Mission News

MARIST COLLEGE ASHGROVE 1940 - 2020

Reflection for Father’s Day 2020: Father/Son Blessing

By the Son: Lord God, bless my father. Keep him safe and well. May our knowledge of your love for us, give my father the calm and inner strength he needs for all he does. And may we live together happily and well.

By the Father: Lord, look with love upon my son and protect him with your love. May he grow in wisdom and strength in your presence and in the sight of all. And may we live together safely, happily and well.

Year 9 2020 Retreat Day

Year 9 Boys spent a day away from their usual timetables to take time and take stock of how they are really travelling as individuals and as a cohort. Led by retreat facilitator Michael Fitzpatrick, the boys were guided through a process of learning more about each other. This culminated in an opportunity for the boys to stand before their peers and acknowledge those students who most embody admirable characteristics and values. The retreat highlighted for the group how they might come together and move forward as one, with a clear idea of how they live and learn as part of the Marist Ashgrove family.

Year 10 2020 Retreat Day

The boys of Year 10 had a very profitable day of reflection and sharing on their retreat day last week. Led by presenter Michael Fitzpatrick, the boys were taken through a process whereby they considered the life of the year group and some of the dynamics at work within it. The boys responded very positively and constructively to the challenges and issues put to them, some of which included:

At MCA, what hinders me from living life to the full?
How is our year level currently seen? What does the rest of the College think of us at the moment?
What do we need to change in our year level?
What do we want to be known/remembered for?
What are some areas in the life of MCA that we could work on in order to make a positive impact in the school community?

All worthwhile questions for the Year 10s of 2020 to think about and share with each other. This time in 12 months, the College leaders for 2022 will be chosen from this group of young men. The future looks promising if Friday’s retreat response is any measure.

Mission and Ministry News

On the 5 September, we acknowledge the feast day of Mother Teresa of Kolkata. Mother Teresa was a Nobel Laureate and one of the great humanitarians of the twentieth century. In recognition of her great contribution to supporting the poor and marginalised, in 2012 the United Nations designated the anniversary of her death as the International Day of Charity.

Mother Teresa was a woman deeply motivated by her sense of God calling to her in those who were broken and unloved. She was a person who knew her own weakness and yet still reached out the hand of care and concern to others. She is a model and a sign to us of God’s call to reach out to those around us. She famously called the deepest poverty of our times loneliness.

For us at Marist College Ashgrove, our MATES program seeks to reach out and offer friendship and connection to people in our world who are disconnected for all sorts of reasons. The global pandemic we have lived with these past months has certainly put a temporary pause on our face-to-face activities and offerings. It is, however, a testament to the extraordinary generosity and compassion of the young men of this College that they ask in an almost daily mantra…” when is MATES coming back or What can we do with MATES?” The answer is more complicated than COVID. Much of what we offer through the MATES program is done with the most vulnerable in our society and we need in an effort to keep everyone safe stay away.

We use the service we offer as a way of making connection possible. Through the service of their lives, we try to help the young Marist men to become men of hospitality and community, men who know the vital importance of connection and right relationship and seek to build that up in their lives. This begins with how we treat each other ALL the time, under every circumstance, with or without the label of MATES.

We joyfully welcome Mrs Liz Spry back to the team after her leave.

Game Changers Update

Our two Game Changers groups came together on Wednesday for a combined meeting at the Marist Centre. It was great for our Year 7 and 10 students to learn more about how we as Marists are engaged in mission across the region and overseas, through the various ministries housed at the Marist Centre.

This special combined meeting presented the students with a special leadership challenge. Together, they had to solve the path through a plate maze, while thinking about how they could support each other and work together. The learning was that leadership isn’t just a badge or a title, but rather about how each individual contributes through service and presence to make a difference in the group and the community.

Chaplain’s Corner

The month of September is traditionally dedicated to the Seven Sorrows of Mary. The Sorrows are: the prophecy of Simeon, the flight into Egypt, the loss of the Holy Child at Jerusalem for three days, meeting Jesus on his way to Calvary, standing at the foot of the Cross, Jesus being taken from the Cross, and the burial of Christ. The Feasts of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (8th), The Most Holy Name of Mary (12th) and Our Lady of Sorrows (15th) also fall in September.

Jesus tells us that we Christians have the prime duty of being examples of good living which means living moral lives. We should have an upright character which yields good fruits of charity and faithfulness. Like good and sound trees, we produce good fruits. Such an upright character can be built up only by listening to God’s words and acting on them, like our Blessed Mother Mary who listened to God’s words and pondered over them in her heart. The fruit she bore is God’s own Son! God wants us also to build our life on the strong foundation of his word.

Mary, Our Good Mother, pray for us.

St. Marcellin Champagnat, pray for us.

St. Mary of the Cross, pray for us.

May we always remember to pray for one another.

Wednesday morning Mass

The College is praying together as a community on Wednesday mornings again. Please feel free to join us in the Chapel (limited numbers allowed in attendance)

Don’t forget to check out our Facebook page Marist College Ashgrove Living the Mission.