LATEST NEWS

Last Wednesday evening fourteen of us held our first gathering for 2014. We began by praying and then continued to have a very productive meeting with some new proposals including discussion on the Overseas Humanitarian Project as voted on at our Parish Assembly, the Expo of our Parish Ministries on 16 February and a pilot development of several neighbourhoods.

The envelopes are available for collection this weekend. Please collect you new envelopes at each Mass.

We thank Jim Reilly and the volunteers who collated the Thanksgiving envelopes two weeks ago. Without the support of volunteers, our parish would not be able to function. We are very grateful.

CATHOLIC STEWARDSHIP FROM SUNDAYS READINGS

The Feast of the Presentation of the Lord occurs 40 days after the birth of Christ. In Jewish tradition the parents of a baby were to “present” the baby at the temple on the 40th day after birth. This is a celebration that has occurred in the Church from the 300s.
More important to us, as reflected in the three readings today, is embracing the Lord as our Savior, acknowledging that He is both God and man, and striving as good stewards to be like Him in many ways. Notice how Simeon takes the Baby in his arms, holds Him, and declares, “Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation.”
One of the difficult things for us is to see that same salvation and to go in peace. Stewardship is seeing the glory of our Savior and striving to live out our lives with total trust in Him. As Catholics we need not only to understand our callings, but also to live them out.
St. Thomas Aquinas wrote, “Three things are necessary for our salvation: to know what we ought to believe; to know what we ought to desire; and to know what we ought to do.” Sharing our time, talent, and treasure with God and our parish is what we are to do.

Copyright © 2014 www.TheCatholicSteward.com

The Australian government is in effect conducting a campaign of cruelty towards asylum seekers, the Chairman of the Australian Catholic Social Justice Council, Bishop Christopher Saunders, said on 23 January 2014   ‘The government’s campaign, like that of its predecessors, has only one purpose: to deter desperate men, women and children from seeking protection from persecution and danger’, Bishop Saunders said.
‘The government claims that it is fighting a war’, Bishop Saunders said. ‘If it is a war, then it is being fought against wretched and defenceless people.’
‘We are ignoring the most important issue: the millions of people in our region and around the world who need protection and security.
‘The only hope for a solution to the refugee problem is international cooperation’, Bishop Saunders said.
‘Australia’s policies are undermining and destroying that hope by angering the very nations we need to work with.
‘It seems that friendly relationships with our neighbours are becoming collateral damage in pursuit of an aggressive and callous policy’, Bishop Saunders continued.
‘Can we be surprised if Indonesia is offended when Australian naval ships stray into its waters, or when we ignore its protests and force boats to turn back to their sovereign territory?’
Bishop Saunders quoted recent words of Pope Francis, who said: ‘Migrants and refugees are not pawns on the chessboard of humanity’. The Pope called for us all to move away from ‘attitudes of defensiveness and fear’.

Parish Bingo has resumed on Thursdays at 8pm at the Sunbury Football Club in air conditioned comfort.
Final prize is $200.

Tuesday 25 February from 8.30am to 4.30pm at Catholic Leadership Centre, Melbourne will be a Colloquium on the Apostolic Exhortation of Pope Francis “Evangelii Gaudium”. More information from Kevin Meese 9639 1344.

CATHOLIC STEWARDSHIP FROM SUNDAYS READINGS

Through stewardship we are called to be the light of Christ to others. In today’s first reading from Isaiah, and repeated by the Lord in Matthew’s Gospel is that radiant statement, “The people who sit in darkness have seen a great light.” We are all aware of the joy of light. Of course, this light is much more than just luminescence. This is also the light of understanding and faith, the light to which the Scripture really refers.

It is worth knowing that the Land of Zebulon and the Land of Naphtali where this light shines was during Jesus’ time in the land of Galilee. Jesus begins His ministry there in fulfillment of the prophecy we hear in Isaiah. There is much more on which we need to contemplate in the Gospel, of course. It begins with Jesus proclaiming the Good News and ends with the Lord calling others to follow Him — specifically, Andrew, Simon Peter, James, and John. These men, who were to become the foundation of the Apostles, provide us with a glimpse of our own callings.

