Dear Parents, Guardians, Staff & Students

YEAR 12 2023

This week saw the end of formal schooling for our Year 12 group. The various Graduation events were dignified and memorable. This group of students has left a lasting and positive impression on the school. We hold high expectations that they will do themselves and St John’s proud in their exams.

I congratulate our student leaders for 2023 on their leadership and commitment to this year group.

YEAR 12 GRADUATION LITURGY & AWARD PRESENTATION

On Tuesday 19 September, St John's Graduation Liturgy & Award Presentation was held for our graduating Year 12 Class of 2023. The event included presentations of many major awards and special certificates to our exemplary young people. The night was a truly special occasion and a very proud moment for the students, their families, their teachers and St John's as a community. We would like to commend all of Year 12 on their outstanding achievements and wish them all the best for their upcoming HSC exams.

PILGRIMAGE TO THE HOLY LAND

It was the habit of Bishop Peter to take a group of Staff to the Holy Land. In doing so he could lead them through the highlights of the Bible story and they could walk where Jesus and the disciples walked. Covid put an end to this activity.

Bishop Brian has, this year announced a commencement of this trip and St John’s has three Staff members attending. Mrs Chapman, Mrs Davoren and Mrs Chittick. We wish them well in their travels as they depart for this event of a lifetime.

FEAST OF ST MATTHEW - APOSTLE & EVANGELIST, 21 SEPTEMBER 

Matthew the Apostle, also known as Saint Matthew was a 1st-century Galilean and one of the twelve apostles of Jesus. As a tax collector, Matthew would have been despised by his fellow Jews for collaborating with the Roman occupation.

After Matthew’s encounter with Jesus, he is profoundly changed and invites Jesus for a feast. On seeing this, the Scribes and the Pharisees criticised Jesus for eating with tax collectors and sinners. This prompted Jesus to answer, "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." St Matthew reminds us that even those who were considered to be the worst of people could be saved and were welcome to follow Jesus.

It is comforting that Jesus wants to spend time with ‘those of us who are less than perfect’. It is even more encouraging that Jesus actually “calls us” to share in his mission. Jesus knows everything about us (our good points and bad) and still wants and loves us. The challenge for us is to remain open and to allow the revelation of Jesus’s love to grow within us. This requires us to prioritise our relationship with him so that, like Matthew, we encounter Jesus in the realities of our own life.

Rembrandt’s painting depicts an elderly St Matthew who may be pondering the words of the Angel as he reflects on his encounter with Jesus. The pages of his book are crumpled which could indicate that the book may be a journal. Despite the fact that St Matthew appears old in this painting, there is a great energy and wisdom in Rembrant’s portrayal of Matthew which communicates a ‘sense of purpose’ or ‘mission’.

As we finish Week 10 of Term 3 and move toward the pupil vacation period, let’s think about how amazing it is that Jesus calls each of us to be part of his mission. You may be inspired by Rembrandt’s painting to commit to journaling as part of your spiritual practice. Let us ponder our gifts and remember that Jesus refers to us as ‘the light of the world’ (Matthew 5:14).