Faith and Mission

In his first Lenten message, Pope Leo XIV invites us to place God back at the centre of our lives through listening, fasting and community.

He highlighted fasting as a way of freeing us from complacency and renewing our hunger for justice and goodness. Importantly, he encourages an often-overlooked form of Lenten abstinence: refraining from hurtful words. He calls us to “disarm our language” by avoiding harsh judgment, gossip and unkind speech, and instead to choose words that build hope, respect and understanding. This mirrors our College’s commitment to respectful relationships, dialogue and reconciliation.

The Pope reminds us that conversion begins by listening, to God, to one another, and especially to those who are suffering. At John XXIII College, we are called to be a community where every person is heard, valued and treated with dignity, reflecting our commitment to relationships, justice and peace.

This invitation to attentive listening and openness was echoed on Tuesday night at the launch of Pope Francis: The Disruptive Pilgrim’s Guide by Frank Brennan SJ. At the heart of the book is the powerful image that we are all pilgrims, each on our own journey. Pope Francis invites us to be open to being disrupted, not for the sake of disruption itself, but so that we may grow. He calls us to help build a Church and a world shaped by encounter, compassion, and hope. The evening offered a meaningful opportunity to reflect on how each of us is being invited to respond to that call in our own lives and communities.

As we journey through Lent together, may we strive to be a community of welcome, compassion and peace, where our words and actions reflect Christ’s love.

Janeen Murphy

Deputy Principal Faith and Mission

Australian Ignatian Trail Contemplative walk, South Australia 

14-20 April 2026

For those who maybe interested in a more immersive experience of Contemplative Walking - Jesuit Ignatian Spirituality Australia has a 4 days/6 nights walk in South Australia.  Please go to the following website to register your interest:

https://jisa.org.au/australian-ignatian-trail/

Synodal workshop - Perth Archdiocese 

Walking together as ‘Church’- An Experience of Synodal Church 

A Synodal church, in simple terms, is a gathering to listen and share our heartfelt yearnings for the inclusive church to which Pope Francis and now Pope Leo XIV have invited us.  The synodal path is both participatory and missionary, an invitation to every priest, person, man and woman, to radiate the light of Christ.

You are invited to a period of reflection, deep listening and sharing on our gifts for Church. This follows on from the recent sessions - What are My Longings for Church.  For those who did not attend the previous sessions, a summary is available here. 

When

• Saturday morning 7 March 2026 (9:15am - 12:30pm)  OR
• Wednesday evening 11 March 2026 | 6:45pm-9:00pm (a repeat session)

Where     St Benedict’s Church Parish Centre, 115 Ardross St, Ardross 

RSVP:       essential: To ignatianspiritwa@gmail.com by Wednesday 4 March, 2026

Cost:        Free - donation appreciated. (Morning tea provided on Saturday and join us for a cuppa at the conclusion of Wednesday evening’s session)

Enquiries:   visit: Ignatian Sprituality Workshops — Ignatian Spirituality of Western Australia or contact Rom Cirillo 0408 915 235 or Chris Gardner 0429 995 591

Community Mass

Students in Year 12 will be preparing our celebration of the Eucharist next Friday. Everyone is welcome to this liturgy – whether you have a family member in Year 12 or in Primary; whether you are new to the College or regularly attend the Friday Mass. Afterwards, there is an opportunity for coffee and conversation in the Circle of Friends Café.

For some families, the six-week season of Lent offers an opportunity to include Community Mass into their weekly schedule. The readings given by the Church for this season are especially rich, and, while Lent is certainly a season of fasting, it is also a time of preparation for the high point in the Church year, the Resurrection of Christ. 

If you have any questions regarding our Friday Eucharist, please contact Mary-Anne Lumley: mary-anne.lumley@johnxxiii.edu.au

Community Mass details

• College Chapel
• Fridays in term time
• Starts at 8:00am concludes at 8:30am

Sacraments

Do you have a child in Year 3, 4 or 6?

Families are encouraged to enrol their child in their parish without delay. Next week, many parishes will be closing their enrolments for 2026. The College website has links to sacrament program information from some of our local parishes. 

Students will be preparing for the sacraments of Reconciliation in Year 3, First Holy Communion in Year 4 and Confirmation in Year 6. 

Preparing for the sacraments is a three-way collaboration of family, parish and school. This means that parents exercise their right in choosing to enrol their child in the parish; the school provides the learning experiences to prepare the children, and the parish arranges the celebration of the sacrament. Parishes require that students be enrolled.

Parents often have questions about the Sacrament program, so please don’t hesitate to ask. Below are some useful points of contact: 

• The priest or sacrament coordinator in your local parish
• John XXIII College website
• The Archdiocesan website: Parishes & Mass Times

• Mary-Anne Lumley: mary-anne.lumley@johnxxiii.edu.au  or via phone on 

  08 9383 0513

Lenten Way of the Cross

Fourteen beautiful wooden crosses can once again be found in various locations around the College. Together, the crosses comprise the ancient ‘Via cruxis’ – the Way of the Cross – which traced the steps of Jesus, through Jerusalem, towards his crucifixion. During the medieval period villagers, unable to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, established their own local ‘Via cruxis’ close to the church building. In recent centuries these ‘stations of the cross’ have been located inside church buildings and have become art or sculpture features.

During Lent, the grounds of our College Campus provide an opportunity for a technology-free, mindful mini-pilgrimage that takes in all or some of the stations, each located in a unique garden space. Before or after school, families are welcome to linger at one or more of the crosses – to pray, to be silent or to appreciate a moment in nature.