Catholic Outlook Magazine

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NEWS AND VIEWS FROM THE DIOCESE OF PARRAMATTA

Season of Creation | Spring 2025

Fr Adam Carlow’s popular marriage course | The parish with an abundance of altar servers

Our youth pilgrims join a million others in Rome | Eight centenarians celebrate at Marayong

The Diocesan Award winners | A cuppa with Fr Andrew Fornal OP

Imprimatur and Publisher:

Bishop Vincent Long OFM Conv

Bishop of Parramatta

(02) 8838 3400

PO Box 3066,

North Parramatta, NSW, 1750

bishop@parracatholic.org

www.catholicoutlook.org

Editor & Vicar for Communications:

Br Mark O’Connor FMS

(02) 8838 3400

PO Box 3066

North Parramatta, NSW, 1750

comms@parracatholic.org

Deputy Editor:

Antony Lawes

Head of Communications and Engagement:

Anita Sulentic

Catholic Outlook is produced by the

Communications and Engagement Team.

Contributors: Belinda Gadd, Mary Brazell,

Gelina Montierro, Mary-Jane Chemuel, and

Isabell Petrinic.

Design:

Martin Zitricky

Nihil Obstat:

Fr Wim Hoekstra

Cover image:

Images of people in the Diocese of Parramatta,

designed by Martin Zitricky.

Accounts:

accounts@parracatholic.org

Printing:

IVE Group Australia Pty Ltd

All material in this publication is copyright and

may not be reproduced without permission of

the publisher. 8,500 copies are printed and

distributed to 45 parishes, schools, before and

after school care centres and early learning

centres in Western Sydney and

the Blue Mountains.

Catholic Outlook is a member of the

Australasian Catholic Press Association.

© Diocese of Parramatta 2025

Here in the Diocese of Parramatta, we gather on Country on

which members and Elders of the Darug and Gundungurra

communities and their forebears have been custodians for

many centuries and on which Aboriginal people have performed

age-old ceremonies of celebration, initiation and renewal. We

acknowledge their living culture and their unique role in the life

of the region.

The Diocese of Parramatta reaffirms the

wise axiom attributed to Saint Augustine of

Hippo, “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials,

freedom; in all things, charity.” In this spirit,

Catholic Outlook publishes a variety of

Catholic viewpoints. They are not necessarily

the official views of the Diocese of Parramatta.

An artwork by Bundjalung Elder Aunty Rhonda, an Aboriginal Services volunteer at

Catholic Care Western Sydney and the Blue Mountains, in Emerton.

A message

from the Editor

If faith is a relationship, it will have its ‘ups and downs’

– like all relationships that matter. We should not

be surprised then that we all go through seasons of

questions, doubts and aridity in our journey of faith. Just

think of Thomas the doubter! (John 20:24-29)

Our Spring 2025 issue celebrates our journey of faith so

central to our lives as the people of God in Parramatta.

For it is no small thing to believe! It would be nice to have

the ‘certainty’ of some. But deep down, we all know that

dogmatists of all persuasions are fundamentally riddled

with insecurity and rigidity.

It is healthier simply to accept that in this life, we usually

dwell in the ‘Cloud of Unknowing’.

So, when we encounter dogmatic atheists, or

fundamentalist Catholics for that matter,

or when we go through periods of

doubt ourselves, we should not seek

‘answers’ too quickly but ‘live the

questions’, as the poet Rainer

Maria Rilke once said.

Fortunately, we have so many

witnesses of faith who sustain

us all here in our faith-filled

diocese, from our junior altar

servers (pp 20-21), couples

preparing for marriage (pp16-

17), priests (pp 36-37 and 60-

61), parishioners (pp 18-19) and

lay people (pp 24-25), to highlight

but a few.

Another wonderful witness and faith

guide in this regard is Monsignor Professor

Tomáš Halík of Prague, who visited our Diocese in

2024. His argument is that the real difference between

faith and atheism is patience. Atheists are not wrong,

only impatient. They want to resolve doubt instead

of enduring it. Their experience of God’s absence is a

truthful experience shared also by many believers. Faith

is not a denial of all this: it is a patient endurance of the

ambiguity of the world and the experience of God’s

absence. Faith is patience with God.

Halík teaches that God requires us to persevere with our

doubts, carry them in our hearts, and allow them to lead

us to maturity. For Halík, patience is the main difference

between faith and atheism.

“As a believer I am always a seeker, and there’s a

fellowship between seekers. Doubt isn’t the enemy of

faith but her sister. Unchecked doubt leads to militant

secularism, but unchecked faith leads to religious

fundamentalism. Like sisters, faith and doubt can also

support each other," Halík said.

The Incredulity of St Thomas,

by Caravaggio 1601-1602.

Image: Wikipedia

I understand why some Catholics would like to believe

there is an ‘answer’ to everything. But that is not very

good theology and even worse pastoral catechesis. St

Thomas Aquinas insists that we actually know very little

about God. Mystery should not frighten us, but intrigue

and enchant us to further deepen our faith lives. In this

regard, Michael McGirr reminds us of the wisdom of

Cardinal Newman, soon to be a Doctor of the Church.

St John Henry Newman believed that faith was a journey,

not a destination. He famously repeated the adage, "to

live is to change and to be perfect is to have changed

often." He said, "growth is the only evidence of life."

(pp 50-51).

There is such a rich diversity in our Church. Some in the

Church have a spirituality and faith where it is usually

‘summertime’. They are blessed with enthusiasm and

a feeling of the certainty of God’s presence. Especially

some of the new ecclesial movements and the

charismatic renewal have so much to teach

us about dwelling in the sheer joy of the

Spirit.

However, the French philosopher

Paul Ricœur wisely reminds

us that many of our

contemporaries find the

struggle to believe more

complex.

They are often on a

pilgrimage from a naive,

uncritical state of faith (first

innocence) through a period of

doubt, questioning, and critical

analysis (the desert of criticism),

hopefully ultimately leading to a

more mature, informed, and resilient

understanding of their Catholic faith

(second innocence).

These 'seekers' perhaps identify more easily with St John

of the Cross and experience God as the "dark night of

the soul".

My own personal story of faith is not unfamiliar with this

searching for the light amidst the personal darkness that

can affect all of us as we take the risk of faith (pp 54-57).

And let's never forget that our regular participation in

a rich prayerful sacramental life is so critical for our

perseverance in faith. See Clare Johnson's article on

page 52.

Wherever we are on the journey of faith, let's pray

constantly that beautiful Gospel mantra:

"Lord, I believe; Help my unbelief!" (Mark 9:24)

Br Mark O’Connor FMS

Editor of Catholic Outlook & Vicar for Communications.

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PAGE 12

On the

Inside

Season of Creation | Spring 2025

PAGE 18

12 Fiona’s gift: We meet the new manager of the

Diocese’s Confraternity of Christian Doctrine,

Fiona Clarke, who steps into the role after

many years working as an SRE Catechist and

Regional Coordinator.

18 The heartbeat of Vinnies: Local conferences

of the St Vincent de Paul Society are alive and

well in the Diocese. Find out what important

work the conferences do to help people in

their parish, and why these volunteers find it

so rewarding.

PAGE 28

28 Honouring parishioners: Eleven people from

across the Diocese have been recognised at the

2025 Diocesan Awards for their dedication, faith

and service to their local parishes.

44 Student pilgrims: A 10-day pilgrimage

to Timor-Leste was a chance for students

and staff from three Catholic schools in

the Diocese to embark on an extraordinary

immersion experience.

62 Parish profile: We visit St Bernadette’s Parish

in Lalor Park, and discover what keeps this

close-knit community together and how their

welcoming spirit is attracting a new generation

or worshippers.

PAGE 44

PAGE 62

Outlook Looks

Memorial service

honours homeless

Global Catholic

speakers in

Parramatta

Diocesan Pastoral

Plan turns ONE!

On 8 August, the “Wrapped in

Love” Memorial Service was

a heartfelt testament to the

community’s commitment to

dignity, solidarity and care for

those living on the margins. In the

forecourt of St Patrick’s Cathedral,

Parramatta, people gathered in

remembrance and compassion

for those experiencing

homelessness or other

hardship. Churches, community

organisations, volunteers and

those affected by homelessness

came together in prayer for those

who have died in and around

Parramatta in the past 12 months

while experiencing homelessness.

Read more about the the heartfelt

service on Catholic Outlook online.

This September, the Bishop

Vincent Presents lecture series

is blessed with two outstanding

international guest speakers. On

2 September, Dr Nora Nonterah

– a leading voice in African

theological ethics – will explore

discipleship, leadership, and

synodality through the lens of

an African lay woman. And on

15 September, Cardinal Stephen

Chow SJ, Bishop of Hong Kong,

will join us for a discussion on

bridge-building in the Catholic

Church today. You don't want to

miss this!

Read more about Dr Nonterah’s

visit on Catholic Outlook online.

Register for free tickets to see

Cardinal Chow via

parracatholic.org/cardinalchow

The Diocese of Parramatta

celebrated the first anniversary of

the Diocesan Pastoral Plan with a

special Mass and gathering at St

Patrick’s Cathedral, Parramatta,

on 14 August. The Mass was an

opportunity to give thanks to

God and to reflect on our shared

mission as a local Church.

One year on from its launch, the

Pastoral Plan continues to inspire

and guide us in living out our faith

in practical and meaningful ways.

In this Jubilee Year of Hope, we

are reminded that our journey is

only beginning, and that walking

together in faith will strengthen

our parishes, schools,

and ministries.

Read more about the Diocesan

Pastoral Plan in action at

parracatholic.org/pastoralplan

6

Images: Alphonsus Fok/Diocese of Parramatta

Outlook Looks

42

page

54

page

Honouring our

spiritual fathers

Are you celebrating

a special wedding

anniversary?

Reasons for Hope

book launch

Our clergy guide us through life’s

milestones; baptisms, weddings,

illness, and loss. Even when they

have stepped back from active

ministry, they continue to serve

and pray for us. This Father’s Day,

as we thank the father figures

in our lives, let us also honour

our spiritual fathers. With your

prayers and support, our Clergy

Health and Wellbeing team can

ensure our ageing clergy receive

the care they need for

a dignified retirement.

Join us for the annual Diocesan

Wedding Anniversary Mass to be

held on Sunday 26 October at

11am at St Patrick’s Cathedral,

Parramatta. The Solemn Mass

will celebrate the vocation of

marriage, and those celebrating

a significant wedding anniversary

(10 years and over) will receive

a certificate. If you would like

to attend, please register your

name, numbers attending and

any dietary requirements. Family

and friends are welcome.

On 30 July, historian Julie Thorpe’s

new book, Reasons for Hope:

Hélder Câmara, Global Catholicism

and the Australian Church,

was launched at Melbourne’s

Newman College. It celebrates

four decades of the Hélder

Câmara lecture series curated by

Br Mark O’Connor FMS, Vicar for

Communications at the Diocese

of Parramatta, and highlights

the enduring impact that past

speakers have had on the

Australian Catholic Church.

Read more on the Bishop’s Father's Day

Appeal and the work that the Clergy

Health and Wellbeing team do in caring

for our ageing priests, on page 42.

RSVP to marriage@parracatholic.org or

call 0488 000 211 by 20 October.

Turn to page 54 to read more about

Br Mark's journey of faith.

7

Clergy gather on Central Coast

From 20–23 May, the usual rhythm of midweek Masses paused

as more than 100 priests and deacons from the Diocese gathered

on the Central Coast for the first conference of its kind in nearly a

decade. Over the three days, clergy members connected with one

another, listened to talks on the Diocese’s history and makeup,

managing change and conflict, and joined discussions on

“pastoral challenges and opportunities in contemporary ministry”

and “clergy giftedness and mutual support”.

Read more about the conference on Catholic Outlook online.

Spotlight on migrant chaplains

Western Sydney is one of the most multicultural

communities in the world. Our migrant chaplains play a

vital role in these communities who share our Catholic faith

and enrich life within the Diocese through their witness and

participation in parish life. Meet Fr Ephraim Lam, Parish

Priest at St Monica’s Parish, North Parramatta, who guides

the Chinese Catholic community with humour, humility and

steadfast faith.

Fr Ephraim was featured as part of our series on migrant chaplains.

Read more on Catholic Outlook online.

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WHAT'S ON

in the Diocese?

1 SEPTEMBER

World Day of Prayer for the Care of

Creation

2 SEPTEMBER

Bishop Vincent Presents: Dr Nora

Nonterah, St Patrick’s Cathedral Hall,

Parramatta

3 SEPTEMBER

Parish Priest and Secretary

Conference, St Patrick’s Cathedral,

Parramatta

MET FaithLIFE Spirituality Short

Course, Bishop Bede Heather Centre,

Blacktown

7 TO 25 SEPTEMBER

Pilgrims of Hope Jubilee Adult

Pilgrimage

12 SEPTEMBER

The Feast of the Most Holy Name of

Mary

14 SEPTEMBER

The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy

Cross

15 SEPTEMBER

Bishop Vincent Presents: Cardinal

Stephen Chow SJ, St Patrick’s

Cathedral Hall, Parramatta

16 SEPTEMBER

LIFTED GO, West HQ, Rooty Hilll

18 SEPTEMBER

Natural Fertility Creighton Model

Introductory session, online

23 SEPTEMBER

Natural Fertility Billings Ovulation

Method Instruction session, online

24 SEPTEMBER

Mass for Musicians, St Patrick’s

Cathedral, Parramatta

28 SEPTEMBER

World Day of Migrants

and Refugees

7 OCTOBER

The Memorial of Our Lady of the

Rosary

10 OCTOBER

The FaithFeed

11 OCTOBER TO 12 OCTOBER

Catholic Youth Parramatta HSC

Masses

19 OCTOBER

The opening of St Luke’s Parish new

building, Marsden Park

World Mission Sunday

21 OCTOBER

Sympto-Thermal Method, Natural

Fertility session, online

25 OCTOBER

CYP LIFTED Live in the Forecourt,

St Patrick’s Cathedral, Parramatta

26 OCTOBER

Marriage Anniversary Mass,


31 OCTOBER

Annual Diocesan SRE Catechist Mass

and Awards Presentation, St Patrick’s


5 NOVEMBER

MET FaithLIFE Ministry Short Course,

Bishop Bede Heather Centre,

Blacktown

8 NOVEMBER

Formation for Communion to the Sick

and Dying, Bishop Bede Heather

Centre, Blacktown

9 NOVEMBER

Prison Sunday

11 NOVEMBER

Remembrance Day

12 NOVEMBER

Annual Bishop Vincent Vatican II

Lecture and FaithLIFE Ministry Short

Course, Bishop Bede Heather Centre,

Blacktown

15 NOVEMBER

Diocesan Retreat, Mount Schoenstatt

Spirituality Centre, Mulgoa

16 NOVEMBER

World Day of the Poor

19 NOVEMBER

Parramatta Street Feast, St Patrick’s


MET FaithLIFE Ministry Short Course,

Bishop Bede Heather Centre,

Blacktown

19 NOVEMBER

Natural Fertility Planning session on

Sympto-Thermal Method, online

23 NOVEMBER

Solemnity of Christ the King

ACYF Leaders Commissioning Mass,


30 NOVEMBER TO

2 DECEMBER

Australian Catholic Youth Festival,

Melbourne

For more events in

the Diocese of Parramatta

in 2025, please go to

parracatholic.org/events

10

POPE’S PRAYER

INTENTIONS

‘Prayer’

A POEM ON THE GIFT OF PRAYER

Prayer the church’s banquet, angel’s age,

God’s breath in man returning to his birth,

The soul in paraphrase, heart in pilgrimage,

The Christian plummet sounding heav’n and earth

Engine against th’ Almighty, sinner’s tow’r,

Reversèd thunder, Christ-side-piercing spear,

The six-days world transposing in an hour,

A kind of tune, which all things hear and fear;

Softness, and peace, and joy, and love, and bliss,

Exalted manna, gladness of the best,

Heaven in ordinary, man well drest,

The milky way, the bird of Paradise,

Church-bells beyond the stars heard, the soul’s blood,

The land of spices; something understood.

George Herbert

1593—1633

Each month, Pope Leo XIV

asks us to pray as a global

community for his great

concerns for humanity

and for the mission of

the Church.

SEPTEMBER

For our relationship with

all of creation

Let us pray that, inspired

by St Francis, we

might experience our

interdependence with all

creatures who are loved

by God and worthy of love

and respect.

OCTOBER

For collaboration

between different

religious traditions

Let us pray that believers

in different religious

traditions might work

together to defend and

promote peace, justice,

and human fraternity.

NOVEMBER

For the prevention

of suicide

Let us pray that those

who are struggling with

suicidal thoughts might

find the support, care, and

love they need in their

community, and be open

to the beauty of life.

The church of St Tecwyn, Llandecwyn, in county Gwynedd, Wales. Image: Rory Trappe/Trappe Photography

11

Fiona’s gift

is teaching public

school students

about God

BY MARY BRAZELL

CCD Manager Fiona Clarke. Image: Mary Brazell/Diocese of Parramatta.

Members of our faith community would be

familiar with Fiona Clarke, the Regional

Coordinator for the Parramatta Region in

the Diocese’s Confraternity of Christian

Doctrine (CCD).

Now, Fiona steps into the role of CCD Manager,

which will allow her to support and promote the

amazing ministry of teaching the Catholic faith to

thousands of children in public schools across

Western Sydney and the Blue Mountains.

Fiona, a parishioner at Sacred

Heart Parish, Luddenham-

Warragamba, has been involved

as a Special Religious Education

(SRE) Catechist for 13 years,

and served as the Regional

Coordinator for 12 years.

“We’re guests in the public

schools, so I see it as a gift, and

that gift has resonated with me

through my life and flows from the

classroom to my parish life, to my local

community,” she says.

CLASSROOM CONNECTS TO COMMUNITY

Fiona has personally witnessed the impact that SRE

has on children as her own kids were taught the

Catholic faith in public schools. “I ended up teaching

both of them when they were in Year 6,” she says.

Alongside her new role, she will continue to teach at

three public schools in her local area every week.

“It’s very important that they feel part of their local

parish community, even though they don’t go to

Catholic schools.

“Sometimes I’ll be walking the dog, or in the local

shops, and I’ll meet some of the children and their

families. When they recognise me and say ‘hello’, I

feel that they’re proud that they go to Scripture and

they understand the impact you have in their lives.

“This reaffirms that what we are doing is

important, and that will hopefully carry

on with them in their life and into

their family lives as well.”

IMPORTANCE OF VOLUNTEERS

Because of the scope of

the ministry, Fiona says it is

important to maintain personal

connections with the parishes

and offer tailored support

where needed.

“Our priests and the parish secretaries

and coordinators are so vital to this

ministry, because without them, we can’t do

what we do.

“We understand that volunteers have a lot of

commitments, but if you are in a situation where you

can commit, we can make it work or adapt for you.

“You don’t have to have the whole day off to teach

– some catechists teach in their lunch breaks,

some start their day teaching and then go to work

12

afterwards. We just need that hour of

classroom time and the commitment

to preparing lessons, which we can

help with through our incredible and

extensive resources.”

NEW BEGINNINGS

Following a review throughout 2024,

Fiona is excited for the new beginnings

of CCD, which is now part of the

Diocese’s Mission Enhancement

Team (MET).

“This new structure for the CCD will enhance and

strengthen our outreach and mission. This aligns

with our Diocesan Pastoral Plan, in particular our

‘Mission’ priority which emphasises that the Church

exists to evangelise, that is, to share the Good

News,” Bishop Vincent Long OFM Conv, Bishop of

Parramatta, said in his announcement in May 2025.

Fiona is excited to be working with MET to upskill

volunteers with the skillsets on offer in youth

formation, peace, justice and ecology, sacraments

and liturgy. Fiona hopes that with this new and

expansive knowledge, the lessons will make a

connection to the children’s everyday lives and the

wider community around them.

Fiona wished to thank her parents in Ireland,

husband David and children Siobhan and Conor

for their immense support of her ministry. She also

wished to thank the CCD directors throughout her

time – Paul Worthington, Cecilia Zammit and Merilyn

Hancock – as well as the regional coordinators for

their dedication and support over the years.

She looks forward to continuing to work with Office

Manager Maree Collis and Faith Educator Carmel

Fenton and the new faith educators that come on

board as they jump into the deep.

Toongabbie

children

Share their

hopes

Primary and High School students in

Toongabbie public schools were asked to

reflect on the Jubilee Year of Hope logo and

share their hopes. Here are some highlights:

• “I hope that I have a

wonderful and happy

year with lots

of joy.”

• “I hope that this

year, there are many

wonderful gifts

from Jesus.”

• “I want to be

a streamer.”

• “I hope I can get my

ears pierced at the

end of the year.”

If you are interested in becoming

an SRE Catechist to share the faith to

children in public schools, contact your

local parish office or reach out to the CCD

team at parracatholic.org/ccd

Fiona Clarke with her scripture students at Mulgoa Public School. Image: Supplied. 13

‘A dynamic

and profound

love for God’

Mauricio López’s journey of faith

BY ANTONY LAWES

For Mauricio López Oropeza, the decision that

would shape the course of his life came when

he gave up everything and moved to the

impoverished neighbourhoods of Mexico City.

As a young man who had just graduated from

university and was discerning his future path, he had

been asked to go and help work on a project “in the

peripheral areas and with the poorest of the poor”, in

a city in which he had no desire to live.

At the time, he was working

at a university in his

home town, living a very

comfortable life among his

family and friends and “with

very good prospects for the

future”. Yet the decision to

leave all that behind was

perhaps one of the most

consequential in his journey

of faith.

Mauricio says “it was a

transforming experience,

working with the poor”, not

as an ideological exercise, but as a means of putting

into practice all that he had learned during his

theological formation as a lay person in the Church.

‘That’s what my faith journey

has been all about in this

discernment – a dynamic

and profound love for God

and feeling part of the

religion, not because I am

forced, but because I truly

believe in that.’

“It was actually when I went to that city, working with

those communities and walking with them, that really

changed my perspective.”

RECOGNISING THE PRESENCE OF JESUS

What Mauricio discovered during that time in Mexico

City 20 years ago – the power of accompanying those

you are seeking to help – would stay with him and

shape his mission in the years ahead, especially in his

work with communities in the Amazon.

“That’s where I recognise the presence of Jesus in my

life,” he says of those personal encounters. “And it’s

not a theoretical presence, it’s people with names,

with stories and who are friends in my life.”

The Amazon has been the

focus of his life for the past 15

years and this work has made

him one of the best-known and

most influential lay leaders in

the Catholic Church today.

He was one of the leaders of

the Amazon Synod in 2019,

which brought together

communities from nine

countries that make up the

Amazon region of South

America to discuss their hopes for the Church and

how the Church could help them in their struggles

to survive.

He is also the lay Vice-President of the Ecclesial

Conference of the Amazon, the body responsible for

implementing the outcomes of the Synod. He was

a former member of the Dicastery for Promoting

14

Integral Human Development, a member of the

facilitation team for the Synod on Synodality in Rome

and is founding director of the Amazon University

Program, which is bringing higher education to the

Amazon region.

NO EASY ROAD TO FAITH

This life as a lay person in the Church had its roots in

Mauricio’s early faith formation, in the catechism and

Jesuit schooling, which he says was very different to

most people his own age who had a more traditional

spiritual upbringing in parish life.

Rather, his was more about “searching” and

“lived experiences”.

“Working with the poor was part of my life since I

was a little boy in the catechism, and the movements

where I participated,” he said. And formation “was

more connected to congregations than parishes,

and usually congregations with a very strong

commitment to social justice and discernment”.

His time at a Jesuit school taught him that faith

comes from “a very serious search” and does not

come easily.

“I could feel it even as a little boy, [the Jesuits]

wouldn’t give you the answers, they would really

challenge you to look for those yourself,” Mauricio

says. And if you wanted to go down that path of faith

you had to look for it.

“The Spiritual Exercises experience is a really very

structured and pedagogical approach which takes

you deeper, which makes you responsible for the

type of faith that you want to live,” he says. “And it

really pushes you forward on what you want to do

with your life.”

‘no, this is who I am and who I want to be. Nobody’s

forcing me to do it but I choose to continue this path’.

And it’s been like that ’till now.

“That’s what my faith journey has been all about in

this discernment – a dynamic and profound love for

God and feeling part of the religion, not because I am

forced, but because I truly believe in that.”

BEING CALLED TO SERVE

His next big spiritual realisation came at university

when it became clear that his path “was connected

to the mission of the Church”. So he abandoned any

idea of working for a big corporation and “started

putting all those tools to work in a pastoral setting”.

He went back to study theology and it was here

where he again was influenced by the Jesuit teaching

of a professor and missionary who had developed a

program for lay leaders from all over Latin America.

This formation convinced him of what he’d always

believed – “that my calling was as a lay person

serving in the Church with a very clear focus on social

justice and in a truly horizontal type of collaboration”.

“There was something in my discernment where I

felt God’s presence, and it was not in the religious

pathway,” Mauricio says. “That’s important to

highlight, laity is a vocation in the Church which

has a very, very powerful value for the future of the

mission of the Church.”

Mauricio Lopez was speaking in Parramatta on

23 July as part of the Bishop Vincent Presents

series of public lectures. To read more about his

visit, go to Catholic Outlook online.

The importance of this teaching took a while for him

to realise and it wasn’t until he was travelling and

living in Europe and the US for a while after school

that this became clearer. He was immersed in other

cultures and confronted with many choices – such

as drugs and relationships – where he was only

answerable to himself, and it was here he chose to

be faithful to his formation.

“I noticed that I was responsible for whatever path I

wanted to follow, and how I could bring the best of

that formation and it came quite organically, not as

something that I felt I was forced to do.”

He could see this was different to others around him

who had had a more “imposing type of religion”.

“Whenever they had a chance to go out, they would

just go crazy. I felt I had a strong foundation to say,

Mauricio Lopez Oropeza speaking at St Patrick’s Cathedral, Parramatta, in

July. Images: Alphonsus Fok/Diocese of Parramatta

15

Brittany Maggs and Alex Mather.

Helping couples

discover the

heavenly purpose

in marriage

BY ANTONY LAWES

In an age when fewer couples are choosing

to marry and the institution of marriage is

increasingly being seen as just a legal document,

one young priest in the Diocese of Parramatta is

teaching couples to see the “divine nature” of the

sacrament and the importance of their ongoing

relationship with God.

Fr Adam Carlow has been running his marriage

preparation course for more than year and each time

he runs it, he gets more couples signing up. This is

despite many of them also doing a general marriage

preparation course run by the Diocese.

Fr Adam says while the Diocesan

course is very useful, he saw a real

need for more “accompaniment

from the priest”.

“That relationship is important,

especially when we look at

grounding their marriage in the

context of God and his Church,”

he says.

Fr Adam Carlow. Fr Adam started the course when

he was an Assistant Priest at St

Madeleine Sophie Barat Parish, Kenthurst, and has

continued running it at the Parish of Richmond,

where he moved in May, also as Assistant Priest.

He designed it himself, drawing on Scripture

passages and a wide array of religious writings to

focus on the theological side of marriage, which he

covers in three half-day sessions. He says he leaves

the “practical stuff” to the course run by the Diocese.

As part of the marriage preparations for each couple,

he also holds several one-on-one meetings, often

over a coffee, where he gets to know them better.

“It’s a way to say to them that they’re cared for and

that God loves them,” he says.

HOW MARRIAGE WORKS IN THE EYES OF GOD

Fr Adam’s approach has struck a chord with couples,

who not only find his lessons fun and engaging, but

spiritually meaningful.

For one couple, Brittany Maggs, 25, and her fiancé

Alex Mather, 28, doing the course changed their view

about what marriage should be about.

“It has opened our eyes to just how important

marriage is and just how seriously it should be

taken,” Brittany says.

“It has shown both of us that having God at the

centre of our marriage is extremely important and

will help us to have a long marriage.”

The couple, parishioners at St Madeleine’s Sophie

Barat who have been together for six years, met

Fr Adam when he was still a priest at the parish.

They particularly liked how, during the course, he

was approachable and made lessons fun. His youth

and the way he explained things enabled them to

understand “exactly how marriage works in the eyes

of God”.

“It really brought us closer together and we love that

Fr Adam had us reflect on certain things and talk to

each other about it,” Brittany says. “It has taught us

to slow down and actually listen to what each other

is saying.”

Another couple, Claudia Butjerevic and Nicholas

Sheehy, both 25, who also attended Fr Adam’s course

at Kenthurst, say it brought the

real meaning of marriage “back

to centre stage” after the fuss of

organising everything else for the

big day.

16

“It brought the idea of service and honour back

into the picture,” Claudia says.

“How our life together is first and foremost about

willing the good of the other and about bringing

one another to Christ and to heaven.”

She and Nicholas have been together for nine

years and say they know their relationship is

strong and built on good

foundations. What they didn’t

know was how to “have Christ

reflected in our relationship”.

“Fr Adam gave valuable insight

into how Scripture views

marriage, how women and

men are meant to honour,

serve and love as Christ did.

