Education in Faith

CONGRATULATIONS GRADE 5/6 MINI VINNIES

I would like to take the opportunity to thank all of the Mini Vinnies who constantly give up their time during lunch hours, to assist others in need. They have counted money, counted food and toiletries, encouraged others to join in and make a difference. 

Our Mini Vinnies are committed to making a difference and demonstrating our Catholic values throughout their daily lives. 

Today our Mini Vinnies were commissioned at our assembly. They made their pledge and committed to support our Catholic ethos through their actions. 

Congratulations Mini Vinnies, the SFS school community is so proud of you!!!

Giuliana

MINI VINNIES WINTER APPEAL

Once again a big thank you to the SFS Community for your kind donations so far. We have already collected a total of 220 items!! 

What a great feeling knowing we’ll be helping people in our community who are in need.

An update of the House points for this week:

 1st        BOSCO               108                                   

 2nd       PATRICK               71                                     

3rd         TERESA                65                                    

 4th        MACKILLOP        28

Remember our competition is still going and Mini Vinnies will be collecting and adding up points again on Tuesday next week! 

We will then have a final collection of Friday next week and announce the winning House for the Winter Appeal collection. Remember any food donated must be:

• Non-perishable
• Before the used by date or best before date. Please don’t bring items that are expired as these cannot be handed out to people.

With thanks!!!

Giuliana and Gr 5/6 Mini Vinnies

12th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year B

Jesus calms the storm

This week our Gospel reading is taken from the Gospel of Mark. The reading presents a vivid portrait of Jesus, whose words and deeds show that he is the Son of God. It describes the end of a day of teaching in Jesus' ministry. 

Jesus taught the crowd in parables and then offered explanations of these parables to his disciples. He then led his disciples away from the crowds and into the boats that they used to cross the Sea of Galilee. The sea and its surrounding area were the settings for Jesus' teachings and miracles. The reading describes how Jesus calmed a storm at sea. It is the first of four miracles presented in Mark's Gospel.

As the story unfolds, Jesus has just left the crowds of Galilee with his disciples and is crossing the Sea of Galilee. Jesus has fallen asleep in the bow of the boat when a sudden storm comes up threatening to capsize the boat. The disciples are frightened by the sudden storm. Jesus is sleeping, untroubled by what is going on around him. Mark notes the contrast between the disciples' terror and Jesus' peace. They are familiar enough with Jesus to dare to wake him. The disciples finally wake Jesus hoping that he will help save them. The first thing Jesus does is calm the storm. Once the immediate danger is over, he then turns to the disciples and wonders why their faith is so weak. 

This Gospel offers evidence of Jesus' power and authority as he calms the storm. In each situation, Jesus' power and authority is a sign of his divinity. In his day, power over nature was believed to be a sign of divinity - only God calms storms. Indeed, the disciples are left wondering about Jesus' identity at the conclusion of this Gospel. They see before them a human being who acts with the authority and power of God. 

This Gospel is a metaphor for our lives. We are in the boat, the storms of life are raging around us, and like the disciples, we may believe that Jesus is unconcerned, or “sleeping.” We hope that we will be as familiar with Jesus as his disciples. If we feel that Jesus is sleeping, are we comfortable enough to wake Jesus and present him with our needs? Jesus does not rebuke his disciples for waking him. Instead, he rebukes them for their lack of faith, for their lack of perspective. When we bring our worries to God in prayer, we might just begin to learn to see things from God's perspective.

As much as we would like to eliminate the storms in our children's lives, we really do them a disservice by not letting them learn to navigate on their own. How do we teach them this? Much as we do not always like to admit it, our children learn the most by watching us. What do our children learn from observing us in stormy weather? If we are honest, we can probably say we do not always mean to show them what they see; but maybe the most important thing they can learn is that we are trying. Even if we "lose it" (and our temper sometimes) they can still witness us coming back to God for help. Maybe they can see us in prayer, or maybe we can invite the family to pray together for a solution to the problem.

Discussion Starters

• My first reaction to storms in my life is to...
• One time I saw someone handle a difficult situation. This is what I remember...
• I was able to help someone in need once when I...

Sacramental News :  Eucharist – Reconciliation

Eucharist Date

God Bless

Rozeta Ambrose

rambrose@sfslynbrook.catholic.edu.au