LENT – WHAT DOES IT MEAN? FASTING, PRAYER and ALMSGIVING

 I see so many diet options in today’s world all claiming to be the best option for a healthier life. Some of my friends have tried the 5:2 diet where you fast for 2 days and eat normally for 5. This is NOT new. In ancient Roman times the Lenten fast rules were to abstain from eating from Monday to Friday.

Throughout the centuries religions around the world have used fasting, not only for weight loss and health, but for other things. It helps us to break bad habits, it retunes our ability to listen to our body and it can be enormously powerful to train the mind.

As we enter this 2024 Lenten season of prayer, penance and good works we focus on the preparation for the celebration of Easter. Easter is the major celebration and peak time in our Church calendar and the preparation period of Easter is crucial to understanding and obtaining the full meaning.

After the ‘legalisation’ of Christianity in Rome, in A.D. 313 Lenten fasting and Easter preparations become more regularised. The 40-day Lenten period is likewise a special number. Moses spent 40 days on Mount Sinai preparing to receive the 10 Commandments. Elijah spent 40 days walking to Mount Horeb and Jesus fasted for 40 days in the desert.

While fasting often dominates the discussion around Lent, equally important are prayer and almsgiving. Prayer is often what sustains us in times of turmoil in our lives. This comforting presence is one that we can rely on at all times. Almsgiving or supporting those less fortunate is also a significant part of Lent. I urge all families to embrace this season, support Project Compassion and look within, to your core values, and without, in service of others.

Please check with your local Parish for service times. (Link in this Newsletter)

INTERNATIONAL WOMENS DAY – So Wonderful and so sad

International Women's Day (IWD) is a global holiday celebrated annually on March 8 as a focal point in the women's rights movement. IWD gives focus to issues such as gender equality, reproductive rights, and violence and abuse against women.

 I grew up in Blacktown, Doonside actually. It was a tough but wonderful life full of sport, mates, family and life. We didn’t have a lot living in a war service home –similar to todays Housing Commission. You also got lots of bruises growing up there in Doonside, but you didn’t cry. That wasn’t accepted.

 In February 2020, I sat at home and cried, more seeping but still very emotional. I was watching the funeral of Hannah Clark and her three children, Laianah, Aaliyah and Trey, as a result of domestic violence (DV) by her estranged husband in a Brisbane suburb. I could not fathom how that could happen. What feelings and thoughts could lead to this sort of action.

IWD asks men and women to challenge stereotypes, fight bias, broaden perceptions, improve situations and celebrate women's achievements - not only for one day, but every day.

In a country like Australia how do these things happen? Why does God let them happen? I don’t think that God can stop them, but only make the aftermath more bearable. God is there to console us and comfort us.

Sadly at St John’s we have some students who have lived in homes or witnessed DV in their lives. Such unacceptable acts can damage young children and their understanding of what a family life should look like. We work closely with all of our students to provide an environment that sustains growth in learning and character.

One of the hardest aspects of DV is knowing someone who is going through it and having them ask us not to interfere. I don’t think it is an option, we need to save lives and act.

IWD looks at the rights of women across the world. In Australia we are more equitable than most countries, but more can still be done. As we celebrate IWD in 2024 on 8^th March, please make an effort to connect to your mothers, wives and grandmothers and other women in your lives. Make them feel. Appreciated and thank them for their role in our lives.

SOUTH COAST REGISTER ARTICLE - PLANS AND ASPIRATIONS FROM THE CAPTAINS AND VICE CAPTAINS

Below is the article that ran in the South Coast Register on Wednesday 28 February featuring St John's captains, vice captains and school leaders. 

Principal