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The Southern Cross : March 2012
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March 2012 Page 13 www.thesoutherncross.org.au The Southern Cross The Southern Cross opinion | 1/234 Brighton Road, Somer ton Par k SA 5044 sell@schinellas.com.au | schinellas.com.au | Ph: (08) 8294 4484 Roa oad d d dS S Som Som t ert er ton onP P Par Par kS kS kS kS A5 A5 A5 A5 044 044 044 044 The Schinella family will donate $500 to a Catholic Charity of your choice on the sale of your property on mention of this ad. During this month, our catechumens and candidates are in an intense period of preparation for their Baptism and Reception at the Easter Vigil. The steps for the Catechumens on their way to baptism are firstly the Rite of Election held on the First Sunday of Lent. Now they have three intense periods of conversion called 'scrutinies'. These are special prayers based on the Gospel readings of the Year A on the third, fourth and fifth Sundays of Lent. These Gospel passages show us the conversion of the woman at the well, whom Jesus offers living water, and forgiveness of her sins. She becomes a disciple in the land of Samaria. On the fourth Sunday Jesus has a long dialogue with the man born blind. He is overjoyed that he can now see. This Mass is meant to enlighten our catechumens so that they can see with the light of faith. The catechumens take seriously the need to see their whole life through the eyes of faith. On the fifth Sunday Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead in the presence of the disciples and a vast crowd. Jesus in fact gives life to Lazarus, and this is a sign to our catechumens that they are to receive new life. The Gospel is a powerful example of God's power to give people Grace, and eternal life. We hear the term 'dismissal' sometimes used. This is a liturgical term which means to go and consider more deeply the revelation of the Word of God. On these three occasions the catechumens have much to ponder and to experience in a personal way God's gift of faith. This is an intimate and personal contact just as he did for the woman, the man and Lazarus. This intimate contact is played out in the presence of the community who are witnesses to the actions of God. Hence we see the catechumens 'dismissed' so they can continue the experience of the Gospel texts. There are presentations as well on these Sundays of the Creed and the Lord 's Prayer to the catechumens so that they learn them, study them and are able to incorporate the thoughts into their way of life. Similarly, many who have been baptised in another Christian denomination may seek to complete their Christian Initiation with the sacraments of Confirmation and Eucharist. These people are known as candidates for full communion of the Catholic Church. Our Diocese has the custom of welcoming these Candidates at the Stational Mass celebrated by the Archbishop in each deanery, as a pilgrimage to Easter. Therefore many of our candidates will be presented and receive the Rite of Sprinkling as a reminder of their baptism, at each of the Stational Masses. At the Easter Vigil they will be received into the church and alongside the catechumens will receive the sacraments of Confirmation and Eucharist. Last year there were 78 adults received as catechumens and 41 received as candidates at the Easter Vigil. We all now have a responsibility to nurture and encourage these new Catholics to remain steadfast in the faith. A special Mass is celebrated each year and this year it is on Sunday May 6 in St Francis Xavier's Cathedral at 6pm. Let us all pray and support our new colleagues in faith. The gift of catechumens to the Church is a great gift from God, and a sign of God's call to all of us to lead lives of faith. Br Patrick Cronin cfc is Archdiocesan Co-ordinator of RCIA. For enquiries, call 8416 8452. When attending a small Dominican primary school back in the sixties, my brothers and sisters and I were always a bit bemused by the name, Our Lady of Grace, particularly when talking to our non-Catholic neighbourhood friends. We preferred to use the much more informal name given to it by previous cohorts because the suburb was once called Dunleath Gardens -- hence the nickname "Dunny Gardens". This seemed to sit well with most students -- not so much the teachers. It was a tight-knit community with the Mothers Club meetings well-attended, Paddy's Market on Fridays, plenty of after-school sport and of course Mass on Sundays where you got to catch up with your school mates. When my own children started at the same school 30 years later it was much the same in terms of strong parental support, a great mix of working to middle class families with multiple children, a successful annual spring fair and a big focus on sport. There weren't too many nuns around by then but St Dominic's Day was quite an occasion and there was always a good roll- up at school Masses. And the over-riding sense of community and belonging, together with dedicated teachers who had each child's best interests at heart, continued to make these small Diocesan schools wonderful places to be. When I moved on to Mercedes College there were a few more doctors and lawyers amongst the P&F and I remember telling my mum that I was a bit embarrassed about my dad being a greengrocer but ever the pragmatist she told me to call him a "fruitologist". And when a new student from America turned up and bragged about her dad being a chiropractor, my mum just brushed this aside with the comment "most doctors think they're quacks". But reverse snobbery aside, there were also lots of kids whose dads worked as bookies at the races on the weekend or took on extra shifts to help pay the school fees. There were also many different nationalities as a result of post- war migration and my narrow view of Irish Catholicism was broadened to include rich European and Middle Eastern traditions. The point of all this is that our Catholic schools are a great melting pot of people from different backgrounds, cultures and even religions -- particularly with the influx of refugees who are supported by Catholic communities and who flourish in our schools' secure, caring environments. While the Catholic identity of our schools continues to be promoted strongly, as indeed it should be, it is parents who choose our schools, not schools who choose their students. The Gonski Review has reopened the debate on funding for government and non-government schools but regardless of the final outcome of the review process, we should do everything within our power to preserve this wonderful legacy left to us by the religious orders who had the foresight to provide an accessible and affordable Catholic education system. -- Jenny Brinkworth Mt Gambier Mass I travelled to the South East last weekend and spent Saturday evening in Mount Gambier and went to Mass there. It was a beautiful Mass with many families attending. It was wonderful to see the babies and young people and everyone knew each other and they were all interacting. Fr Richard was so welcoming and unfazed when two of the families who were having their children presented for Baptism arrived late and came up the aisle just as they were being called forth to be presented to the community. The children from the Sacramental Program were also presented and the Parish Pastoral Council were commissioned at this Mass. After Mass there was a barbecue to raise money for the Cancer Foundation's "Relays for Life", the Parish has a team of 15 people participating including Father Richard and the Pastoral Associate, Carol Chislett. Father Richard related all of these happenings to the readings in his homily and added that the school teachers from Tenison Woods were to be commissioned the following morning. It was a joy to participate in such a warm and nourishing liturgy and to interact with families who take community connection and support very seriously. Jill Gallio Catholic Communities Adelaide Archdiocese FEEDBACK New Catholics a great gift Remember the days... By Br Patrick Cronin THE THERRY DRAMATIC SOCIETY PROUDLY PRESENTS ITS 2012 SEASON AT THE ARTS THEATRE: Death By Chocolate A delicious comedy Director: Ian Rigney The Wizard of Oz A magical trip down the yellow brick road Director: Patsy Thomas Moon Over Bu alo Hysterical happenings and daft doings Director: Jude Hines The Unexpected Guest An Agatha Christie intriguing murder mystery Director: Norman Caddick 22-31 March 7 -16 June 23Aug- 1 September 1 -10 November Bookings: BASS or Venuetix • Memberships 8443 6521 Subscriptions available now! • www.therry.org.au
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