Deputy Principal

Week 4 Update

Two weeks ago, the Leadership Team gathered for a retreat which was led by Fr Elio Capra, a Salesian priest from Melbourne. The focus of our retreat was “Fratelli Tutti,” an Encyclical Letter on Fraternity and Social Friendship written by Pope Francis. It was an enriching two days of discussion with a focus on the parable of the Good Samaritan that challenged us to lead through action. The encyclical is eight chapters, and we were broken up into groups and had to read a chapter each and then discern and report back to the whole group on our reflections. 

I focused on Chapter 5, ‘A Better Kind of Politics’, which I found both enlightening and challenging given we are in the middle of a federal election campaign. Pope Francis writes about the rise of “populism” which ignores the legitimacy of the notion of “people.” I read into that, that we increasingly have politicians who are selling individual messages at the expense of the collective population. We are seeing this not only in Australia but right around the world. From early on in my life, my parents instilled values in me that still guide me daily. I believe my values are that I am kind, caring, compassionate, dedicated, and hard-working. I model to the best of my ability integrity and respect whilst trying to achieve a work-life balance, so I am present as a husband and father. These values are what guides my leadership. I wonder sometimes if some of our current politicians have lost their way and have forgotten what their values are, those values that they should be using to guide them. Where is their North-Star? Who do they serve? 

Pope Francis reminds us that we are global citizens and that we need a global approach to issues. Having watched some of our political leaders’ debates I am saddened by the way our leaders talk about refugees. I was blessed to be born in Australia, as were my wife and three children. There are many children around the world through no fault of their own that have been born into war-torn countries or countries that do not share a living standard like ours. I find it disheartening that our leaders talk about refugees without compassion or understanding and seek to divide us as a nation to look after ourselves as individuals instead of as a people who can help our neighbours and those less fortunate than ourselves. 

I challenge all our politicians as Pope Francis does to ‘build a bridge’ to all citizens. For that bridge is an act of charity. He goes onto say that “this charity, which is the spiritual heart of politics, is always a preferential love shown to those in the greatest need”. For it is those that are in greatest need that need our help the most and it is up to all of us to help build bridges to those who are vulnerable to ensure that no Australian is left behind.

Adrian Byrne

Deputy Principal