Religious Education

Ash Wednesday

Holy God, you are good and loving.

As we celebrate Ash Wednesday,

we pray that during this time of Lent.

we will try to turn our hearts in love and kindness to you,

by doing good to those around us,

so, that we may become more like Jesus, your Son.

We make our prayer in the name of Jesus.

Amen.

On Wednesday 22 February the Del Monte students participated in a liturgy to mark Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday begins our 40-day season of Lent that leads to Easter. On Ash Wednesday, we come together like the people of the Old Testament to remind ourselves that we don’t always follow God’s ways and need to ask God for His mercy and forgiveness. Like God’s people in the time of the prophets, we wear ashes to show that we want to turn away from whatever keeps us from God, and to have a change of heart, so that we can live in right relationship with God and each other. 

Ash Wednesday also marks the beginning of the annual Caritas Australia Project Compassion Appeal. Donations to Project Compassion allows Caritas Australia, the Catholic Agency for International Aid and Development, to work with local communities around the world to end poverty, promote justice and uphold dignity. 

The theme of Project Compassion 2023 is ‘For All Future Generations’ and reminds us that the good that we do today will extend and impact the lives of generations to come. It invites us to make the world a better place by working together now and finding long-term solutions to global issues. We are encouraged to put our compassion into action this Lent through our prayer, fasting and almsgiving by supporting Project Compassion. Each family will receive a Project Compassion box for their donations, or you can donate online via the Caritas Australia website at: lent.caritas.org.au

Opening School Mass and Commissioning Mass of our Year 4 Leaders

On Tuesday 28 February, the Del Monte campus celebrated our Opening School Mass and Commissioning Mass of the Year 4 Leaders. This Liturgy was celebrated by Father John Hayes and attended by many of our parents. The celebration concluded with the Kinder students dancing on St Dominic’s Plot. This tradition begins their Santa Sabina journey. 

Kindness counts

This year our at Del Monte theme is showing Kindness. We believe that every day can be a random acts of kindness day. Kindness is one of the easier skills to understand and make a part of our daily lives. Even a genuine smile counts! What will kindness do for my child? Doing good is not only beneficial for the person on the receiving end and those who witness the kind action, but also for the givers of kindness. When we are kind and intentionally perform acts of kindness, we get a boost in our own wellbeing and happiness. It feels good to help others and it helps us focus on the positive things in our lives.

Here are some photos of our children showing kindness.

Tina Nicotina
Religious Education Coordinator and Year 3 teacher