Mission and Identity

• Welcome Mass for New Families

• Blessed are the Peacemakers, Brother Sun, Sister Moon

• Staff Welcome Mass

• Pope Leo XIV Calls for Witnesses of Peace

Welcome Mass for New Families

'The beginning of love is the will to let those we love be perfectly themselves, the resolution not to twist them to fit our own image. If in loving them we do not love what they are, but only their potential likeness to ourselves, then we do not love them: we only love the reflection of ourselves we find in them.' 

Thomas Merton, Trappist Monk and Theologian

Fr David Ranson used this quote in his homily on Monday to unpack the student-chosen theme for this year ‘For All, With All’ at our Welcome Mass for new families. He shared that the love mentioned above was critical to achieve the aspirational goal of the 2026 theme. He spoke of Jesus’s specific use of ‘stranger’ in our Mathew 25 Gospel reading. He highlighted that in the Gospel, the stranger is not ‘one of us’ but loved whole just as they are, and in doing so, they have loved and welcomed Christ in disguise.

 A powerful reminder as we welcome new members of the College family. Wishing all who start a new journey every blessing in their new community.

Blessed are the Peacemakers, Brother Sun, Sister Moon

Driving home after Mass and seeing this sunset last weekend, I felt the Gospel reading echo ‘blessed are the peacemakers’. I pulled the car over and it struck me how extraordinary St Francis really was when he began using Creation as the fifth Gospel. In how he picked up frequencies of the divine through every facet of nature.

What strikes me the most is the familial bonds he illuminates in the Canticle of the Sun. ‘Brother Sun, Sister moon, brothers wind and fire. Sister water. Sister Mother Earth’. The depth of interconnectedness he felt between all living things and God flowing between and through them is a level of seeing that goes beyond sight.

The French Jesuit Pierre Teilhard de Chardin’s famous quote: ‘The whole life lies in the verb seeing’ spoke of his conviction that we are called to take ‘seeing’ from a passive action to a deeply spiritual process that ‘plugs in’ to the interconnectedness of the cosmos and the divine.

In German culture ‘Waldeinsamkeit’ picks up on this - meaning to be deep into the forest, almost lost in order to be connected with all that lives and breathes, in order to ‘plug into’ the divine and sacred.

If God’s frequency is so tangible and its effect so profound on the heart and soul when in nature/Creation, what wonderful opportunities exist in helping students connect and fall in love with God beyond the four walls of the RE classroom? Our experiential approach that includes time in the Chapel, time in nature and opportunities to engage in service have already yielded great promise in taking the curriculum and their faith development to the next level. Perhaps this Special Year of St Francis has further unexpected lessons to teach us. 

Staff Welcome Mass

As we commissioned 16 new staff as members of the St Pius X family at our Staff Welcome Mass, a highlight was the blessing with oil and the gifting of a spark of the light of Christ, as an outward sign of the mission they now embrace.

Our new staff responded with the following prayer:

'Loving Creator, as teachers we are sculptors of destinies not our own.

We are painters of the canvas of the future.

We are composers of the rhythm of the next generation.

Grant us the wisdom to see each student as a block of precious marble. Grant us the gentleness needed to carefully peel back layer after layer. Grant us the love needed to witness Your presence within them and to reveal the artwork that lies beneath the surface - breathed inside them before time began. Entrusted to us to reveal from within them and shine for the world.

Loving God, help us to remove each layer gently, lovingly and faithfully. Amen'

We are grateful as always for the spiritual leadership of Fr David Ranson and for celebrating our Eucharist. Please keep our new staff in your prayers.

Pope Leo XIV Calls for Witnesses of Peace

Pope Leo XIV has called us to be ‘witnesses of peace’ in this special year of St Francis. His example breaks open our student selected theme for 2026: 'For All, With All' - which reflects a call to unity, inclusivity, and shared purpose - a reminder that our strength as a community lies in standing together and supporting one another. It echoes the message of Ephesians 6:13, 'Put on the full armour of God' which urges believers to clothe themselves in faith, truth, righteousness, and peace so they may face the challenges of the world with courage and integrity. The imagery accompanying this theme visually represents this collective strength: the figures are not isolated warriors but members of one body, symbolising solidarity, compassion, and mutual protection. The armour is not merely individual defence; it becomes a shared expression of God’s presence working for all people and with all who seek justice, mercy, and love. Together, the theme and the Scripture remind us that faith is lived not in isolation but in communion - standing side by side, strengthened by God and by one another.

In this Year of St Francis, we are reminded that to be clothed in the armour of God is also to walk the way of humility, peace, and love. St Francis did not witness through power or force, but through a life lived simply, joyfully, and courageously for others - becoming a living sign of holiness and peace in a divided world. During the Fifth Crusade, he crossed enemy lines unarmed, to meet Sultan al-Kamil in Egypt, seeking dialogue rather than violence and witnessing to Christ through respect and gentleness.

His example calls each student to be a witness not only in words, but in actions: choosing kindness over conflict, inclusion over exclusion, and care for creation and one another.

To live 'For All, With All' is to stand alongside those who feel overlooked, to protect the vulnerable, and to build peace in everyday moments.

As we put on the full armour of God, we are invited to wear it in the spirit of St Francis - using faith as our shield, love as our strength, and peace as our mission - so that our school community becomes a place where holiness is lived, peace is practiced, and no one stands alone.

Mr Daniel Petrie - Assistant Principal, Mission and Identity