From the Head of College

A Special Spirituality of Faith

The Marist spirituality is unique and special. It is the basis on which Marist College Ashgrove centres its faith in a God of love, mercy, and forgiveness – our Good News. 

I was recently asked what is the difference between the French spirituality (Marist) and the typical Australian spirituality which has been very much influenced by a combination of religious orders and priests from around the world. I responded firstly with the French’s strong devotion to Mary. Our college was originally called St Mary’s until 1971 and since then, ‘Marist’. Mary being the mother of God and Marist recognising a group of religious – Priests, Brothers and Sisters devoted to Mary. Mary or Marial devotion emphasises the feminine values and qualities of our spirituality namely: love, devotion, hearty tenderness, modesty and humility and compassion, combined with a strong work ethic and strength of character.

Secondly, I explained the significance of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Several religious orders founded in France between the 17th and 19th centuries share the ‘heart spirituality’. Br Michael Green fms explains – When the heart spirituality emerged in France in the 1500’s, it was a time marked by both a widespread spiritual renewal and by a decisive movement away from old and discredited religious emphasis. People rejected the distant, punitive and fear enforcing judging image of God. They were drawn rather to the God they saw revealed in Jesus: healing, forgiving, liberating, loving and close. God just didn’t have a heart; God was heart. This was the essence of God and should be the essence of Christian living. Champagnat wanted young people to be inspired to love Jesus and his Gospel rather than to be dutiful and passively obeying. This heart spirituality was real and attractive and people gravitated towards this.

St Marcellin Champagnat, the Catholic priest who started the order of the Marist Brothers and schools around the globe including Australia, like Marist Ashgrove had a spirituality emphasising the sacred heart of Jesus. Marcellin often signed off his letters with, “I leave you in the hearts of Jesus and Mary” and when Brothers left for ministries around the world, he would place their names inside a large heart in the chapel to pray for them. At the time, Ex-voto hearts were placed in a church or chapel where the worshiper sought grace or gave thanks and vowed to their saint of choice – in this case, Mary. The sacred heart of Jesus (Ex-voto hearts) symbolise the great love and compassion that our God has for each of us. 

When St Marcellin Champagnat travelled to Lyon, he prayed to the Madonna in the Basilica of Notre Dame. Together, with other Marist leaders from other religious orders, they devoted their work to Mary and the sacred heart of Jesus. Today, in this church where Champagnat and his fellow Marist leaders pledged their allegiance and vows to Mary, you will find hearts adorning the chapel wall and altar area as seen in the photo below. 

These hearts often had the symbol AM on them which was not ‘Ave Maria’ (a common misconception), but rather ‘Auspice Maria’ meaning under Mary’s protection or patronage. Interestingly, this was a similar motto to the one chosen by Marist College Ashgrove (1940) until 1957 “Posuerunt Me Custodem – They Have Appointed Me Guardian” (Mary). After the French Revolution, St Marcellin Champagnat sincerely believed that it was love (the sacred heart) that would conquer the fractured and discredited church – ‘Love people back into life.’ 

This typical French spirituality is Marist and makes us unique. Marial spirituality and faith in a loving and compassionate God, as symbolised through the sacred heart symbol, are quintessential to Marist spirituality. We, at Marist, celebrate and embrace this special French spirituality with all the boys in our care, and have faith in a loving, compassionate and tender God through his mother Mary. 

God of the journey, increase the faith of all our young men and all members of the Marist family. Amen. 

Boys’ Education

At Marist Ashgrove, we are specialists in the education of boys. We are excited to have as our special guest to the College on Monday 24 July, Dr Ian Lillico. Ian is an educational consultant, former school principal and founder of the Boys Forward Institute and has been researching gender in education and employment for more than a decade. Ian firmly believes we must find better ways to tap into boys’ needs, likes and aspirations. We aim to assist boys in acquiring the skills and attributes they necessitate to thrive in a changing world. Ian will present to the staff how to tap into boys' strengths and learning styles.

Ian’s five research-based recommendations for educating and raising boys (boysforward.com.au) include: Stand and move: Let boys be more active learners; Look then write: Use more visuals in learning - Think, look at a photo, write; Build respect: Use your relationship with boys to get them to work well; Encourage care: Parents should spend more quality time with sons - be there for them; Employ the senses: Above all, use evidence-based learning to enhance boys’ understanding - boys need to see, taste, feel, hear, touch and smell something before they acknowledge learning has occurred.

For more information on the wonderful research study and tips provided by Dr Ian Lillico, go to his website - boysforward.com.au. The staff are very much looking forward to this presentation by Dr Ian Lillico and the learnings therein to further assist in each boy’s education.

