Star of the Sea College, Brighton
School News
On 22 March 2018, Star of the Sea College celebrated the 135th anniversary of its foundation as a community of sisters, as a mission and as a school.
Excerpt from Adventures in Faith: “the foundation of Star of the Sea convent when the sisters moved into Turrett Lodge in Holy Week, 1883. On 22 March (Holy Thursday), Fr Carey brought the Blessed Sacrament across to the new convent. School began on the Wednesday after Easter in converted stables with 28 students”.
Marking Foundation Day is a long-held tradition at Star of the Sea when we thank God for the courage of the Presentation sisters to leave their home in Ireland and travel to Australia in the knowledge that they were unlikely to ever see their homeland again. We celebrate Foundation Day to remember our Foundress Nano Nagle, our heritage, people past and present, and to give thanks for the myriad opportunities on offer.
Tercentenary Year & 135th Anniversary Mass
You are light of the world… let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven… (Mt 5:14, 16)
A key feature of the Mass was the interactive homily themed Take Down Your Lantern and Go Out which reflected the Gospel message.
Our celebrant, Fr Elio Capra sdb, engaged Sr Maria Lazzaro, Congregational Leader - Presentation Sisters Victoria, Principal Mary O’Connor, and a student from Years 7 and 12 to be the bearers and handlers of the light of Christ symbolised in “Nano Icon”, an enduring symbol at Star of the Sea. Following this enactment of the gospel-based Presentation story, students shared thoughts on each of the images contained in the central panel of the “Nano Icon” as digital images beamed on the screen coming together in sequence, to create the whole.
As we reflect on the tercentenary of our founder and the mission of the Presentation Sisters in Victoria - in particular at Star of the Sea - we read Sr Raphael Consedine’s poem, dedicated to Nano, with fresh eyes of gratitude…
Take down your lantern from its niche and go out!
You may not dwell in firelight certainties,
Secure from drifting fog of doubt and fear.
You may not build yourself confining walls
And say: ‘Thus far, and thus, and thus far shall I walk,
And these things shall I do, and nothing more.’
Go out! For need calls loudly in the winding lanes
And you must seek Christ there.
Your pilgrim heart shall urge you still one pace beyond,
And love shall be your lantern-flame.
Nano’s Walk
On Foundation Day 2018, the whole school community participated in the inaugural “Nano's Walk” to raise much-needed funds for the Presentation Sisters’ work in Papua New Guinea and the Presentation Family Centre, Balnarring.
The change to the format of Foundation Day, from a celebration for the students to one of looking beyond themselves and doing something for others at a local and global level, sits very comfortably with two of Star’s Seven Guiding Principles: Celebrating the Presentation Mission and Striving for Justice.
This was a significant time to launch Nano's Walk as it coincides with 300 years since Nano Nagle's birth in 1718. We celebrate the extraordinary influence that one amazing woman has had on education, and assisting the poor and marginalised around the world.
Students collected donations, with the aim of raising $20,000 that will make a significant difference to these communities.