‘It really brought us closer

together and we love that

Fr Adam had us reflect on

certain things and talk to

each other about it,’

- Brittany Maggs

Claudia Butjerevic and Nicholas Sheehy.

Images: Jazz Chalouhi/ Diocese of Parramatta

“Marriage in fact mirrors God’s

covenant with humanity. The

married couple echoes God’s

faithfulness, permanency,

forgiveness and love with mankind.

“The vows they make are so

powerful that it does, in a spiritual

way, bind them together in a union

of love.”

“Interpreting Catholic teaching is complicated

and takes years of study. We needed that

knowledge to have a richer marriage, so

naturally we consulted an expert.”

She says while she lives in Kenthurst, neither of

them were parishioners of St Madeleine’s Sophie

Barat and only knew of Fr Adam after attending

one of his Masses.

“Nick and I had looked at each other mid-service

and knew this was who we wanted to marry us,”

says Claudia, whose wedding day is in November.

“We loved working with Fr Adam and will

continue to sing his praises.”

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‘MIRRORS GOD’S COVENANT’

Fr Adam says marriage is the most important

decision couples will ever make – it is who they

choose to spend the rest of their lives with and

start a family with – so they need to approach the

preparation for marriage seriously.

But modern society has reduced marriage

to “some kind of legal agreement” and has

forgotten, or does not want to interfere with,

what happens after the ceremony.

“I think we’ve lost sight of the divine nature of

marriage,” he says.

But he says this relationship also has a “heavenly

purpose”.

“Together they build their lives towards the Kingdom

of God. I pray for them, that their home here on

earth will reflect their future home in the

Father’s house.”

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St Vincent de Paul Society members from St Thomas Aquinas Parish, Springwood, with students from St Columba’s Catholic College

Springwood during a ‘Busking for Vinnies’ event in the main street of Springwood. Image: Mary Brazell/Diocese of Parramatta

The heartbeat

of Vinnies:

parish communities living the Gospel

BY GELINA MONTIERRO

Across the Diocese of Parramatta, small

groups of parishioners gather quietly in

meeting rooms, church offices, and homes

to serve. These parish-based groups, known as

conferences, are the heartbeat of the St Vincent

de Paul Society's (Vinnies) mission at a local level

– bringing Christ’s love to people in need through

practical action.

For Georg Eberl, a parishioner at Holy Family Parish,

Mt Druitt, the call to join came in the simplest of

ways. “I got tapped on the shoulder by our Assistant

Priest. He asked, ‘Do you know anything about

Vinnies? Would you like to come along?’”

Seven years later, Georg still finds meaning in the

Society’s down-to-earth approach. “Meeting people

where they’re at – that’s what practical love as

‘Vincentians’ (members of the St Vincent de Paul

Society) looks like.”

The friendly faces of compassion from the Mt Druitt conference. Image: Supplied.

That practical love looks like food, clothing, furniture,

whitegoods, help with medical scripts or bills, and

housing or bill-assistance referrals, grounded first

in listening. “One of the most important things we

actually do when meeting people is to listen to their

stories,” Georg says.

One Sunday, a woman fleeing domestic violence

needed urgent help. She had just been discharged

from hospital and had nowhere safe to go. With

other services closed, she came to Holy Family

Church in distress during Mass. The Parish Priest,

Fr Cao Nguyen SJ, referred her to Vinnies and Georg

and another member met with her.

“She was agitated, stressed, frustrated and worried

– but after we spent time with her, she changed,”

he says. “We listened to her story, heard what was

happening in her life, and how she had a plan to

go out of the area for family support. And we were

able to give her the means to travel, food and other

connections to connect her to family, and gave her

the contact of Vinnies in that area so she could

get further assistance. We were able to give her a

helping hand and a hand up to help her achieve

her plan.”

This blend of faith, compassion, and practical

assistance is repeated in communities throughout

the Diocese. In Springwood, members run a weekly

drop-in centre at the Catholic Care office. “We still

do home visits,” says long-time member Martin, “but

that’s not as common. Most of the work is done at

the centre, and we have contact with the schools.”

18

“St Columba’s Catholic College produces about 45

hampers for Katoomba, one of the very high-need

areas in the Mountains. We’re also supported

by the parish, who produce another 35 or 40

hampers. They get distributed far and wide, and

the level of support we get is massive.”

For Kim, who joined the Springwood Conference

after retiring from teaching, the work offers a

deep connection to both Church and community.

“People come in for a catch-up, support, a listening

ear, and then we would support them in a practical

sense with food vouchers.”

Kim’s background in education has strengthened

the conference’s partnership with local schools.

“The FIAT team from St Columba’s College and St

Thomas Aquinas Primary are actively involved, with

both schools taking part in the Vinnies Sleepout.

Last year, I suggested to the primary students,

‘Why not write to politicians?’ They had never

thought they could do that. Trish Doyle, our local

state member, not only acknowledged their letters

and forwarded them to Housing Minister Rose

Jackson, she actually visited the school to meet the

students. It really showed them the power

of a letter.”

The involvement of young people in Vinnies is

no accident. As Martin says: “The Society was

founded by a bunch of 20-year-olds. Having young

involvement is important to our future, and it’s a

natural fit.”

‘It’s a reminder that in

different circumstances, we

could be the people asking for

help one day.’

- Kim Crawford,

Springwood Conference

Today, Vinnies Youth continues that tradition,

offering young Catholics opportunities to

serve, advocate, and encounter Christ in those

experiencing hardship.

Students from St Columba’s busking in Springwood.

Image: Mary Brazell/Diocese of Parramatta

action, meeting people in their need and serving

them with the same compassion Jesus had.

Georg says the Vinnies logo, which remains

unchanged in Australia despite proposals to alter it,

perfectly captures the Society’s mission of faith in

action. “The three hands and the cup,” he explains.

“The hand of Christ that blesses the cup, the hand

of love that offers the cup, and the hands of those

in need that receive the cup.”

The need in our communities is real, and the

call to respond is urgent. If you feel prompted to

put your faith into action, contact your parish,

call 13 18 12, or visit vinnies.org.au to find your

nearest conference. Your “yes” could be the

answer to someone’s prayer.

A Ministry of the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth

A Ministry A Ministry of the of the Sisters Sisters of the of the Holy Holy Family Family of Nazareth

of We We Care Care About About the

the

Same Same People People You You Do

Do

Do

For Georg, Martin, Kim, and countless other

Vincentians, this is what it means to live the Gospel.

“It’s a reminder that in different circumstances, we

could be the people asking for help one day,” Kim

says. “That’s been my learning – we don’t have all

the answers, but at least we listen.”

The example of Georg, Martin, and Kim shows that

our worship at Mass should naturally overflow into

Fr Joby Ittira with junior and senior servers following Holy Thursday Mass in 2024. Image: Supplied

Altar serving

ministry nourishing

the community

BY MARY BRAZELL

It might not be a large parish, but St Anthony of

Padua, Toongabbie, has a junior altar serving

ministry that would rival some of its

bigger neighbours.

The ministry has flourished since its rejuvenation

in 2016, with 44 servers aged 10 to 18 years old

assisting with the celebration of the parish’s three

weekend Masses and their Tuesday evening devotion

Mass to St Anthony.

“It’s astronomical and uncommon for a parish of our

size to have so many servers,” Master of Ceremonies

and altar server trainer Anthony Michael said.

“In the past, altar serving didn’t seem to be a

nourishing ministry or experience for young people,

but now, it’s seen as a social gathering and allows

them to come together and what, I feel, keeps

them involved.”

TRAINING BUILDS CONFIDENCE

Altar serving is open to children after receiving their

First Holy Communion and they are trained over

three different stages:

1. General altar serving duties such as

carrying the candles.

2. Cross bearer and book-bearer.

3. Thurifer.

With each stage, there is a sense of leadership in that

those in the higher stages train the younger servers.

Once the servers reach 18, they can then be trained

to be senior servers, helping with the preparation of

the altar.

“One of the great things is watching them grow in

terms of their confidence, their belief in themselves

and their own faith journey.

"They start off really anxious

and nervous, and in a few

years, they’re helping other

kids with what to do and role

modelling the reverence of

serving at Mass,” Anthony said.

“The thing I always teach the kids is that we are not

making the Mass more sacred, but we are making

what’s hidden to be more visible and highlighting the

sensorial experiences during the Mass to realise the

beauty and the divinity of what’s going on.”

Anthony was grateful for the leadership of senior

server Jodie Rodrigues, who led the training since

2011 and had recently stepped away. “She had a

unique ability to plan, organise and teach whilst also

being relatable and connecting to our young children

in a way that enhances a sense of belonging.”

GIVING BACK A KEY TO SERVING

One of the parish’s newest altar servers, Shaylin

Arulnayagam, was inspired to join the ministry

through the influence of her older sister.

“My interest grew to help out in church, and so I

decided to do that by becoming an altar server,”

she said.

“My favourite part of being an altar server is

carrying the candles to the altar and helping when

Communion takes place.

“I learnt more about leadership and making new

friends by being involved in the parish.”

Anushan Winton started off as a junior server at the

age of 13 in 2018, following in the footsteps of his

brother. Now, he is being trained by Anthony as a

senior server.

20

“Initially, I felt as if it was my duty to become an altar

server and give back to the community in which I was

raised and learned my Christian values,”

Anushan said.

“As I got older and matured, I started to really

appreciate how being an altar server brought me

closer to God.

“Serving at the altar, we get a ‘front row seat’ to the

sacredness of it all, which helps us stay present and

truly in the moment.

“This role has helped me become more disciplined in

my faith and more committed to living out the values

of the Church in everyday life.”

“Helping the Mass run just a bit more smoothly and

doing my part makes me feel as if I’m carrying a small

part of the cross that Jesus did.”

BRINGING LIFE AND YOUTH TO THE PARISH

Anthony said that the ministry is greatly supported

by Parish Priest Fr Joby Ittira, and by the wider

community, who value having such a strong serving

ministry.

“We’ve had a lot of people saying that it adds

reverence to the Mass,” he said.

“I’ve also had really positive feedback from the

parents of the servers, which, I think, gets them to be

more excited in the life of the Church and engages

the families more in the community.

“Our community continues to have a great influx of

migrants from the South Asian countries, and they

bring with them their passion for their faith, which

then filters down to their children.”

Anushan said that having such a strong altar serving

ministry brings “life and youth” to the parish.

“It is a privilege to be part of a community that values

the role of young people in the Church,” he said.

“The younger people are ultimately the next

generation who are going to carry on and spread the

faith in the future.”

STRENGTHENING CONNECTION TO FAITH,

COMMUNITY

Anthony hopes that when the children leave the

ministry, the faith development they experienced

will nourish them in other aspects of parish life.

“Our intention is that they don’t just come to Mass

to serve – they live out their faith life in the wider

community in a way that connects to who they are.”

For Anushan, he feels that being an altar server has

made him a well-rounded person.

Seamstress

to the stars!

One of the unsung heroes of the altar

serving ministry is parishioner Linda

Mackett, who helps sew and design the albs

for all the servers.

Linda has been sewing the albs for four

years, having taken over from an older

parishioner from Our Lady, Queen of Peace

Parish, Greystanes.

Each alb takes approximately 4-5 hours to

complete, and at the beginning of every

training cycle, Linda will get the children to

try on sample sizes and make adjustments

when necessary. She will also take home the

albs if she notices the sleeves or hems are

too short.

“I’ve loved sewing and knitting from a very

young age, so this is a very rewarding

ministry,” she says.

“It’s so nice to see the kids growing up and

becoming more confident as they work their

way through the training and the ministry.

“I’m very honoured and pleased to be

involved in this ministry. It gives me a great

deal of joy.”

21

The Reconciliation artwork, ‘Faith, Hope, Love’, was created in

collaboration with artist Amy Allerton and First Nations students

and staff from CSPD. Images: Gene Ramirez/CSPD

Schools commit

to advancing

reconciliation

BY OLIVIA O’CONNOR

On Wednesday 23 July, Catholic Schools

Parramatta Diocese (CSPD) proudly unveiled

its second Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP),

the Innovate RAP 2025–2027 at The Colebee Centre,

Doonside.

The event brought together community leaders

including Edmond Atalla MP, state member for

Mount Druitt; Sharon Cooke, State Manager of

Aboriginal Education at Catholic Schools NSW; Aunty

Carol Cooper as well as school principals and staff

representatives from CSPD.

A Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) is a strategic

commitment made to support Reconciliation with

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

It offers a framework for building respectful

partnerships, embedding cultural knowledge, and

generating opportunities that promote a culturally

safe and welcoming environment.

For CSPD, this commitment to reconciliation also

supports the Australian Catholic Bishops Social

22

Justice Statement 2023-2024 Listen, Learn, Love: A New

Engagement with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander

Peoples and Bishop Vincent’s call to strengthen our

relationship with First Nations Australians.

Building on the foundations of the Reflect RAP

launched in 2021, the Innovate RAP 2025–2027

reflects CSPD’s formal commitment to listening,

learning, and embedding First Nations histories and

cultures into daily practices, policies,

and decision-making.

Closely aligned with their new system strategy

to represent the diverse communities served in

Western Sydney and the Blue Mountains, this next

stage in the Reconciliation Action Plan focuses on:

• Deepening relationships with Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander peoples

• Embedding cultural learning into all aspects

of work

• Creating equitable opportunities through

employment and procurement

• Strengthening respect through meaningful,

two-way engagement

CSPD’s Chief Executive Officer Jack de Groot thanked

RAP Project Manager Amanda Fotheringham, RAP

Officer Yvette King, the Jarara team, the RAP Advisory

Committee and Working Group for leading the

process with Reconciliation Australia.

“This is a practical, deliberate step forward in

our reconciliation journey,” Mr De Groot said.

“It is Christ’s love that calls us to recognise

the dignity of every person. As followers of

Jesus, we are called to walk in solidarity

and work for justice alongside our First

Nations colleagues, students, families and

communities.”

The Innovate RAP artwork was created by

artist Amy Allerton, a Gumbaynggirr and

Bundjalung woman, in collaboration with

90 First Nations students and staff

from CSPD.

Olivia O’Connor is the Communications

Manager at Catholic Schools Parramatta

Diocese.

23

James Atanasious at the Tri-Diocesan Social Justice Statement Evening.

(Below) with his children Hannah and Matteo. Image: Diocese of Parramatta

James at the Comboni Comprehensive

College, in the Adjumani refugee camp,

Uganda. Image: Supplied.

Sustained

by faith

BY ISABELL

PETRINIC

James Atanasious’ life is living proof of his

conviction: hope will prevail, and faith, no matter

where it’s planted, can grow into something

beautiful. This is his faith journey.

