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Past Postings
Sometimes you may wish to verify non-current parish information, or revisit a past event. This is the page where you may be able to do just that! In addition to old news and events, prior weekly editions of the church bulletin and gospel reflections will be made available here, starting from late March 2004 (i.e. they will begin to accumulate from then on).
Typically, past events will appear further below, while prior editions of the bulletin and gospel reflections are accessible by selection from a drop-down list:
Note that later versions of the Bulletin use Acrobat (PDF) format. If you cannot read the documents you can install Adobe Reader by clicking the link below
Old “Latest News” Items:
The Whale Comes Down...
... in time for the Feast of Mary, Queen of Apostles Saturday 29-05-2004 and Pentecost Sunday 30-05-2004
Girls from Avila College were approached to produce this magnificent whale to display over the Easter Period. Fr Eugene had a fabulous time on the ladder affixing it to the wall. I can't spot the bit he reckons is really crooked. Can you? I think the girls and he did a great job.
Why The Whale??
The sign Jesus promised to the generation that did not understand Him was the “sign of Jonah the prophet” i.e. the sign of His own Resurrection.
Just as Jonah was three days in the belly of the whale, in the same way, Jesus was three days dead ( a day in Jesus' time started and ended at sunset). In the early dawn of the third day we meet the risen Lord.
The life of every Christian is signed with the sign of Jonah, because we all live by the power of Christ's resurrection.
Ash Wednesday 25-02-2004
"...The 6:30PM evening service marked the beginning of Lent. A good number of parishioners attended the Eucharist, witnessing the rolling up and packing away of the Alleluia scroll, before having their foreheads marked with the sign of the cross, in ash.
As a mark of respect and acknowledgement of Our Lord Jesus Christ's Mighty Sacrifice for us all, we traditionally are asked to give up - or put away - fun things and luxuries for this period, until after Easter. At this time we may pause to reflect on the horrors Jesus knew He was to be subjected to, on our account.
Thus, in a small way, we can make the journey with Jesus and arrive at a fuller appreciation of His Gift to us."
Parish Picnic 08-02-2004
Again we’re at Pallotti College to attend 11:30 Mass. Seems like everyone from St. Christopher's is there. Singing joined by some new faces, mixed in with the old. Then, Prayers of the Faithful where all can contribute...
"...This was my first parish picnic ever... certainly my first trip to Millgrove. I was struck by the beauty and serenity of Pallotti College, I would enjoy a camp there sometime! I loved the rolling hills and mountain views. It was fabulous sitting on the side of the hill looking down, as we munched on cold chicken and salad, enjoying several of our favourite beverages.
What I really loved were the plenty of really old, really huge river gums. I took two of my older children for a walk down the hill, through a rusty old gate and over the creek, where it was quite overgrown, with hanging bark cluttering the path and a little footbridge over the creek 9/10ths rotted away. The kids particularly liked being down in the creek, bush-bashing away, with the tree ferns overhead and the sounds of the creek as it trickled and poured around our ankles. Down there they spotted a crimson rosella, seeking shade, which flew off after a period of mutual inspection. When we arrived up the hill, back at the picnic spot, my youngest son - not yet 3 - carried on like a pork chop until he could "have a go in the creek". So I repeated the adventure a second time with extra company, this time fashioning hiking sticks for all.
On our return, Father Pat was rounding everyone up for a sing-a-long before the bus had to leave. So, grabbing guitar, I headed over to the designated spot underneath some mighty old birch trees, where some old favourites were cranked out - and Father Pat stole the show with his special song that you must get him to play for you again sometime!
It was a very warm to hot day - and driving home we detoured to Warburton, where nearly every man and his dog was in the river. We stopped for a paddle also, before treating ourselves - and the kids who were still awake - to an ice-cream on the way home..."
John Cooney
Day of Spiritual Renewal
Saturday February 28th 9:00AM-4:00PM
Waverley Deanery
The God of Unconditional Love...
