Faith & Mission 

Matthew 11: 28-30 

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”

Term four is always hectic, and after another interrupted year we have tried to provide as many opportunities as we could in the Faith and Mission field. As a result, both staff and student bodies will be weary, but very satisfied with the offerings over the last month.

We began with our Year 7 Reflection Days, held as one homeroom at a time for half day sessions. Each Year 7 student got their first official taste of formal formation in the MSC ethos. Our Year 10 student helpers were a godsend on the day, adding much to the experience. The Year 10s were quick to remind me that they had in fact missed out on formation last year and this year so far.

As a result, we hastily organised a Year 10 Reflection Day for the cohort, held on November 30th. The students received this well giving them a chance to reflect on their journey so far. It was also pleasing to have Milly Tapper come and talk about her journey from Monivae to the Tokyo Olympics and Tokyo Para-Olympics.  Her insight gave the Year 10 cohort much to think about.

Father Bob Irwin once again added to the day by sharing his wisdom. We have been lucky to have Father Bob here this year (a positive from the Covid situation) and his ability to share life stories with our students was very much appreciated.

Father Bob appeared once again on Wednesday and spoke to our Year 11 cohort about community.   They then finally completed their last activity from the Retreat earlier in the year that was cut short due to Covid-19 lockdown. Each student split back into their Retreat groups, touched base with each other, and then wrote affirmations. These affirmations remind each other of the important place they hold in our community.

On Friday, our students started the last day of the school year with a Mass together, our first opportunity since Sacred Heart Day in June.

The MSC constitution #33 talks about the importance of sharing eucharist together as a community, and having Father Bob as our main celebrant, we were lucky enough to be able to do this. Our entire last day was a celebration of our gifts to each other, and the Advent / Christmas liturgy was a great way to finish together.

We are aware of all the things that Covid-19 took away from us, but the ability to celebrate the good things we have was an important way to finish together. We thanked the departing staff, we thanked those who brought presents for the St Vincent de Paul Christmas appeal, and we thanked each other.

I wish everyone who is part of the Monivae community a peaceful and restful Christmas, and look forward to another year of Faith and Formation next year.

Upcoming Events:

Wed Dec 8th -   Staff Christmas Mass 9am

Wed Feb 2nd – Fri Feb 4th Year 12 Retreat

Wed Feb 16th – Opening School Mass (TBC)

May the Sacred Heart of Jesus be everywhere, loved

The Lady of the Sacred Heart, pray for us!

Danny Franc

Director of Faith and Mission