DEPUTY PRINCIPAL Lize Privitera
The month of the Holy Rosary is October and this entire month is dedicated to the Rosary. On October 7, the Roman Catholic Church celebrates the yearly feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. The feast of Our Lady of the Rosary was instituted to honour Mary for the Christian victory over the Turks at Lepanto on October 7, 1571. Pope St. Pius V and all Christians had prayed the Rosary for victory. The Rosary helps us to pray to Jesus through Mary. When we pray the Rosary, we think about the special events, or mysteries, in the lives of Jesus and Mary.
Archbishop Timothy Costelloe SDB celebrated Mass at St Mary's Cathedral in Perth last Sunday to begin the first Assembly of the Fifth Plenary Council. While originally hoped to meet in person, the pandemic has meant the first assembly will be a mix of in person and online delivery across the country. There will be three main groups of people attending the Council’s assemblies: Members; Advisers; and Observers.
Members of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia are those who have been called to participate in the assemblies. Some of the members are people who “must” be called to a plenary council, as outlined in Church law; others are people who “may” be called, who were chosen through a range of processes across the country. The members have, at times, been referred to as “delegates” to the Council. The language of “member” better reflects the canonical status of those called to a Council, as well as the sense that all members are there to represent the People of God in Australia, not just their local Church community. Members are the only people who can vote at the Council assemblies. It is expected there will be 278 members at the assemblies.
Advisers to the Council are people with particular expertise across a range of matters, such as theology, Scripture, governance, formation, ecclesiology (study of the Church), who can be called upon by members, individually or collectively, to provide advice on particular matters to assist with their discernment and decision-making. Advisers are sometimes called “experts” or “periti”, a latin term used to describe the experts at the Second Vatican Council and other major Church events.
Observers are people who, as the name suggests, observe the proceedings of the Council assemblies because of their particular relationship with the Catholic Church in Australia. Following the tradition of other Church gatherings, the observers are likely to include Catholic leaders from other parts of the world, especially New Zealand, the Pacific and Asia; leaders of other Christian denominations; and leaders of other faith traditions.
Bishop Greg Bennet, Fr Peter Slater, Fr Denis O’Bryan, Katherine Jelavic and myself are representing our Diocese as members and Sr Mary Olofu SON from St Agatha’s Parish Cranbourne, is representing the Order of the Sisters of the Nativity.
With the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia being an event for the whole Church, parts of the first general assembly will be livestreamed each day. The home page of the Plenary Council website is the place to go to find the livestream each day. https://plenarycouncil.catholic.org.au/
Daily News and Social Media are broadcast via the Sale of Diocese website and the Plenary Council website, Facebook page and twitter accounts. You can read my report on the first two days of the Assembly. Scroll down on the home page at https://www.cdsale.org.au/
Please continue to pray for us and all those participating in the Plenary Council.
Twenty-Eighth
Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle B
Sunday, October 10, 2021
In next Sunday’s Gospel, we’ll hear what Jesus calls us to do with those things God has given us. Jesus calls us to follow him. He does not expect us to give up everything we have, but he does want us to make a change. He wants us to use what we have to serve God’s kingdom, not to keep what we have to ourselves by not sharing. What are some ways we can use what we have to serve God’s kingdom?
Parent Education
Girls can be a mystery to some parents, particularly when they reach the tween and teen years.
There are several factors that we need to consider when we are raising and educating girls. It is part nature and part nurture. From biological differences, such as brain development and hormones to societal differences such as gender stereotypes and expectations, raising girls presents different challenges, and equally as many rewards.
View the attached article below:
Child Safety and Wellbeing
At Mary MacKillop Primary School, we believe that ensuring the safety of the students in our care is an integral part of who we are as a Catholic faith community. We adhere to Victorian Child Safe Standards and Ministerial Order No. 870. We embed a culture of child safety and the matter is taken very seriously.
“Children are the future of the human family: all of us are expected to promote their growth, health and tranquillity,” Pope Francis 2021
Resources to support parents and carers
Spending time online can help young people learn, connect socially and relax. However, the use of digital technologies may also present challenges to our student’s wellbeing.
The eSafety Commissioner website offers many valuable resources for educators, parents, grandparents and carers. Click on the tab eSafetyparents where you will find advice for parents and carers to help children have safe experiences online.
A new webinar for Term 4 is available. Register now for eSafety's parent guide to digital technologies and mental health The webinar will explore:
- dealing with harmful online content such as suicide, self-harm and eating disorders
- using games, apps and social media to support mental wellbeing
- the pros and cons of online mental health platform
- helping young people support their friends online.
You can find more parent and carer resources at esafety.gov.au including booklets, info sheets, videos activities, COVID-19 advice and Family tech agreements.
Mary MacKillop Primary School is one of the three Parish Primary Schools belonging to the Parish of Our Lady Help of Christians, Narre Warren within the Diocese of Sale. Fr Brendan Hogan is our Parish Priest and Fr Isuru Weliwatte is our Assistant Priest. We are grateful for their ongoing prayers, involvement and support of the students, families and staff of Mary MacKillop School.
Parish Bulletin: Click on the link below to download the weekly newsletter.
Parish-Bulletin https://olhc.org.au/parish-bulletin/