World Youth Day

Report

Miss Fonte, Miss Thompson and myself have returned from World Youth Day in Poland.

Here is a snippet of Miss Fonte and Miss Thomson’s reflection:

We used the Examen during our time on the WYD pilgrimage. The Examen is a technique of prayerful reflection on the events of the day in order to detect God’s presence and discern his direction for us.  

Our Gratefuls...

• Sharing this experience with colleagues.
• The churches in Europe; felt homely.
• A proud expression of Faith in Poland.
• The energy and vibrance in the celebration of Mass where everyone is engaged- our challenge at Mater Dei is to immerse ourselves in Mass to sing to respond and understand why we sing and respond in Mass.
• Opportunity to sing across Europe in Mass and develop an understanding of our Faith journey.
• Music was exceptional.
• The pilgrimage experience, the kindness of strangers who provided abundant hospitality and became our ‘Polish families’.
• Grateful for the experience of young passionate Catholics who truly recognise God’s mercy and love.
• Grateful for the insights other pilgrims shared with us.

Our Challenges...

• The people around us; To see the different ways people express their Faith.
• Being exhausted/tired.
• Learnt to speak about what was challenging as a way of moving forward.

Our God Moments...

• Seeing God in our host families.
• Seeing God in Pope Francis, his words were simple and clear. He told us to get out and change the world, to trust in God and be active in our Faith.
• God moments were plentiful on the WYD pilgrimage. Some were simple such as a butterfly flying through a morning mass in Rome others were more direct for example Bishop Dolan of New York City reminding us of the nowness of God’s call.
• Another significant God moment was Pope Francis speaking about Jesus and how ‘mercy has a young face’.

Miss Bianca Fonte & Miss Thomson

"Blessed are the merciful,

for they shall obtain mercy" Mt 5:7.

Miss Rebecca Michel

Assistant to the Principal - Mission