Kilbreda College News

From the Principal

Today, our final day for students, we celebrated our end of year Mass and final College assembly.  Below is my address from our assembly.

 

“When we gathered for our Opening College Mass on Thursday February 4, we prayed for the Year of Wonder that was just beginning for us. In our final Eucharistic celebration today, we gathered to thank God for all the moments of wonder that we have experienced in this challenging school year, and to look forward to the coming of Jesus this Christmas, God’s ultimate act of wonder.

 

This week is the first week of Advent. The season of Advent is a time of hope, peace and one of love and joy. In our Catholic faith tradition, a wreath with four candles, three purple and one rose coloured, symbolizes the season of advent. 

 

Each Sunday throughout the four weeks of Advent, a candle is lit on the wreath to help us anticipate the weeks until Christmas Day. The candles symbolise the Light of Christ.

  • The first candle lit is one of the purple ones - it symbolizes hope and is called the "Prophet’s Candle." The prophets of the Old Testament, especially Isaiah, waited in hope for the Messiah’s arrival. 
  • The second candle represents faith and is called "Bethlehem’s Candle." The prophet Micah had foretold that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem.
  • The third candle symbolizes joy and is called the "Shepherd’s Candle." To the shepherd’s great joy, the angels announced that Jesus came for humble, unimportant people at the time like them, too. This candle is coloured pink to represent joyfulness and rejoicing.
  • The fourth candle represents peace and is called the "Angel’s Candle." The angels announced that Jesus came to bring peace to all people on Earth
  • The (optional) white fifth candle represents light and purity and is called "Christ’s candle." It is placed in the middle of the advent wreath and lit on Christmas Day as we celebrate the birth of Jesus, God’s ultimate act of wonder.

As we begin our journey of hope this Advent season, we remember God’s abundance and the gift of Jesus’ life to the world. The abundant life that God promises is not dependent on material goods, often a focus leading up to Christmas, but centers on loving relationships and justice.

 

This year, like 2020, has been a challenging one for all us. In our Mass this morning we prayed for peace in our world, in our country and in the hearts of all the members of the Kilbreda College community. 

 

Our community is grieving the recent loss of a dear teacher, mentor, colleague and friend, Mrs Liberatore and many members of our community, both students and staff, have lost other loved ones during 2021. 

 

When we experience this sense of loss and grief, it is because we have loved and been loved.  To love and to be loved is the greatest gift in life and what God wants for us all. And so, while we experience sadness, let’s be grateful for the gift of love those individuals brought into our life, our families and our community.  A gift that will remain with us in our hearts forever.

 

And so, as our school year draws to a close, let’s give thanks and celebrate all that is good with joy and gratitude. 

 

We give thanks for our families, and the teachers, support staff, colleagues and friends that support us. 

 

We give thanks for the privilege of education and employment, a privilege that so many around the world do not have. 

We give thanks for the opportunities over the year to extend and challenge ourselves, to learn, to celebrate, to deepen our spiritual journey and to connect with others.

 

We give thanks for those whom we have lost, for the love and joy they gifted to us.

 

I thank all of you, staff and students, for the wonderful contributions that you have made to our school community. I thank you for the strength and kindliness you have shown throughout the year and for those staff and students who are leaving our community, I thank you for sharing your gifts and talents with us and wish you every blessing for the future.

 

As we did together this morning, we pray for peace in our hearts, our families, our communities and our world.”

 

May the gift of love, peace and joy be with you and your family this Christmas.

 

Wait in joyful hope,

A saviour will come.

Jesus Christ

The light of the world.

Wait in joyful hope,

A saviour will come,

Welcome to the Word of God.

 

Michael Herry: Sing Spirit, Sing Life

We Pray For

We ask for your prayers for members of our community and their families who have recently lost loved ones:

 

Lucia Liberatore 

Staff

 

Andrew "Andy" Dillon

Father of Tim Dillon

(Staff) 

 

We pray that our loving God hold them gently in the palm of His hand.

 

Nicole Mangelsdorf

Principal