Papa Benedict

Today I woke to the news that Our Holy Father would resign in less than a month. Was I shocked?
Initially a little, but no not really. I think he has made  a rather courageous move.
I have hardly listened to the news regarding his decision because, I didn't think the media would do the situation justice.  I felt a man of his integrity and prayerfulness would be guided by the Holy Spirit.
I like Bishop Bill from Maitkland Newcastle dioceses believe its a rather humble and admirable decision.

Bishop Bill Wright, speaking to 1233 ABC Newcastle's Jill Emberson this morning, said that he was very surprised to hear the news. "I was very surprised that there was no leak at all," Bishop Bill said. "It's another occasion when the Pope has impressed me. Anyone who does something that no-one has done for 600 years is sticking his neck out in a way. It takes imagination and a certain humility. I think it's an admirable thing to do."

I remember his instillment all those years ago and the public reaction.
This time Brid is at an age that she will understand more clearly the process, so we have decided to down our other work and concentrate on the life of Pope Benedict and the process od election.
I was quite inspired by Elizabeths Blog post, clearly setting out information on the election, the conclave and many other interesting rabbit trails.



Last year Pope Benedict XVI at the Papal audience on our anniversary. A treasured memory .
 

We watch and wait as this all unfolds and welcome our new Pope next month, and prayerfully remember our Present Pope.

Just another day in the Catholic Church.

God Bless you all.

xxxxx

A resolution...for 2012

What will my resolution for 2012.

I will wait until we return from summer school. It is a wonderful place to talk listen and get reacquainted with Our Lord.

As many of you know we attend a 7 day retreat every January in the hunter valley run by the covenant community called Disciples Of Jesus.

The School is run by the Disciples of Jesus Covenant Community, a group of people who together attempt to live the Christian life under the grace of renewal of the "Baptism of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 1:5,8). The Disciples of Jesus is a Catholic Community with branches throughout Australia, Papua New Guinea, The Philippines and Indonesia. It is comprised of families, single people, priests and consecrated men and women.
The Disciples of Jesus Commuinty is a member of the Catholic Fraternity of Covenant Communities whose statutes were recognized by the Pontifical Council for the Laity in Rome in 1993. The Community is approved as a Private Association of Christ's Faithful within the Catholic Church.
The School of Evangelisation comes under the direction of Fr Ken Barker, a member of the Disciples of Jesus Covenant Community and the Missionaries of God's Love.

Once we return I will know exactly what our mission will be for this year.

May God Bless each of you.......

An Evening with Fr Terence

A few weeks ago, a dear homeschool Mum and I were talking about having talks by religious in our homes.
I said, I was happy to open my home to an event like this.
We opened our home to a dear Priest that many Aussies will know.
He spoke to about 15 people about "The New Age", and its deception. We all interjected were we needed to, and he spoke from personally experiencing some of this through the need of exercising several people.
It was not a talk for the faint hearted, but an area that can be overlooked in our secular society.
Many points he raised, I was not unfamiliar with, as was the same for the others in attendance.
I liked his point that if you stop seeing "The beauty, the truth and honesty" you can easily open yourself up to things not of God.
He spoke of a man possessed, and his religious director from another faith, saying, "seek out a Catholic Priest, there is nothing I can do".
I liked his honesty, that if he didn't know something, he did not try to answer it with a 'fluffy'' answer, but continually went back to the churches stance.
I had several questions I wanted to ask, but I am hoping I can ask them of him when the time is right. 
I think many of us could have listened and interjected for hours, but the night was getting late, and many had travelled from long distances.
So mow until next time.
What an exciting few weeks we have had.

It was a Jubilee Celebration...and more

I have been wrestling with posting this for a couple of weeks now. I may still take it down.

Recently, we were present at a Jubilee Mass for 3 priests in our dioceses. One of these priests had been very much part of our lives and was present at Brids’ Holy Communion and Confirmation. So we wanted to be there for him.

There was a buzz in the Cathedral and it was great to be present. Many of our Diocesian priests had assembled to celebrate with their brothers.

Everything was just right until Dermot said ‘there are people outside with posters’, the next thing we saw was posters being carried down the aisle of the church. It was a protest against the actions of a Priest. These were victims of abuse. It was a horrible sinking feeling to realise this was happening. I was moved to tears for our Priests and felt uncomfortable in this situation. It took the shine off the celebration that should have been special for these three men of God.

Our Bishop looked saddened and tired at the public protest. He has been under fire for a very long time. These wounded men did not leave and made their presence felt. As a church is a public space, there was no way to move them on.

Our Bishop under the circumstances did not give a Homily, but instead instruction to us all to not antagonise in anyway. His words were very clever as He was directing his words to everyone present.

