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Have Your Lamps Lit
Do Not Worry (Luke 12:32-48)
A reflection on the Gospel from the 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
Written by Mr Casimir Douglas
“See that you are dressed for action and have your lamps lit. Be like men waiting for their master to return from the wedding feast, ready to open the door as soon as he comes and knocks. Happy are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes.” (Luke 12:18-19)
On the surface of this Gospel passage, Luke’s Jesus is imploring his Disciples to stay ready, to always be ready, to be vigilant, and to be in constant and diligent preparation for when ‘the Master comes’. This parabolic message is in keeping with Christ’s teachings throughout Luke’s writings. In this Gospel’s long and sweeping treatment of Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem, he teaches primarily of the coming of the Kingdom of God which is ‘near at hand’ and also mentioned 35 times, including multiple parables in Chapter 13.
This is a lesson on Discipleship 101. Jesus’ exhortation is not to stay ready, be vigilant and prepare, so that when the Kingdom comes we will no longer need to commit to those behaviours. Rather, the lesson is that the task of genuine Christian Discipleship is to be ever-ready, ever-vigilant, and ever-prepared, because it is through our actions, that that we contribute to the presence of Christ’s Kingdom, here and now, in this very Sacrament of the Present.
Indeed, as a Catholic community, we experience the transformative and transubstantial Christ in the Sacrament of the Eucharist, each week. The task of Discipleship is not just simply to be ready, vigilant and prepared for Mass each Sunday. Nor does this suggest or claim that God comes to once a week on Sunday and we’re then left to our own devices until the following weekend. Just as we must be ever-ready, the light and life of Christ is ever-present to us. As the Gospel writer Luke proclaims:
“You may be quite sure of this, that if the householder had known at what hour the burglar would come, he would not have let anyone break through the wall of his house. You too must stand ready, because the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect” (Luke 12:39-40).
American Catholic Priest and author, Fr Richard Rohr, wrote in his novel, Everything Belongs (1999) that, “God comes to us disguised as our lives”. Perhaps not as a burglar, but certainly as a challenge, an opportunity, and a metanoia, the task of Discipleship is not to wait for God to bring the Kingdom to us, but through the light of Christ, we are called to bring the Kingdom of God to the world. That is, we must be urgent, alert, intentional, and conscious in every moment, interaction and choice, that we are bringing the Gospel values of respect, integrity, dignity, empathy and justice to life. And they need only be simple actions: a smile, a greeting, a friendly and genuine conversation, an affirmation, expressing gratitude, giving way in traffic, asking ‘are you okay?’, and really, truly and deeply listening to one another.
For the St Thomas More’s Catholic School community, this Gospel passage is a paraenesis to be ever-ready, ever-vigilant, ever-prepared, and to ‘have our lamps lit’, so that we may always bring the light of Christ to the world.
Friday 5th August, 2022
Dear Parents and Carers,
SALUTATION
Grace to you and peace. Welcome back to school and the learning journey of Term 3 at St Thomas More's Catholic School!
STM TV: EPISODE 2
Last week we debuted STM TV, a weekly episodic YouTube show designed to share with our community the key learning experiences of nominated students to engage our parents in the learning journey of our school. We have appreciated all the positive feedback from community and look forward to bringing you further insight into the life of our school, and the learning of our students.
Please find below the episode for Term 3 - Week 2, 2022 which explores fairytales, shapes, fractions, muesuems, local Indigenous history, and Uranus! We hope you enjoy!
GOSPEL VALUE AWARDS: RESPECT
Our Gospel value of the month for August is RESPECT. Our teachers have been emphasising with the students that to live with respect is by the very model of our Gospel values, the person of Jesus, when he said: “Do to other as you would have them do to you” (Matthew 7:12). We have developed a Gospel Values: Head, Heart and Hands framework to make the living of the Gospel Values tangible, accessible, practical and achievable for our students. At gatherings and whilst visiting classes last week, I used the language of the framework to teach the students that to live and act with respect is to be kind, be thankful and be positive.
When speaking to a group of students about the qualities of being kind, being thankful and being positive, I asked them: who do you know that shows these qualities? And before a moment had passed one student answered: "My friends!" and the another answered: "Jesus!" Funnily enough, they were just the answers for which I was hoping!
So, during our Monday morning Prayer Assembly this week in Josephite Hall, we were able to draw on these ideas to join together in a rendition of Bruno Mars' wonderful song about friendship and respect, Count On Me. Below is a video captured of the singalong!
PRINCIPAL'S MORNING TEA
At our Friday afternoon Assembly last week, there were a number of students who received a Gospel Value Award for demonstrating the value of RESPECT. These students attended a special Principal’s Morning Tea in Josephite Hall this Tuesday (2nd August).
Myself, Fr Mark Freeman and the students were treated to a smorgasbord of muffins, slices and fruit and we each shared what we are grateful for in our lives, this included family, friends, a roof over our heads, the toys in our rooms, and our pets! They also shared about their hobbies, interests and dreams which included dancing, soccer, netball, musical theatre, drama, dinosaurs, reading, and my personal favourite, LEGO!
HOMELESSNESS WEEK
At our Monday morning Prayer Assembly this week, we focused on the needs of those facing homelessness to acknowledge Homelessness Week which was held this week. The theme for Homelessness Week 2022 is: To end homelessness we need a plan. Homelessness Week aims to raise awareness of the impact of homelessness on Australia via national and local community events, including providing information on the importance of housing as a solution and educating communities on how they can make a difference.
