Liturgy

Community Mass

Thank you to Campion House – and especially Year 7 Campion – for your outstanding preparation of today’s liturgy.

Holy Week begins Sunday 10 April, and that will be reflected in our community next Friday, 8 April. 

The liturgy will begin at 7:30am in the Library Courtyard with student leaders from Years 7 to 12 who will take part in a procession of palms and will then lead a reflection in their respective homerooms.

Year 11 Pilgrims will assist in the Chapel at 8:00am and will have a special role in proclaiming the Passion of Christ.

In accordance with current guidelines, Mass attendance is limited to students in the year group and staff members. We are looking forward to celebrating the liturgy with families, friends and alumni once COVID restrictions have eased.

After a break for the holidays, Community Mass will resume on Friday 29 April. 

Community Mass details:

• College Chapel
• Fridays in term time
• Starts: 8:00am and concludes 8:30am (EXCEPT – Friday 8 April – liturgy starts at 7:30am)

Farewell Fr Rodrigo

We are very sad to announce that Fr Rodrigo has been transferred to work as assistant priest in the parish of Midland. Clearly, he is unable to continue his work as loved chaplain here at John XXIII College. Students and staff alike will miss Fr Rodrigo’s youth and humour – as well as his prayerful celebration of the liturgy.

The College is currently in the process of engaging a new chaplain, and an announcement will be made once finalised. 

SACRAMENT PROGRAM

‘Family-focused, parish-based, Catholic school supported’

Parents of students in Years 3, 4 and 6

Students will be preparing for the sacrament of Reconciliation (Year 3), Holy Communion (Year 4) and Confirmation (Year 6). This time of preparation is joyfully shared by families, parishes and schools. 

Sacraments are celebrated in parishes – usually the parish you consider your ‘home’ parish. It is important to ‘enrol’ in the parish program, even for families in Catholic schools, as parishes need to plan ahead for these events. 

Enrolment details for parishes of Cottesloe/Mosman Park, City Beach, Doubleview and Subiaco may be found here. 

Alternatively, contact the Parish Priest or Sacrament Coordinator in your own home parish.

If you would like further information about the Sacrament Program:

• If your nearest parish is not listed, search the Archdiocesan website;
• Contact Mary-Anne Lumley mary-anne.lumley@cewa.edu.au  08 9383 0513.

GOOD NEWS for 5th Sunday in Lent

'Let the person without sin be the first to throw a stone'.

John 8:1-11

Pope Francis has spoken a great deal about our need for more women to occupy positions of leadership, both in the Church and in the world at large. For example, in his wonderful letter about the way we belong to each other, Fratelli Tutti, he says ‘the organisation of societies worldwide is still far from reflecting clearly that women possess the same dignity and identical rights as men. We say one thing with words, but our decisions and reality tell another story.’ He is concerned about ‘those women who endure situations of exclusion, mistreatment and violence’.

Pope Francis is very much reflecting the attitude of Jesus whose closeness to women distinguished him as a leader and teacher in his time. We might think of significant encounters in the New Testament: the woman at the well, Martha and Mary, the widow of Nain. We might also think of the woman we meet in today’s Gospel, described by the scribes and Pharisees as ‘caught in the very act of committing adultery.’ Listen to the sneer in those words. These men, who are supposed to be educated and respected, have been ‘peeping through the window’. Their behavior is domineering and demeaning. In their self-righteousness, they threaten violence. There is no sign of the woman’s partner who is surely just as much part of the story. Jesus neatly turns the tables. He starts by sitting on the ground, occupying a position lower than that of the woman. He is the only one not taking an eyeful of her.

Caritas Australia, whom we support through Project Compassion, has long acted in constructive ways to uphold the dignity of women and honour their strength, resilience and leadership. A good example is Shaniella , a young woman from a remote village in the Solomon Islands. She is the feature of this week’s story and embodies the theme of this year’s Project Compassion: For all future generations. As Shaniella overcomes obstacles in order to create a safer and healthier environment for herself and her community, she is the kind of person who should surely grab our attention.

Today’s second reading reminds us that none of us is perfect. But like St Paul, we are still running, still trying to achieve ‘the perfection that comes through faith in Christ.’ This does not mean judging others as the scribes and Pharisees did. It means challenging ourselves, in the words of the prophet Isaiah, to put water in the wilderness as we consider what we might do ‘for all future generations.’

Reflection from Caritas Australia:  https://www.caritas.org.au/resources/project-compassion/weekly-reflections-for-teachers/?audience=Teacher&page=1