From the crowded East African refugee camp

where he learned the power of community, to

Western Sydney — where he now advocates

for the vulnerable as the Peace, Justice, and Ecology

Facilitator for the Diocese of Parramatta — James’

journey has been one of resilience, service, and

unwavering belief.

James (back left) and his

brother David (back right), and

sisters Karine and Grace

(left to right) at the Adjumani

refugee camp, Uganda,

on a Christmas Day.

Image: Supplied.

24

A CALLING FORMED IN

THE CAMPS

Born in South Sudan,

James fled with his family

to northern Uganda during

the brutal civil war. They

settled in the Adjumani

refugee camp, a sprawling

settlement of more than

200 languages, where

drought, starvation, limited

healthcare and little access

to education defined

daily life.

Faith became the family’s

anchor.

His mother, a leader in the local Catholic Action

group, organised prayer meetings, led the Rosary,

visited the sick, arranged baptisms and worked

closely with catechists. His father, a former

seminarian, supported her pastoral work and

handled the paperwork.

At just 12 years old, James was deeply involved in

parish life, singing in the choir, cleaning the church

and helping other young people keep the faith

community vibrant.

“Deep down, I always knew God was caring, loving,

and the source of hope," he says.

That hope was nurtured by priests and seminarians

in the camp. Their witness left such a mark that,

after arriving in Australia, James entered the

seminary for a time before discerning a different

path. Looking back, he sees clearly that social justice

had been the foundation of his vocation from the

beginning.

‘I CAN STILL SMILE’

James does not shy away from suffering. “The

toughest thing for me has been seeing children die

and losing close relatives, both here and overseas.”

He admits there are times he asks God hard

questions: Why does it happen? Why does it have to

be so painful?

The answers don’t come directly or immediately. But

he sees them in the quiet ways God sustains him.

“Despite the heavy load, I can still smile, wake up in

the morning, go to work, help others, and inspire

others. That in itself is the work of prayer.”

FROM DESPAIR TO DELIVERANCE

James remembers the insecurity inflicted by the

Lord’s Resistance Army, who once nearly kidnapped

his sister from her boarding school. Still, his family

clung to hope.

Support came from organisations like Jesuit Refugee

Services and the Comboni Missionaries. In time,

his eldest brother, Charles, reunited the family in

Australia through a humanitarian visa, ending more

than two decades of separation.

“It was a moment that reminded me God hears even

the prayers that take decades to answer,” James said.

Arriving in Australia in 2004, James and his sister

completed Years 11 and 12 in Hobart, supported

by the generosity of a benefactor they never met.

He went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts, a Master of

Communication and, most recently, a Master of

Theological Studies.

SERVING THROUGH ADVOCACY

For more than a decade, James worked in the

community sector, helping vulnerable people find

lasting solutions. Today, that commitment shapes

his leadership of the Diocesan Journey Walking

with Refugees and People Seeking Protection,

coordinating partner agencies – Jesuit Refugee

Service, CatholicCare, House of Welcome, Vinnies,

and the Community Migrant Resource Centre – to

support those most in need.

While these agencies provide frontline support,

James focuses on advocacy for refugees, people

experiencing homelessness and those living with

disabilities. Recent arrivals to the Diocese have

come from Syria, Gaza, Palestine, Ukraine, Russia,

Afghanistan, and Pakistan.

‘My testimony can be hope

for someone else, proof that

what they see now is not the

end. Things can change.’

Diocesan food- and clothing-drives help meet urgent

needs. “I try to do the best I can to support people,

whether through advocacy or practical assistance,”

he said, recalling the words of Matthew 25:35–40:

“When you were hungry you fed me, when I was cold

you clothed me.”

FAITH THAT KEEPS WALKING

James draws strength from Bishop Paride Taban,

founder of the Holy Trinity Peace Village in South

Sudan, who taught that life’s trials can make us bitter

or better; the choice is ours. He is equally inspired by

St Teresa of Calcutta’s reminder that, “It is not how

much we give, but how much love we put into

the giving.”

For James, the call of the Gospel is clear: stand with

those on the margins, because he has been there

too. “I always like to share my personal journey,”

he says.

James with Jesuit Refugee Services staff.

Image: Alphonsus Fok/ Diocese of Parramatta

James’ wife Jennifer with their children Hannah and Matteo.

Image: Supplied

25

Will you design

our Christmas cover?

We’re inviting you to design the front cover

of this year’s Christmas magazine!

All ages welcome. Let your artwork reflect the true

meaning of Christmas during this Jubilee Year of

Hope.

Please submit your entry by Friday 7 November

2025 with a short description of your artwork.

Full details and T&Cs found at

parracatholic.org/artcomp

Let’s make this Advent and Christmas season a

canvas of faith and joy – together.

?

Harvest Change in Zambia

catholicmission.org.au/hope

St Luke’s reaches

building milestone

There’s much to celebrate at St Luke's Catholic

Parish, Marsden Park, with the successful

completion of stage one of its building project

that gives the community a permanent place

of worship.

The newly completed parish building will function as

a temporary church, providing a much-needed space

for worship, gatherings and parish administration.

The building features a spacious hall, parish office,

and amenities to support the life and mission of the

growing community.

Parish Priest Fr Gayan Thamel shared his joy at

this milestone. “Stage one of the building has been

successfully completed thanks to the contributions

of many – our parishioners, the Diocese, St Luke's

Catholic College, Blacktown City Council and the

builder. This new space will allow us to come

together to pray, celebrate the sacraments and grow

in faith as a parish family.”

Construction of the building began in March this

year and its completion marks the beginning of

a broader vision for St Luke’s Parish. The parish

remains committed to continuing the next phases of

development as part of its long-term mission to serve

the spiritual and pastoral needs of the local

Catholic community.

With hearts full of gratitude and hope, the parish

looks forward to the future, Ramon from the Parish

Council said.

“Having been present for our first Mass to now

having a permanent place of worship is so exciting.

We are so blessed for all the support we have

received from our parish community and

the Diocese.”

St Luke’s Parish will hold its first official Mass in the

building on Sunday 19 October. All are welcome to

join in celebrating this milestone in the

parish’s history.

If you would like to support the project or

find out more, visit the parish website

stlukesmarsdenpark.org.au

Images: St Luke's Parish, Marsden Park/Supplied

27

Eleven parishioners across the Diocese of

Parramatta have been recognised for their

unwavering dedication, faith and service at the

2025 Diocesan Awards.

During a ceremony at St Patrick’s Cathedral,

Parramatta, on Thursday 7 August, the eve of St Mary

MacKillop of the Cross’ feast day, 10 people were

presented with the Diocesan Medal of Honour. The

late Mr Geoff Roney was honoured posthumously

for his extensive parish contributions, with his wife

Janice accepting the award on his behalf.

Vicar-General Fr Peter Williams AM VG paid tribute to

each recipient, drawing on the deep faith of St Mary

MacKillop. He reflected on her commitment to the

message of Jesus Christ and her steadfast belief on

putting the needs of others first.

“In the context of our celebration tonight, we are

honouring women and men from our own Diocese

who, in their own way, have contributed to the life of

their parish communities – often without fanfare,”

he said.

“They have responded to the call that comes from

deep within the Christian person, whose vocation

through baptism is to be there for the service

of others.

“Our awardees tonight become beacons of hope in

this Jubilee Year of Hope, inspiring others to follow

their own pathways of service. It’s all about building

up the Body – and the Body is us. We are the Church,

and we are all called to build up one

another in faith.”

Beacons of Hope:

Honouring the Dedicated Service of Parishioners

BY MARY-JANE CHEMUEL

Images: Diocese of Parramatta

Mrs Marjorie Cartwright - St Patrick’s Parish, Guildford

Mrs Cartwright has been a member of her parish for about 85 years. For the past 40 years, she has

supported St Patrick’s Primary and the former Patrician Brothers College through the school canteen,

organising annual textbook hire, and serving at every home game football match. In the parish, she

helped with fetes, annual Stations of the Cross plays, and continues to serve on the counters’ roster.

Mrs Laura Eid - Sacred Heart Parish, Westmead

Mrs Eid has been a catechist in her parish for more than 45 years, also serving much of that time

as Parish Coordinator. For more than 25 years, she has been part of the Altar Society, preparing

the church by laundering linens, arranging banners, and setting up for Mass. She also serves as an

Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion and a reader at Mass.

Mr Paul Eid - Sacred Heart Parish, Westmead

Mr Eid has been the groundsman at the parish for more than 20 years, generously supporting the

parish community with any task, big or small. He also coordinates the weekly collections at Mass and

prepares the church and hall each weekend. Mr Eid is always ready to welcome new parishioners

and assist with hospitality after Mass.

28

Mrs Maria Hyson - St Andrew the Apostle Parish, Marayong

Mrs Hyson, wife of Deacon Charles Hyson, has been a member of her parish for the past 24 years.

During this time, she has served as an adult server, Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion,

lector, and reader. In 2014, she became the parish’s Sacramental Coordinator while also working at

the parish primary school.

Mrs Pauline Knowler - St Paul the Apostle Parish, Winston Hills

Mrs Knowler has been at her parish for more than 40 years. From 1983 to 2010, she was a member

of the parish’s St Vincent de Paul Society, helping pack Christmas hampers. She has also been a

valued member of the parish sacramental team for more than 20 years, served as a reader and

Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion.

Mr Michael Lopez - St Bernadette’s Parish, Castle Hill

Mr Lopez has served as an acolyte at his parish for 40 years. He is known as a kind and caring

presence, supporting and guiding fellow acolytes and altar servers. He regularly volunteers at extra

Masses, including the monthly Healing Mass, ensuring those with limited mobility can receive the

sacraments. Despite recent health challenges, Mr Lopez returned to his duties as soon as he was able.

Mrs Melissa McDonald - St Finbar’s Parish, Glenbrook

Mrs McDonald has been a catechist for about 15 years. For the past 10 years, she has served as the

Parish Coordinator at St Finbar’s and soon after became Regional Coordinator for the Blue Mountains

Deanery. She has served on the Parish Council with a focus on social justice and was previously the

parish’s Music Coordinator. She remains active in her parish, contributing to music ministry and small

group discussions.

Mrs Anne-Marie Moriarty - St Andrew the Apostle Parish, Marayong

Mrs Moriarty has been a member of her parish for about 35 years. During this time, she has served in

various ministries, including as an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion, a member of the Music

Committee and ministry, the Parish Social Justice Committee and the Parish Council. She has also

shared her professional skills as a nurse to support a refugee family and as part of the Parish Grief

Support program.

Mr Melvyn Myers - St Bernadette’s Parish, Castle Hill

Mr Myers has been an acolyte at St Bernadette’s for about 30 years. For the last 25 years, he has

been the coordinator of the Ministers of the Altar. In this role, he has trained, encouraged, rostered

and arranged parish acolytes, senior servers, altar servers, and Extraordinary Ministers of Holy

Communion. In addition, he and other volunteers run tours of the church for the parish’s sacramental

program, giving an insight to parts of the liturgy and church building that are not usually seen.

Mr John Chandran - Sacred Heart Parish, Westmead

Mr Chandran is an active member of the parish, volunteering as a reader, senior altar server,

Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion, and assisting at numerous events. His service is most

evident in his dedication to the local St Vincent de Paul conference, leading annual appeals, collecting

goods, and distributing Christmas hampers to those in need, even amid declining volunteer support.

He is also the first point of contact for those seeking immediate help with essentials such as food

or shelter.

The Late Mr Geoff Roney - St Bernadette’s Parish, Castle Hill

Sadly, Mr Roney passed away after the nomination was submitted and before Committee

consideration. He is remembered for his service as a member of the St Bernadette’s St Vincent de Paul

Conference for nearly 15 years, serving as president and vice president. He visited hundreds of homes,

provided grocery vouchers, and arranged accommodation, schooling and furniture. He also organised

Christmas hampers, tailoring each to its recipient. Mr Roney was always willing to share his experience

and offer advice to new members. May he rest in peace.

29

NAIDOC Week celebrations at Whalan Reserve.

Images: Alphonsus Fok/Diocese of Parramatta.

A deadly

day out!

BY BELINDA GADD

More than 2000 people gathered at Whalan

Reserve to celebrate the 50th anniversary

of NAIDOC Week under the theme ‘Next

Generation – Strength, Vision, Legacy’.

What had begun years ago as a local celebration

hosted at Holy Family Parish, Emerton, has grown

into one of the most anticipated events on the

local calendar – so much so that, with support from

Blacktown City Council, it moved this year to Whalan

Reserve to accommodate its growing popularity.

This year’s event was a true community celebration

– supported by the community, for the community.

Hosted by Baabayn Aboriginal Corporation and Holy

Family Parish, in collaboration with Blacktown City

Council, Catholic Care Western Sydney and the Blue

Mountains and the Diocese of Parramatta, the day

brought together people from all walks of life to

celebrate culture, build relationships and

share resources.

The vision behind the event was clear: bringing

community together, building connections, and

creating space for support, healing and belonging.

More than 60 stallholders representing local

organisations and agencies – including NGROO,

Yarning Crescent, GWAHS, SRAC, Keyton, Fulton

Hogan, DCJ, NSW Health, and Mt Druitt Police

– offered information, services, and interactive

experiences for families.

‘NAIDOC, it doesn’t matter

where it is, where it’s at, but that

day is special for everybody,’

- Aunty Rhonda

In total, around 80 organisations, including many

Aboriginal-led services, contributed to the

day’s success.

Special guests included Mayor Brad Bunting of

Blacktown City Council and other local politicians,

who joined the community in celebrating strength,

resilience and shared vision.

From free rides, entertainment and footy games to

sausage sizzles, popcorn, snow cones, ice cream and

corn on the cob, the day was filled with joy, culture

30

and a deep sense of unity that captured the heart

of NAIDOC’s purpose and spirit.

BEATS, BITES AND BELONGING

Many stalls circled the reserve, including a

combined stall from the Diocese of Parramatta

and its social welfare agency Catholic Care Western

Sydney and the Blue Mountains, adjacent to

the Jarara Cultural Centre of Catholic Schools

Parramatta Diocese. Together, the teams offered

culture every day, this is just something that I’m truly

grateful for,” he said.

YARNING WITH AUNTIES

At the Catholic Care stall, Aunties Rhonda and Neroli

were delighted to share their art and invite children

passing by to have a go at painting art themselves.

For Aunty Rhonda, a Bundjalung Elder and Catholic

Care volunteer who runs the Dirrangun women’s

art group in Emerton, the event was about people,

stories and connection.