...Here, Now and in the Life to Come
the God who makes whole and sets free.
to give you the Kingdom. Lk 12:32
at
St Christopher's Church, 5 Doon Avenue Syndal
Enrolment: 9802 8538
by Feb. 20th
Dr Michael Jackson
HOLY SPIRIT DAY
Talk given by Fr Pat
Society today is rich in things but poor in spirit. We have so much expertise yet homelessness, unemployment, suicide, breakdown in families, are on the increase. We experience not so much the weight of life, as the inadequacy of inner resources to cope with life. I hear the cry often, "Don’t talk to me about your problems, I’m barely coping myself." It’s a cry for personal power, for purpose, for belonging and support.
The early Church knew this experience of helplessness, as we do today. Look at John (20:19!) The world was too much for the Church. It stayed huddled behind closed doors. Nobody seemed able to go out beyond the doors and tell the Good News of Jesus.
Yet see the difference in the Church in the reading from Acts (Acts 4:32ff) "The whole group of believers was united heart and soul.... The Apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of Jesus with great power..."
What happened? What made the difference? It was the faith experience of Jesus risen and His empowering breath of new life: "Receive the Holy Spirit." John has the resurrection and Pentecost on the same day. The risen Jesus is the giver of the Spirit, "Receive the Holy Spirit." Peace, joy in the Spirit is his Easter gift to broken lives.
The Apostles had failed dismally in that crisis when Jesus was seized and crucified. They saw him dead. Guilt, confusion, fear of the same fate paralysed them. The risen Lord broke through the barriers put up, stood in their midst and showed them the wounds in his hands and side – his victory over sin, Satan and death; his victory over our human weakness. He gathered and reconciled them, their sins forgiven. The effect on them was dramatic. They were filled with joy as they saw, believed in the risen Christ.
To the people’s cry at Pentecost, "What must we do..?" (Acts 2:37), Peter told them what he himself had experienced – repent, believe the Gospel message of Jesus died but now risen, and you will receive the Holy Spirit and have your sins forgiven.
A dividing line runs through this Easter-Pentecost event. On one hand, confusion, uncertainty about God, personal helplessness, fear of death, and on the other, unshakeable faith in God and Jesus, personal sacrifice and courage, a purpose in history and the conquest of death.
We can be broken and feel it’s hopeless. But the Spirit, the power Jesus promised is within us. We live in the age of the Holy Spirit. When the history of the second half of the 20th century is written, it will probably be called the age of the Holy Spirit. John XXIII at the opening of the Second Vatican Council (1962) prayed for a new outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Church. In 1967 the charismatic renewal began in the Catholic Church, helped initially by the generous sharing and prayer of non-Catholic and Pentecostal ministers. It has become a vital movement within the Church.
It’s my experience that Catholics/Christians want to live the life of the Spirit, want to step out in faith, but don’t know where to begin. Like entering a dark room, to get rid of the darkness, all that’s needed is to put on the light. But we don’t always know where the switch is. We need to get in touch with the power source. That source is the Holy Spirit deep within us.
Who is the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit is not an "it" but a person, the third person of the Trinity. Jesus said: “when the Advocate comes, whom shall I send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who issues from the Father, he will be my witness."
The Holy Spirit is the go-between God AND between Father and Son. The Holy Spirit is at work in all of the Scripture from Genesis 1:1.
The Holy Spirit is the agent of the Trinity in creating.
As God creates the universe through his Word, the Spirit is at work, hovering over the waters, bringing order out of chaos. In the midst of our own personal turmoil the befriending Spirit is with us. (Worry through the Night waiting for dawn. GMH a worrier: "oh morning, at the brown brink of eastward, springs – because the Holy Ghost over the bent world broods with warm breast and with, ah! bright wings,"
ORDER. He is the source of life – the breath (ruah) of Yahweh that is breathed into Adam, making him a living being.
