FROM THE RELIGIOUS EDUCATION COORDINATOR'S DESK
On January 1 this year, our Lumen Christi Pastoral Region became one Parish - Lumen Christi Parish. Below is the prayer that has been written for our parish.
Merciful God,
you have called us out of darkness into the Light of Christ.
We gather as the parish community of Lumen Christi.
In Baptism, we were consecrated as your children.
In Confirmation, the Spirit of truth strengthened us to bear witness to your Word.
We are nourished at the table of the Eucharist.
May our gifts always contribute to building up the Body of Christ.
Help us to reveal Christ’s love to the world through all we say and do.
Amen.
We are called to be ambassadors of God’s love, peace and mercy.
The world needs our prayers with unrest in the Ukraine. And so we pray… Pope Francis’ Prayer for Peace
Lord God of peace, hear our prayer!
We have tried so many times and over so many years to resolve our conflicts by our own powers and by the force of our arms. How many moments of hostility and darkness have we experienced; how much blood has been shed; how many lives have been shattered; how many hopes have been buried ... but our efforts have been in vain.
Now, Lord, come to our aid! Grant us peace, teach us peace; guide our steps in the way of peace. Open our eyes and our hearts, and give us the courage to say: "Never again war!"; "With war everything is lost". Instill in our hearts the courage to take concrete steps to achieve peace.
Lord, God of Abraham, God of the Prophets, God of Love, you created us and you call us to live as brothers and sisters. Give us the strength daily to be instruments of peace; enable us to see everyone who crosses our path as our brother or sister. Make us sensitive to the plea of our citizens who entreat us to turn our weapons of war into implements of peace, our trepidation into confident trust, and our quarrelling into forgiveness.
Keep alive within us the flame of hope, so that with patience and perseverance we may opt for dialogue and reconciliation. In this way may peace triumph at last, and may the words "division", "hatred" and "war" be banished from the heart of every man and woman. Lord, defuse the violence of our tongues and our hands. Renew our hearts and minds, so that the word which always brings us together will be "brother", and our way of life will always be that of: Shalom, Peace, Salaam!
Amen.
And for our flood victims we pray …
Compassionate God, source of all comfort,
We pray for the people whose lives have been devastated by rain and flood.
Bring them comfort, we pray.
Protect the vulnerable.
Strengthen the weak.
Keep at bay the spread of disease.
Have mercy on all those working to rescue the stranded and to feed the hungry.
And may our response to their suffering be generous and bring you praise.
For we ask it in Jesus' name,
Amen.
SACRAMENTAL PROGRAM - FIRST HOLY COMMUNION
Just a reminder that the Eucharist Group from 2021 will begin sessions next week and are to be attended by the child and an adult. 
Session 2: 16 & 17 March, St John Vianney, 6:30 pm
Session 3: 23 & 24 March, St John Vianney, 6:30 pm
Session 4: 30 & 31 March, St John Vianney, 6:30 pm
The First Communion Masses will be held on Saturday, April 2nd and Saturday, April 9th. A Google doc was set up for parents and carers to choose the Mass time. If you have not done so already, please contact Cathy Zamroz on the email below.
Beginning in Term 2, we will be inviting parents and carers to attend their child/children’s designated grade Parish Mass and then stay for a ‘cuppa and a chat’.
We are hoping that this will assist you to become reacquainted with the Mass and our community. Please put the date/s in your diary!
| PARISH MASS - Thursday 9:30 AM | CLASS ATTENDING |
| Thursday 28 April 2022 | Year 1 |
| Thursday 5 May 2022 | Year 6 |
| Thursday 12 May 2022 | Year 2 |
| Thursday 19 May 2022 | Whole School Mass |
| Thursday 26 May 2022 | Kindergarten |
| Thursday 2 June 2022 | Year 4 |
| Thursday 9 June 2022 | Year 5 |
| Thursday 16 June 2022 | Year 3 |
GOOD NEWS STORY
The Year 6 students welcomed their new buddies, Kindergarten, with a hand made St Brigid’s Cross.
REFLECTIONS
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First Sunday of Lent 6 March 2022  |
Lent is a time when we are reminded that there is nothing we can do to win our salvation. It is a pure gift from God. Like Jesus in the wilderness, we are to allow God's plan to unfold in and through us. Lent is a time for us to enter actively into the mysteries of the death and resurrection of Jesus, and there to marvel at what God has done for us. The temptations of Jesus are the same temptations that we face when we are inclined to think that somehow we are in control. While the goals of the temptations may be admirable – feed the hungry, bring the world under the control of good, trust in God's power to protect us – we often choose to accomplish them in ways that are less than admirable. We try to perform the extraordinary so that what we do reflects favourably on us. We use brute force in order to achieve control. We put God to the test rather than live peacefully with God's plan as it unfolds within and around us. We seek to become the super-hero, the super-minister, the super-Christian on our own. In his responses to the tempter, we see Jesus constantly deferring to the power of God: It is not by bread alone . . . worship only God . . . do not put God to the test. In a real sense, these temptations are a reminder that the fundamental temptation is to deny our human limitations and refuse to let God be God for us. © Dianne Bergant CSA |
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Second Sunday of Lent 13 March 2022 
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The Second Sunday of Lent celebrates the epiphanies of God, the ways in which God's divine presence is revealed. The first divine epiphany is the manifestation of God as one who initiates a covenant, an intimate relationship with human beings. Not only does God initiate this agreement, but God also seals it with blood, making it official. Although we ritualise our relationship with God in a religious setting, the call to enter into the covenant can come in the ordinary events of life. The important thing to remember about this covenant is that God enters into our lives and initiates the relationship. No life is too simple; no life is too busy. Human history in all of its contours is the setting for the encounter with God. The glory of God is revealed in the transfigured Jesus, the one who discussed his suffering and death with Moses and Elijah. Lent is a time for us to enter into this suffering, not merely though reflection, prayer and penance, but concretely, by sharing in the suffering of the body of Christ. We see this suffering all around us. God is revealed through women and men who live lives of Christian commitment. In those whose integrity strengthens us, in those whose religious sentiments inspire us, in those whose endurance gives us confidence. God is revealed in those who get involved in bettering the lives of others. God is revealed in very ordinary ways, if we but open our eyes to see. © Dianne Bergant CSA |
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Third Sunday of Lent 20 March 2022 
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One major theme emerges from today's readings: incomprehensibility of God. We see it in the mysterious divine name, which distinguishes the God of Israel from all others and yet leaves us in the dark as to its meaning. We see it as God communicates with us through inanimate objects and the people in our lives. Finally, we see that God both pardons iniquities and decides to root out unfruitful branches, and we are confused by such inconsistency. In the midst of this ambiguity we have one sure source of stability – Christ. It is Christ who reveals the nature and meaning of the divine name; it is Christ who intercedes for us before God. Christ, the one who set his face toward Jerusalem, there to suffer and die, is the great messenger through whom God is revealed. He is the one who reveals majesty through the simplicity of a bush; he is the one who judges with the patience of a gardener. However, the limits of the experience and mercy of God in our lives are defined by our own openness. Despite the blessings that we receive in the wildernesses of our lives, it could happen that God is not pleased with us. We must not take God's goodness for granted. These readings close on a note of caution. Take care! We might be able to rest secure in the knowledge of the love and mercy of God, but these readings tell us that we should not dare to rest passively or complacently. © Dianne Bergant CSA |