From the Principal
‘DELIVER US FROM EVIL’
As a Catholic from birth, and thereby a Christian for ever, probably the first prayer I was taught by the Sisters of the Sacred Heart and by my parents would have been the prayer Christ Himself taught us, The Lord’s Prayer.
This prayer is best known and most often recited by Christians and is a highly recognised and respected Christian prayer by non-Christians in the world. It will remain so. In our final request to ‘Our Father’ is the plea, ‘and deliver us from evil’. Jesus knew that we are all going to confront evil in some form at some time during our earthly life.
Evil came into the world from the beginning of human time when we are taught in Genesis that there was a split amongst the heavenly host and God’s love and goodness were either embraced or rejected. Evil is first evident as Adam and Eve fall to the false lure of satan.
Christians inherently know that goodness will always, every time, overcome evil. Christians also believe fervently that no human being created by God is born evil. People through their own actions and conscience become evil and reject God.
In Melbourne at this time, we hear about and many of us encounter evil. I am not referring to suburban crime, dishonesty, minor violence (all of which are detestable), but evil as it is revealed through murders of many types, rape, persecution of people, attempts to annihilate entire civilizations, intense hatred too awful to describe, satanism, desecration of religious icons and beliefs.
Society provides means by which criminals and bad people are judged and punished through imprisonment, and the justice system uses courts to maintain law and order, civic peace and human safety and comfort. May the punishment always match the crime and may the scales of justice be ever fair and pure.
Evil ignores such civic and civil laws, and it is enacted by evil people with all the evil they hold in their heart and hands. Unknown to the satanists are mercy, forgiveness, compassion, repentance, love of neighbour, love of God.
May Monicans avoid evil and be ‘delivered from evil’. May no person, political belief, slogan, online message, campaign, icon, or action enthuse them to do evil, or accept evil as anything but putrid, devoid of human and divine love.
We pray that families will today raise their children to be loving individuals; we pray that present day Monicans will follow that lead and eventually raise their children to be believers in goodness; we pray that society will forever be based on goodness. We pray for the satanist in society but refuse to be entrapped or enticed by him/her/it.
Let Monicans not be fooled into believing that evil does not exist. It indeed does. Goodness overpowers evil through our prayer and our rejection of it. That is our belief. That is why and how we have FAITH.
Mr Brian Hanley OAM
Principal