Parish News

Parish Vision

OUR VISION

We the Parishioners of St. Anthony’s Noble Park, Believe we are called by Christ to be the people of Prayer, Welcome, Participation and Outreach.

OUR MISSION

Prayer

• To gather each week to celebrate Eucharist

• To provide various opportunities to hear God’s word and allow to shape our lives

• To encourage and to explore a variety of expressions of Christian prayer and spirituality

• To plan liturgies which nurture faith and community life.

Welcome

• To continually invite others to be involved

• To be a community that is welcoming, supportive, caring, nurturing and positive

• To celebrate and respect the diversity and richness and giftedness of our community.

Participation

• To encourage the gifts and potential in one another

• To offer a variety of opportunity from gathering and socialising

• To seek open communication

• To develop effective networks and provide opportunities for sponsoring, mentoring and training

• To plan for the future with hope

...and Outreach

• To be responsive to the needs of individuals and groups in our Parish

• To collaborate with existing groups to identify and respond to local community needs.

• To be aware of the needs of the wider world and to determine an appropriate response.

AUSTRALIAN CATHOLIC BISHOPS CONFERENCE

Church calls for action to stem the rising tide of homelessness

Media Release September 7, 2018

The Australian Catholic Bishops are deeply concerned about Australia’s alarming growth in

homelessness and insecure housing.

In their Social Justice Statement 2018-19, A Place to Call Home: Making a home for everyone

in our land, released yesterday (Thursday, September 6) the Bishops have called on

Australians to look beyond the immediate challenges of the average household budget, and

to consider those who are homeless or facing housing stress because of skyrocketing rents

and property prices.

In a letter to parishes around Australia, Australian Catholic Bishops Conference president,

Archbishop Mark Coleridge, said: “It seems hard to believe that in a rich nation such as ours,

the latest Census figures show that the number of Australians who are homeless has grown

to more than 116,000.

“House prices and even rents are spiralling out of reach of too many families and placing

huge financial stress on ordinary people, even when they are employed. For those living on

pensions or allowances, finding secure housing can be a far greater challenge – one that

often takes a terrible toll on social wellbeing and mental health.”

In his foreword to the statement, Australian Catholic Social Justice Council chairman, Bishop

Vincent Long Van Nguyen OFM Conv. said a ruthless housing market was leaving people

struggling to find secure and affordable housing, whether they lived in cities or regional

areas.

“That struggle has a corrosive effect on family life, on employment, on study and on our

capacity to contribute to and benefit from our society. At its worst, the struggle leaves the

vulnerable in our society homeless – sleeping on the street, in cars or in doorways, or hoping

for a space on someone’s couch or floor,” he said.

The statement draws on Jesus’ famous parable of the Good Samaritan, reminding us that we

have the same experience as the Samaritan: we see people in the street in need of help,

wounded by violence, misfortune or poverty. We face the same choice: do we walk past or

do we stop and help?

“Behind the people on the streets is another legion – those who are battling to keep the roof

over their heads, wondering if they can make the next rent or mortgage payment,” Bishop

Long said.

“Often, these are people who are employed but whose income is barely enough – or not

enough – to keep themselves and their families housed and fed.

“Housing is a human right, asserted by documents like the UN Declaration of Human Rights

Media contact: Gavin Abraham • 0408 825 788 • media@catholic.org.au

and by the teachings of our Church. Housing is an essential entitlement for all people to

meet their basic needs, flourish in community and have their inherent human dignity

affirmed and upheld by others.”

This human right and the call of the Church was reinforced by the words and example of

Pope Francis, who has made it a priority to reach out to the disadvantaged and marginalised

of Rome, including homeless people, Bishop Long said.

Hosted by Bishop Long, the statement was launched in Parramatta by Ms Netty Horton, CEO

CatholicCare Melbourne, and Mr Jack de Groot, CEO St Vincent de Paul Society, New South

Wales.

For more information, contact: John Ferguson, Executive Officer, Australian Catholic Social

Justice Council: (02) 8306 3499.

St Anthony's Parish Prayer

St. Anthony, patron of our parish, loyal servant of God, faithful follower of Jesus: You taught by word and deed, the message of the Gospel. Teach us to live the Gospel values as you did. Enlighten our minds in search of God's will. Inspire us to be a prayerful community, ever reaching out to and cherishing our neighbour. Help us proclaim God's love and live what we proclaim. AMEN.