John XXIII College Newsletter

Faith and Mission

On Wednesday we commemorated Anzac Day. The text below was read by James Kros and adapted by Laura Kings in the Australian Catholics magazine. It is a timely reminder about radical kindness.

 

On ANZAC Day last year, some Korean and Thai fishermen at the Brisbane River were attacked by a man who used his crutches as a weapons and yelled racial insults. The attacker was later arrested by police. The victims remained calm and did not fight back. Instead, they hoped that the man would get the support he needed from his family or health professionals.

When another Brisbane person saw the attack on a video she was horrified and heartbroken to see such hatred and gathered some other folk to support the victims and bring them kindness. They located one of the fishermen and offered him a candle and tray of tropical fruit in friendship. The fruit represented what was shared between Queensland and Thailand.

 

It takes commitment to track down some hobby fisherman in a viral video and make amends. Especially if you were not the person who did the wrong thing in the first place. And especially if there is nothing in it for you. This is a radical act of kindness.

What is significant about this story is the timing. Nearly 100 years ago, during WWI, the ANZACs and Turks were involved in another radical act of kindness. 

 

In the weeks following the 25 April invasion of the Gallipoli peninsula, soldiers from both sides had been killed in what became ‘no man’s land’ between the opposing trench lines at ANZAC Cove. Neither ANZACs nor Turks were able to recover the bodies of their dead. 

 

With a health crisis looming, it took weeks of careful negotiation and a brave act on the part of some Turkish medical officers for the armies to negotiate a ceasefire to allow the bodies to be cleared. Neither side really trusted the other. 

 

It took commitment. In the end, both sides acted honourably, and the job was done, with the soldiers learning a little about each other along the way. This was the only WWI ceasefire that was both official and successful.

 

Christians believe in someone else known for radical acts of kindness. We call him Jesus. Jesus demonstrated radical kindness when he healed a man from Gerasene, who had a mental illness and was socially isolated. This man lived alone among the graves; he was challenged by intrusive thoughts and behaviours. Even though the villagers were threatened by him, they tried to help. This Gerasene man recognised help with it arrived and Jesus showed courage when he chose to be present and attentive to his needs. 

 

Jesus helped many people in his time, so why was this miracle the result of a radical choice to be kind?

 

It was radical because of where the miracle was performed and the person, he showed kindness to. The man from Gerasene lived among the tombs on the other side of a lake. It was a ‘no-man’s land’, separating Greeks and Jews. Many of the people who lived in this area were rejected because they had formerly served the despised Roman conquerors. 

 

When Jesus made the radical decision to heal this man, he demonstrated that God’s love was not just reserved for people who were privileged, religious and kept the law. Jesus did not pick and choose who he would save. He saw a need and he acted.

This was a radical act of kindness because Jesus didn’t get anything in return. He performed a miracle, but the townspeople reacted with fear and asked him to leave. Does that mean Jesus should not have acted? If he had ignored the man’s plight, we would not, 2000 years later, understand that prejudice is not the Christian way. 

We will all have opportunities – today or this week – for radical acts of kindness – to see a need and act, without expecting anything in return. What we can be sure of is that no radical kind thing we do is ever lost – it will have a ripple effect in our community, in Australia and in our world. That is the true spirit of ANZAC. 

 

Janeen Murphy

Deputy Principal Faith and Mission

Community Mass

Thank you to students in Year 11 who did a great job preparing this morning’s liturgy. There was also a buzz in the Circle of Friends Café, as parents, Father Edmond CSsR and some staff gathered for conversation before going off to work commitments.   

 

Special thanks also to Mr Kros and alumnus, Tom Paparo, who stepped in at short notice to respectively conduct and accompany the choir, enabling us to have joyful and beautiful music. 

 

Next Friday Mass will be prepared by students in Loreto House.  If you are new to the College, just come to the Chapel in time for an 8:00 start – there are no allocated seats.  All are welcome!

 

Friday 10 May, our ‘Community Mass’ will relocate to the St Louis Sports Centre and commence at 7:30am. This Mass will be dedicated to mothers and all who ‘mother’ in our community and beyond. 

 

Families are welcome to join students, staff and friends to gather as a community and give thanks to God. Afterwards, there is coffee – and conversation – in the Circle of Friends Café.  If you are new to the College, just come to the Chapel in time for an 8:00am start – there are no allocated seats.  All are welcome!

 

Community Mass Summary:

  • Fridays in Term time
  • 8:00am start – 8:30am finish*
  • College Chapel

*Exception – Friday 10 May, Mass commences at 7:30 am, in the St Louis Sports Centre. 

 

Sacrament program

Do you have a child in Years 3, 4 or 6?

In several parishes, Sacrament programs have already begun, but some are still accepting enrolments. 

 

In line with the Sacrament Policy, it is the parents’ ‘right and responsibility’ to enrol their own child in a parish, since parents are respected as first educators in the faith of their children. Students celebrate the sacraments in their parish with their own family. 

 

The College Religious Education program supports families in this education. In Year 3, students are taught the content for First Reconciliation; in Year 4, the content for First Holy Communion and in Year 6, the content for Confirmation. 

 

Some parishes located nearest to the College have supplied details about enrolment and dates, including City Beach, Claremont, Cottesloe, Doubleview, North Beach and Subiaco. Please see the Parish Sacrament Programs page on the College website. 

 

For parents hoping to enrol their child in First Communion at Cottesloe parish, the enrolments have closed. However, the parish has advised that late enrolments will be accepted for another week or so.  

 

Parents often have questions about the Sacrament program, so don’t be afraid to ask: