Happy Mother's Day

We celebrated Mother's Day yesterday. This is a day when we think about our own mothers and all they have done and continue to do for us. We should also reflect on Mary, the mother of Jesus.

I wonder if in the busyness of yesterday whether any of us thought of Mary? I wonder what life as a mother was like in those times? I wonder how similar Mary's experience of mothering is to ours today?

Loving God, we pray for all mothers,

Bless all mothers, that their love may be deep and tender,

and that they may lead their children to know and do what is good,

Bless all mothers that they, too, enjoy the goodness of life which they give to others

Since Mary is the model for all mothers,

we turn to her with our own petitions and pray:

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you.

Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit

of your womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners

now and at the hour of our death.

Family Week

This week is Family Week. Family Week is a perfect time to come together to celebrate the power of family relationships in all their diversities, and the importance they play in our lives and community. Please bring in a photo of your family that we can display as we acknowledge and celebrate all our families within our community at St John's.

“Over and over again we see that family bonds are essential for the stability of relationships in society, for the work of education, and for integral human development, for they are inspired by love, responsible intergenerational solidarity, and mutual trust. These are factors that can make even the most adverse situations more bearable and bring a spirit of trust fraternity to our world, enabling it to feel as a single family, where the greatest attention is paid to those most in need.”

Pope Francis(From his address to the United Nations, Clementine Hall, 2013)

First Eucharist

Congratulations Bartek, Madison, Ellie, Joseph, Alana, Lachlan & Oliver on celebrating your First Eucharist recently. May you be nourished and inspired by the sacrament of Eucharist and always feel welcome in our parish community.

Fair Trade

Last Wednesday Mark Clarke from Catholic Mission and Megan Bourke from Australian Catholic Religious against Trafficking in Humans (ACRATH) came to present some Soccer Balls and discuss Fair Trade products with the Student Social Justice Team. We learnt about the symbols to look for on the packets. Saturday 8 May was World Fair Trade Day.

It is estimated that over 40 million people globally are trapped in slavery or slavery-like conditions – one in four of them a child. Some of these are trafficked into slavery and others forced to work in appalling conditions for a pittance.

Much of the coffee and tea we drink, and the cocoa used in the chocolate we eat and drink, can be traced back to these children and adults working in conditions of slavery.

The decisions we make about what we buy can change this. By deciding to buy only products certified slavery-free, we can help eradicate child labour, forced labour and human trafficking and make a difference to the world.

In his 2015 World Peace Day message, Pope Francis re-iterated the earlier call by Pope Benedict XVI (66 Caritas in Veritate)

“…every person ought to have the awareness that ‘purchasing is always a moral - and not simply an economic - act’...”

Enhancing Catholic Schools Identity Surveys

A letter including a link to a survey will be sent home in the next few days. We would appreciate your assistance by completing the survey please.

Important Dates to Remember:

May

16 Sunday Lexie, Mason, Milla, Lucas & Chase's First Eucharist 9:45am

23 Sunday Jarrod, Monique, Zarah & Bethany's First Eucharist 11:15am

27 Thursday Reconciliation Week (Thursday 27 May - Thursday 3 June)

Confirmation

Please note that the date for Confirmation has been changed and will now be on

Saturday 7 August.

Monica O'Shannassy

moshannassy@sjmitcham.catholic.edu.au

Camp Australia