parents who have very generously offered to host a home group.

For those parents who would like to see the home groups sheet, please click here.

You can also place your child’s name on the online booking sheet to receive the Sacrament here.

Parish Mass & Presentation of Reconciliation Candidates

Next weekend, at the Parish Masses (either Saturday 19^th at 6:00pm or Sunday 20th March at 9:30am or 5:30pm), the 2022 Reconciliation Candidates will be presented to the Parish community so that we can join together in prayer and support for these students and their families as they prepare for this important Sacrament.

Second Sunday of Lent Year C . Luke 9:28-36

In all three versions of this Transfiguration event that appear in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, the context in which the event occurs is identical. That’s a little unusual with these three gospel writers who like to put their own spin on events and often play with the chronology or settings of events. However, in this case, all three writers report the Transfiguration event as taking place immediately after a particular sequence of events. Jesus has asked the disciples who they think he is and Peter has made his confession of faith by declaring that Jesus is the Messiah. This declaration is followed by Jesus teaching about the demands of discipleship and then the account of the Transfiguration. Furthermore, all three versions are directly followed by an account of a man who brings his possessed son to Jesus for healing after the disciples have tried and failed to cast out the demon.

When all three of the synoptic gospels use the same story with little variation and all three retain the same context around the event then there are some pretty clear signals that this was a commonly accepted sequence of events and their sequence holds significance. The core message of this sequence of stories is about the faith of the disciples. Whilst Peter declares Jesus to be the Messiah, he and the others don’t really yet know what this means. In the Transfiguration, they are given the clearest possible indication of Jesus’ identity and yet they’re half asleep and we’re told Peter doesn’t know what he’s saying when he starts talking about building tents. The following failure by the disciples to cast out a demon shows that they still haven’t understood fully who and what Jesus is. What a great reading for the season of Lent!

 (Reflection by Greg Sunter)

Blessings for the week ahead,

Stephanie Burns

Religious Education Coordinator