Although it was a very upsetting, the people assembled to celebrate the Jubilee, sang and prayed like angels. It was an amazing atmosphere, but on of confusion as well. Brid was very upset by all of this. She really didn’t understand. It was the first time she had been exposed to this type of situation.

On reflection, although this was a difficult situation to be involved in, it was also a time of being gentle and kind to these wounded people. I viewed several priests talking to them afterwards and I felt upset for both parties, but I was not moved to talk to them, ‘what would I say that hadn’t already been said’. All I knew was that I wanted to get our daughter into a safe environment to gently talk her through it. My thoughts were not with the victims at that time, but it didn’t take long for my feelings to change and feel sorrow for there grief.

As I stated in the beginning I have been tossing around this post, as I know my words may offend, or they may not reflect the way others may see this situation. This is purely my reflection on a situation that we found ourselves in, and how I have struggled to write on it.

suffering and reflection

"Even suffering is part of the truth of our life. Thus, trying to
shield the youngest from every difficulty and experience of
suffering, we risk creating, despite our good intentions, fragile
persons of little generosity:
The capacity to love, in fact, corresponds to the capacity to suffer,
and to suffer together." Benedict XVI".

I found this passage today written by Our Holy Father, and it really spoke to me. Thanks Maria.
As we struggle through the map of our daily life, with Brids' older siblings. I wonder has the suffering and turmoils been hurtful to her. I pray often that she is surrounded by Gods' protection and held always in his loving arms through this all.
She is a very resilient young lady and often her words are far beyond her years. God truly has her under his wing. Not that I didn't know that, but he reveals to us often in ways we don't expect.
Praise God.

Peaceful service

I receive a beautiful reflection into my mailbox each day and today I read this:
It is only a small selection. I hope you enjoy the sharing.
Keep your heart in peace and let nothing trouble you, not even your faults. You must humble yourself and amend them peacefully, without being discouraged or cast down, for God's dwelling is in peace.
Hope in His goodness and redouble your confidence in proportion as your troubles increase.
To do this I must resolute to:.
 I will practice peace in God's Will. I will try to be content with my life and where the Lord has brought me. The things that happen to me are all part of His plan.
I have these words on my bedroom wall, and remember the same Mary Vitamin giving me the same feeling of peace about 2 or 3 years ago.

May God Send you peace in your heart and your actions today

Sacred Heart of Jesus

Just a quick reflection, nothing deep. It has come very close to the end of The month of The Sacred Heart of Jesus. It has been a month where we have had our gorgeous statue of the Sacred Heart out in a prominent spot.
Athough, we have done nothing formally, apart from our novena, It certainly reminds of us of his love for us as we gaze upon his heart and his hands.
We covered as many table tops and bookcases as we could with Red fabric. This month everytime I have gone into this blog it reminds me; Sacred Heart of Jesus, Have Mercy on us, Immaculate Heart of Mary, Pray for us.
This month Brids' timetable has been highlighted in red, this we will continue next month for the Precious Blood. She certanly is reminded of the flow of the year, especially as we 'dress' the house appropriately.

It has also come to the end of Term 2, wow, how fast has it gone, but how slow as well. Half way through the term, I was ready for a holiday, and somehow we recharged and its school break for 2 weeks.
We can visit friends, sew, cook, go the movies, sleep in, and just enjoy.........

Rosary wearing student

I wanted to share this article with you all. Society gone mad.

US rosary-wearing student allowed back to schoolPublished: June 07, 2010
A New York school district has been ordered to readmit a seventh-grade student who had suspended indefinitely for wearing a rosary to school.
US District Court Judge Lawrence Kahn issued a temporary restraining order ordering Schenectady City School District to permit 13-year-old Raymond Hosier to return to classes at Oneida Middle School wearing his rosary, Lifesite News reports.
Kahn responded to a same-day request by the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), a legal advocacy group for religious freedom, and declared that the school district's dress code policy violated his First Amendment rights under the US Constitution.
"We're delighted that Raymond can now return to school with his Rosary in place," said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the ACLJ.


"This is an important first step in the legal process in what we believe will ultimately result in the federal district court determining that the punishment inflicted by the school district by suspending Raymond for wearing a Rosary not only was wrong, but violated his constitutionally-protected rights of free speech and free exercise of religion."
Hosier has worn a Rosary displayed around his neck and outside his shirt since September 2009.
However, school officials suspended him indefinitely on the basis that the rosary violated the school district's dress code policy and was presumed to be a gang-related symbol, Lifesite News says.