The Spirit is also the agent of the Trinity, coming upon particular people at particular times for a particular task. He came upon prophets and kings, on craftsmen and leaders. The prophet Samuel anoints Saul as King and tells him, that as he goes back home "the spirit of Yahweh will seize upon you and you will go into ecstasy ... and be changed into another man." – the work of the Spirit may not be immediately felt – but he comes to prepare us for a task.
You sense the same thing in Mark’s Gospel – after Jesus is baptised the Spirit drove him into the wilderness. It is an empowering for the mission that Jesus now begins.
The effects of the Spirit are breath, but also a powerful wind. During the recent 200 kph winds at Bendigo, a man told me he had to throw himself to the ground to stop being carried away. At other times the Spirit is a gentle breeze. (Charter House – Carthusians stirring ... they knew that the Lord had visited – strengthened them).
Thomas Aquinas observed that "there is an invisible sending of the Holy Spirit with respect to our increase of grace whereby a person moves forward into some new action or some state of grace miracles – prophecy or martyrdom or some arduous task."
This new sending of the Spirit results in a transformation of the person in whom the Spirit begins to dwell in a new way, and issues in charismatic graces.
My own experience →New task – Young Adult community. Knew it was to be a Cenacle – Sought the guidance of the Holy Spirit. For me it was not dramatic but a growing.
The Gospels recount the Spirit’s impact on the person of Jesus, Son of God, become man, conceived by the Spirit in Mary, baptised by the Spirit, led by the Spirit and empowered by the Spirit. Yet John writes (7:37-39) that the fullness of the Spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified. At the ultimate moment of glory for John, Jesus’ death, John writes (19:30) Jesus, delivered up, gave over his spirit – breathed the Spirit over the Church. His first act as risen Lord, the new Adam, was the breathe on his disciples and say: Receive the Holy Spirit.
Love at its greatest – love of Jesus for his Father and us, love of the Father for Jesus and us, that love not an it – but the Spirit of the Lord.
We are never too young nor too old to receive the Holy Spirit.
During the religious oppression in China in the 1950s, a small child named Mei was in prison with her Christian mother. The child had a remarkable faith and believed that the Spirit comes to all Christians much as the Bible says: "Peter and John placed their hands on [the believers], and they received the Holy Spirit."
And so she requested and received the Holy Spirit in this way. Meanwhile, unsuspecting Chinese guards let Mei run freely throughout the prison. When Christians outside the prison found a way to smuggle Communion to prisoners, it was Mei who gave it to them – even those in solitary confinement. She said: "I’m not afraid; the Spirit is within me."
From a report by F. Steels:
The Spirit comes to interiorize and universalise Jesus’ presence. Jesus’ mission was to reveal the Father. Philip: he who sees me. The Spirit’s mission is to reveal Jesus to us and in us. He is the Advocate, the one who draws alongside us. A small craft in a stormy sea – a large ship comes alongside and brings the boat safely home. The Spirit reveals and helps us to grasp the message of Jesus.
St Augustine called Pentecost, the outpouring of the Spirit, the “eyes of the Church”. Before Pentecost, Christ’s Word had not yet awakened His disciples’ souls. Jesus had promised that "when the Spirit of truth comes, He will bring to mind all that I have told you” [Jn 14:26]. That "bringing to mind" is a revelation of Christ in the hearts of the disciples, illuminating their minds, bringing conviction, anointing their own words with power as they bear witness to the Risen Christ. The Word of Christ is revealed to them in all its implications. It takes them beyond the letter to the powerful mysteries of the risen Christ. The Gospel which proclaims the Resurrection becomes "the Gospel of the glory of Christ who is the image of God" [2 Cor 4:4]. "It is the power of God for everyone who believes" [Rom 1:16]. The Word and the Spirit open the disciples to the world of spiritual realities, which comes alive and takes root in their hearts and empowers them to be witnesses of the Risen Christ.
The world is no longer on ice, it’s on fire. Disneyland.
To carry on the mission of Jesus – (one needs) to be clear / (to) have conviction / be empowered. John brings out the personal dimension of the Spirit:
- He is the Spirit of truth.
