Catholic Identity
Mercy Prayer
We pray for the Sisters of Mercy, who established our school and for the priests who have served at St. Mary’s.
It is through their vision, determination and strong faith that we enjoy the benefits of a Catholic Education here in Mooroopna.
We are proud to be a Mercy School, where the values of love and justice are taught and lived every day.
Term 1 Week 2 - Catholic Identity Newsletter
Beginning of Year Mass
We will celebrate the beginning of our new school year with a Mass on
Friday, 17th February at 9:45am in the Marian Centre. Students will lead
the readings, prayers and singing at this celebration.
All families and friends are most welcome to join us for this celebration of the Eucharist.
The Grade Six students will be presented with their Leadership badges as part of this celebration.
Ash Wednesday and the beginning of the Church season of Lent.
Ash Wednesday signifies the beginning of the Church season of Lent - a forty day period where we are asked to reflect on our lives and make changes to become the best people we can possibly be.
Here at St. Mary’s Primary School, our motto invites us to “Let your light shine.”
Perhaps this Lent is a great time to reflect on what this means for each of us in our lives.
During Lent, we are asked to focus on THREE main actions:
PRAYER - making prayer a part of our daily lives.
FASTING - giving up something that may be stopping us from letting our light shine.
ALMSGIVING - taking up something that will help us to live life to the fullest and be our best selves.
The students will be focussing on the season of Lent and Easter during the coming weeks of term. The topics being covered at each level are:
Prep/ Grade 1/2 : Lent and Easter.
Grade 3/4 : Lent and Easter.
Grade 5/6 : How can Lent transform our lives?
We will celebrate our Ash Wednesday Mass and the beginning of the Lenten season on Wednesday, 22nd February at 9:45am in the Marian Centre. All families and friends are most welcome to join us for this celebration of the Eucharist.
Project Compassion.
For over 55 years, the Catholic aid agency, Caritas, has assisted the world’s most vulnerable people.
Caritas work with communities to help them achieve their development goals and build a better future for all community members. The saying, “Give a person a fish and they eat for a day - Teach a person to fish and they eat for a lifetime” sums up the philosophy of Caritas.
Each year, Catholic schools in the Sandhurst Diocese support the work of Caritas through Project Compassion.
Over the coming week, the Project Compassion boxes and an information leaflet will be sent home with the eldest child in each family. It is hoped that loose change and financial contributions will be placed in the boxes before they are returned to school by the end of Term One.
Sacraments of Baptism, Reconciliation, First Eucharist and Confirmation.
Thank you to the parents and families that were able to attend our first Sacramental Information meeting on Tuesday night. Colleen Hampson, from the Catholic Identity Team at the Catholic Education Sandhurst Ltd Office, led a friendly and informative session on the sacraments. Colleen will continue to work with our school and parish community as we journey throughout the year on this sacramental journey.
We have had a number of inquiries regarding the baptism of children at St. Mary’s.
Contact details are listed below if you would like to inquire as to the baptism of your child:
Laura Lawn - Parish Secretary
St. Mary’s Parish, Mooroopna
Ph 03 5825 2034
Office Hours
9.00am – 3.00pm Tuesday and Friday.
Enrolment forms for the Sacraments of Reconciliation (Term Two), the Sacrament of First Eucharist (Term Three) and the Sacrament of Confirmation (Term Four) are available at the school office or please contact Michelle Hicks at mhicks@smmooroopna.catholic.edu.au
Enrolments for ALL sacraments close at the end of Term One.
Altar Servers
A number of our Grade 5 and 6 students have expressed interest in training to be altar
servers to assist at school and weekend masses.
If your child has received the Sacraments of Baptism, Reconciliation and First Eucharist and is interested in joining this group, and willing to train on some Friday mornings from 9:00am - 9:30am with Mrs. Hicks and Graeme Quinlan at the Church.
Please contact Michelle Hicks at mhicks@smmooroopna.catholic.edu.au for an enrolment form for this special ministry.
Important dates.
Beginning of Year Mass - Friday, 17th February at 9:45am in the Marian Centre.
Ash Wednesday Mass - Wednesday, 22nd February at 9:45am in the Marian Centre.
Enrolment forms for ALL sacraments for 2023 - Close at the end of Term One.
Thanking you,
Michelle Hicks