A beautiful prayer to share with each other- 

Aboriginal Thanksgiving Prayer 

God of Holy Dreaming, Great Creator Spirit, from the dawn of creation you have given your children the good things of Mother Earth. 

You spoke and the gum tree grew. 

In the vast desert and the dense forest, and in the cities and at the water’s edge, creation sings your praise. Your presence endures at the rock at the heart of our Land. 

When Jesus hung on the tree you heard the cries of all your people and became one with your wounded ones: the convicts, the hunted, the dispossessed. 

The sunrise of your Son coloured the earth anew, and bathed it in glorious hope. 

In Jesus we have been reconciled to you, to each other and to your whole creation. 

Lead us on, Great Spirit, as we gather from the four corners of the earth; enable us to walk together in trust from the hurt and shame of the past into the full day which has dawned in Jesus Christ. 

Amen. 

A Prayer for the Earth

I invite you to join in a moment of reflection with this beautiful Prayer for the Earth by Pope Francis, published in Laudato Si’. Click on the link to access.

A Prayer for the Earth

Month of May - Mary

The month of May has been dedicated by the Church as a time of devotion to Mary, who is honoured as the first disciple, Mother of God and Mother of the Church. Mary is recognised as the one who listened and responded to the call of God.

Christians see Mary as a human being, who willingly allowed grace to work in her. St. Luke tells us that from the moment that Mary was told that she was chosen to be the Mother of God, she expressed her natural feeling: “Mary was deeply troubled by the angel’s message…” and “Mary pondered those things in her heart”. All mothers ponder things about their children.

Mary, like us, had to strive to understand the mystery of the revelation made to her with regard to her Son, Jesus. She had to make her personal journey of faith as we now make ours. St. Bernard called her “Stella Maris” the “Star of the Sea” our guide and our assurance, as we journey on the stormy tossed waves of our lives.

Mary, we ask you to obtain for us the strength to lead a life offered to God in thanksgiving and praise. Be present with us at all times. Guide us safely into the presence of your Son, Jesus, so that we may, with you and all the Saints, share His life, happiness and love. Amen

St Joey's Social Justice News (SJSJ)

Report from Eleonor, Isabella, Daisy and Emma

Yesterday,13^th May, students had the opportunity to come to school out of their school uniform. Students brought a gold coin donation which was collected and given to Catholic Care. Catholic Care is an important organisation that supports those who live in poverty, those who require help and many more people in our community during these winter months.

This has been a fun and exciting day for everyone at St Joseph’s. Thank you to all members of SJSJ for your hard work and efforts to make this day so successful.

Catholic Schools Week

Catholic Schools Week was certainly a remarkable and memorable celebration! It was such a joy to welcome our families and community members to share, pray, learn and lunch with us. We go forward with “Faith in the Future” with renewed vigour and energy, inspired by our strength and unity as a community. We thank all our families who were able to join us and for your valuable contributions to our faith life.

Confirmation

The Parish Sacramental Program is going so well and children are working hard on their activities on MOODLE.

Children from our St Joseph’s community and the wider St Benedict’s Newcastle Parish will be confirmed by Bishop Bill at the Sacred Heart Cathedral on-

Tuesday 18 May @ 7pm, with Bishop Bill at Sacred Heart Cathedral

Wednesday 19 May @ 7pm, with Bishop Bill at Sacred Heart Cathedral

Tuesday 25 May @ 7pm, with Bishop Bill at Sacred Heart Cathedral

Wednesday 26 May @ 7pm, with Fr Andrew at Sacred Heart Cathedral

Thank you to the parents, teachers, Mrs O’Neill and the Sacramental team, particularly Dr Anne Millard, for all their hard work and effort in preparing the children for this Sacrament. We look forward to sharing these very special liturgies with our candidates.

‘Come Holy Spirit fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love.’·

Mother's Day

Thank you to all those who were able to join us for our Mother’s Day breakfast and liturgy. We had such a beautiful morning of sharing and praying together. A very special thank you to Mrs Cathy Bone for sharing her reflections and insights with us. It was such a joy to hear Cathy’s wonderful stories about her gorgeous grandson.

On Sunday, we celebrated those women in our lives who model God’s unconditional love for us. We also remember, in a special way our mothers who are no longer with us; those who have died and those who are separated from their children. On Mother’s Day this year we recognised and thanked all the mothers and mother figures who inspire us, provide care, wisdom and generosity to those in their care. We hope you had a very special Happy Mother’s Day.

National Volunteer's Week

This is Australia’s largest annual celebration of volunteers. From Monday 17th to Sunday 23rd May 2021, Australia will celebrate the significant contribution of almost six million volunteers across our nation. This year’s National Volunteer Week theme is Recognise, Reconnect and Reimagine. The Diocese and its agencies have more than 6000 volunteers that do amazing work and make a significant contribution every day. This year we will host a volunteer week event on Thursday 20th May at Event Cinemas Kotara beginning at 5:30pm to celebrate volunteers and the work they do. The movie is June Again and catering is provided. RSVP volunteers@mn.catholic.org.au or call 02 49791348