“NAIDOC, it doesn’t matter where it is, where it’s at,

but that day is special for everybody,” she said.

Catholic Care’s staff, volunteers and community

engagement coordinators were on site to share the

services available – and those yet to come.

“Watch this space,” Lisa Malcher, Community

engagement coordinator, said.

a warm and welcoming presence filled with colour,

creativity and opportunities for

cultural connection.

Other stalls included NSW emergency and health

services, alongside community groups, small

businesses and faith organisations.

For members of the Diocese’s Mission

Enhancement Team, who supported the Diocesan

stall and the main stage program, getting involved

on the day was all about being present, standing

in solidarity and celebrating with Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander communities in

Western Sydney.

JARARA BUILDS A LEGACY

Aunty Julie Waddell, who leads Jarara – the

cultural team supporting Aboriginal and Torres

Strait Islander students across Catholic Schools

Parramatta Diocese – said the event was more

than just a school excursion for the students

attending. It was a meaningful opportunity to give

back in the spirit of cultural reciprocity.

“With this year’s theme about the next generation

and the importance of that, this is critical for our

role within Catholic Schools Parramatta. It’s about

empowering our young people,” Julie said.

Cody, a young cultural officer with Jarara, was once

a student at Bede Polding College South Windsor.

Now he’s walking alongside the next generation of

students, just as his mentors did for him.

“I’m learning new things about myself and about

This year’s NAIDOC event was more than a

celebration – it was a continuation of First Nations

strength, vision and legacy.

Special thanks to the community, supporters and

organisers for making this year’s NAIDOC event

one of the biggest and most memorable ever!

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celebrate

with millions

BY MARY BRAZELL

Young people from the Diocese

of Parramatta have joined over

one million young Catholics in

celebrating the Jubilee of Youth.

Held in Rome from 28 July to 3 August, the

Parramatta pilgrims celebrated unity in the midst of

diversity with Catholics from across the globe.

Alongside concerts, workshops and youth

celebrations, the pilgrims were able to walk through

the Holy Doors of the four Basilicas of Rome – which

will remain open until the end of the Jubilee Year.

Upon walking through the Holy Doors, pilgrim Tony

El-Ghossien said: “I was filled with peace and hope –

responding to God’s invitation to receive His

merciful love”.

Another special highlight for the pilgrims was being

able to pray with two upcoming saints – Blessed

Carlo Acutis and Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati – who

will be canonised in early September.

“Being able to pray in the presence of Blessed Carlo

Acutis and ask for his intercession, really brought

home the fact that in our digitised modern world it

is still possible to answer the call to be saints,” said

pilgrim Neville Reynolds.

Colosseum, Rome.

For pilgrimage coordinator

Eleanor Bonwick, Facilitator – Youth in

the Diocese’s Mission Enhancement Team (MET),

leading the pilgrims to Rome felt like a “coming

home,” despite many pilgrims never visiting the

Vatican before.

“We became connected to the Universal Church – not

just through the multiple languages we could hear

and the many flags we could see,” she said.

“There was a real sense of joy throughout the city

with young people sharing their love for God and for

the Church.

“It truly felt that we were living out Pope Leo XIV’s

motto, ‘In the One, we are one’.”

Following the Jubilee’s Opening Mass, the pilgrims

were blessed with a surprise appearance by

Pope Leo.

Images: Hannah Portelli/Diocese of Parramatta

32

“A lot of our pilgrims, and those around us, became

emotional when Pope Leo came out, because he is

a figure of hope and truth amidst the confusion and

tension in our world,” Eleanor said.

Comments from the Pope, speaking first in English,

touched the Diocesan pilgrims and set the tone for

the rest of their journey.

“Jesus tells us: ‘You are the

salt of the earth […]. You

are the light of the world.’

(Mt. 5:13-14),” Pope Leo

said.

“And today your voices,

your enthusiasm, your

cries – which are all for

Jesus Christ – will be heard

to the ends of the earth.”

“You have the opportunity

to be a force that can

bring God’s grace, a

message of hope, and a

light to the city of Rome,

to Italy, and to the whole

world.”

Before arriving in

Rome, the Parramatta

pilgrims journeyed

in the footsteps of

St Paul throughout

Greece.

Strengthening

friendships and their

faith, the group toured

several cities made famous by St Paul’s

ministry, including Corith, Thessaloniki and Philippi.

Alison Ryan, MET Facilitator, was the pilgrimage’s

formation leader and emphasised to the pilgrims the

importance of how the stories of St Paul weave into

their own faith experiences.

“Pilgrimage is where our faith meets our lives in a

very physical, bodily way. Through our aches and

weariness, we are encountering spaces that the work

of God has been happening in the world,” she said.

“St Paul learnt how to be a follower of Jesus in the

same places that we were learning to be followers of

Jesus. We got to have our own moments of growing

in our own faith, in the words of Paul: imitate me as I

imitate Christ.”

One experience of the pilgrimage through Greece

that remained with the pilgrims was celebrating Mass

at the baptistry of Lydia – believed to be one of the

first European converts. Celebrating by a river, the

group were able to renew their baptismal promises

and were blessed with splashing water from pilgrim

chaplain Fr Jack Elkazzi.

Baptistry of Lydia, Phillippi.

Meteora, Greece.

Alison celebrated the work of Fr Jack in

ensuring the pilgrims were grounded

in their experiences and taking it back

with them to their communities.

“Fr Jack, through his preaching,

would frequently call us back to

community – because no matter

what we were seeing in these

beautiful churches or amazing

places, that’s not the Church, you

are the Church.

”Inspired by the Jubilee

celebrations, the pilgrims were

excited to bring hope back to

their families, parish and school

communities.

“I’m looking forward to bringing back

all the blessings that God has given

me throughout this trip and to share it

with my students,” teacher pilgrim Mary

Nguyen explained.

“I think it’s important for them to see

faith in action because they might not see

that often, and I’m excited to show them

the love of Christ and how He’s worked in

my life over the past three weeks.”

Pilgrim Lauren Maund from Our Lady of the

Nativity Primary School, Lawson, said: “I feel that my

spiritual bucket is full and I’m ready to go back into

my community and be Christ for those people.”

Eleanor hoped that

upon returning to their

communities, the pilgrims

would not be afraid to be

salts of the earth and lights

of the world.

“I hope that they bring a

renewed zeal and passion

for their faith and an

understanding of how Jesus

meets us and is always in our

midst.”

Holy Doors at St Peter's Basilica, Rome.

33

104-year-old Julius Medvecky says you should live your life with happiness.

Images: Alphonsus Fok/ Diocese of Parramatta

Celebrating

809 years of living

Fr Marian Szostak SCHR and Fr Ed Kenny.

Image: Alphonsus Fok/Diocese of Parramatta

BY ISABELL PETRINIC

On Saturday 16 August, this beloved Polish

birthday song (see featured quote below)

rang out joyfully for eight extraordinary

residents at Holy Family Services/ Brother Albert’s

Home, a Polish cultural haven in Marayong. But this

version carried a playful twist.

Wishes for 200 years felt

more fitting because,

together, 809 years of life

were being celebrated.

This remarkable group

included Barbara

Zbierzchowska, Alina

Kizeweter, Stanislaw Szpilik,

Stefan Brozek and Maria Martyniuk, all

turning 100 this year.

They were joined by Krystyna Dublewicz (102), Janina

Pietkowska (103) and Julius Medvecky, who at 104

years, looks set to become the eldest resident ever

at Holy Family Services’ Brother Albert’s Home,

surpassing the previous record of 105.

“Sto lat, sto lat,

niech żyje, żyje nam!”

- “May you live a hundred years!”

Polish birthday song

With his motto - “Serve quietly, build faithfully” -

Julius is more than just the eldest, he is among the

most cherished. Each year, a busload of parishioners

from his long-time parish at Macquarie Fields make

a pilgrimage to celebrate him.

“He is simply a very cheerful,

very likeable person,” said Sr

Grace Roclawska CSFN, Director

of Mission at Holy Family

Services. “It’s quite amazing

how much his faith continues

to guide his life. It’s a common

thread here.”

Julius downplays his age. “I

haven’t lived that long,” he chuckles, adding: “What

you eat is very important. So is how you spend your

life. Spend it with happiness.”

Barbara said her secret to a long life was to “live with

purpose, kindness, and curiosity”.

Celebrations began with a Mass of thanksgiving in

the on-site chapel, celebrated by Fr Marian Szostak

34

Barbara Zbierzchowska’s secret to a long life has been to

“live with purpose, kindness, and curiosity”.

Centenarian Alina Kizeweter with a member of her family.

Stefan Brozek celebrated turning 100.

SCHR and Fr Ed Kenny together with the residents

at Holy Family Services.

Afterwards came a vibrant cultural program with

a traditional Polish lunch (bigos and kielbasi) and

heartfelt tributes.

Special guests included Mayor of Blacktown Brad

Bunting, NSW Member for Blacktown Stephen

Bali, Polish Consul General in Sydney Piotr

Rakowski and Alasdair Croydon, Chief Executive

Officer of Holy Family Services. Sr Margaret Kozub

CSFN, Provincial of the Sisters of the Holy Family

of Nazareth, extended her apologies due to

attending a congregational meeting in Poland.

Stephen Bali thanked the centenarians for their

contribution to Australia, from building the Snowy

River Scheme and railways to working in factories

such as Rank Arena and Bonds.

Consul General Piotr Rakowski joked that there

must be “something in the air or the food” for so

many residents to live beyond 100.

Holy Family Services is a sponsored ministry

of the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth.

For more information, go to

www.holyfamilyservices.com.au

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A Mass held inside St Patrick’s Cathedral after the fire. Image: Diocese of Parramatta

Faith

over fire

What made one priest

keep going after tragedy

BY ANTONY LAWES

For Monsignor John Boyle, the events of

February 1996 were probably the lowest point

of his almost-55 years as a priest.

St Patrick’s Cathedral in Parramatta, at which he

was Parish Priest at the time, had just burnt down

and he was left to deal with a grieving and deeply

traumatised community while also managing his own

feelings of loss. Talking about it now still brings tears

to his eyes.

“That was devastating, just watching the stained-glass

windows, they didn’t break or crack, they melted and

a brown substance oozed down the window sills,” he

said. “It was a nightmare; it was unbelievable that this

had happened.”

Yet despite this he was able to draw on his faith

and long, priestly experience to help the shattered

community get back on its feet. It took time, and it

wasn’t easy. Historical treasures from the cathedral

were lost in the fire and the beautiful old building

was changed forever.

But out of the ashes, a new cathedral emerged, and a

community spirit was reborn.

Mons Boyle remembers about 1000 people gathering

at a memorial service the next day to console each

other and show solidarity with the parish community

and what it had lost. And then there were the many

committees that were set up in the aftermath of the

fire to organise the rebuilding effort.

“There was a coming together, that community

aspect was, I think, the most significant thing about

the destruction of the cathedral,” he said.

Now, almost 30 years after those tragic events, the

retired priest has written a book about the fire and

its aftermath – entitled Tested by Fire. It’s due to be

released later this year.

But as dramatic and important as it was in his time

as a priest, the fire was only one part of Mons Boyle’s

long journey of faith ministering to people in the

Diocese, which began before the Diocese came into

existence in 1986.

36

SIGNIFICANCE OF SERVICE

His first experience as a parish priest was at Sacred

Heart Parish, Westmead, more than a decade before

the fire, and several years before the Diocese was

formed. It was a homecoming of sorts for Mons

Boyle, who spent his

early years as a priest

ministering in other

parts of Sydney.

He had grown up

just down the Great

Western Highway

in Parramatta, was

baptised at St Patrick’s

Church and went to the

same primary school

as his mother,

St Patrick’s, before

going off to Marist

Brothers Parramatta.

Fr Boyle celebrating Mass in Prince Alfred Square, Parramatta,

after the fire. (Below) Outside St Patrick's.

Images: Diocese of Parramatta

He remembers his family being very close, and very

involved in the community.

His dad was on the board of the Eels Leagues Club,

while his grandmother volunteered with Meals on

Wheels, helped found the Parramatta Eisteddfod and

would play piano in the Parramatta Girls’ Home, as

well as the jail next door.

Mons Boyle remembers he and his sister were often

called on to also give concerts at the girls’ home and

the jail.

Quite apart from dealing with the cathedral fire, he

was often confronted with death, tragedy and illness,

from his early years as a priest and hospital chaplain

in Darlinghurst through to his later ministries in the

western suburbs.

But every time, he was able to

call on his faith.

“What made me continue

on? I think it was a belief that

I was called by God to be a

priest and couldn’t just give

up over something that was

a problem at that particular

moment.

“I’ve got that kind of faith

that somehow this was

meant to be, and this was

my opportunity to give back

something to the community.

“There’s been difficulties and challenges, but

somehow with your faith, with family and friends,

you come through all of that, and I think you’re a

stronger person coming through those ordeals.”

But listening to Mons Boyle talk about his vocation,

these “difficulties and challenges” seem only a small

part of his experience of being a priest, a treasured

life being invited into important moments of people’s

lives, and forming many enduring friendships with

fellow clergy and parishioners.

“I spent my adolescence with these naughty girls,

mad people and murderers, and thought that’s what

adolescence was about,” he said.

But more importantly, from these encounters

the “concept of community service was somehow

instilled in us”. So, when he was old enough, he

decided to become an altar server at St Patrick’s

Church under Parish Priest Monsignor Joseph

McGovern, who was “a big influence on my life”.

“That led on to me thinking, well, maybe I could be a

priest and serve in that particular way,” he said.

“I would never have had the opportunities that

I’ve had in life had I not joined the priesthood,”

Mons Boyle said. “I can see the contribution that

the Diocese and the people have made to me as a

person has been quite significant.

“I’ve really been shaped by all those experiences in a

good way.”

Tested by Fire will be released later this year. You

can register to receive communications about the

book by emailing comms@parracatholic.org with

the subject line: TESTED BY FIRE

“Service has been quite a significant thing in my life.

I think it’s important.”

CALLED BY GOD

This idea of “service” might have led him to the

priesthood, but faith helped keep him there.

Many times over the course of his decades as a

priest, Mons Boyle said he was tempted to give it

away when things got hard. And got hard they did.

37

No bored games

when old and young sit down to play

BY ZOE CARTWRIGHT

At Hawkesbury Living Aged Care, heartfelt

moments of interaction between the young

children of Ambrose School Age Care and the

elderly residents are blossoming into something truly

special, a beautiful intergenerational connection.

