Our Faith - Religion - Prayer 

St Patrick's Church Walcha 

For Baptism or Marriage enquiries by emailing Father Elino Comanda: walchaparish@armidale.catholic.org.au

Fr Elino would like to invite parishioners to Sunday Mass 10am.

Term 3 Mass Dates

Friday 31st July (tomorrow) : Mass(Feast of St Ignatius of Loyola)

Friday 14th August: Mass (Feast of St Maximilian Kolbe)

Friday 18th Sept: Mass

Reflection

As you may know, tomorrow, Friday 31st July, our school community will gather for Mass to celebrate the Feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola, a remarkable saint whose life and legacy continue to shape Catholic education and spiritual life around the world. Born in Spain in 1491, Ignatius began his career as a nobleman and soldier. However, during a battle in 1521, his life took a dramatic turn when his leg was severely injured by a cannonball. While recovering over many months, he spent his time reading books on the life of Jesus Christ and the lives of the saints, leading to a profound spiritual conversion and inspiring him to dedicate his life entirely to God.

Following his recovery, St. Ignatius went on to found the Society of Jesus, commonly known as the Jesuits, an order celebrated globally for its enduring commitment to education, missionary work, and social justice. He also authored The Spiritual Exercises, a timeless collection of prayers and reflections designed to help people discern God’s will in their everyday lives. Living by his famous motto, Ad Maiorem Dei Gloriam ("For the Greater Glory of God"), St. Ignatius taught us the importance of finding God in all things and using our unique talents to serve others.

Prayer

Thank You for the life and example of St. Ignatius of Loyola. 

Help us to remember his famous words 

and do everything “for the greater glory of God.” 

When we face challenges or hard times, 

give us the strength to persevere, 

and open our eyes so that we may find You in all things 

and everyone around us.

Amen.

School Mass, tomorrow, Friday 31st July at 12.00pm.

We will be celebrating our first Mass of Term 3, tomorrow,Friday 31st July at 12:00pmat St Patrick’s Catholic Church. This Mass is an opportunity for us to come together as a community to pray for the term ahead. Everyone is warmly invited to attend and join us. We look forward to seeing you there.

Implementing the Angelus Prayer at St Patrick's

Bishop Murphy has recently instructed all schools within the diocese that he would like staff and students to pray the Angelus daily. This traditional Catholic prayer honours the Incarnation and invites us to pause for a moment of reflection during the day.

At St Patrick’s Primary, we are currently working on a structured timeframe to implement this practice meaningfully across the school. To begin, we are focusing on developing our staff members' understanding and appreciation of the prayer by using it to open all of our staff meetings this term.

Following this initial staff preparation, we look to introduce the Angelus to the wider school community. Our current plan is to begin practicing it as a whole school when we gather in the morning, with an expected rollout scheduled for mid-Term 4 or the beginning of next year.

Below is some information provided by Armidale Catholic Schools concerning the question: Do Catholics Worship Mary?

The International Eucharistic Congress 2028

This is a major event in the global Church calendar: the 54th International Eucharistic Congress, which will be celebrated in 2028.

An International Eucharistic Congress is a historic gathering that brings together clergy, religious, and laypeople from all over the world to bear witness to the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. These congresses are held every few years in a different host city chosen by the Pope, featuring days of prayer, theological reflection, cultural events, and large-scale liturgies.

We look forward to sharing more updates and resources with our school families as the Church begins its official spiritual preparations for 2028.

Calling for Altar Servers

It was great to see we had five students receive the Sacrament of the Eucharist for the first time recently. Did you know that once a child can receive the Sacrament of Holy Communion they can take part in altar serving at both of our school and parish Masses?

Father Elino is looking out for any of our students who would like to become an altar server. Altar Servers must be Catholic and have a basic understanding of the mystery of Jesus present in the Eucharist and of the importance of prayerful reverence in their role as Altar servers.

Servers will be shown how to serve commencing in the near future during lunchtime.

If you have any questions regarding altar serving, don't hesitate to get in touch with Mr Hyatt.

Catherine McAuley

Catherine’s spirituality was centred on the mercy of God…prayer in action…action in prayer.