As a Christian community our call to serve extends not just to our own immediate communities of family, school and workplace, but also to those on the margins, those in need, and to make a difference in the broader community. Myself and other members from the St Thomas More's Catholic School community regularly take out the Vinnies Van to provide companionship, compassion, dignity, and a warm, nutritious meal to those experiencing homelessness and social isolation in the local Launceston community. We took out the van this Monday evening as well, and whilst the kind and grateful members of the community who came to the van enjoyed their soup, sandwiches and fruit, even moreso, I enjoyed their conversation and company.
REGIONAL PRINCIPAL LEADER APPOINTMENT
It is my pleasure to announce that Mr Shayne Kidd has been appointed to the role of Regional Principal Leader - North with Catholic Education Tasmania. Mr Kidd has been performing the role in 2022, and this appointment furthers his tenure in the role until the end of the 2024 school year.
This officially brings Mr Kidd's appointment as Principal of St Thomas More's Catholic School to a close. Please join me in thanking Mr Kidd for his leadership and contribution to the life of our school during his four years as Principal (2018-2021). We express our congratulations for his appointment, and wish Mr Kidd all the best in his future endeavors. Mr Kidd, of course, will continue to be a presence in our school community in this role, and is always welcome!
It is anticipated that an announcement regarding the appointment of the Principal for our school for 2023 onwards will occur during Term 3, at the completion of Catholic Education Tasmania's Senior Leadership Recruitment Process.
FINAL GREETING
May the grace of Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
God bless,
Mr Casimir Douglas
Principal
Saint Mary MacKillop Feast Day
On Monday 8th August, we celebrate Mary MacKillop's Feast Day. Our students will be celebrating and learning about Mary MacKillop throughout the week. We will begin the week with a whole school liturgy focusing on the life of Saint Mary of the Cross MacKillop, Australia's first saint! Mary MacKillop was the founder of the religious order the Sisters of Saint Joseph, who were the founding sisters of our school St Thomas More's Catholic School. She has a very strong connection to our school.
Throughout the week, students are invited to draw, pray and capture moments in our school "seeing a need and doing something about it" on a hand cutout to create a "Helping Hands" display in our office. Look out for our hands if you are visiting the school!
On Friday 12th, August we will be raising funds for the Mary MacKillop Today fund. The money we raise will go to a mobile kindy in Fiji. Staff and students are invited to come dressed in as much blue as they can for a GOLD COIN DONATION!
Let's create a sea of blue as we remember and celebrate Saint Mary MacKillop!
More details later in the newsletter about events in Hobart for this important day.
CBCA Book Week 2022 - Book Week parade
Each year the Children’s Book Council of Australia celebrates Book Week to highlight the importance of reading and to promote quality Australian children’s literature. This year CBCA Book Week is being held from 20-26 August. The theme for 2022 is “Dreaming with eyes open...”
As part of our celebrations St Thomas More’s is holding a Dress-up Parade on Monday 22nd August from 9.00am-9.30am. Students are welcome to dress-up as a character from a book that they know and love. Please encourage your child to be creative, using clothes they may already have or recycled items. It is not compulsory but if your child would like to take part they may come to school dressed as their character. We recommend that students bring the book they have chosen.
Parents are most welcome to attend as the parade will be held outside. However, if we experience inclement weather on the day and are forced to hold the parade indoors, we will not be able to invite visitors due to space restrictions. We will advise in advance if plans change.
Rebecca Thomas
Teacher Librarian
Baton Challenge - 5/6M & welcome to our smallest walkers!
Thank you to 3/4M for their speedy delivery of the Baton from Albany to Cape Le Grand National Park! Great to see so much enthusiasm from Mrs Morgan and her students.
It is now time to lace up 5/6M! They have patiently waited for months, and the time has finally arrived.
It's a long walk from Cape Le Grand National Park to Flinders Ranges ... we wish you luck over the coming week!
We also welcome another bunch of walkers to our virtual trip around the country.
Kinder M headed off on a separate journey on Monday.
Mrs Wood was keen for the Kinders to be part of the Challenge. Because of the split days, our kinders are with us at school, and we have set them off ahead of the pack walking from The Twelve Apostles to Melbourne. We wish our smallest walkers all the best.
Happy walking and good luck to 5/6M.
Sora is our fantastic digital library where students can borrow from a wide range of ebooks, audiobooks and read-along books from the ACEN (Australian Catholic Education Network) collection. You can access Sora on any device to read anywhere, anytime!
STM is the top borrowing Catholic school in Tasmania with an amazing total of 2570 books borrowed so far this year!
Please find instructions on using Sora below. You can obtain your child’s password from your class teacher. We do recommend that you change the preferences for your child so that they are able to access reading material at an appropriate age and reading level. To do this, go to Explore - Preferences - Audience - Juvenile - Apply. If you are a member of LIbraries Tasmania, you can also link your account and search and borrow from their collection too.
If you have any queries or need assistance, please let me know. Let’s keep up the great reading!
KInd regards,
Rebecca Thomas
Teacher Librarian
“Little did either of us then dream of what was to spring from so small a beginning,"
Mary MacKillop, 1891.
SAINT MARY MACKILLOP’S FEAST DAY IS IN AUGUST AND TO CELEBRATE THIS OCCASION THE JOSEPHITE MISSION AND HISTORY CENTRE IS HOLDING AN OPEN DAY ON 13TH AUGUST.
PLEASE JOIN US
Sisters of Saint Joseph
Josephite Mission and History Centre
64 Clare St l New Town l 7008
03 6228 1628