Religious Education & Pastoral Care 

Celebrations!

A massive congratulations to Fr John Curran on the occasion of his Golden Jubilee of priesthood. 

Father John has been in a whirlwind of functions to celebrate this milestone this week. Last Saturday the Parish of St Michael's in Manilla held a luncheon for him. On Sunday it was the parish of St John's turn to celebrate mass followed by a lovely lunch at the Playhouse Hotel. Yesterday (Thursday) all the clergy in the Diocese of Armidale came to Manilla to celebrate mass and lunch with Fr John, on the actual anniversary of his ordination. Today we come together as a school community to acknowledge and thank Fr John for his contribution, leadership, guidance and support of our school family. Whilst it won't be the 1000 + people who were there to witness his ordination in the Moree town hall on 28th August 1974, it will still be a crowd of people who respect and appreciate this humble and generous man.  A special thankyou to Damian Roff for attending these celebrations with us.

Father's Day

Our Mini Vinnies team were kept busy running our Father's Day stall this week. Thank you to everyone who supported this small fund raiser. A special shout out to Mrs White for her keen eye and fabulous shopping skills to get us ready for this event. 

Wishing all the Dads in the community a very special Father's Day for this Sunday. We hope you enjoy being spoiled! 

School Mass

Our next school mass will be the final one for Term 3, as the Friday of this term is a pupil free day. Please come along on Friday 13th September. All welcome! 

We will have our Confirmation candidates lead this mass as part of their preparation for the Sacrament at the end of this term. It would be wonderful to see families here to support our students who are preparing for this Sacrament: Joshua, Christina, Nevaeh, Arley and Grace.

Confirmation

Confirmation falls every second year at St John's Barraba and the date is set by the chancery office in Armidale. This year we will celebrate this sacrament on Sunday, 22 September which will be at the end of week 9 of THIS term. This will involve students in Years 5 and 6 who have made their First Holy Communion. Information has gone out to families this week. It would be helpful to have the notes returned as soon as possible so that lessons can commence on time. 

Answering Questions

I have come across a great resource that explains a lot of questions about the Catholic faith, mass, sacraments and prayers. It is organised in a way that you can find answers quickly and the explanations are concise, clear and easy to read. If you want to discuss anything or have any further questions please don't hesitate to reach out!