The Paralympic Games will open on 24 August. Despite no fans or officials from Australia to support them, the athletes are still excited about being in Tokyo.  All athletes have overcome a severely disrupted lead in to the Games, the year of the pandemic has presented many special challenges.  Mary Pianta shares some of the great stories of sacrifice and dedication of our para-athletes as they trained remotely.

On 22 July 2021, Monsignor Frank Hickey celebrated 70 years as a Catholic Priest. The Parish of Nagambie held celebrations on Sunday 1 August to thank Monsignor Frank for his presence among them and his devoted service to their parish during his retirement years, writes Anne Close. 

By Kerry Stone

Project Compassion 2021 concluded at the end of the financial year. Last year, Project Compassion 2020 was cut short and, as expected, donations were well down. This year has seen the campaign almost restored to 2019 (pre-COVID) levels and more so in Sandhurst.

Fr Rom Hayes, Sandhurst Diocesan Director for Caritas Australia, writes a letter of thanks to the People of the Sandhurst Diocese for their generosity towards Project Compassion. “God's grace at large in the hearts of you all.”

Congratulations are extended to ten worthy scholarship recipients, who attended a virtual awards ceremony on 21 July. 

The scholarship recognises exceptional young people in Sandhurst Secondary Schools who contribute to the life of their Colleges through their commitment to their faith and to social justice; writes Jenni Kennedy. 

Applications are now open for the 44th Siloam Program which will commence in 2022. The program is Australia's longest running Spiritual Direction Formation Program and is now delivered in-person and online. Potential candidates are encouraged to join the Centre for a taster session on 14 August.

Chair of the Priests Retirement Foundation Diocese of Sandhurst, Monsignor Frank Marriott, and Secretary, Fr Andrew Fewings, are pleased to provide an up-date on the Foundation and retired Sandhurst Clergy and asks us to keep retired Sandhurst priests in our thoughts and prayers.

The longest running program on Australian commercial television, Mass for You at Home, celebrated 50 years on our screens when Mass was broadcast into people’s living rooms on August 1.

On 4 August, Opening The Doors Foundation will celebrate 20 years of supporting Aboriginal education.  After supporting over 3000 Aboriginal students in their educational journeys, the Foundation wants to share some of their stories of empowerment and success and will launch a short film online film featuring past and present students.

As the 5-day 'circuit breaker lockdown' announced on 15 July extends to 27 July, Victorian Catholics will again miss opportunities to celebrate the Holy Eucharist.  Fortunately, our Sandhurst clergy are now old hands at zooming and live-streaming Masses and there are many virtual options available to you.

"I am with you always" 25 July 2021

Catholic ministries are being encouraged to find creative ways to celebrate the inaugural World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly. The theme this year is  "I am with you always" (Mt 28: 30). 

Rev. Fr John Harold Ware PE passed away at Mercy Health Albury on 9 July 2021. He was 90 years old and in his 67th year of priesthood. The Requiem Mass for the repose of the soul of Fr John was held on 14 July 2021 at St Mary’s Church, Rutherglen. A heartfelt rendition from the voices of the clergy rang out to the tune of Salve Regina, taking their brother John home.
May he rest in peace.

Rev. Fr Adi Indra reflects on his recent Ordination.  

On Saturday 10 July 2021, I was ordained to the Priesthood of Jesus Christ in our Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Bendigo.After several postponements due to COVID-19 restrictions it finally happened.   Despite public health restrictions, the Ordination Mass was beautifully and prayerfully celebrated.

By Jenni Kennedy

It is a joyous occasion to witness the baptism of one child, but on the final day of Term 2, the St Peter’s School community welcomed eight children into the Church family.

The entire school community gathered at St Kilian’s along with the families and Godparents of the children who were to be baptised. Fr Junray presided at the Mass which also celebrated the feast day of St Peter, the patron saint of the school.

As Bangladesh goes into its most severe lockdown yet, Caritas Australia’s partner, Caritas Bangladesh, warns that the lockdown restrictions will have severe consequences on the Rohingya refugees living in Cox’s Bazar.

The country of 163 million has seen a deadly resurgence of COVID-19 prompted by the Delta variant, as their national COVID-19 testing rate shows a staggering 20 per cent of people testing positive and alarming spikes in the daily death tolls.

The largest grouping of non-government aged-care providers urges National Cabinet to extend the mandatory vaccination of the aged-care workforce to include workers providing home-based aged care and support services, or risk leaving a COVID-19 blind spot open.

Australian-based medical researchers are invited to apply for a grant of $100,000 to support a diverse range of research all focused on supporting vulnerable human life. This is the 10th pro-life medical research grant offered by the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney since 2003.

By Jenni Kennedy

If all that is old is new again, then one of Australia’s most iconic programs found a new generation to delight this year, when St Augustine’s Primary School Wodonga discovered why 'Hey, Hey it’s Saturday' was one of the nation’s most popular programs for almost three decades.

The long running Australian variety program inspired the schools 2021 musical production which was aptly named, ‘Hey, Hey it’s St A’s!’

Sandhurst Plenary Council Member, Ruth Lawlor reflects on the upcoming Fifth Plenary Council.

"What has stood out from the beginning of my involvement with the Plenary Council process is the great love people have for our Church; and moreover, the desire for it to ‘be more’ and ‘be better’ is present across the board."

Online course over six Saturdays
Starting 31 July

Australians are now living longer as individuals and as a society. A wide range of ethical issues and challenges confront us on the journey into old age. For Christians attentive to the Gospel imperative to work towards a just and compassionate society, a high priority must be given to the spiritual and community dimensions of care for our seniors.

1 - 3 September 2021

Senior Australian of the Year, Dr Miriam-Rose Ungunmerr Baumann AM, former Socceroo Craig Foster, prominent Australian author, Hugh Mackay Ambassador of Australia to the Holy See, Chiara Porro, and Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle will speak at this virtual conference.

8-10 JULY 2021  

This  conference offers over thirty workshops exploring areas such as best practice for RCIA; how we engage beyond the margins of our faith communities; planning for mission and renewal; supporting pastoral care; social justice initiatives and much more. Presenters are drawn from experienced pastoral ministers in Australia and New Zealand who offer practical, down-to-earth wisdom, resources and avenues of new life.  

Prior to their departure from the Dioceses in March 2021, the Poor Clare Colettines gifted the diocesan archives with a wealth of material. Diocesan archivist, Dr Donna Bailey used this material to create a book of their memoirs of the sisters'  time at the Monastery of the Holy Ghost in Bendigo.  This book was created to commemorate the Poor Clares' departure and to share their legacy. 

A nationwide schools engagement program is again shooting for success, using the game of soccer to educate and encourage support for mission projects around the world. Socktober aims to engage Catholic school students’ heads, hearts, and hands in key issues of mission and social justice through powerful metaphors found in sport, especially the world game of soccer. The program, run by Catholic Mission, will kick off nationally this week.

The agenda of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia calls those attending the Council assemblies to “develop concrete proposals to create a more missionary, Christ-centred Church in Australia”.

The Council agenda, which has emerged from three years and several layers of prayer, listening, dialogue and discernment, will shape the program of the Council’s assemblies – the first of which opens on October 3 this year.