Faith, Justice and Formation
Father’s Day Mass - Morning Tea
Just a reminder that the Morning Tea will commence at 8:30 AM until 9:20 AM between the two morning masses. This will take place outside the Scientia Building.
We ask that no one is parked in the parking spots near the College Gymnasium, or block access to the driveway.
Jasmine Porter
Acting Director of Identity
Tommy Nyawir – Guest Speaker
Students in SJAG, FIAT and JSJ had the privilege of listening to guest speaker Tommy Nyawir, founder of the Mirror of Hope Foundation, as well as Jason Bongers, the Schools and Engagement Manager from the Edmund Rice Foundation.
Mirror of Hope Foundation is an organisation that provides educational scholarships and mentoring to children living in poverty in the Kibera slum, Kenya, who cannot afford to fund a primary and/or high-school education, as well as tertiary education. To put it in perspective, the Kibera Slum in Kenya is one of the world’s largest slums, with over one million people living in an area of 2.5 square kilometres, (which is less than half the size of Strathfield). The name was derived from an activity Tommy Nyawir did with some of the kids in Kenya – where he placed a mirror in a room, and then told them that a ‘surprise’ was in that room. After each individual kid entered the room, there was an array of reactions – some were annoyed, irritated, while others were happy, and amused. Tommy Nyawir wanted to show that the ‘big surprise’ was themselves, and that they had to see themselves as this surprise; to believe in and motivate themselves, and thus, to develop a positive sense of self. The Mirror of Hope Foundation places a significant emphasis on the power of education – and all that it leads to. This is because they believe that schooling ‘breaks the cycle of poverty for themselves and their families.’
Furthermore, at the presentation, Tommy Nyawir introduced a very important and insightful rule at Mirror of Hope - that they do not give ‘handouts’, but instead, they give hand-ups. He elaborated, speaking about the necessity to not just grant people gifts, cash sums and resources so they can live a better life, but instead, through the schooling and mentorship provided at Mirror of Hope, to motivate and self-determine these students, so that they can ‘break the cycle of poverty’ and live a successful life through their own hard work.
William Ters | Year 10 Student
Year 10 Justice and Advocacy Forum
On Tuesday 20 August, the Year 10 boys engaged in the Social Justice Advocacy Forum. Throughout the day, the boys heard from a variety of guest speakers from different organisations, with an aim of preparing us for Social Justice Service in Years 11 and 12. At the start of the day, the cohort gathered in the Robson Auditorium to hear from guest speaker Alopi Latukefu, the Executive Director of the ERC centre for Justice and Community Engagement, as well as the Year 12 Social Justice Prefects. This was a great experience for the boys which opened our eyes as to the importance of Social Justice especially in Years 11 and 12.
Later in the day, the cohort split into different groups to hear from guest speakers from different charities and organisations including House of Welcome, St. Merkorious Charity, Catholic Mission, and St Vincent De Paul just to name a few. This was extremely engaging for the boys, and I know we all had a great time hearing about the different organisations and many of us left the sessions feeling inspired to contribute to these charities and organisations.
At the end of the day, the boys returned to the Robson Auditorium to hear a presentation from Mr. Biviano and Year 11 student Matthew Badran about the Alice Springs Immersion. The Immersion is one of the great Social Justice opportunities provided to Year 11 next year and the presentation certainly got the boys feeling excited to take on the challenge and experience what the immersion has to offer.
Finally, to finish the day off, all of Year 10 attended a short liturgy in the College Chapel, giving us all time to reflect on the day’s events and on the importance of Social Justice. Overall, it was an amazing day for the boys and by the end of the day we all had a greater understanding of Social Justice and were feeling ready for Social Justice Service next year.
Adrian Alafaci | Year 10 Student