Drugs, Alcohol and Vaping Presentation for Parents

We are thrilled to be welcoming back to the College, Mr Paul Dillon from DARTA who will be conducting a seminar with all boys in Years 10, 11 and 12 regarding drugs, alcohol and vaping and keeping each other safe. These are wonderful presentations and very much enjoyed and appreciated by the boys each year.

A reminder that Paul will be presenting to parents on the topic of vaping. This will occur at 6:00pm in the Champagnat Centre. Paul is a most knowledgeable and engaging speaker and I can certainly recommend him to you. Paul is a regular on TV, Radio and as Guest to all the major sporting codes. I look forward to seeing you all on Thursday 20 July at 6:00pm for this important and informative seminar.

Our Inaugural ‘Giving Day’ is Coming!

On Thursday 10 August, Marist College Ashgrove will hold its inaugural Giving Day. The College has been built on the shoulders of so many generous workers and donors of the past and we call upon this generation of families to enable us to continue this generosity and important role of stewards for the future.

Great News!!! For every $1 raised, we have a most generous matching donor to the value of $4. That means that for every $1 raised, we will actually raise $4, $100 - $400, $1000 - $4000 and $10000- $40000. This is a perfect opportunity to give, knowing that your donation will have maximum impact due to the generous donor who is multiplying the amount you give.

This will be an exciting day for our College. Let us demonstrate our great love of this place and donate to enable our ambitious Master Plan to come to fruition – Primary building, refurbishment of the Carrick Building, new tuckshop and the new Assembly and Stem Centre.

Marist College Giving Day — For Crowdfunding and Fundraising Success (charidy.com)

NAIDOC Week Assembly

On Wednesday 19 July, Marist College Ashgrove will celebrate NAIDOC Week with a College Assembly. During this ceremony, we will recognise and celebrate all our Indigenous students and their elders past, present and emerging. The assembly will include a Welcome to Country, Maroochy Barambah as a guest speaker with Uncle Eric Law, a dance performance by our students and award presentations. I thank Mr Dallas William (Indigenous Co-ordinator) who has prepared this important NAIDOC Week assembly for the boys.

Student Monitoring

This week, 17th- 21st July, Marist will be undertaking student monitoring for all students. This entails students setting their Semester 2 goals and consulting with their pastoral group teacher to come up with strategies to achieve these goals. These meetings will occur during pastoral group time over Week 2 (Years 5-9) and Week 3 (Years 10-12). We thank Jessica Turschwell, Adam Knight and our pastoral group teachers who have organised and will be facilitating these important student monitoring opportunities. Best wishes to all the boys.

Year 11 Leadership Afternoon 

Today, all Year 11 students enjoyed a presentation by ‘Unleashing Personal Potential’ on the important topic of leadership, held in the Champagnat Centre. This Thursday afternoon, 20th July, in the Draney Theatre, all students are invited to attend the annual leadership afternoon. During this leadership afternoon, the boys will hear about the roles of formal leadership and how they can apply so as to make a positive contribution as senior leaders in the next calendar year. Thanks to Mr Peter Serone (Head of Students), Phill Holding (Pastoral Leader Senior School), and Josh Kersevani (Pastoral Leader – Middle School) for organising and facilitating these leadership education and reflection exercises.

Head of College Tour 

This Friday 21st July, Marist College Ashgrove will be undertaking the Term 3 Head of College Tours. The tours are a chance for those families interested in their son attending the College in the future to see our wonderful educational institution fully operating during a normal school day. The day will commence with a gathering at the College Tower, a presentation in the Draney Theatre, a tour of facilities and a morning tea together. If you have someone interested in a tour of the College, please direct them to our Directors of Enrolment, Jake Toulson (toulsonj@marash.qld.edu.au) (day students) and Meagan Loane (loanem@marash.qld.edu.au) (international/boarding students) or call 07 3858 4555 for more information. I thank our enrolments team of Meagan Loane, Jake Toulson, Carmen Mapri and Holly Stevenson for organising this day, along with our many helpers, preparers, students and teachers for their assistance. 

Hockey

The Marist College Open Hockey team commenced its involvement in the Brisbane Schoolboys Cup on Friday. Each Friday afternoon in Term 3 our team plays in this competition at either the State Hockey Centre and Burringbar Park. Marist Hockey competes against a range of AIC, GPS and State Schools. We have one Open team of boys from years 7 – 12. Nick Keir and Cooper Lunn are our captains. 

Last Friday, Marist College played Mt Maria College. Down 3-5 with just four minutes remaining the boys played brilliantly with a flurry of goals achieving a late win (final result 7 – 5). This included the boys scoring in the last 14 seconds, quickly celebrating and then setting up again to defend. A great example to all teams and a terrific result. Well done, boys. My thanks are extended to Ms Kathryn Badini who manages this Open Hockey team and Old Boy coaches Jordan Cabot and Tyler Newell.

