R.E. Update

Advent at COHR

This weekend we celebrate the First Week of Advent. We will gather as a community on Tuesday morning for our First Week of Advent prayer focusing on the theme of 'Hope'.

As a season of reflection and contemplation, Advent invites us to imagine a kind of hope, rooted in the unchanging nature of God and his promise to restore every part of his creation. Advent hope does not minimize pain or difficulty, nor does it assume things will soon get better. Instead, it faces the darkness with courage and chooses to trust that God’s promises will come to pass, guaranteed by his long-proven, faithful character. 

In the Hebrew Bible, the words most often used for hope—qavah and yakhal—are also translated as “wait.” To hope in God means to wait with patient expectation, trusting that he will fulfill his promises. This kind of waiting leans forward, anticipating the day when Jesus will return to make all things new. Such hope empowers people to persevere, to act justly, and to serve others as a sign of the restoration that will arrive through Jesus.

Mini Vinnies

From our Mini Vinnies team...

Dear COHR Community,

For many of us, Christmas is a time of joy, food, and presents. We are so wrapped up in having a good time that we forget to think of those in need. This Christmas, the COHR Mini Vinnies are holding our Christmas Tree of Hope, which gives gifts, joy, and hope to those who need them the most: the children in need.

The Mini Vinnies Tree of Hope will be in the office foyer. You can remove a bauble from its branches. This bauble will have a gender and an age on it. We ask that you buy and donate a present for a child of that age category and gender. Please note that for this fundraiser, we do not want second hand items. We want to give the children the joy of getting a new gift. Once you buy the gift, we ask that you wrap it and place it underneath the tree with the bauble with the gender and age of the corresponding present stuck to it.  

We ask you to donate presents for children in need if you can. Donating is optional and presents don't have to be expensive. There is no minimum or maximum amount that you can spend. All we ask is that you donate a thoughtful gift that you think the child in your category will like. 

Thank you in advance for your donations and for caring about the children in need.

Kind regards, 

Mini Vinnies Team 2025

Christmas Timetable from the Oakleigh Parishes