Education in Faith
A Culture of Prayer
Each day at St Anthonys starts in the same consistent way for our children. Students come in, greet their friends, pack their supplies away and enter their classrooms. Our peaceful meditation music plays and students sit and centre themselves.
When the music finishes playing, each classroom in the school will look slightly different, but all will take the opportunity to begin the day with prayer. This may involve students sitting around their class prayer cloth in a circle or quietly in their seats. Special intentions are often a highlight of class prayer, where our students are invited to share their thoughts and things they would like to pray for on that day.
I think we all know how beautiful our St Anthony's students are; they show us each day! This is further reflected in prayer each morning though. Students will pray for their friends and their family. In a considerate way they will ask for help for those who need it, often seeing things in the news, or passing them on from discussions at home. Our students also take the time to be thankful, reflecting on how lucky we are for our gifts of safety, security and the love we receive from our friends and family.
Mass at St Anthony's
Our school continues to host Parish Mass each second Friday, which is a lovely way to finish a school week. Father Leenus is so welcoming and encouraging of each of our students and loves the opportunity to see them read and interact following his homilies. At the moment Father Leenus is also assisted by Father Pat Jackson, who is another kind and warm presence at Mass.
When hosting Mass we will have students complete readings, bring up the gifts and take responsibility for sections of the Mass. We have two remaining Masses this term: Friday the 2nd of June and Tuesday the 13th of June.
Tuesday the 13th of June is a special Mass as it is the celebration of the Feast Day of St Anthony of Padua. This will be celebrated as a Parish on Sunday the 11th of June Mass, and then continued with our whole school on the subsequent Tuesday.
Again, all parents are most welcome to attend these Masses to see our students hosting and take part in prayer as well.
All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit
This Sunday the 28th of May marks an important event in our Liturgical Calendar, Pentecost.
Please see a video below which details the events of Pentecost.
Following the events of the Crucifixion and Ascencion of Jesus, the Disciples were feeling scared and low, worried about persecution. The reading tells us they were filled with the Holy Spirit which not only gave them the ability to speak in other languages but the courage to preach the Good News. We know this did not always work out well for every disciple, with some continuing to be killed for their beliefs. However, it was integral in passing the message of the Lord which we continue to practice today.
Students will unpack this important event in their classrooms, but there is also a wonderful reflection below written by Lisa-Marie Calderone-Stewart.
Pentecost is called the birthday of the church because before Pentecost, there really was no church. Jesus had ascended back into the heavens, the Apostles were hanging around, scared and confused, and nobody knew what to do. Going out to baptise people and preach about Jesus was the last thing they had in mind because their lives would be in danger.
But Pentecost celebrates the coming of the Holy Spirit – the force that turned a bunch of frightened, mixed-up folks into church. There was a rush of wind, tongues of fire, and then suddenly there was courage, knowledge, direction and commitment! Everyone started speaking and was understood, no matter what the language of the listener was! These were saints suddenly on fire with the Holy Spirit. And it all began with the wind and fire of the Spirit.
May each of us be filled with the Holy Spirit this week in our own ways, facing the challenges before us.
Take care everyone,
Tim O'Mahoney
Education in Faith Leader