Dear Parents and Carers,

It has been a busy start to Term 2! Last Thursday, St Bede’s attended our first Parish Mass for the term. These will be held on the first Thursday of every month at 10am. During Mass, Father Josh is spending time unpacking and explaining different parts of the Mass or Catholic tradition to the students. Father Josh commended the students for their reverent and respectful behaviour in Church. This term, we will attend Mass on Thursday 6th June (Week 6) and 4th July (Week 10). Families are welcome to attend. We are grateful to Father Josh for taking the time to visit classes and build relationships with the students. They particularly love his magic tricks, chatting about their footy teams (he is not very keen on the Raiders) and having a kick with him on the oval at lunch.

On Monday, Year 5 and 6 participated in a ‘Journey with Jesus’ retreat at school. The day was led by Luke Maher from the Catholic Education Office and his team from CSYMI (Catholic Schools Youth Ministry International). The day was a high-impact student formation experience that delves into core concepts of the Catholic Faith and invites the students into a personal response. The retreat is based on the underlying Gospel message of love, salvation, and forgiveness. The CSYMI program is curriculum aligned and is currently being rolled out in most CE schools in our Archdiocese. The response from students was extremely positive.

Across the year, each class will have the opportunity to lead the school in a prayer liturgy. This term, Year 3 led ANZAC Day, Kinder & Year 6 will lead Mother’s Day and Year 1 will lead a NAIDOC Day Liturgy (Week 10). These will be advised in the Newsletter and on Facebook. They will be held at school and families are welcome to attend.

Our Sacramental Program begins this week. We have 8 Year 3 students participating in Reconciliation. They will participate in 4 preparation sessions, held on a Wednesday afternoon from 3:20-4:15pm at either the school or church. They will receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation on Saturday 1st of June at 4pm prior to the 5pm Mass. We are thankful to Cathy Ffrench and Ann Tracey from the St Bede’s Parish who will lead these programs again this year.

Next term, we will run Sacramental Programs for Holy Communion (Year 3) and Confirmation (Year 5/6). Information will be provided to eligible families later this term.

The Feast Day of our school saint – St Bede – is recognised on the 25th May. The school will hold our Feast Day on Thursday 23rd May with a prayer liturgy. Each year, a student from each year level receives a ‘St Bede’s Award’. This award recognises students who demonstrate Christian leadership and dedication to their studies – much like St Bede did. The awards will be presented at our St Bede’s Feast Day Liturgy. Stay tuned for more information!

Yours in faith,
Shaye Cooper
Religious Education Coordinator (Acting)

Autumn Prayer
O God of Creation, you have blessed us
with the changing of the seasons.
As we embrace these autumn months
may the earlier setting of the sun
remind us to take time to rest.
May the crunch of the leaves
beneath our feet remind us
of the brevity of this earthly life.
May the steam of our breath
in the cool air remind us that it is you
who give us your breath of life.
May the scurrying of the squirrels and
the migration of the birds remind us
that you call us to follow your will.
We praise you for your goodness forever and ever
Amen.

Copyright – Catholic Faith Store