During the winter school holidays in July, the halls of

Hawkesbury Living were filled with laughter, chatter,

and the joyful sounds of play as children from

Ambrose Vacation Care at Chisholm Bligh Park, St

Matthew’s Windsor and St Monica’s Richmond made

their second visit to the residents. The children’s

arrival brought a wave of warmth and excitement,

as they came bearing classic games like chess and

snakes and ladders, along with craft supplies and

paints, ready for a morning of creativity

and companionship.

The children also brought handwritten letters and

cards, each one a personal message of friendship

and care, given to the residents as keepsakes of their

time together.

“Our residents are always excited when children

visit or when they receive anything from them,” says

Niki Sumegi, Hawkesbury Living Leisure & Lifestyle

Coordinator. “It fills their hearts with warmth and

gives them something truly special to look

forward to.”

This beautiful initiative was brought to life by

Kaitlin Weeks, the Educational Leader at Ambrose

St Matthew’s Windsor, who fondly recalls visiting

Hawkesbury Living as a child to sing in the choir.

Wanting to recreate those meaningful experiences

for a new generation, Kaitlin plays a key role in

turning the idea into reality.

“It’s a special opportunity for the children at Ambrose

to discover the joy they can bring to others through

the simple act of sharing time together,” Kaitlin says.

“Having visited this very nursing home as a child, I

know how meaningful these moments can be, for

both the children and the residents.”

38

Children from Ambrose Vacation Care with residents of

Hawkesbury Living Aged Care. Images: Ambrose/Supplied

THE POWER OF INTERGENERATIONAL BONDS

Niki shares the profound benefits of these

intergenerational moments:

“Intergenerational connections bring joy, purpose,

and a sense of belonging. They give residents a

chance to share their life experiences, values and

stories, while helping children learn empathy,

patience and respect for older generations. It

fosters mutual understanding and breaks down

barriers between age groups.”

Keira Lahoud, the Service Coordinator at Ambrose

St Matthew’s Windsor, who helped coordinate the

initiative, also reflects on its impact.

“Through this ongoing exchange, the children

learned the value of sustaining relationships and

offering kindness not just once, but consistently.

They realised that their words and drawings

could brighten someone’s day, and that those

connections go both ways – the residents also

brought joy, wisdom and a deep sense of value to

the children. It’s been enriching for both sides.”

Keira adds: “These moments beautifully reflect

our Catholic identity and core values of respect,

encouragement, and care. They’re a living

example of faith in action, where love is shown

through service, and community is built

through compassion.”

The children themselves expressed heartfelt

reasons for their involvement.

our Catholic mission, these moments reflect the call

to serve others with compassion, build meaningful

relationships, and live out Christ’s love through care

and connection.

Learn more about Ambrose Early Years

Education and Care by visiting

www.ambrose.org.au

Zoe Cartwright is Marketing and Communications

Coordinator for Community Ventures.

Lucas and Bailey share that it’s important for the

residents “so they don’t feel lonely”, while Tora

says she hopes it “makes them feel warm inside

because they know someone cares about them”.

KEEPING THE CONNECTION ALIVE

To maintain the connection beyond the holidays,

the children have continued writing letters to the

residents throughout the school term.

“The residents were genuinely touched by the

letters,” says Niki. “Many smiled as they read

them, and some even asked for their letters to be

kept by their bedside as keepsakes. It brought a

real sense of joy and connection to their day and

reminded them of their own grandchildren and

school memories.”

LOOKING AHEAD

The connection between the Ambrose children

and Hawkesbury Living continues to flourish

and both sides are excited to explore more

opportunities for intergenerational engagement.

In a world that often feels fast-paced and

disconnected, these letters and visits serve as

gentle reminders of the power of kindness, the

beauty of shared stories, and the joy that comes

from reaching across generations. Guided by

prayer&

R e f u g e f o r

contemplation

40

Franciscan Shrine of Holy Innocents, Kellyville. Images: Alphonsus Fok/Diocese of Parramatta.

On 16 August, parishioners from across the

Diocese of Parramatta joined the Jubilee of

Hope Diocesan Retreat at the Franciscan

Shrine of the Holy Innocents in Kellyville, one of

three official pilgrimage sites in the Diocese. Each

Diocesan retreat is an opportunity to be a pilgrim

of hope at one of the Diocese’s official

pilgrimage sites.

The shrine provided shelter from the rain and a

peaceful refuge for prayer, worship and personal

reflection on the Jubilee message of hope.

Join us for the third and final diocesan

retreat on Saturday 15 November at Mount

Schoenstatt Spirituality Centre, Mulgoa.

Tickets are $40 per person, or a donation if

needed – everyone is welcome to be part of this

special day of reflection, prayer, and community.

Find out more and register:

parracatholic.org/events/

diocesan-retreat-15-november

Despite the wet weather, the day was filled

with prayer, contemplation, and fellowship.

Participants walked the shrine’s gardens,

pausing at nearly life-sized Stations of the Cross

for moments of reflection. Worship, Scripture

readings, and talks by Alison Ryan and Donnie

Velasco, facilitators with the Mission Enhancement

Team, on hope in the Jubilee Year further enriched

the experience.

An indoor lunch offered time for connection and

sharing among attendees.

The pilgrimage sparked joy and gratitude among

those who attended, and that joy spread across

social media.

“Amazing day, I am so grateful that I got to help

out,” wrote Ellena.

Michael also shared, “What a wonderful day

even though it was raining, I’m glad to be part of

this wonderful day .”

The retreat continues the Diocese’s mission of

creating sacred spaces for parishioners to reflect,

discern, and walk together as pilgrims of hope.

The Diocesan retreats are aligned with

the Formation and Prayer priorities of the

Diocesan Pastoral Plan. To learn more, visit

parracatholic.org/synodality

All experience levels welcome

All All experience levels welcome

Are you passionate about helping children

Are Are you you passionate reach their potential? about helping children

reach their their potential?

Are you looking for a workplace where you

Are are Are you respected you looking and for for a encouraged a workplace to where grow? you you

are are respected and and encouraged to to grow?

Join our team!

Join our team!

Discuss your Ambrose options

with one of our friendly team.

Discuss your your Ambrose options

Email: jobs@ambrose.org.au

with with one one of our of our friendly team. team.

Email: jobs@ambrose.org.au

Visit: ambrose.org.au/find-a-job

Visit: Visit: ambrose.org.au/find-a-job

Ambrose is a social enterprise of the Catholic Diocese of Parramatta Services Limited

Ambrose Ambrose is a is social a social enterprise of the of the Catholic Catholic Diocese Diocese of of Parramatta Services Services Limited Limited

Fr Alan Layt with parishioners of St Aidan’s at his farewell. Image: Jazz Chalouhi/ThreeTwoOne Photography/Diocese of Parramatta

Supporting Our

Lifelong Shepherds

Priests in the Diocese of Parramatta have walked

beside us through life’s greatest moments,

celebrating baptisms and weddings, and

offering comfort in times of sickness and loss.

Even as they grow older or face illness and step

back from active ministry, their vocation remains

steadfast. With your prayers and support of the

Bishop’s Father’s Day Appeal, run by the Clergy

Support Foundation, you can help ensure

these priests and other clergy continue

to receive safe housing, quality

healthcare and daily care.

A LIFELONG VOCATION THAT

NEVER ENDS

Meet Fr Alan Layt, one of 21

priests in our Diocese who

have stepped back from parish

leadership due to age or illness.

At 76, he is among the youngest, with

others ranging from 73 to 92. With the

Foundation’s support, Fr Alan continues to

serve, albeit differently.

Dr Mark Buhagiar, Head of the Diocese’s Clergy

Health and Wellbeing team, explained that while

some priests remain very active, carrying workloads

similar to parish priests, others face

physical limitations.

“But that never diminishes their priestly ministry,” he

said. This is a truth reflected in Fr Alan’s own journey.

BY ISABELL PETRINIC

Fr Alan with

Dr Mark Buhagiar.

Image: Diocese

of Parramatta

Shaped by family tragedy and a profound calling, his

path highlights why your support is so vital for our

priests and clergy.

A PATH MARKED BY CHALLENGE AND CALLING

Almost three decades after his ordination as a

deacon in 1996, Fr Alan now embraces this new

season of life with a grateful yet reflective heart.

In June, he moved into James Dixon House

in Harris Park, named for the convict

priest who celebrated the first officially

approved Mass in the colony of NSW

in 1803. “This is the first time we’ve

had a full house,” noted Mark.

Now, amid boxes from years of

ministry, Fr Alan is settling into a

quieter rhythm. He looks forward

to reconnecting personally with

parishioners he once had little time

to visit and completing unfinished

theological studies on St Thomas Aquinas.

“Priests don’t retire,” he gently reminds. Though they

may step back from administration and decisionmaking,

they continue offering vital support,

administering sacraments, hearing confessions,

assisting at services, and serving as chaplains in

aged care.

“It’s easy to get to Rooty Hill from here,” he added,

smiling at the closeness of his beloved St Aidan’s

Parish, where he ministered until recently.

42

Born and raised in Silverwater,

his journey was far from

straight -forward. Initially joining

the Pallottines at 18, he left

the seminary after a few years,

working in varied roles, from

kitchen hand to high

school teacher.

Fr Alan celebrating Mass for Holy Thursday at St Aidan’s in 2024. Image: Diocese of Parramatta

His life changed dramatically after the sudden death

of his older brother, who drowned at Lord Howe

Island at age 40. “That rattled everything,”

Fr Alan recalls.

our team? Do you want a weekly call, a monthly call?

Or there’s ‘Don't call me, I’ll call you'," Mark said. “It’s

about being there for them, no matter how often

or little.”

This loss, alongside challenges in teaching, awakened

a deep vocational call. After 18 months of wrestling

with it, he re-entered the seminary in the Diocese

of Parramatta, completing nearly seven years of

formation before being

ordained by Bishop Bede

Heather at age 47.

Fr Alan served in 10

parishes before arriving at

St Aidan’s in 2008.

Reflecting on pastoral

care, Fr Alan cites author

Fr Jacques Philippe:

"becoming a spiritual father

takes time and grace, involving drawing people closer

to Christ through preaching, confession, and most

importantly, the celebration of the Mass; the ultimate

proclamation of the Gospel."

STANDING WITH OUR PRIESTS AT EVERY STAGE

The Clergy Support Foundation nurtures the health

and wellbeing of priests and other clergy at every

stage of their journey, helping them live their

healthiest, most supported lives.

“Jesus loved us to the end

and priests are called to

imitate that love. As they

grow older, they especially

need that kind of backup

and support just to keep

doing it.”

HOW YOUR DONATION MAKES A DIFFERENCE

Asked what he would say if face-to-face with a donor,

Fr Alan’s answer is heartfelt: “You become very aware

that once you retire, things can decline quickly.

Having support makes you

feel much more relaxed and

comfortable.”

He reflects on St Paul’s words

about life being poured out like a

libation: “That’s essentially what

a priest’s life is, poured out in

service to others.”

“Jesus loved us to the end and

priests are called to imitate that love. As they grow

older, they especially need that kind of backup and

support just to keep doing it.”

“Our priests are part of our extended family;

supporting them is simply about looking after those

who care for us,” Mark said.

Led by Mark, alongside Clergy Health Coordinators,

Ellen and Peter, the Foundation provides essential

support including wages, health insurance,

medications, food, housing, and transport to

medical appointments.

Recently, two new apartments were added for

priests who have stepped back from active ministry.

When priests require nursing home support, the

Foundation assists with these costs.

Beyond these essentials, the team offers

assistance with everyday challenges, whether it’s IT

troubleshooting or renewing driver licences.

This care is personalised and flexible. “We have a

little box that says, ‘How do you want to interact with

Your tax-deductible donation to the Bishop’s Good

Shepherd Appeal can help in very practical ways:

• $75 can supply fresh food and provide

nourishing meals for a priest

• $100 supports transport costs to take unwell

priests to medical appointments

• $500 can support an ageing priest’s medical

care and wellbeing

Please support the Bishop’s Father’s

Day Appeal by calling

(02) 8838 3482, or visit:

parracatholic.org/fathersdayappeal

43

hope

Student pilgrims find strength and

in Timor-Leste

BY SABRINA DE LA MOTTE

A

10-day pilgrimage to Timor-Leste was a

chance for students and staff from three

Catholic Schools Parramatta Diocese (CSPD)

schools to embark on an extraordinary

immersion experience.

The pilgrimage provided opportunities for

participants to connect with local communities

through meaningful activities such as teaching

English, sharing stories and learning from the

lived experiences of the Timorese people. It was a

journey marked by encounter and one grounded in

hospitality, faith, joy and deep resilience.

Located on the eastern end of the Indonesian

archipelago, Timor-Leste is a nation shaped by a

complex history of occupation and struggle. Students

and staff from Santa Sophia Catholic College Gables,

St Andrews College Marayong and Marian Catholic

College Kenthurst engaged in heartfelt conversations

and witnessed the strength and hope that continues

to flourish in classrooms and villages.

“Before the trip, I didn’t even know where the country

was located,” said St Andrews student Khloe. “Being

there in person, I began to learn more and more

about the harsh conditions the Timorese people

endured during occupation. To this day, I still think

about seeing the houses that are still damaged from

those times.”

44

Students from Santa Sophia Catholic College Gables during an

immersion experience in Timor-Leste. Images: Santa Sophia

Catholic College/Supplied.

The cultural immersion also provided participants

with an opportunity for spiritual reflection and the

chance to enhance their individual faith journeys.

“By experiencing Catholic Mass in a different culture

and foreign language, and being warmly welcomed

by the people of Timor, I was able to reflect deeply

and strengthen both my connection with God and

my sense of community,” said Santa Sophia

student, Natalia.

Grounded in the Gospel values of compassion,

justice and human dignity, for many the experience

was both humbling and transformative.

“Seeing the insurmountable challenges faced by

the Timorese, it has made me firmly resolve to ‘not

sweat the small stuff’,” said Meg Thomas, Social

Justice Leader and English Teacher at Marian.

“Everything that happens to me now, I will try to

experience through the lens of gratefulness.”

“The best way to understand is to sign up and go on

a pilgrimage yourself,” said Patrick, a Year 12 student

at Marian. “Describing it can only do so much. When

you see it with your own eyes, it is infinitely more

impactful.”

Santa Sophia teacher Ralph San Pedro-Loyola said

anyone thinking of this kind of immersion should

‘say yes’.

“Say yes to encountering others. Say yes to listening,

learning and loving in places far from home. This

journey reminds us that peace, justice and dignity

are not distant ideals, but everyday decisions.”

Immersion experiences like these are a shining

example of the transformative power of community

outreach fostered in our schools across cultures

and borders.

Sabrina De La Motte is the Social Media Officer at

Catholic Schools Parramatta Diocese.