Term 3 Sport Commences

The Term 3 sporting season commences this Saturday with Round One versus Villanova College. The three major AIC sports for Term 3 are Rugby League, Basketball and Tennis. Athletics training and meets will occur throughout Term 3 with the AIC Athletics Carnival being held on the Thursday and Friday of Week 1 Term 4 on October 5-6. I thank the conveners of all these sports:  Rugby League – Ryan Apps, Tennis – Andrew Ward, Basketball – John Lambourne and Athletics – Richard Graham. Good luck, gentlemen.

Book Week 2023 

Book Week will be held at Marist College Ashgrove from Monday 24 - Friday 28 July. The theme of Book Week is “Read, Grow, Inspire”. During Book Week the following activities will be held in the Primary Library: author visit with Tristan Bancks, Book Fair, costume parade and Bookchat. In the Senior Library: an escape room challenge, Top Reader Lunch, Kahoot quiz, staff morning tea and competitions throughout the week. I thank Mary Stirling and our fabulous Library staff who have organised and will be facilitating these activities during Book Week.

May our loving God with Mary our good mother and St Marcellin Champagnat walk with all members of the Marist College Ashgrove Family.

Upcoming Events

Tuesday 18 July

• MCA Celebrates NAIDOC Week - continues
• Years 5 to 9 Student Monitoring Week - continues
• Year 11 Leadership Day
• Study Hall – Senior Library
• Primary Morning Study – Primary Computer Lab
• Reconciliation – Chapel
• House Meetings Years 5-12
• Year Level Assemblies: Year 7, 9 and 11
• St Vincent de Paul Meeting – Mission Office
• Year 5 and 6 Carrousel Theatre Presentation – Aladin et La Lampe Magique (Draney Theatre)

Wednesday 19 July

• GreenAsh
• Mass in Chapel – All Welcome
• Primary Morning Study – Primary Computer Lab
• College Assembly
• Year 11 SOR Excursion to UQ
• Hockey Training against All Hallows' School
• QLD Olympics Unleashed Program - Olympian visit to Primary

Thursday 20 July

• Boarding Country Visit to Moree and Narrabri – starts
• GreenAsh
• SVdP Sausage Sizzle – Main Yard
• Study Hall – Senior Library
• Year 12 PE Excursion
• Pastoral Group Paper Recycling
• Environment Group Meeting
• Year 11 Leadership Afternoon
• Paul Dillon Student Presentations
• Paul Dillon Parent Presentation - 6:00pm - 7:30pm

Friday 21 July

• Head of College Tour
• Primary Visit to St Joseph’s Primary School Bardon
• Round 1 Primary Basketball
• Hockey – MCA vs St Patrick’s - State Hockey Centre

Saturday 22 July

• Round 1 - Rugby League v SLC
• Round 1 - Tennis/Basketball v Villa (H)

Sunday 23 July

• Boarders’ Mass (Chapel)

Monday 24 July

• Book Week - starts
• Year 10-12 Student Monitoring Week - starts
• Primary Morning Assembly
• Student Leader Portfolio Group Meetings
• Dr Ian Lillico Student Presentations
• Dr Ian Lillico Parent Presentation - 6:00pm - 8:00pm

Tuesday 25 July

• Reconciliation – Chapel
• House Meetings Years 5-12
• Year Level Assemblies: Year 8, 10, 12
• Year 10 Visual Art Excursion
• St Vincent de Paul Meeting – Mission Office
• College Assembly

Wednesday 26 July

• GreenAsh
• Mass in Chapel – All Welcome
• Primary Morning Study – Primary Computer Lab
• Photo Portrait Catch Up Photos
• Shake and Stir Year 12 Macbeth Performance
• Hockey MCA vs St Edmunds – State Hockey Centre
• Theatre Ash Performance – ‘Murder on the Menu’ – Draney Theatre

Thursday 27 July

• North West District Track and Field (MCA Hosting)
• Western 7’s Rugby Trip - starts
• GreenAsh
• SVdP Sausage Sizzle – Main Yard
• Study Hall – Senior Library
• Primary Morning Study – Primary Computer Lab
• Game Changers Meetings
• Queensland Catholic Colleges Music Festival (QCMF) Rehearsal

Friday 28 July

• Year 10 Immunisations
• North West District Track and Field (MCA Hosting)
• Construction Immersion
• Year 12 Rec Studies Mountain Biking Excursion
• Year 12 Rec Studies Rock Climbing Excursion
• Round 2 Primary Basketball
• MCA Hockey v Padua – Burringbar Park
• Year 9 Parent Function

Saturday 29 July

• Co-curricular Photos (Tennis, Basketball, Rugby League)
• Round 2 - Rugby League @ MCA
• Round 2 - Tennis/Basketball v Padua (H)

Sunday 30 July

• Jumpers and Jazz Festival (Warwick)
• Boarders’ Mass (Chapel)