Rejoicing in the changes we see, but longing for more
February 8, 2022
National Apology to the Stolen Generations – 13 February
The shifts in attitude to our ‘National Day’ (26 January) were plain to see this year, as we watched the hugely diverse crowds in largely peaceful protest marches across the land (despite Covid) and listened to the reflections of Australians of all ages and nationalities. They reminded us yet again of what is truly of the essence of who we are and who we are called to be as a nation.
World Day of Prayer for the Sick Reflection
Have you ever been hospitalised because of illness or a need for surgery? Such an experience can be overwhelming. Suddenly you’ve lost all control of your identity, free movement, decision making, privacy and body. For most of us, this experience is temporary but for many people it becomes a permanent reality.
World Day for Consecrated Life 2022
February 3, 2022On 2 February every year the Catholic church celebrates World Day for Consecrated Life. It is a day for Women and Men Religious to celebrate the gift that is theirs for the church and the world. This year Pope Francis focussed on the scene in the gospel of Luke 2:22-38 with Anna and Simeon in the temple and asked three important questions:
- What moves us? Simeon goes to the Temple, ‘moved by the spirit’ v 27
- What do our eyes see? Simeon moved by the Spirit sees and recognises Christ. And he prays, saying: “My eyes have seen your salvation” v 30
- What do we take into our own arms? Simeon took Jesus into his arms v 28
Sr Susan Pollard awarded Order of Australia Medal
January 27, 2022
Sr Susan Pollard of the Sisters of Saint Joseph awarded Order of Australia Medal in Australia Day Honours.
The Sisters of Saint Joseph are delighted to announce that Sr Susan Pollard rsj has been awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in the Australia Day Honours 2022 for service to the Catholic Church of Australia.
Based in Adelaide, Sr Susan worked in education as a primary school teacher, deputy principal and principal in schools across South Australia and New South Wales for many years. She has a Ph.D. in Psychoanalysis, a Masters in Education and Arts degree in Italian, and is also a registered Clinical Psychologist currently in private practice.
Australia Day 2022
January 25, 2022
Australia Day is a time for all Australians to reflect deeply on what it means to be Australian. It is a time to Reflect, Respect and Celebrate the best of what being it means to live in this unique land that many have come to call home.
As we ponder all that this day holds for us, we acknowledge and respect the First Peoples of our Country, our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. We know that this day holds pain for them in the realisation that it marks invasion day for them. It calls us to embrace in a deeper way the journey towards reconciliation and to support the initiatives enshrined in the Uluru Statement of the Heart.
Birth of Mary MacKillop – 15 January 1842
December 22, 2021
In 1891, during a worldwide depression, the people of Melbourne city suffered greatly. Those who were rich lost their investments, those who were poor lost their work, the poorest were homeless and slept on the streets. The Archbishop of Melbourne had a heart for the poor and he talked to Mary MacKillop, the new Josephite in his diocese, about his worries.
The Baptism of Jesus, A Story of Two Cousins
The baptism of Jesus, celebrated on 9 January, reminds us of two cousins; Jesus and John the Baptist and their mission, their relationship, their lives and their God consciousness revealed in their ministries.
The relationship touchingly begins with the meeting of their pregnant mothers, Mary and Elizabeth, who were delightfully surprised by their unborn babies, greeting each other (Lk 1:44). Thirty years later, the cousins meet at the River Jordan. John is preaching a baptism of repentance, ‘preparing the way of the Lord’ and points to Jesus as the Messiah. Jesus requests baptism of John, who only consents when Jesus says: ‘let it be so now, for it is proper for us in this way to fulfil all righteousness’ (Matt 3:19).
World Day of Peace 2022
On 1 January every year, our Church leader, the Pope, marks the World Day of Peace with a special message inviting all people to reflect on the important work of building peace.
This long tradition began with St. Paul VI in 1967 and continued with St. John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI, and now with Pope Francis. I find it interesting that this day is not called a World Day of Prayer for Peace, important as prayer is. Rather, the Pope is calling us to more than prayer.