Catholic Identity

Shrove Tuesday Community Breakfast 

St Anne's College community came together on Tuesday, February 25, to share in the tradition of Shrove Tuesday. Shrove Tuesday is the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday and it is a day of celebration as well as penitence, because it is the last day before Lent begins. Lent is a time of abstinence, of giving things up, so Shrove Tuesday  is the last chance to indulge yourself and to use up the foods that aren't necessarily allowed in Lent; giving up foods, but not wasting them. 

In the old days  there were many foods that observant Christians would not eat during Lent, such as meat and fish, fats, eggs and milky foods. So that no food was wasted, families would have a feast on the shriving Tuesday and eat up all the foods that wouldn't last the 40 days of Lent without going off. 

Staff were at St Anne's College bright and early on Shrove Tuesday, making pancake batter and preparing the space for our community breakfast. It was a successful morning with lots of pancakes consumed and it was wonderful to see everyone doing their best, helping others succeed and respecting everyone and everything. Thank you to the staff and students who volunteered to help organise this event and for all those families who came along to join us for the morning.

Ash Wednesday Mass 

On Wednesday, February 26, St Anne's College joined with their sister school St Mel's Primary School to participate in the Ash Wednesday Mass. It was wonderful to be able to come together as a Parish community to begin the time of Lent, an important time in our Church, a very special season that lasts for 40 days and leads us to Easter.  We began our journey with Jesus towards the cross. Ash Wednesday reminds us that God wants us to be loving people. It gives us a chance to create a clean heart and begin again. It is a time of prayer, fasting and giving to others. Through prayer we come closer to God so that we are able to realise our baptismal promise to live justly as Jesus teaches us. Fasting joins us in solidarity with the poor who often have no choice but to go without basic needs such as food, water and shelter. Giving to the poor or ‘almsgiving’ is a sign of our commitment to justice and our thanks for all that God has given us. We received the ashes in the sign of the cross on our foreheads. This sign is a reminder of our need to turn back to God, to renew our hearts and to follow Jesus. Throughout Lent let us ask ourselves, “What can I do to renew my heart and bring myself closer to God who loves me so much?”

Project Compassion - Let's Go Further, Together 

Every year throughout Lent, we commit to strengthening our faith through prayer, fasting and almsgiving. These are the three pillars of Lent. Pope Francis says, "Indifference to our neighbour and to God also represents a real temptation for us Christians. Usually, when we are healthy and comfortable, we forget about others (something God the Father never does): we are unconcerned with their problems, their sufferings and the injustices they endure. During Lent we take time to reflect and be strengthened by the Holy Spirit so that we are not indifferent to each other."

Through Project Compassion we can stand in solidarity with our neighbours around the world. We can support and celebrate the way that Caritas Australia is working with local partners around the world and people most vulnerable to extreme poverty and injustice to strengthen their lives, families and their communities. The theme for this year's Project Compassion Lenten appeal is "Let's go further, together." Over the next four weeks before our Term 1 holidays, the learning community at St Anne's will be participating in a variety of activities to fundraise for Caritas. Please look out for our ideas via our Facebook page and il giornale  in the coming weeks. If you have any spare change you can part with, we have a variety of Project Compassion boxes throughout the College into which those funds can be placed. 

- Ebony Anderson, Deputy Principal and Catholic Identity Leader

Vision Statements

At St Anne’s College we strive to:

• Develop a relationship with God that supports and nurtures our personal faith.
• Create relationships that are collaborative and in partnership with students, staff, parents, parish and the wider community.
• Empower individuals to grow in confidence and a willingness to explore their world: spiritually, academically, socially, emotionally and physically.
• Implement a curriculum that is contemporary, focuses on the needs of the individual and celebrates the joys of new learning.

Sandpiper

If you would like to read a copy of our diocesan newspaper please use the following link

https://www.sandhurst.catholic.org.au/sandpiper/latest/14?sfns=mo