Mary Our Mother

This is Our Ladys' month, I read these words today in my 'Mary Vitamin'. They really resonated with me. They are just such simple things. I know I don't get to do all the Marian things every day, so this gave me great comfort. Our Lady has played a huge part in my walk of faith. She has always been there guiding me to her Son, so this is posted in her honour.
' If we want to imitate Our Lady's true clients, we must not fail to take a part in the special veneration that the Church then pays to the heavenly Mother.'
It's time to take advantage of the graces available to me during the Month of May. I will make one small effort to do something Marian for this month, every day. Even if it is something as small as keeping a vase with one flower in front of my image of the Blessed Virgin or one extra Hail Mary a day.

Stations of the Cross

On the weekend, I noticed a brief message on our bulletin. Stations of the Cross @ 11am,.

The intention was for Priests and Vocation.

At our previous church our PP could often be found saying the Stations at around 3pm.- either in the church or the chapel. At times we would join him.

It is a very different feel at our new church surroundings, but we are constantly reminded by Jesus to make the most of it.

So today was a lovely feeling saying the 'Stations' with others. There were very few there but....you never know what God has install.

I was however, expecting our PP to preside, but to no evail. One of the lovely older ladies, lead us beautifully. Brid helped her read every second station, and afterwards we had Adoration and the Rosary.

It was a very holy hour, and we both came away afterwards feeling much uplifted.

What is the season of Lent like for us.

The first week of Lent- we are in the midst of the Wilderness with Our Lord- our own desert.

We have set up our prayer spaces. One for the school area and one in our sitting room.
We spend a lot of time in this room, as we have minimalised our TV usage. That in itself is hard.
People ask, did you see this.... and we say no.... we don't watch it.... it reminds me of the school hard pressure, when I was asked did you watch blah blah last night?..... Its very freeing.

We are running a Lenten group from our home together, this year. We have in the past participated in seperate male & female groups, but it can make Lent very busy, and its nice to faciliate this group together. So a Sacred space in our sitting room will be a focal point in this Lenten journey.


Apart from Lent, The Lord is showing us the way, in our new parish. Brid is alter serving, we are making contributions with music, and other roles we have always played in the church. He is leading us gently into this parish, and we need to Trust his ways.

We are learning the ways other parishes and priests celebrate Lent and the seasons of the year.
I have to keep my mouth zipped often, as I learn the way I once knew, was just that one way.

Come Follow me and I will make you fishers of men..

This weeks Gospel reading talks about Following Jesus now just as we are . Leaving our old life and following him into his will for us.

This in itself can be hard to do, especially in this day and age of job insecurity, but we are called to do just that. Trust and follow him.

He didn't say it would be easy, but he would bless us for our obedience.

So everytime we say our Yes, we are obeying his plan for us. We are leaving our old ways, and embracing the will of God.

Just like Our Lady, at the Annunication, she knew this would be a big ask, but in her obedience, she did his will, just as we must do.

So I just Love this reading, because it is a reminder in trusting, obeying and waiting for what comes next.

We have had a very hard journey over the last few years, but it makes it easier knowing God has it all in hand, and we only need to Trust in him.

So as the song goes... Come follow me and will make you become fishers of people, light of the world, salt of the earth, so pick up you cross and follow me....

We are Back

Hi everyone, We are back after a very beautiful peacefilled 8 days emersed in Gods 'Love.
Summer School of Evangelisation (SSE10), Run by the Disciples Of Jesus Covenant Community, was very local for us. It really is on our backdoor.
We arrived last Sunday and re emerged back into the 'world', this Sunday just gone.
It was the largest Summer School that they had run at Tocal.
We were fed well with Gods' great love and peace.
Lectures and Seminars daily during the week, childrens 'ministry for all the kids, Sessions specific to youth. A lovely married couple gave a very special witness about Being Men of God , and Women of God. They touched on areas which are hard to talk about issues and also issues our mainstream youth, don't hear about. Modesty was a big one. Understanding the male psyche was another. Very exciting to see it discussed and people flocked to this series of talks.
One of the priests was blessed enough to go with Harvest tours to Jerusaleum, and he shared his experience as well as he discussed the Man of the Shroud. Very inspiring.
The evening sessions were filled with witness talks, praise & worship, Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament every night, reconcilation opportunities, prayer team for individual prayer and at the end of every night was the Divine office. Morning prayer began at 7 after an hours' adoration.
The Rosary is prayed daily and is of course well supported.
It was an extremely hot week, and it was hard to keep cool, but the pool in the afternoon was a great relief. The lecture rooms were air conditioned for the first time.
This community has several ministries underpinning it., including Missionaries of Gods' Love - for Brothers, Sisters- about 11 in total, ( they have 2 houses, 1 in Canberra and 1 in Melbourne)and Priests. They all undertake studies in Melbourne. The Priest presiding of our SSE10 has his community base in Darwin.
The Brothers come from all over Asia Pacific area. At least 8 come to Tocal. They are all in the process of Studying for Priesthood.
There is a Youth Mission Team-YMT, that ministers to the youth in the schools and as well runs youth groups and weekend retreats for youth. They also keep in contact with the youth they meet, and great friendships are made, which are life changing.
There is also support for the singles and young adults as well as everyone, who becomes a covenant member.
Mass is of course Daily, and as it is a charasmatic community, then so is Mass. Great reverance is attained and much discernment goes into the whole week.
Brid had an awesome time, in Childrens' ministry and she was involved with a girls' share group for the first time. she 'LOVed' it and they called themselves St Joan Of Arc- they visited the Chapel every day to put flowers in front of the alter. The best thing about this little group, is that all of them will be ready to move to the nextlevel all together- so they will be able to support and grow together.
Our family has been nourished, supported and encouraged by this beautiful loving community for over 5 years now.
We will go again, God willing next year. Each year, you give yourself to god that little bit more, and he blesses you abundantly.

