Religious Education News: Term 2, Week 6

This week marks an important anniversary in the history of the Church! On Saturday, we celebrate the 1700th anniversary of the introduction of the Nicene Creed! This impressive milestone is a testament to the depth of history that the Christian faith draws on for its teaching. This history and the teachings of so many wise and holy women and men help shape our Church and give it the richness of tradition that we share today.

To mark this important event, Archbishop Christopher has organised a walk through Telopia Park to St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church. This ecumenical event will celebrate the long shared history of the Christian community and help promote Christian unity!

If you can come along, please do join in at 10 am at St Christopher’s Cathedral for prayers, followed by the walk and refreshments! As the Archbishop says, “It’ll be a great day, it’ll be a walk in the park!”

This weekend also marks the Parish pilgrimage to Penrose Park in NSW. This is a chance for people to undertake a pilgrimage as part of the Jubilee year, and to see the Shrine of Our Lady of Mercy, including their reproduction of the famous Black Madonna (Our Lady of Czestochowa). I was privileged to see this icon in Czestochowa in Poland, when I attended World Youth Day there in 2016. This icon is associated with a substantial number of miracles and has a long and interesting history, and I and the other pilgrims look forward to seeing its reproduction, brought here by the Pauline Fathers - the Order of Saint Paul the First Hermit.

It is wonderful that there is so much going on to celebrate the Jubilee Year and its theme of Pilgrims of Hope! If you are aware of events that are taking place that the school or our students, staff, and families might be interested in please do let me know so that I can share them with the community!

Important Dates:

Jubilee Pilgrimage                  - Saturday 7th June

Ecumenical Walk                    - Saturday 7th June (10 am, St Christopher’s Cathedral)

First Eucharist Retreat Day    - Week 8 (Friday 20th June)

First Eucharist                         - Saturday 21st June (5:00 pm)

                                              - Sunday 22nd June (time changed to 10:30 am)

Year 4 Mass                            - Week 9 (Friday 27th June)

In honour of the anniversary of the Nicene Creed, which is professed by nearly all denominations of Christianity, I have included below a prayer for Christian Unity taken from the Prayer Book for Adults - St Paul’s Press

Prayer for Christian Unity

Almighty and eternal God,

You gather together what has been scattered,

And keep in unity what has been gathered:

In your mercy,

Watch over the flock of your Son

And grant that all who have been consecrated to you

In the one sacrament of Baptism

May be brought together

In unity, faith and companionship.

Through Christ our Lord

Have a wonderful week, and please remember that this Sunday is Pentecost Sunday, the birthday of the Church!

Kind regards,

Christopher Evans

Religious Education Coordinator (Acting)