Religion and Parish News
Good morning, Jesus
Jesus, you are good and wise
I will praise you when I rise.
Jesus, hear this prayer I send
Bless my family and my friends.
Jesus, help my eyes to see
All the good you send to me.
Jesus, help my ears to hear
Calls for help from far and near.
Jesus, help my feet to go
In the way that You will show.
Jesus, help my hands to do
All things loving, kind, and true.
Jesus, guard me through this day
In all I do and all I say.
Amen.
Week 3 Mission Week
As you may recall from the Week 1 Newsletter, Pope Francis has called for October to be an Extraordinary Missionary Month, which will be a worldwide occasion of prayer, sharing stories of mission, formation and charity.
During Week 3, St Xavier’s students will be participating in lessons about mission, and ways they can act to improve the lives of other people, particularly those less fortunate than us. Students have visited the Catholic Mission website https://www.catholicmission.org.au/ and accessed resources and information that helps them understand the dire situation many people around the world live in. For the past fortnight, students have been raising money by sticking coins on a map of Ghana in their classroom, and seeing how many maps they can fill up before October ends.
When Primary Sport has concluded for the year, St Xavier’s will be holding their biennial ‘Lap-a-thon’, with those funds also contributing to our fundraising efforts for Catholic Mission. Stay tuned for more information about the ‘Lap-a-thon’ which will come out later in the term.
Sacrament of Confirmation
This coming weekend, 37 candidates from St Xavier’s and other Gunnedah schools will be making their Sacrament of Confirmation at 9.00 am in St Joseph’s Church. They have been learning about this important Sacrament since Term 3, and attended Reconciliation on Wednesday in preparation for Sunday morning’s Confirmation Mass. On Friday this week, the candidates, as well as the rest of the Year 6 class, will be participating in a Retreat Day which will be a prayerful and reflective day, and a special way to sum up their weeks of preparation. The Retreat Day will conclude with a BBQ at 1.00 pm, with classes resuming as normal after lunch.
A visit from Bishop Michael Kennedy
On Friday this week, St Xavier’s students will be blessed with a visit from our diocesan leader, Bishop Michael Kennedy. Bishop Kennedy is in Gunnedah to officiate at Sunday morning’s Confirmation Mass, and is taking the opportunity of being here to visit the local Catholic schools. He will be visiting St Xavier’s students up to midday, when he will then move to Yr 6 to meet with the Confirmation candidates and discuss the Sacrament with them. Following his meeting with the Candidates, the Bishop will move across the road to St Mary’s College and will meet the students in attendance there. We look forward to meeting Bishop Kennedy and listening to him tell us all about his role in our diocese!
Rosary
Last Friday there was a Public Rosary at St Joseph's Church. Years 4 and 5, along with St Mary's students attended with other parishioners.
RE Key Dates Term 4
Week 3 - Whole School Mission Week
Sunday 3rd November (end of Week 3) - Confirmation Mass in St Joseph’s Church at 9.00 am.
Thursday Week 6 - Primary Mass in St Joseph’s Church at 9:30 am.
Thursday Week 7 - Infants Liturgy in St Joseph’s Church at 12.00 pm.
Tuesday Week 8 - End of Year Mass in St Joseph’s Church at 9:30 am (Feast of St Francis Xavier)
Thursday Week 9 - Year 6 Graduation Mass in St Joseph’s Church at 5:30 pm, followed by Year 6 Farewell at St Xavier’s School Hall at 7.00 pm.
Important Sacrament Dates 2019
Confirmation (Year 6) - Sunday 3rd November
- Confirmation Retreat Day: Friday 1 November (Week 3, Term 4), 9.00 am
- Sacrament of Confirmation: Sunday 3 November (end of Week 3), 9.00 am
St Joseph's Altar Servers
Saturday 2nd November - Zoe Head, Katie Spinks
Sunday 3rd November (Confirmation Mass 9am) - Ellyn and Cooper Blinman, Kate Gander, Harry Paul
Saturday 9th November - Harry and Phoebe Paul, Toby Harris
Sunday 10th November - Ellyn, Cooper and Toby Blinman, Bianca Bayliss