Our Holy Fathers' Homily

We have just read Our Holy Fathers 'Homily, It was very touching.
This is the link

I really liked the last paragraph. ...................Lord Jesus, born in Bethlehem, Come to us. Enter within me. Transform me. Renew me. Change me, change us all from stone and wood into living people, in whom your love is made present and the world is transformed. Amen.

Have a Blessed and Holy Christmas time.

What a day, What a Blessing

Well I must confess that somehow or an other I got my dates mixed up and I thought today was The Annunciation.

We corrected that fairly quickly, this meaning the things we had organised for 'tomorrow' where not ready, anyway, we changed our plans, as we can as homeschoolers, and ......

Brid and I drove off early, to Church to spend sometime in Adoration and Thanksgiving. We wanted to be early so we could just be in the presence of Our Lord.
We knew we wouldn't be home for some hours, so we took some of our work to do in the car. Latin on the CD player in the car, faith reader outside the church before we walked in.

Mass was beautiful, honouring Our Lady, and Ava Maria just sounded lovely. It resonated through the whole church.

After Mass we had lunch at a little Cafe' and by chance met up with my dear Dermot. another blessed moment.

We were to meet up with a Lecturer at the University to look at Moon rocks. Louise had lovingly asked her lecturer last week if Brid could come and look at them. So after getting a park right out the front of the pathway we needed to take and finding our way along the map Louise had prepared for us, we were there.
We thought we were pretty clever, because Newcastle Uni can seem hard to get around for a stranger. We met with this lecturer, who was just so enthusiastic, but had forgotten to get the moon rocks from the safe, at the bank- I kid you not. She is one of 3 people who have these rocks- the other two are ex-presidents of the US.
All types of loops were hurdled for her to keep them in her possession.

She must of felt a little guilty, because she proceded in giving Brid and myself a very interactive seminar on The Solar System and Astronomy.

It was so interesting, but I think the best part was that Brid was just so present to hear the information. She was keen to learn but also keen to share what she knew, and boy was her recall good. It is a pet topic for Brid and one she surprised me and this lovely kind women with her knowledge.

I must admit I have gone away from there truly buzzing, with Joy for Brid and a big yes, she is learning. It was a blessing ,that after the events of our past year, I truly needed to be witness to.
What a perfect day to witness these exchanges of knowlede between these two, and the respect that they gave each other. It was definitely a moment inspired by God just for us.
Everything was just so right yesterday, the smoothness of getting our book work done, the parks right outside buildings we needed to be at, green lights all the way, and this was just 2pm.
Dermot and my Dad have been tiling our laundry area, and it was coming to completion yesterday. It looked great, another unexpected blessing. So now I have my laundry back.
I kept thinking of Our Lady's 'yes', and its affect on the world.
My Dad was in no hurry to go home, as Mum was out, so he just stayed and chatted. It was nice to talk together and just be.
Last night, at prayer group, it was beautiful to sit with other women and just be present to Our Lord and celebrate the Annunication.

So I am not sure here, who was more blessed Our Lady being honoured on this beautiful feast day of her YES, or us because our whole day was just blessed from beginning to end.
Maybe both.
I am sure we all have wonderful stories to tell of our days, but this day was special for us.

So I am in Awe of Mary's Yes, and she blesses us everyday with her Son.

ADVENT lapbook

Brid has been finished 'school' as such for a while now, took me a while to get these posted.
These are the insides to her Lapbook that we got from 'Oh Holy Night' Blog.

Brid put this all together herself with very little imput from me, which was kinda nice, but it means she is growing up and not needing my input with items like this.

This is her title page. She was very keen to do this lapbook, and it really kept her focused on her Bible and the mystery of The Holy Family.