Each of us is called as a disciple, as a steward, of Jesus Christ. Our challenge is to hear that call, respond to it, seek our own vocation, and live it out as good Stewards of the Good News. Where are you in that process? Each of us needs to pursue our Christian calling.

Copyright © 2014 www.TheCatholicSteward.com

Reflection on the Gospel – Australia Day, 26 January 2014 (Matthew 5:1-12)

We have become so familiar with the beatitudes that there is a danger of our listening only to the mellifluous flow of language and of failing to attend to the extraordinary present and future reversal that they offer to those who suffer injustice and to those who choose non-violent ways of addressing it. With the escalation of violence across the globe and with powerful leaders opting for military rather than diplomatic solutions to global conflicts or threats, it is time to listen anew to these opening words of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount.

The mountain setting establishes Jesus as wisdom teacher like Moses of old. God’s favour rests on the poor, on the gentle, on those who grieve for the pain of the world, on serious justice seekers, on those who know how to mercy, on the pure in heart, on peacemakers, and on those who suffer in the cause of right. The repetition of ‘blessed are…’ (a better translation of the Greek makarioi than ‘happy’) provides multiple links with Israel’s collection of sacred songs, the Psalms. For Israel’s lyricists, God’s favour or blessing is on those whose hope is in God, on those whose delight is in God’s way, on those who take refuge in God, on the guileless in spirit, and on those whom God forgives. The content of the beatitudes echoes the voice of Israel’s prophets, especially Isaiah 61. God’s spirit is upon Jesus. He brings the good news of God’s present and future favour or blessing to the destitute and to those who mourn. The distinguishing mark of God’s favoured ones is righteousness or right relationship.

God’s favour or blessing comes in diverse forms: the basileia or empire of the heavens; comfort in the face of grief; the earth for a heritage; the joy of being mercied; face to face encounter with God; a great reward ‘in heaven’. If heaven is only a place to be enjoyed in the afterlife, it is little consolation for the desperately poor or for those who are persecuted or misrepresented to know that ‘the empire of the heavens is theirs’ or that their ‘reward is great in heaven’. ‘Heaven’ is better understood as a way of talking about God or God’s empire of justice and compassion in contrast with the heartless empire of Rome and its modern equivalents. Maybe the most urgent invitation in our present context is to mourn strategically the displacement of so many of earth’s inhabitants who long for the blessing of God’s kin-dom in the form of comfort and mercy and a share of the earth’s resources.

The Parish is able to offer Gluten free breads to be consecrated during Eucharist. If you wish to receive the gluten free host, please inform the person setting up for Eucharist. The Minister for Communion at the central aisle will have your host in a separate pyx.

As part of its 160th Anniversary Celebrations in 2014, the Catholic Parish of Castlemaine is offering a pilgrimage to Jordan and Israel, Walking with Mary in September this year. Parishioners would welcome pilgrims from other parishes joining with us. Interested pilgrims are invited to an Information Session on Saturday 1st February at 2.00pm in the Buckley Room. Pilgrimage Information Packages are available from Fr Tony Doran PP (Anthony.Doran@cam.org.au or 5472 1900).

The Catholic population grew 9.8% in the years 2006 to 2011 to 13232 persons, 35% of the total population. The number of Catholic households is 5855, where 755 Catholics live alone. The total population of our area increased by 8.6% to 36238.
The number of parishioners requiring assistance in self-care, communication and mobility was 565; those Catholics providing unpaid help were 1252.
Those unemployed were 4%, though those aged 15-24 who are in the labour force and unemployed at the time of 2011 were 8.6% (10.2% Australian average).
Those parishioners born in Australia are 83%; other countries:
2.4% Italy,
2% UK,
1.6% Malta,
1.2% Philippines,
1.1% India,
1% Ireland (21 other countries under 1%)
12% of our families are one-parent families (Australian average ); 56% of couples have mixed religions, 15% are de facto.
83% of families own or are purchasing their homes.
-from material prepared by the Pastoral Research Office of Australian Bishops from census data from Australian Bureau of Statistics