The beauty of

St Francis' Canticle

lives on

This year, 2025, marks the 800th

anniversary of St Francis of Assisi’s

Canticle of the Sun, also known as the

Canticle of the Creatures.

Written between 1225 and 1226, the last

year of Francis’ life, the canticle celebrates

the beauty of creation and the mystery

of life.

To St Francis, all creatures – mirrors of

the divine perfection – were brothers and

sisters because they were the work and gift

of the same Author.

Together, they constituted the chorus of

creation, which contemplates, praises

and thanks God the Creator, who gives

generously and with goodness

(2 Celano 77, FF 665).

The Canticle summarises Francis’ entire

journey of unity with Christ. His faith in

the fatherhood of God becomes a song of

praise that proclaims the brotherhood and

the beauty of all creatures.

In celebrating the anniversary in Assisi, Italy,

Fr Massimo Fusarelli, Minister General of

the Order of Friars Minor (OFM), said that

all creatures are a sign of God only “if we

know how to look at them with the right

eyes, enlightened by faith and fixed on Jesus

Christ, who is the sun of justice that rises

from above.”

46

THE CANTICLE OF THE SUN

Most High, all-powerful, good Lord,

Yours are the praises, the glory, the honour, and all blessings.

To You alone, Most High, do they belong,

and no man is worthy to mention Your name.

Praised be You, my Lord, with all your creatures;

especially Brother Sun, who is the day, and through whom

You give us light.

And he is beautiful and radiant with great splendour,

and bears a likeness to You, Most High One.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars;

in heaven You formed them clear and precious and beautiful.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Brother Wind,

and through the air, cloudy and serene,

and every kind of weather through which You give sustenance

to Your creatures.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Water,

which is very useful and humble and precious and chaste.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Brother Fire,

through whom You light the night;

and he is beautiful and playful and robust and strong.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Mother Earth,

who sustains us and governs us and who produces

varied fruits with coloured flowers and herbs.

Praised be You, my Lord,

through those who give pardon for Your love,

and bear infirmity and tribulation.

Blessed are those who endure in peace

for by You, Most High, they shall be crowned.

Praised be You, my Lord,

through our Sister Bodily Death,

from whom no living man can escape.

Woe to those who die in mortal sin.

Blessed are those whom death will find in Your most holy

will, for the second death shall do them no harm.

Praise and bless my Lord,

and give Him thanks,

and serve Him with great humility.

Amen.

Saint Francis in the Desert by Giovanni Bellini (1480)

47

I

myself taught Ephraim to walk,

I myself took them by the arm,

but they did not know

that I was the one caring for them,

that I was leading them with human ties,

with leading-strings of love,

that, with them, I was like

someone lifting an infant to his cheek,

and that I bent down to feed them.”

Hosea 11:3-4

48

Looking Deeper

Image: Shutterstock 49

Long and

difficult Journey

of the newest church doctor

BY MICHAEL MCGIRR

A painting of Cardinal John Henry Newman, by Sir John Everett Millais, 1881. Image: Alamy

50

It’s easy to forget that the word doctor comes from

a Latin expression for teacher. Mind you, my GP is

always trying to teach me things but sadly I am a

poor student. When we call somebody a ‘doctor of the

Church’ it doesn’t mean that they are going to send us

off for a blood test or tell us for the umpteenth time to

be careful about what we eat. It means that they have a

special role in teaching us.

The latest doctor of the Church to achieve this rare

distinction is St John Henry Newman (1801-1890). He

joins select company that includes four very special

women: St Teresa of Ávila, St Catherine of Siena, St

Thérèse of Lisieux and St Hildegard of Bingen. Other

great personalities include St Augustine and St Thomas

Aquinas. It’s hard to imagine the Church without

their influence.

Only six years after his canonisation, John Henry

Newman has been included on this list. The decision

may provide a clue about what is important to Pope Leo

XIV and the direction he would like to chart for

our journey.

Newman was himself a man on a never-ending journey.

It was a long and often difficult quest. He began life as

an Anglican and had embarked upon a most eminent

career at Oxford University. Yet something else was

stirring within him. It took time for him to acknowledge

his hunger for the tradition and liturgy of Catholicism.

As a young man, in 1833, he found himself feeling

unwell and homesick on a visit in Italy. He wasn’t sure

where the Lord was leading him. It was then that he

wrote what remains, for me, one of the most beautiful

prayers for the pilgrimage of hope:

Lead, Kindly Light,

amidst th' encircling gloom,

Lead Thou me on!

The night is dark, and I am far from home,

Lead Thou me on!

Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to see

The distant scene; one step enough for me.

In 1845, Newman took a giant leap of faith and became

a Catholic. In the middle of the 19th Century, this was

hardly a smart career move. He lost many friends, not

to mention social status. It was decades before he’d be

welcome back at his beloved Oxford University. He

wrote a novel about the journey called Loss and Gain

(1848). His sense of loss was palpable. But what did

he gain?

One part of the answer was the opportunity to explore

and articulate a theology that became a seedbed for

Vatican II. His idea of the development of doctrine was

central to this. Newman was deeply suspicious of an

overly authoritarian Church and was alarmed by the

definition of papal infallibility by Pius IX at Vatican

I in 1870. He said that Church teaching was not a

building where, once the bricks were laid, it would stand

unchanged forever. He preferred to compare it to a tree

with deep roots which would keep growing throughout

a long life. He believed that faith was a journey, not a

destination. He famously repeated the adage, ‘‘to live is

to change and to be perfect is to have changed often.’ He

said, ‘growth is the only evidence of life.’’

Newman’s belief in the importance of conscience is an

extension of this. He thought and wrote a great deal

about education, and it would be great if some of the

boffins of today read The Idea of a University (1852) and

put into practice its vision of freedom within tradition.

Newman rejected the notion that education was about

programming people as if they were robots. It was

about the rich cultivation of a mind and heart where

an informed conscience could lead to truly human

decisions. In writing to the Duke of Norfolk in 1873,

Newman said, ‘‘conscience is the voice of God’’.

Why would Pope Leo draw so much attention to

Newman at the start of his pontificate? Newman had

a mighty impact on Leo’s namesake, Leo XIII who

succeeded Pius IX and almost immediately made

Newman, then a priest, a cardinal. Leo XIII believed

that it was wrong for the Church to stay behind walls

and simply defend itself against the modern world. He

wrote an encyclical called Rerum Novarum (1891) which

was a major development in the teaching of the Church,

allowing faith to spread its branches into the real lives of

working people.

The words Rerum Novarum mean ‘about new stuff ’ and

the Church had not previously shown much interest in

new stuff. It endorses Newman’s view of conscience. Our

tradition of Catholic Social Teaching begins here and is

fed at its roots by the understanding Newman expressed

in his masterpiece, An Essay on the Development of

Christian Doctrine (1878). Catholic Social Teaching

believes that our faith is responsive, not defensive. Pope

Leo expects us to encounter and engage the challenges

of our time, not hide from them. This is a wonderful

journey for us all.

Michael McGirr is the mission facilitator of

Caritas Australia.

51

Music has always been central to the expression

of my faith. Some of my earliest memories are

related to music, and from primary school age

onward I have been involved in the musical aspects of

Catholic liturgy. As a chorister, cantor, and pianist from

the age of seven, I was privileged to be exposed to a wide

range of music, musicians and musical performance

contexts, including liturgies. Some of my closest lifelong

friendships grew from the bond I shared with those with

whom I made music.

Though I didn’t know it as a child, the attraction

music held for me was on account of both

its capacity to express beauty and the

opportunity it provided for me even as a

youngster to be a co-creator of beauty by

participating in its artistic performance,

especially in liturgy. Human beings are

inherently drawn to what is beautiful, and

while beauty in general calls to us and elicits

a creative response from us, understanding

that Beauty is an aspect of God (as are Love,

Truth, and Mercy), can draw us into deeper

relationship with him. St Thomas Aquinas

explained that “the beautiful which is God, is the goal,

the summit and cause of everything that exists” and

“from the Beauty, being flows forth to enliven all things”.

Because each of us is created in the image and likeness

of God (Gen 1:27), we have both the capacity and the

desire to be co-creators of beauty. Experiencing and

creating beauty can provide us with a special mode of

connection and an opportunity for encountering God

in an artistic way. In the liturgy, God, who is beauty,

calls us into His presence, and we can find ourselves

responding to that call creatively. It has often been my

experience that participating in creating beauty through

music in liturgy constitutes one of the purest and most

engaging ways of expressing and nourishing my faith

and the faith of others.

My early love of and exposure to high quality music of

all sorts led me to study it intensively at university, but

my early experience of beautiful music in liturgy also

led to an increased interest in the flow and rhythms

of the liturgy itself and how music contributes to its

celebration. Hence, I was subsequently led to study

theology and eventually to undertake masters’ and

doctoral degrees in liturgy. I never imagined that

profound experiences of beauty through liturgical

music in my early years would result in a career path

integrating my love of music, my fascination with

liturgy, and my faith. The opportunity to teach others

about liturgy and liturgical music and how to celebrate

it well, and the chance to research and publish on liturgy

and liturgical music, has been and remains a fulfilling

vocation.

The power of music as an evangelisational tool should

not be underestimated. Exposing young people to

engaging, beautiful music and involving those who have

been gifted with musical talent in co-creating beautiful

music, can provide a marvellous outlet both for their

artistic expression and for their connection with God as

they offer their musical gifts of praise in the context of

liturgical celebrations. Training young singers as cantors

and choristers, drawing in young instrumentalists as

members of liturgical music ensembles and worship

bands, encouraging young composers of liturgical

music, embracing and mentoring young keyboardists as

How beauty

can lead you

BY CLARE V. JOHNSON

1

St Thomas Aquinas, In librum beati Dionysii de divinis nomenibus, ed. C. Pera (Rome: Marietti, 1950), Caput IV lectio V, paragraphs 353 and 349.

accompanists and organists in liturgy should be obvious

ways to enable them not just to contribute their musical

gifts to the benefit of parish and school liturgies, but

also to enable them to strengthen their faith through

co-creating the musically beautiful in God’s presence as

they offer glory to God.

Parishes that flourish often have excellent liturgical

music, and those that wish to grow would do well

to invest in young musicians through training,

apprenticeships and involvement so that they can grow

up into a Church which treasures their presence and

contribution. Finding their place as valued members

of the team which enacts the liturgy is crucial to

developing faith and a sense of belonging for young

people in our schools and parishes. That was certainly

my experience growing up.

For me, and for many others, it is not just being exposed

to beautiful, worthy, engaging liturgical music being

performed and led by adults in parishes, schools and

festival contexts that inspires and strengthens young

people’s faith, it is actually being invited to contribute

to the creation of beautiful music in liturgy that makes

a truly lasting impact on young people. Making room

for, training, supporting, encouraging and demanding

excellence from young liturgical musicians is what will

secure their presence, participation, and longevity as

members of the Church into the future.

Clare V. Johnson is Professor of Liturgical Studies

and Sacramental Theology and Director of the ACU

Centre for Liturgy at Australian Catholic University

in Melbourne.

52

to faith

The interior of Sainte-Chapelle chapel in Paris, France. Image: Shutterstock 53

Br Mark O’Connor FMS during the book launch of Reasons for Hope.

Image: Parallax Media/Diocese of Parramatta

“One Can Still Find Hope

in the Catholic Church”:

Br Mark O’Connor FMS on 50 years a Marist Brother

and 40 Years of the Hélder Câmara Lectures

BY JIM MCDERMOTT

54

A

few days before Pope Francis died, I was

talking to a friend who is a Marist Brother.

He mentioned he’d been visiting an American

cardinal who works at the Curia. I didn’t recognise the

name. “He might be the next pope,” my friend told me.

An American? No chance (and God help us), I thought

to myself. But a few weeks later, I heard Robert Prevost’s

name again, as it was read from the balcony of St Peter’s.

While most of the world was stunned by the

choice of Chicago-native Cardinal Robert

Prevost as pope, I suspect no one who

knows Brother Mark O’Connor, FMS,

would be surprised to hear that he

had had coffee with him not long

before, or that he had sources in

Rome saying this was the next

pope. Vicar for Communications

in the Diocese of Parramatta, he’s

pretty far flung from the Appian

Way, but somehow, he always seems

to have his ear to the ground and a

travel bag ready to go.

He was in Rome once again in 2013, a few weeks

after Francis was elected. While there, he ran into a nun

serving in the office of the Union of Superiors General

of Women. Their leadership had just met with Francis,

the first time in many years their group had been

received by a pope. (Meanwhile the Major Superiors of

Men had had any number of such meetings.) “I’m so

glad you’ve been elected,” she told Francis. “I have to say

I was almost having a crisis of faith about the Church.”

At this, she told O’Connor, the pope burst out laughing.

“You’ve only had one crisis of faith?,” he asked. “I have

one every week.”

The book on the history of the

Hélder Câmara lectures

O’Connor is celebrating 50 years in the Marists this

year, and also 40 years of running the Hélder Câmara

Lectures, which brings prominent Catholics from

around the world to Australia each year to deliver

a series of talks and seminars around the country,

including the Hélder Câmara Lecture at Newman

College at the University of Melbourne. And to spend

any time with him is to hear many anecdotes from

across those 50 years involving a pantheon of the

church-famous and seasoned battlers to rival the

communion of the saints. There’s something

of the magpie about him, a hungriness

for moments like these. But as we

talked on Zoom it became clear,

what attracts O’Connor aren’t things

that are shiny. It’s moments that

offer hope.

THE LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS

Mark O’Connor was a suburban

kid from Melbourne when he met

the Marists at secondary school in

1970. Tennis at the time was far more

interesting to him than academics or religion.

“I was playing tennis four or five nights a week.” But,

almost to his own surprise now, he decided to spend

Years 11 and 12 at the Marist Juniorate in Bendigo.

“It was Mass every day and strict; you weren’t allowed

to go to socials or dances”. Not exactly the standard

fare for a school boy, but O’Connor stayed with it, and

ended up at the Marist novitiate in Mount Macedon,

where he was tasked among other things with feeding

the cows. Still, as vows approached, he found himself

unsure about what he wanted. “I was 20, and I don’t

think I was particularly clear about who I really was.”

With the Marists’ permission, he paused his formation.

Eventually, he began six months of Clinical Pastoral

Education. Working as a chaplain at a hospital and

processing his experiences with others in the program

was revelatory. “It gave me a sense that you meet God

in people, that grace is not a thing, it’s a person you

encounter in others and in events, the kind of Kairos

moments of your life.”

