Religious Life of St Monica’s 

Yesterday we gathered as a whole school for our Ash Wednesday mass led by Father Mick in St Monica’s church. Ash Wednesday is the start of Lent, a time of preparation for the great feast of Easter. The word ‘Lent’ is short for ‘lengthening of days’ where in the Northern Hemisphere the days are getting longer and warmer. Here in the Southern Hemisphere our days are getting shorter and cooler as we prepare for Autumn and Winter. Lent is a joyful season where we prepare for the resurrection of the Lord.

During Lent, we give special attention to three parts of our lives:

1. Prayer- with a focus on quality, not quantity;
2. Fasting- give up something so that we give more attention to what is good; and
3. Almsgiving- helping others.

Let us lengthen our prayers, our acts of kindness and give up the things that do not show others that we follow Jesus. Let us give up fighting and anything that brings unhappiness to others.

We would also like to extend a warm welcome to Father Kose to our community. Father Kose will be with us in our parish of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, assisting Father Mick. Father Kose is from India and belongs to Our Lady of La Salatte congregation. He requests our prayers and blessings as he begins his ministry in serving our community.

Social Action and Justice

During Lent, St Monica’s community supports Project Compassion. The theme for
Project Compassion this year is ‘For all Future Generations.’ This theme reminds us that what we do today can have an impact for all future generations. This message invites us to step up for those who do not have the essential resources they need for their survival and those whose needs are far beyond ours. By putting compassion into action, we can make a difference today, for all future generations.

Our Faith and Justice Leaders will be leading our Project Compassion fundraising. Today the eldest child in each family will be given a Project Compassion box so that your family can support this important project. Each Friday during Lent, the Faith and Justice leaders will go into classrooms to show a short educational video about Project Compassion and collect donations. You can view the video for this week here:  Introduction to Project Compassion.

Prayer and Worship  

Melanie Stratford

Religious Education Coordinator

melanie.stratford@cg.catholic.edu.au