Catholic Identity & Mission News

Central to Our Mission

Over the past two weeks, the College has hosted House Welcome Evenings, and Grade 5 Discovery Evenings at both campuses. It has been a pleasure to meet with current and prospective students and their families, and especially to highlight the Catholic Identity of our College. There are often questions asked about ‘what if we’re not religious?’ and ‘do we have to study RE?’. It was interesting to hear one of our current students answer this question as she described not coming from a religious background, but finding that RE continued to be one of her favourite and best subjects. 

This student is now involved in Youth Ministry at Year 10 and described how her Year 7-9 studies had given her a foundation to understand beliefs and attitudes that made her realise that whilst she didn’t consider herself a ‘religious’ person, Catholic Social Teaching had inspired her to be a person of ‘action’, who wants to contribute positively in the world. This student’s experience reflects the value of the College’s concerted efforts to meet the needs of our students, while remaining steadfast to the Catholic tradition of our school. 

Coming to know and understand the life and teachings of Jesus Christ is central to the Mission of St. Peter’s College and through our RE programs and initiatives, there are a variety of opportunities for students to do this. There are RE classes including Youth Ministry, Art Ministry and Music Ministry, VCE RE studies and other initiative such as the Social Justice Groups and the Staff and Student Prayer Groups. While some of these are part of the curriculum, they all foster involvement that encourages dialogue – a two-way conversation of listening and learning about matters of faith. 

As we approach Easter, we are reminded about the importance of that dialogue. This Sunday is Palm Sunday, the day we remember Jesus’ triumphant arrival in Jerusalem where less than a week later, he was executed. The Gospels reveal that for our own patron saint, St Peter, this was a time of great confusion and angst. Peter’s response to Jesus’ arrest was initially one of violent defiance (Jn 18:10) but his attitude soon turned to fear and despair as he then, when asked three times, denied even knowing Jesus (Jn 18:15-18; 25-27). However, Peter is also one of the first to run to the empty tomb after Jesus’ resurrection and he then, with others, is charged with spreading the Gospel message.  

To do this, Peter spread the word through the oral tradition – telling stories about Jesus, preaching about what Jesus taught and sharing his own story of faith. He engaged in dialogue. His audience was diverse and he experienced successes, failures, challenges and setbacks along the way. But all the time, he remained true to the teachings of Jesus Christ and used his skills to refine the message and adapt it to the audience he was working with. It is my hope that our students today are learning about Jesus in the same vein – that we are meeting them ‘where they’re at’ and through dialogue, they are able to learn about our Lord, Jesus Christ and as a result, be ‘Easter people’ who live Jesus’ values in the world today.

Wishing you, and your families, a happy and holy Easter.  

Fiona McKenna

Deputy Principal - Catholic Identity & Mission