Faith & Mission
A LOVE SO POWERFUL
The Prodigal Son would have to be up there as one of the top three best known parables. When our Teams of Our Lady group met the other night, I have to confess that I was a little underwhelmed when this famous parable was presented as a topic for discussion. How could any new understanding be found in the contemplation of such a well known story?
Then the leader of the discussion threw up a Warnie wrong’un. Did we think that the father in the story was in some way to blame for causing his son to prematurely take his inheritance and leave the management of the family farm to his brother and aging father?
My immediate reaction was to reject the question. Surely, the father in the story represents God and how could God make mistakes. This could be not how Jesus would have wanted us to interpret the parable. Like a good wrong’un, the question lured me into one line of thinking only to turn sharply in another direction.
Later that night, as I pondered the discussion from the meeting, it came to me that equating the father in the story with God had a lot to do with the lingering image of God as an ‘old man in the sky’. Michelangelo’s famous image of God in the Sistine Chapel still expresses powerful theological ideas. But, it was never intended to be understood as a portrait of God.
What, I thought, if the image of God that Jesus wished to portray through the story of the prodigal son was Love. A love so powerful, that it held that family together. A love that transcended the impetuous arrogance and thrill-seeking of the younger son who was drawn to the bright city lights. A love that forgave the father his failings and missteps, when in earlier days he had sought to balance the demands of building his family business with the everyday needs of his young family. A love that understood the resentment of the son who had stayed to work for the family with steadiness and loyalty.
The more I pondered the story, the more I identified aspects of the story with the stress points that have ebbed and flowed through my experience of family life. And I have long been aware that at the core of what holds families together is love.
In his epistle, St John put it this way:
God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.
PS: Teams of Our Lady is a Catholic movement that was formed to support married couples. The name refers to the parish in France in which the first teams were established. My wife and I have found great support from the teams movement as we have moved from young parents to doting grandparents. If you would like to know more, please contact me at school.
Morning Masses
We have been blessed with two wonderful morning masses prepared by Year 7 Blue and Year 7 Silver.
Year 12 class Mass will be held in Term 2 on Tuesday 3 May at 8.05am. Parents are very welcome to attend.
Year 11 & 12 Reflection Days
Date: Term 1, Thursday April 7
Our VCE retreat days will be held on the last student day of Term 1, Thursday April 7.
The Year 11 students will travel to the Holy Cross Centre in Templestowe. The Year 12 students will travel Amberley in Lower Plenty.
Read More on SENIOR SCHOOL page
Easter Greetings
As we come to the end of Term 1, I extend best wishes to all of our Academy families for a restful and will deserved Easter holiday break. The religious journey of the Easter season ritually takes us into a cycle of courage, betrayal, death and resurrection. In these difficult days, it is a reminder of the triumph of hope. May the blessings of Easter be with you all.
Mr Mark Hyland
Director of Faith and Mission