SCS HSC Judaism Study Day

Year 12 Studies of Religion (SOR) students attend the SCS HSC Judaism Study Day during the July school holidays at the Sydney Jewish Museum. The day organised by Sydney Catholic Schools was designed to support SOR students in their studies of the unit on Judaism for the HSC. Students heard from guest speakers on Bioethics, Marriage and Moses Maimonides. Students also toured the museum and were addressed by Holocaust Survivors. Thank you to Ms Floyd for accompanying the students.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Environment Week 2022

As part of Environment week Student leaders took part in the 2022 Earth Care Conference run by the Sisters of St Joseph and hosted by Mount St Benedict Colege. Students listened to Nicole Lewis from B & B Highway https://www.ps.org.au/bb-highway-about, addressing the importance of biodiversity, pollinators, Citizen Science and planning environmental projects.

 

 

JJAMM Week 2022

JJAMM Week, Week 5, term 3 is celebrated at MMCC each year  focusing on the Josephite charism and the legacy of Mary MacKillop. JJAMM is an acronym for St Joseph, Julian Tenison-Woods and Mary MacKillop. The program for the week is:

 Monday – St Joseph Day

Refugees & Asylum Seekers awareness activities

Tuesday – Julian Tenison-Woods Day

Environment, sustainability, plant sale and recycling initiatives.

Wednesday – A Community Day

Mufti Day and “School of Origin” Touch Football game on the Oval at lunchtime

Thursday – Mary Day – “See a need and do something about it”

“See a need and do something about it” and Bake Sale

Friday – Mary MacKillop Day

Mass, lunch & music on the oval, Talent Quest

 

 

Refugee Week 2022

Refugee Week was celebrated at MMCC with daily prayers and the sharing of Refugee Stories

As part of Refugee Week Mina Zeebaree and Kardina Batti shared the following reflections.

 

50% Chance

By Kardina Batti

Everything on earth has a 50% chance of survival, and this statement applies to all of us. At any moment, every human can have a heart attack and die. This is a 50% chance. A person crosses the street, there is 50% to be run over by a car and die, and there is 50% to cross the street in peace and live. It can also be a human being. A person on the roof of a building, who has a 50% chance of falling from the building or not falling and continuing to live normally. That is why it is said that anything in this life is possible.

In all countries of the world that live in peace and have laws and governments, all their work is to preserve human life at a high rate, not only this, but also in good health, a great life and a secured future. The chance that you will die actively is a small percentage in these countries. Because it is the duty of the state to bear the responsibility for the lives of a large number of people, which is to preserve equal opportunities for all those under their responsibility. But in Iraq, the chances of survival are 20% at best, and the chance that you might die at any moment is the highest. Why? Because the officials simply do not take responsibility seriously, and they have been easygoing on our lives and our future, and even use our blood for the purposes of sectarian trade, and prepare our bodies to take them to higher positions. This is because they are lazy, apathetic and unable to take responsibility.

What happened in The Tayaran Square, Baghdad, Iraq, on 21.01.2021, makes us stand helpless in the face of this calamity that was organised by ISIS, which we should have won over and got rid off. Who will bear the blood of the innocents? Who will bear the blood of the brothers Amer and Ali? Who was working hard for their family to live? And who will carry the blood of the child who was selling tea? And basically why is there a little boy selling tea on the street during school time? Isn’t he supposed to be at school learning and playing with his friends? Who will bear the blood of all these martyrs? Who bears the failure to protect people, are everyone who claims and trades in the issue of security and everyone who accepts themselves to be responsible for people’s lives, and everyone who is filthy spreads on his back bearing great responsibility and they are the biggest helpless cowards.

This is not a fictional story, but a true story that took place in Iraq, where thousands of innocent people who wanted a peaceful life for themselves and their families died, eating on their dining table and clothes in their closets. This is only one of the reasons why people migrate from drowning to other countries, looking for love and peace, and it does not mean that there is no peace and love in Iraq, but there are reasons that intersect this love and peace. We Iraqis find in most countries of the world what we do not limit in our country after 2003, which is peace.

How I came to Australia

By Mina Zeebaree

My name is Mina and I was born in Iraq and, I will be telling you my story.

In 2014 Isis came to our town and we had to leave Iraq to stay alive. So many people we know didn’t make it and they died. We had to look for a new place to stay, so we went to Erbil. There were so many people with us, some we knew and some we didn’t. We all left our homes to escape death. It was so hard for me and my family because we didn’t know if we would survive the next day or not.

I didn’t go to school for three years and we were living in a school with many families. Each classroom had three families. We had to divide the classroom into sections and we all had to use one toilet. So many nights I had to sleep hungry because there was not enough food for everyone.

In 2016 we went to Jordan and Caritas, the Catholic Organisation, was there to help us. Caritas helped us a lot. They provided school for me and my sister, and they provided food.

We stayed in Jordan for 3 months and then we went back to Iraq because it was so hard for us to cope with all the problems and the way we were treated. We stayed in Iraq until 2017.

In 2017 we had to go back to Jordan and then my baby brother was born. Caritas once again helped us a lot when my brother was born and we even went back to school.

In 2018 International Organisation for Migration helped us to come to Australia. When we came to Australia in 2018 we found it so hard because we didn’t know how to speak English and we didn’t know anything. Afterwards I went to school and learnt how to speak English.

I thank all the people that helped me and my family during the hard time in my life and I thank Caritas for all the help.

 

Deacon Ben’s Ordination