Assistant Principal - Mission
This week, we welcome Kieran Reilly to our staff. He is replacing Linda Pogson, who will be on leave in 2025. Kieran is a proud Dunghutti man who will be working with a range of students, particularly our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.
In previous newsletters, I have been writing about the Year of Jubilee - Hope, called by Pope Francis. We have looked at why and the meaning of the Jubilee year. This week the focus will be on the motto used. In choosing the motto ‘Pilgrims of Hope’ for the Jubilee, Pope Francis noted that "We must fan the flame of hope that has been given to us and help everyone to gain new strength and certainty by looking to the future with an open spirit, a trusting heart and far-sighted vision. The forthcoming Jubilee can contribute greatly to restoring a climate of hope and trust as a prelude to the renewal and rebirth we greatly desire". This is a great time, particularly during Lent, to take time and look at ways we can help and support each other.
We need to find ways to be a little kinder to each other. One way is the way we communicate with each other. In the encyclical (Pastoral Letter from the Pope to his people) Fratelli Tutti, Pope Francis writes that kindness is an “attitude that is gentle, pleasant and supportive, not rude or coarse.” This might seem a bit shallow in the grand scheme of things. Of course, we should be kind! What is remarkable is how many people aren’t kind when they are on social media. We are probably all guilty of this, and we can see that the small decisions we make to interact without kindness can have a significant impact. Shifting to a kinder way of communicating would dramatically improve everyone’s experience on social media if more people practised kindness in their tweets, posts, and comments. (Some content sourced from Daniel Amiri)
Millennials on the way to Sainthood
Sister Clare Crockett was a young woman who left a promising career in movies and television to dedicate herself to God as a religious in the Servant Sisters of the Home of the Mother.
Clare was born in Derry, Northern Ireland, in 1982, and although she seemed to be heading toward a life in the arts, an encounter with Christ during a retreat changed her destiny. She felt God’s call, entering the congregation in 2001, and took her perpetual vows in 2010. A joyful spirit marked her life, a total dedication to others, and a testimony of faith that impacted many. She died on 16 April 2016, during an earthquake in Ecuador while helping her students at a community school in Playa Prieta.
Sister Clare Crockett. Credit: Photo courtesy of Servants of the Home of the Mother
Following the 2023 granting of the “nihil obstat” by the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, the diocesan phase of the cause for her beatification was officially opened on 12 January 2025, in Alcalá de Henares, Spain. Since her passing, numerous testimonies have reported graces and conversions attributed to her intercession, including religious vocations and possible miracles. The ecclesiastical tribunal is now investigating her life and heroic virtues, a key step on the path to her possible beatification. (Source: Catholic Telegraph)
Mrs Lesa Morrison - Assistant Principal - Mission