✝️Faith and Mission

St Eugene’s Feast Day Homily

At the very outset, I take this opportunity to wish you all a very Happy Feast of St Eugene De Mazenod.  We are gathered this morning to celebrate the annual feast of St Eugene, the patron saint of our College. Personally, to find genuine fulfilment in what I do and undertake, I ask myself often, what do I find in St Eugene that can enrich my life? Constantly reminding myself of the inspiration that I derive from St Eugene, helps me undertake my missionary journey optimistically. Likewise, I ask you all the same question, what do we as a collective Mazenod community find in St Eugene that can enhance and enrich our lives in today’s world? Basing my reflection on the readings of today and on some of the key values of St Eugene, I invite you all to touch base upon his life and move on to the values of education he presents to us.

At the age of eight, as we know well, Eugene's family fled the French Revolution, leaving their wealth and taking themselves forward to find shelter in Italy. As the saying goes; materially rich can become poor in no time. So, it happened to Eugene and his family. They were rich and wealthy but became poor as they moved from place to place. Like a sheep that is looking for a pasture, nobody notices them except the shepherd. The good Shepherd noticed them and led them to the Zinelli family in Venice so that they could find sanctuary. From the beginning, the Zinelli family took special care of Eugene and looked after his education.

Education has an emancipatory value. It brings you from darkness to light. It can bring you from being poor to being prosperous. It simply means expanding our minds to embrace the divine and all that is good in our lives. Acknowledging the Shepherd who leads us from within and without is education. Christ engulfs our being. Encircles our soul. How do we know this? A good education, a deep knowledge of reality, the subjects you study, the people you relate with, and knowing the desires that are in your heart indicate this very Being that is close to us. St Eugene valued the education that he received from his mentors and that is what he meant to us when he said, “When we are aware of the indwelling presence of God in others, we give dignity to all the people”.

Just like the temptations and challenges that St Eugene faced during his lifetime, the world of today presents us with various kinds of distractions from experiencing the indwelling presence of God in others. One of the main distractions nowadays is social media, which comes with several apps and programs, games and entertainment. We are constantly tossed and twisted like waves in the sea to the wind’s whims and fancies. What is our role? We must navigate and sail safely in the troubling sea of our lives. How do we do it? He is the captain. On His Campus, as a Captain of the team and as a Leader of the community, He uses us as His instruments to help each other sail the journey of our life safely.

Acknowledging Jesus, being close to Him, knowing Him, remembering Him, and loving Him will help us navigate this life with the full purpose, grace, love and joy. We can work together to accomplish this end. By doing so, St Eugene tells us that we can learn from each other. In this way, we fulfil what the scripture said to us in the Gospel reading, “He has sent me to bring the good news to the poor.”

By sharing the good news, we present the joy of Christ and the love of Jesus to everyone in our families and communities. After all, God is love. In loving Jesus, we love all; in loving all, we love Him. Sometimes, it may cost us more and ask for our energy, time, and at times, our lives. We can generously give of ourselves to build the kingdom of joy, peace, and love, which is God's Kingdom.

To offer ourselves generously for the Kingdom, we heard in the Gospel, “Unrolling the scroll, Jesus found the place where it is written: The spirit of the Lord has been given to me, for he has anointed me.” Anointed means marked for a special purpose. We must unroll our lives to see where God has acted on us, graced, and loved us. So that we can be filled with the spirit of God, once we are filled with His Spirit, we will unearth our passion. The passion that is kindled by the flame of God’s love.

To keep the flame of love shining through our lives, we shall keep unrolling our lives to see the richness of God and, in the end, hand our lives over to God. Because the scroll belongs to Him. So, dear friends, let us roll into God so that we can unroll ourselves in our daily lives with grace, love and joy.

Fr Joe Antony OMI

Prayer for Mission

God our Father,

we thank you for having called Saint Eugene de Mazenod

to follow Christ the Saviour and Evangelizer.

Passionately in love with your Son Jesus

and sharing in his compassion for humanity,

Eugene put himself unconditionally at the service of your Church

for the evangelization of those most in need.

Through his intercession, help us to reach out

with the healing touch of Christ who calls us to Holiness and to Mission.

May we build communities which are signs of your presence,

and share the Good News of salvation with all peoples.

For this we dedicate ourselves, through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Saint Eugene de Mazenod, share with us your love for Christ.

