From the Principal

Yesterday we celebrated a very special event in the life of the College, the Opening Mass. We have just three times each year when the whole College comes together as a faith community – the beginning of the year, the end of the year and on John XXIII Day – so these occasions are very special. 

To say ‘the whole College’ is not quite correct because the group consisted of Class 2034, the Year 1 students, through to Class 2023, the Year 12 students. Pre-Kindy, Kindy and Pre-Primary students were not present. Nevertheless, we had a wonderful opportunity to welcome 165 new students (Years 1 – 11) and staff to the College. The size of our College can be quite breathtaking when you see it for the first time, particularly when we have students who have come from schools that have fewer people than our newcomers.

The photo below might seem like a strange one to have at the front of the Newsletter, but I believe it provides insight into the size of our student cohort, the theme of yesterday’s Mass, the care that is taken to transform the St Louis Sports Centre into a place of prayer and the use of screens to enhance the engagement of all present.

The readings proclaimed were from last Sunday’s Mass: you are salt of the earth and you are light for the world. In his homily, Fr Mark called students to be like salt and to enhance the flavour of the lives of the people we meet and to be people for others. In being light for the world, we are called to radiate goodness and shine a focus on areas of injustice in society. The reading beautifully reflected our mission to be people for others and our College Motto, Seek Justice.

The Mass started with the College Song where we sang we are ‘a place of opportunity’. That was certainly evident in the work done by our Audio Visual Crew, consisting of students from Year 9 to Year 12. Their efforts with sound and lighting, operating stationary and moving cameras, and moving from live footage to PowerPoint on our three large screens were amazing. The mentorship the students receive under the College Audio Visual Manager, Mr Jansen, is incredible. 

Yesterday's Mass also provided the opportunity to bless our Years 8 to 11 Homeroom Leaders and to commission our Student Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion. Thank you to Year 12 students Emmeline Bosnich, Nicholas Carrello, Ava Kwei, Niamh McCleary, Kaia Prosper and May Verleg for the leadership they have shown in this important role and in their commitment to the two days of training over the break. As always, thank you to our College Liturgist, Mrs Lumley, for the work she did preparing the students and for her ongoing commitment ensuring our liturgies truly reflect the Ignatian heritage of our College.

Together may we seek justice.

Kathleen Negus

Principal

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