REC News
Dates to mark on your calendar:
21/09- Liturgy led by Years 1 and 2 (12:30pm).
28/09- End of term Liturgy led by Staff and Leaders (12:30pm).
Plenary Council
The last time the Catholic Church in Australia held a Plenary Council was in 1937. It has been more than 80 years since we gathered all of the Church together and much has changed. In 2020, we will have a Plenary Council about the future of the Catholic Church in Australia. What are we called to do? Who are we called to be? How do we need to change?
Pope Francis has spoken of the need to engage in the world and respond in faith. He said:
“The defining aspect of this change of epoch is that things are no longer in their place. Our previous ways of explaining the world and relationships, good and bad, no longer appear to work. The way in which we locate ourselves in history has changed. Things we thought would never happen, or that we never thought we would see, we are experiencing now, and we dare not even imagine the future. That which appeared normal to us – family, the Church, society and the world – will probably no longer seem that way. We cannot simply wait for what we are experiencing to pass, under the illusion that things will return to being how they were before.”
Over the past week, Mr Powell has been working alongside a number of Sydney Catholic School Principals and Religious Education Leaders to prepare a submission to the Plenary Council. Guided by the Holy Spirit, this was a time to listen, dialogue and discern with others about the future, the role and relevance of the Catholic Church in Australia.
I would invite our Gundagai Catholic community to participate in conversations with friends and family, large groups and small, to consider the Plenary Council’s central questions:
“What do you think God is asking of us in Australia at this time?”
“What questions do you have about the future of the Church for the Plenary Council to consider in 2020?”
Please visit the Plenary Council website for more info - https://plenarycouncil.catholic.org.au
Thoughts/ Questions / Reflection for the week: Visio Divina
Use this image ‘The Sun’ to encounter the divine.
- Study the picture slowly, taking a first glance noting the colours, people, places and things. Remain with the image for one to two minutes. If you would like, jot down a few words about the image.
- Take a second, deeper, look. Where is there movement? What relationships do you see? Engage your imagination. Where are you in the artwork? What do you see from that perspective? What deeper meaning emerges?
- Respond to the image with prayer. Did the image remind you of an experience, person or issue for which you’d like to offer thanksgiving? In what way does God’s promise change, or not change how you visualize your relationship with the earth, each other, and God? Offer your thoughts as prayer to God.
- Find your quiet centre. Breathe deeply. Relax your shoulders, arms and legs. Rest in this quiet. Let God pray in you. God prays beyond words.
God Bless, Mrs Flanagan REC