- The Advocate – defence lawyer – but also the prosecutor to convict us of the truth / give conviction / but also to convict when we do wrong.
- The Comforter – Paraclete – the Befriending Spirit who does not leave us orphans – (my sister: mum and dad died – We are orphans – we are now the older generation.
I experienced the Spirit as guide – beginning a Young Adult community. I knew it would be the Cenacle, the Upper Room, and I needed the Spirit.
I also wanted to be used for the mission of Jesus – not working in my own power – Don’t you believe in the power of your Priesthood – Saw how the apostles and disciples not only spread the Gospel but accompanied it with healing. I studied/prayed and asked for that gift. – Docility – expectant to be used for service. Not dramatic - lady in Melbourne – plough the spirit into the flesh.
The Parish Picnic (2003)
What day is it? I’m awake with a start!! It’s Sunday - the day of the St Christopher’s Parish picnic. I peer outside the window to see what the weather holds. Last year it rained but we enjoyed ourselves. This year – well it looks like it will be sunny!
We’ve decided to drive up this year and miss all the singalongs in the bus. Have we packed everything? Do we know the way? Melways to the rescue! But my daughter is on the phone to some friends who are last minute picnickers. Which Melway reference is it?
We’re off. We’re following some other friends – glad they know where to go !! Beautiful lush country despite the drought and the fires.
Finally we’re at Pallotti College to attend 11:30 Mass. Seems like everyone from St. Christopher's is there. Singing by some familiar faces – Brian and friends. Then, Prayers of the Faithful where all can contribute.
Mass finishes and then tables are moved – where will we sit? No-one is keen on being inside after last year. Pretty much everyone wants to sit outside.
Tables and chairs are unfolded. Bottles are popped, thermos are opened, sandwiches are unwrapped. Barbecues are fired up (gas one !) and the smell of grilled steak wafts across the air. Then, there is the delightful smell of tea, coffee and cakes being consumed.
We are all relaxed, feet up, enjoying the fresh air and the troubles of the world are far, far away. Some people have gone to the dining room for the singalong. Some go walking to experience closeness to nature. But me… well I’m here for the cricket match.
Stumps are set up, balls are shined. Who’s batting? Who’s bowling? Who's keeping? All of these important issues need to be decided so we can start. The worst position to field is gully because you are standing in the gully. Heaven help someone when the ball rolls down the hill into the cow paddock and some cow patties!
As wickets tumble, batsmen and bowlers alike come and go. The game is played in a good spirit with some advice being given to the young players who swing and miss. They are told it looks better if you let it go! Some players only want to bowl or bat but they quickly find that they have to field ― maybe in the gully !
Some young stars of the future are unearthed, who can bat, swing an odd ball and some older players, despite some creaking muscles, hark back to the old days with some old skills.
Heavens it is hot and a drinks' break is needed – especially after running down to the gully. Should have let that ball go and not hit it! Back to the picnic area to drink any fluids just to cool down. Some people have settled in for the afternoon and there is plenty of talking, and laughing. Kids are running around or throwing the vortex. Will we go back to the cricket?
The afternoon finishes with us waving the buses goodbye, knowing that all have had a good time. We drive back to Melbourne, back to our homes after a wonderful day. We feel blessed to be part of an inclusive parish community.
- David Whalan 13/2/03.
"It was a lovely day. The weather was fine, food was good and company was great! Everyone enjoyed themselves."
- Comments from our senior parishioners
"Abbiamo passato una bellissima giornata"
- from our Italian community: "We had a beautiful day!"
"It was a hot summer day, no clouds in the sky from what I could see anyway. The day started with Mass, but not the same but we were in a different place. Saint Vincent Pallotti church with a bell that I rang for church it was very fun indeed.
My friends and I explored all the rooms and places that we could hide if we ever needed to. You also had to bring your own food, we played a game of cricket that was fun more and more people went always because it was too hot.