Saint Eugene de Mazenod, help us to stand firm in goodness.

Saint Eugene de Mazenod, be with us in all our efforts.

Saint Eugene de Mazenod, pray for us.

The Mazenodian Family - Together all are co-operators of Jesus Christ the Saviour

PRAYER SUPPORTERS, BENEFACTORS, VOLUNTEERS, OBLATES: ALL WORKING TOGETHER FOR THE MISSION...

From the earliest days of the life and mission of St Eugene, he depended on the cooperation of others to make the mission possible. He had Gospel ideals and a missionary dream to evangelize the most abandoned. He was surrounded by generous young missionaries who gave their lives to this task, but they could not do it alone. They needed to be supported by others to make their ministry possible. When St Eugene bought the Carmelite convent in Aix for his ministry, he needed the financial help of his mother and of others in the family.

The first lay co-operators did so through their material help and through their prayers of support for the missionaries. Today the Church’s thinking has developed in the direction of people cooperating with the Oblates not only financially and in prayer but with the gift of their lives and talents to be co-operators of the Saviour – each according to their talents and capabilities. Today we use the beautiful expression, the “Mazenod family” as an umbrella term to cover all those who participate in the charism and mission of St Eugene: lay associates, honorary Oblates, mission partners, MAMI and everyone who in any way participates in the Oblate mission fits this bill.

St Eugene thought in the categories of his time, but one certainly recognises his spirit and intention in the wonderful things that are happening today in the missionary efforts of each member of his family – no matter how insignificant the contribution of each one may appear to be. Everything counts for the welfare of the whole.

Reflection:

What ideas or themes stood our to you in this reflection?

What does the De Mazenod Family mean to you?

What is your place in the De Mazenod Family?

What is the importance of contributing to the De Mazenod Family, not only financially, but through your gifts and talents?

Term 2 Chapel Flower Roster

Christian Service Learning in Religious Education

Last week some Year 11’s visited the chapel to polish the plaques on the pews and entrance. These plaques were installed some 25+ years ago and were paid for by families associated with the College as a fundraising effort to support the school. They probably have not been given care and attention in some time, so it was great to see the boys help with this gesture of recognition and thanks to families gone by. The work will continue throughout the term. 

In addition, some Year 12’s had a visit to Ray Owen Reserve where they spent time picking up litter. It didn't take long before over three bags were full! Not only were they able to show stewardship in action, but they also enjoyed a change of pace, getting out of the classroom, to enjoy the unusually warm weather before they headed into exams and work experience. Another visit is planned soon.

Well done to all boys involved for their enthusiasm and thank you to Mr Keogh for organising.

Year 9 Pilgrimage

Over three days in Week 5, Year 9 students took part in a reflection pilgrimage.  To begin, we visited St Mary’s Cathedral in the city. Many of the boys had not been to a Church of this size and scale and were openly awestruck as they entered the building.  We participated in a tour of the Cathedral, visiting the crypt where important Bishops are buried, and then having key parts of the Cathedral building explained. The boys asked lots of thoughtful questions, particularly when finding out about the crypt and also the gold leaf covered chapel!  After recess, the boys attended Mass in the chapel and were acknowledged by the priest for their presence.

After lunch, the boys began their pilgrimage walk from the Cathedral down to Debarl Yerrigan (Swan River). They were given information about Rosendo Salvado’s walk from Perth to New Norcia and his establishment of the monastic town there. They were also given the opportunity to reflect on the Dreaming stories of the Whadjuk Noongar connected to Debarl Yerrigan and the deep spiritual connection to the area of the First Nations people. The pilgrimage walk ended at Matagarap Bridge.

Back at school, the boys were able to complete reflection questions, comparing the spiritual experiences provided by the Catholic Cathedral and the river.

Vinnies Quiz Night

Get ready to rock the house at Mazenod College's Vinnies Quiz Night extravaganza! It's time to dive headfirst into the wild and wacky world of 'This World', uncover the juiciest secrets of 'History and Arts', reminisce about all things Mazenod in 'Mazenod Trivia' and get star-struck with everything 'Fabulously Famous'! Plus, we've got raffles and prizes up for grabs, because who doesn't love a little extra excitement? So, gather your crew, gear up for some brainy banter and let's make the night a legendary mix of laughs, learning and maybe even a victory dance or two!

Damian Wallis

Director of Faith and Mission