Pope Francis’s intention prayer for June

Laudato Si’ Week

Last week we celebrated Laudato Si’ Week. 

Laudato Si is a letter (known as an encyclical) written by Pope Francis that highlights our call to care for our common home. In this letter, Pope Francis invites every person living on this planet to consider how we are shaping the future of our planet. Pope Francis calls the Church and the world to acknowledge the urgency of our environmental challenges. Laudato Si' Week is a time to reflect on what the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us and prepare for the future with hope. It is a chance to “educate more and more to listen to the cry of the Earth and the cry of the poor.” Pope Frances, 2021.  
The goals of Pope Francis’ Laudato Si’ encylclical are outlined below.   

Staff participated in a special prayer reflection and students were encouraged to make a pledge to care for our common home, starting with small steps in caring for our schoolyard.   

Holy Feast Days of the Catholic Church  

Last  Monday we celebrated the feast day of the Patron Saint of Australia – Mary, Help of Christians. Jesus’ mother, Mary Help of Christians was adopted as patron of the new Church of Australia in the early and mostly priest-less days, when the praying of the Rosary was the only thing that kept the Catholic faith alive. We continue this devotion to Mary, Help of Christians in the hope that she will grant wisdom to our leaders and integrity to our citizens. We hope that under her protection Australia will be granted harmony, justice and peace.

This Sunday, the Catholic Church celebrates the central doctrine of Christian faith: the  Most Holy Trinity. The Holy Trinity is a uniquely Christian expression of God.  

 The belief in the Trinity is the belief that there are three ‘persons’ in the one Godhead:  God as Father and  creator revealed in the Old Testament, God made human as Jesus the Son and together wiith the Holy Spirit, the Trinity is complete. Essentially, the Trinity is a mystery and the most central mystery of the Church. We remember the Trinity each time we make the sign of the Cross.  

On Sunday 6th of June, The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ is commemorated in the Catholic Church. This feast day celebrates the true presence of Christ in the Eucharist. In the time of Jesus, people believed that if you shared a meal with someone in their home, then you were also sharing something of their life. Even today, sharing a meal with another person is a sign of acceptance. When we gather to celebrate the Eucharist, we recall the Last Supper and the words Jesus spoke to the disciples when he blessed the bread and wine and asked them to continue to share bread and wine in Memory of him. Jesus came to make the world a better place and to share his vision of the reign of God with us. In celebrating the Eucharist, we make Jesus present in our lives.

First Holy Communion 

Ally Sweet will celebrate the Sacrament of First Holy Communion this coming Sunday May 30 at 9:00am in St. Mary’s Church.  Lily Andrews and Ocea Vallelonga along with parish members, Jemilla Dowell, Adam Hunter, Indie Knowling and Chelsea Rosenzweig will celebrate this Sacrament the following Sunday 6th June. We congratulate these children on their sacramental journey and wish them many blessings. Please keep our sacramental children in your prayers. You are very welcome to join both the celebrations by attending Mass and supporting our students. 

Father in Heaven, 

We ask for your blessings on our students as they celebrate the true presence of Jesus in the Eucharist for the fist time. May their hearts be opened to Jesus as their helper and guide. May they may come to know Jesus’ as a forever friend, always calling them to fullness of life in his loving service. 

Amen 

May the richest blessings of the Father who made us, the Son who redeemed us, and the Holy Spirit who renews us,  be with you always, 

Rosemary Perre  
APRIM