I went indoors to the nice cool room down steps - man was it cool down there, it had a piano that you could play it was still in tune from the sounds of it. You could do a walk to where you could visit place and see the country. The sounds of the people singing (songs that I had not a clue how they go).
I met this couple that lived in the church she had a son called Peter he is 3 years old. One of my friends had a kite that got tangled in a tree to me it was funny; the kite went so high.
It was nearly time to leave; well not to my parents they were still talking to my friend’s parents. So I said goodbye to all the people that were leaving then we went in Kyle’s car to listen to the music.
The day was a success made new friends and caught up with old friends that I have not seen in a while."
- Written by a 13 year old Kristen Whalan
Feast of St Vincent Pallotti & Commissioning of Br Kevin
16 Feb 03
Homily by Fr Pat Jackson
"To walk together, going ahead to prepare the way for the Lord"; this is the image the Gospel evokes for me which says so much about Br Kevin. Kevin will be sorely missed, not only for what he does in the parish, but more for who he is. Kevin is a Pallottine with the two-fold task of being an apostle and a mystic who finds his strength from a faith-filled following of Christ in imitation of St Vincent.
Throughout his life Kevin has been cheerfully ready to be sent and to be stretched – from his early days in the apostolic groups in Kew, then to Sydney to join the Pallottines, to wool-classing and bread-baking at Tardun, to Millgrove as cook and then to Syndal in a multi-skilled role. In all these changes Kevin has walked together with confreres, lay missionaries, youth and people of all ages.
Kevin’s natural inclination was to a life of private prayer and the correct observance of rules and rituals. But the call of the Gospel moved him to much more. It invited him to personal transformation to a new way of seeing, and to the discovery of a compassionate heart. His 27 years at Syndal have given great expression and scope to what was already in him – his gift of walking together, one on one, visiting, sharing faith and life out of a compassionate heart, but also with great humility, honesty and learning. For those who know him well, Kevin has a wicked sense of humour. Kevin has been a friend to many. The most called-upon prerequisite of a friend is an accessible ear.
The Pallottine brother often enters more readily into people’s lives than the priest – precisely because he is accessible. Kevin had a gift to search out those in need of a listening ear. His presence as Pallottine brother brought Christ in simple yet effective ways to many people.
Not only walking together, but also going ahead, preparing the way for Jesus, fits Kevin so well. He came not to announce himself or bring his own message. Appointed by Fr Benno and at the invitation of Fr Hennessy, Kevin adapted himself to Fr Hennessy’s ways of doing things. But with the arrival of Fr Flynn who was new like Kevin, Kevin felt free to develop his own pastoral approach. First, setting up the church, being M.C. on big occasions, making sure everything and everyone was organized. The youth often wondered if Kevin had wheels under his habit, the way he scooted around the church, yet remained upright and immobile above – and then his constant round of visitation / cooking / school.
Initially Kevin was very shy and tentative, but the ladies in the parish made him welcome. His birthdays became an institution and some ladies jokingly remarked, You must be going through a rough patch if you are on Kevin’s invited list. But seriously it expressed Kevin’s desire to meet people in a helping capacity. He would call me or Fr John when it was a matter of people needing priestly ministry. Kevin is more interested not in what he did, but the effect he had on people’s lives, preparing the way for Jesus.
For one who walked together, going ahead to prepare the way of the Lord, the impelling force is love. "The love of Christ impels us" is a Pallottine slogan taken from Paul. Paul is speaking to Corinthians who have lost perspective and are boasting of their charismatic gifts. Paul points to the greatest gift – love of Christ.
To be an apostle is to have met Christ, to have seen him and to have been captivated by his love. It means to take seriously what Jesus took seriously and to be found where Jesus would be found. Paul uses the image of being an earthenware vessel carrying incense – the fragrance of the Gospel – in a procession in honour of Christ. This was Kevin’s way. A rose does nothing but spread its fragrance.
