Feast of the Ascension of the Lord
This Sunday, we celebrate the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord. This is the day Jesus left his disciples and went to be with his Father in Heaven. It is celebrated on the fortieth day after Easter Sunday. Jesus had told his disciples that he would ascend into Heaven so that he could send the Holy Spirit and they could go out and spread the Good News of God.
Feast of Mary Help of Christians
In 1844, Mary, the mother of Jesus, under the title Help of Christians, was designated Australia's chief patron. A "patron" in Church language is a saint whom the members of a particular group think of as having a special interest in them and their welfare, someone in heaven who is an example to us and joins their prayers with ours on Earth as we ask God for his blessing in general or for one blessing in particular.
During their recent (virtual) regular conference, Bishop Michael and the rest of Australia's bishops wrote to the Catholic people of the country expressing their loving concern for all of us in this difficult time. They also decided to formally re-entrust Australia's people to the care of Mary, Help of Christians on her feast day this year. Normally that falls on 24 May but, as that is a Sunday in 2020, the feast has been transferred to Monday 25 May.
The bishops' "Word of Encouragement" letter and the Entrustment Prayer can be found here.
We encourage students and staff to pray it at home with their families.
May is the month of Mary
The month of May is the month that Catholics have dedicated to Our Blessed Lady, Jesus’ mother, Mary. During this month Christians pray to Mary asking for guidance, love and support. One prayer that is prayed during May is The Rosary. When praying The Rosary, Catholics use special Rosary Beads to help them say their prayers. The Rosary is based upon events that occurred in the lives of Jesus and Mary; both happy and sad. Prayers that are part of the Rosary include the Our Father, The Hail Mary, The Glory Be, The Apostles Creed, Hail Holy Queen and The Fatima Prayer.
Caritas - Project Compassion Boxes
Last term, during Lent, we invited families to contribute what they could to their Caritas Australia Project Compassion boxes. If you still have your box at home, could you please send it to school with your child or drop it off at one of the school offices so that the money can be banked as soon as possible.
We appreciate that this is a very challenging time for many families and are grateful for the generous support our St Edward’s community provides.
Thank you.