Faculty News (Retreats)
Last week, 39 of our fantastic Year 7 & 8 students embarked on the annual Junior Invitational Retreat. Joined by myself, our Oblate Youth Ministers and RE staff Mr Joe Moore, Mr Robert Zaar & Mr Alex Colasante, they ventured to Casa Pallotti Retreat Centre for three days of reflection, faith, friendship and fun.
Participating in a variety of small group activities, games, talks, prayers and liturgies, the students share below some of their experiences of the retreat:
“This retreat was a great experience for me. Over the three days I got to know people better, deepened my relationship with the Lord and learned different ways to pray. It was an amazing experience that couldn't have been done without the teachers and youth ministry team running the retreat." – Samuel Duckett
“This year during the Year 7/8 retreat at Casa Pallotti, I was gifted the opportunity to strengthen my relationship with God and friends. The sessions we participated in shed light on how we can be a disciple of Jesus and also gave us an opportunity to reflect on our relationship with God. This reflection has deepened my faith in a way I would have never expected. The ideas we discussed with the Youth Ministry team, teachers and Mr Coghlan have taught us all so much. Whilst all this was great, the retreat would definitely not have been the same if it wasn't for the friendships that we all developed throughout the retreat.”
– Angus King
“On the retreat, I was able to let go of all my worries and distractions, and simply opening myself up to God’s presence. I found that when I was able to do this, I was able to experience His love and peace in a much deeper way.”
– Daniel Smith
“I really enjoyed how we learned a lot about Jesus. The food was pretty good. It was nice bonding with new people and making new friends. The activities were nice and entertaining. I hope there is one to go to next year and other years as well”
– Daniel Juma
“The retreat was one of the best ways that I grew in my faith this year at Mazenod. Learning about Discipleship, and scriptural prayer had to be some of the highlights of the retreat. The lessons were all meaningful, the food was great and most importantly, the retreat helped me grow closer to God and in my faith in way that was fun and spiritual. The teachers and youth ministers hard work certainly paid off as many students, including me had great fun in this faith filled retreat.”
– Chris Antony
We thank all of our staff for their willingness to support and accompany the students over these three days, our Oblate Frs Harry and Kevin for their presence and for providing the sacraments to the students, our guest speaker Mr Tony Coghlan and Mr John Tighe, for his continued support of our retreat days as our Dean of Faith & Charism.
We look forward to our next retreat in 2024 and encourage as many students in Years 7 & 8 to come along!
Cristiano Grosso
Retreat & Staff Formation Coordinator