Term 1 2020

• • Thursday 19^th March – St Joseph’s Day
  • Thursday 9^th April – Holy Thursday
  • Friday 10^th April – Good Friday

Sacrament of Confirmation
Confirmation is the final Sacrament of Initiation into the Catholic Church.  Parents who wish to present their children (Year 6 or older) for the Sacrament of Confirmation can collect an enrolment form from Fr Sean after Mass this weekend (last weekend).  Group classes will begin later this term and the Confirmation ceremony will be held Saturday, 16th May, 2020.

St Joseph’s Day 
This Thursday the 19^th March, is the feast day of St Joseph. As our school was founded by the sisters of St Joseph’s we celebrate our connection with St Joseph and the sisters with a special class liturgy.

The Abbey
For the time being Year 6 visits to The Abbey are postponed.

PARISH NEWS

Parish Fundraising To help fund our projects for this year (and beyond) eg. Awnings outside both churches, a “MEGA RAFFLE” has been launched.  First prize is a HONDAJAZZ, valued at over $20,000 (supplied by Southern Highlands Motor Group).  Tickets on sale now, $10.00 per ticket. Tickets can be purchased after Mass, via https://www.raffletix.com.au/ccsh or at the Parish Office.  The raffle will be drawn at the Trivia Night on 30 October, 2020. 

Catholic Enrichment
The Parish Catholic Enrichment course will continue on the 25th March, 2020 at 7:15 p.m in the Parish Hall. Topic: “Prayer & The Life of the Spirit.” All welcome to attend.

​Stations of the Cross
Stations of the Cross will be held at St Thomas Aquinas Chapel on Friday 20 March, 2020 at 11.00 a.m. All welcome to attend.

Second Rite of Reconciliation
The 2nd Rite of Reconciliation will be held on Monday of Holy week (Week 11) 6^th April, 6pm at St Thomas Aquinas Church, Bowral.  Several priests will be in attendance.  This is a very good way to prepare for the Easter season and is quite timely for our Year 6 Confirmation candidates who have been asked to participate in the Sacrament of Penance as part of their preparation.

If participating in this sacrament is something that interests you but you are unsure of the process, here is a short summary of what takes place:

The second form of the Sacrament of Penance is a communal liturgical celebration and begins with the community listening to the word of God. There is a brief homily which emphasises our need for repentance and the infinite mercy of God. During the examination of conscience, the assembly reflects together on where and how they have fallen short of their baptismal commitment to follow Christ.

The individual confession and absolution that follows is communal too in that the penitents approach the priests in full view of all present. The priests stand at appropriate points around the church in such a way that penitents can be seen but not heard by others. Those who wish to confess their sins approach one of the priests. While no restriction is placed on the individual's confession, good manners and common sense dictate that people limit the time they spend with priests.

Rebecca Mitchell
REC