In a quiet contemplative way Kevin has witnessed to the living reality of Christ at the heart of our community. Yet there is need for Sabbath times in our life to give our Spirit space to listen to what the Father wants to bring about in our lives and in society.
Kevin, we wish you every blessing in your new appointment to Kew. You go not to organize this time, but to wait on the Lord, to be available to the Lord and to those the Lord sends you, as you live the sacrament of the present moment. Kevin would welcome anyone who would like to visit at Kew and share a cup of tea as he did at Syndal.
Website launched 10th November 2002
The St Christopher's Website was launched on the 10th November. Demonstrations of the website were done in the church at the end of the Masses on Saturday night and Sunday morning. The website was well received by the parishioners. The overall feedback has been very positive and Archbishop Denis Hart has given his blessing. As you can see, the Website has already been updated and the bulletin page added. All known errors have been fixed. We hope you will all continue to use the website and tell your friends about it.
Youth Group Surfing Camp at Lorne
Fran and John Corkill, Noel and Gayle Roberts organised a surfing weekend on the 14-15 September for St Christopher’s youth group. It was held at Santa Monica, Lorne. Fred and Veronique Perron did the cooking and brought along beautiful pastry. There were about forty youth and adults. The weather was perfect at 26°C. After games and lunch we went on a hike to the beach. Young and old were soon either in the water, building sandcastles or playing touch-rugby in the sand. After tea, Saturday night, we had a Eucharist celebrated by Fr Pat. Sunday was a great surfing experience. Wetsuits and surf boards were hired and, after instruction, the youth group braved the waves. A great time was had by all and two busloads of enthusiastic youth arrived safely home
Parish Consultation
On Sunday, 20th October, we had a Parish Listening and Planning Forum from 2.00 pm - 4.00 pm. 75 parishioners, young and old, attended. Richard Gooden was the facilitator, ably assisted by his son, Patrick. Richard invited us to state what we were passionate about, to write it, and with the help of a microphone, to state our issue to everyone present. Issues were clustered and pasted to the issues sheet.
After basic clustering, groups took the issue of their choice and formed discussion groups for about 40 minutes. The results of the groups were read out, pinned to the reports sheet, and then voted on by means of red dots. These are being collated and will be presented to the parish for further development. People were amazed that so much had been achieved in a short time. It gives us hope for further brief and purposeful gatherings.
Conferral of Doctorate
Brian Incigneri, one of our parishioners (second from the left) at the conferral of the Doctor of Sacred Scripture at Catholic University, Melbourne April 2002. Together with him are Rev. Tony Kelly C.Ss.R of the faculty of YTU, Dr James McLaren, Brian's supervisor, and the Head of the School of Theology of Catholic University, Dr Terry Curtin. Brian's doctoral thesis was entitled: My God, my God, why have you abandoned Me?: The setting and Rhetoric of Mark's Gospel.
Monash Chorale at St Christopher's
Pictured with Fr Pat are some of our parishioners who took part in the Monash Chorale's performance of Gabriel Faure's "Requiem"and Mozart's "Sparrow Mass" (Mass in C) in St Christopher's Church, Sunday 18th of August 2002. Left to right are Kevin Blizzard, Rick Prakhoff (musical director), Pauline McDonald, Kieran Holmes and Roma Mees.
World Youth Day
Tim Smith and Simon Regan speaking at all Masses before setting out for the World Youth Day at Montreal as representatives of De La Salle College, Malvern and the parish of St Christopher's. They ran cake stalls and other activities. With the help of Hilary Henshaw (Avril Regan's sister) who put on a magnificent performance entitled "From Tin Pan Alley to Broadway", and the parish council, they raised the much needed money for their pilgrimage. They went to Rome, New York and arrived at Toronto for the youth event with the Holy Father and 800,000 young people, and priests, brothers, sisters and bishops. It was an exciting and exhilarating time.
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Copyright © 2002-2004
St Christopher's Catholic Parish
Last modified: Jul 31 2004
Website Design: John Cooney
Maintained by: David Whalan