Those months taught him something else as well,

something that all these years later also seems to remain

at his core: even in the darkness, there is light. “You

know how when you go into a dark room, your first

reaction is you can’t see anything and you panic looking

for the lights? I think I was a lot like that for the first

quarter century of my life,” he explained. “But gradually

I realised that if I sat in the darkness long enough, I

would see objects, because my eyes would become

acclimatised.”

“My life was always going to be, and it still is, ‘through

a glass darkly’,” he said. “But working through to some

degree my own inner darkness meant that I could see

that there were possibilities along that journey.”

IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD

There were times in talking to O’Connor that I myself

wanted to hit pause to write

down some of the beautiful ideas

he has collected over the years.

“St Teresa of Ávila once said,

‘Suffering passes. Having suffered

never passes’,” he tells me at one

point. At another, he’s recalling

a story of Paul Eddington, the

British actor from Yes, Prime

Minister. Interviewed shortly

before the end of his life, cancer

ravaging his body, he was asked

what he’d like the epitaph on his

tombstone to read. He replied:

“He didn’t do much damage.”

Says O’Connor, “I identify with

that.”

Time and again, though,

O’Connor’s stories come back

to one person in particular,

Brazilian Dom Hélder Câmara,

who served as Archbishop of Olinda and Recife from

1964 to 1985. Known as the “bishop of the slums” for

his outreach towards the poor and condemnation of

the dictatorship that ruled Brazil while he was in office,

Câmara was one of the primary writers of Gaudium et

Spes at Vatican II. Shortly before the Council ended he

and a number of other bishops made “The pact of the

Catacombs”, which eschewed all titles and privileges

and vowed they would live in the poverty experienced

by most of their flock. And he’d done so. He famously

said: “When I give food to the poor, they call me a saint.

When I ask why the poor have no food, they call me a

communist.”

His formation complete, O’Connor spent much of the

early 1980s working as a secondary school teacher.

He saw his students losing hope in the Church. “They

were spending 12 years in Catholic schools but leaving

completely alienated from the institutional Church,

despite the best efforts of all sorts of people,” he recalled.

He proposed the Marists begin a new ministry for young

adults, including a biennial Marist Youth Festival, and

he wanted Câmara to be the main event. “I thought that

we should bring out inspiring figures to just tell their

stories.”

It took more than a year and other speakers in between,

but in 1985, Câmara did come out. “He could barely

speak English and he looked a bit like E.T., but he

had this charisma,” O’Connor remembers. “You felt

somehow that you were in the presence of God.”

While Câmara was visiting, Brazilian liberation

theologian Leonardo Boff was silenced by Pope John

Paul II and Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. At a press

conference in a parish hall in Fitzroy, journalists deluged

Câmara with questions about the event. “Dom Hélder,

isn’t it shocking, isn’t it terrible, you must be very upset,”

O’Connor recalls them asking. “How can John Paul II

be so authoritarian?” In response, Câmara sat quietly,

taking it all in. “Then he looked up and he simply said,

‘It’s not easy being pope’,” O’Connor remembers. “That

was it.”

Câmara was intimately familiar with injustice, whether

political or ecclesial. “Each day he would celebrate the

Archbishop Hélder Câmara

55

Eucharist, and at the moment of the consecration he

would literally weep,” O’Connor told me. “You could see

the paschal mystery being lived out in his body and in

his connection with the suffering of the crucified people

where he was living.”

Jean-Marie Cardinal Lustiger

Soon after he returned

home from Australia, Pope

John Paul announced his

replacement, a man who

would systematically strip

away all of the reforms

Câmara had instituted.

“But he still had such

largeness of heart, he felt

sorry for John Paul II and

Ratzinger. He wasn’t a

win/lose person.”

FINDING FREEDOM IN THE BROKEN PLACES

O’Connor’s experiences with Câmara convinced him he

was onto something. “You actually felt hope,” O’Connor

says. “It wasn’t just an idea, a beautiful ideology. It was

embodied in him.” He began to pursue other inspiring

figures in the Church to come to Australia. In 1986,

he wrote to Italian Cardinal Carlo Martini, the Jesuit

archbishop of Milan. Martini politely declined. A year

later, O’Connor wrote to him again. Again, he politely

declined. Undeterred, O’Connor wrote to him again

each of the next six years, then finally with the help of

benefactors, travelled to see him. And Martini came two

years later. If you want people to come to you, O’Connor

learned, you have to go to them. His religious brothers

don’t mind kidding him about his frequent travels, to

which he sometimes jokingly replies with a saying of the

Marist Brothers’ founder, Marcellin Champagnat: “Our

diocese is the whole world.”

But, supported by donors, he’s also gotten academics,

writers, bishops, and other luminaries from every

continent and part of the world to travel around the

world and spend weeks in Australia, something that

otherwise only a wealthy university might be able to do.

And even for such institutions, the names he’s gotten

– Margaret Silf, Robert McElroy, Luis Tagle, Nathalie

Becquart XMCJ, Monsignor Professor Tomáš Halík,

Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga SDB, Christopher White

– would be impressive. And those are just some of the

names from the last 10 years.

For this year’s 40th anniversary he’s bringing in

three speakers: Mauricio López, the lay leader of the

Amazonian Ecclesial Conference, a new body consisting

of bishops and lay people across the Amazonian region,

kicked off on 30 July with a lecture entitled “How is the

future of the Amazon the future for all?” at Newman

College (Lopez also spoke at St Patrick’s Cathedral

in Parramatta on 23 July); Ghanaian ethicist Nora

Nonterah gave “Listening to the Wisdom of Women:

a conversation about discipleship, leadership, and

synodality from an African lay woman’s perspective”

at St Patrick’s Cathedral in Parramatta on 2 September,

and Newman College, on 3 September; and Cardinal

Stephen Chow, SJ, the Bishop of Hong Kong, will be

doing public interviews with Fr Richard Leonard, SJ,

at St Patrick’s Parramatta on 15 September, and with

Newman Rector Fr Dan Madigan, SJ, on 16 September.

I wondered about the criteria O’Connor uses to decide

who he wants. He’s had progressives and conservatives.

Many have been passionate advocates for justice of

one form or another, but not all. Is there some sort of

common denominator? “The people who I’ve caught

faith from, who have passed on faith to me, are people

who are not necessarily saints, they can be quite flawed,”

O’Connor reflects. What they have in common is

“authenticity in the Spirit.” And after many years of

doing these talks, he’s realised that authenticity has a lot

to do with suffering. “Only grief permits newness,” he

says, quoting scripture scholar Walter Brueggemann,

about whom he wrote a Master’s degree. “The Israelite

experience in Exodus is that when they are able to

articulate their pain and cry out, ‘We have been harshly

dealt with,’ that is the beginning of their liberation.”

So many of the people

he’s brought to Australia

have had that experience

of a suffering that is

creative and ultimately

liberates. He points to

Chicago Cardinal Joseph

Bernardin, who came in

1995. Two years earlier,

Bernardin had been

accused of abuse. Three

months later his abuser

recanted. Where the

public vilified the man,

Bernardin invited him to

come and visit him. They

met for two hours, and

Bernardin said afterward:

“This has been one of

the most memorable

experiences I’ve ever

had… a wonderful

moment of reconciliation

between Steven, myself

and the church.” Said

O’Connor of Bernardin:

“He went through the

crucifixion of that false

accusation, and there was

a kind of a kenosis,” of

self-emptying. “He died a

free man.”

Joseph Cardinal Bernardin

56

Dr Nora Nonterah

In 1988, Cardinal Basil Hume, OSB, came from

Westminster, UK. At one point he told the young people

about a nun he had known as a child who taught him

to see God as a figure that’s always there, watching and

knowing everything he did. If he ate an apple before

dinner after his parents told him not to, they might not

know it, she noted, but God always would. “She was very

well-intentioned,” O’Connor recalls Hume explaining.

“She was trying to teach him the difference between

right and wrong.”

But then, Hume went on, in what seemed almost

like a postscript, “It took me 45 years to recover

from that story.” Until his 50s, Hume revealed, “I still

unconsciously thought of God as the person who, if

I did something right, he’d give me a tick; and if I did

something wrong, he’d give me a cross. It was only when

I was in my early 50s that I realised that actually, God

is the sort of person who would have come up to me,

tapped me upon the shoulder and said, ‘Basil, You look

very hungry. Take two apples’.”

“Hélder Câmara, Basil Hume, Jean-Marie Lustiger

(Cardinal archbishop of Paris and convert from Judaism,

who came in 2001), with his mother being taken away

by the Nazis and never knowing what happened to her:

You get beyond the surface with just about every one of

them, and there’s a story of the paschal mystery that is

underpinning their voice. Francis too: He suffered, and

that suffering made him creative.”

he first saw working

in that hospital in

Melbourne. “It gives

me reason to get up

and continue on,” he

says. It’s also taught

him something

important about the

Church: “One can

still find hope in the

Catholic Church, if

you look for it.”

As part of the 40th anniversary, author Julie Thorpe has

written a book Reasons for Hope chronicling the history

of the Hélder Câmara series. O’Connor points to a line

at the end of the acknowledgements which captures the

intent of his own “small, modest effort” these 50 years as

a Marist Brother.

“This book,” Thorpe writes, “doesn’t seek to analyse, or

argue, or explain primarily, much less follow a particular

ideological rule, but amidst the myriad unsettlements

and pain in the Church and in the world, to feel hope.”

Jim McDermott is an American culture critic and

screenwriter.

This is an edited version of an article that first

appeared in Eureka Street. It is used with permission.

O’Connor recalls the end of Georges Bernanos’ Diary

of a Country Priest, which he re-reads every few years.

Dying in his friend’s arms, the country priest – who

has suffered greatly himself, and come to appreciate the

agonies experienced by those he has served – realises

“How easy it is to hate oneself. True grace is to love

oneself, in Christ.”

The book ends with his final thought: “Grace is

everywhere.”

TO FEEL HOPE

“I’m basically a restless soul,” O’Connor admits,

and someone who has experienced his fair share of

loneliness, too. Earlier in life, “I think perhaps I had

unconsciously come to think that someone else could

fill my emptiness,” he says. But gradually, he’s come

to a different understanding: “What I feared might be

emptiness is actually space, and the loneliness

a creative solitude.”

Travelling around the world, engaging with Catholics of

all shapes and sizes has been life-giving, that experience

of the Holy Spirit living not up in Heaven somewhere

but precisely in the interactions between people that

Mauricio López 57

Pope Leo:

A new chapter in understanding

the Church today

BY BELINDA GADD

Ever wondered why Pope Leo XIV was chosen to

lead the Catholic Church? Or what forces are

shaping the Church’s journey today? What’s the

significance of having the first American Augustinian

pope at the helm – and what might his election mean

for the future of Catholicism?

There’s something about Pope Leo that just feels

different – fresh even – like he was made to lead

the Church in today’s world. Whether he’s sporting

a Chicago White Sox cap or accepting a “Da Pope”

Chicago Bears shirt from a family at the

Vatican, he’s become widely known

as a “bridge-builder” – someone

connecting the Church’s traditional

clericalism with today’s people,

especially young adults and youth

searching for a faith that speaks to

their world.

Christopher White’s book Pope Leo

XIV: Inside the Conclave and the Dawn

of a New Papacy takes readers inside

the secret conclave that elected this new

pope. It explores what his leadership could mean,

not just for Catholics but for a world grappling with

rapid change. The book shows how Pope Leo XIV’s

leadership brings fresh hope and continuity to a

Church navigating rapid change.

It also seeks to walk those interested in the Church’s

journey through its past – the good, the bad and the

ugly – to where it may lead in the future.

Author

Christopher White.

Beginning with Vatican II – the transformative Council

that reshaped the Church’s approach to faith and

culture – White traces how recent popes, including

the much-loved “people’s pope,” Pope Francis, have

balanced tradition with modern challenges.

Pope Leo XIV now carries that legacy forward,

blending continuity with a fresh vision.

The book isn’t a history lesson – it’s an engaging

journey where White gently guides readers to better

understand the Church, its failings, and

its promise.

It explores how the Church today

grapples with social justice,

environmental challenges, and the

search for meaning in an uncertain age.

Ideal for young adults, new Catholics,

and anyone seeking a clear introduction

to the Church’s journey, White’s book

offers a message of hope and resilience.

It doesn’t push readers in any particular direction

but provides a journalist’s view of the Church, its

leadership, and its involvement in politics. Only time

will tell whether Pope Leo XIV will carry forth his

predecessor’s vision of a synodal Church, but the

future looks bright.

Pope Leo XIV is published by Loyola Press:

https://store.loyolapress.com/pope-leo-xiv

58

Chaplain Bernard (centre) with counsellors Anna and Suzanne (L-R) at the Homelessness

Week Memorial Service. Photo: Alphonsus Fok/Diocese of Parramatta

CARE WHEN YOU

NEED IT MOST

BY BELINDA GADD

When life feels overwhelming, finding

someone who truly listens can make all

the difference. At Catholic Care Western

Sydney and the Blue Mountains, that someone

is often a chaplain, counsellor, or a community

engagement coordinator – a compassionate

presence for those who need support most.

THREE LOCATIONS: ONE HEART

In a quiet corner of the homestead at Mamre House

& Farm, Orchard Hills, a parent struggling to feed

their family takes a deep breath.

It’s been a difficult week, but there they find a safe

space to gather their thoughts and seek guidance –

picking up an OzHarvest hamper filled with fresh fruit

and vegetables, and even stopping for a free cup of

tea and a friendly chat with volunteers and visitors.

Lisa Malcher, a volunteer-turned-full time community

engagement and development coordinator, said

what makes her day are “the people, the programs

and the possibilities”.

“There are so many people from different cultural

backgrounds,” she says, adding that what she most

enjoys are “the stories I hear from them.”

Lisa is keen to see places like Mamre House grow

in the education and training space to give more

individuals a chance to gain the skills needed to enter

the workforce. She’s forging strong partnerships

with local community colleges to run programs and

courses to support this, and there is free childcare on

site for studying parents during course times.

“I’m always the optimist, so I think we have some

really good opportunities ahead of us,” she says.

KEEPING FAMILIES TOGETHER

For Shireen Brock, Intensive Family Preservation Case

Manager based in Blacktown, the focus is on walking

alongside families facing significant challenges.

Shireen says “having that one-on-one connection”

is important with clients, as well as helping them

understand “our purpose is to keep

families together”.

SOMEONE WHO LISTENS

Lee Tsui is a Catholic Care counsellor who has been

providing family and relationship counselling for over

three years. She is among many counsellors offering

financial counselling, grief and loss support, and

general counselling.

“Our role is basically to work together in people’s

journey, especially when they are facing challenges in

their lives,” Lee says.

“I always want to be there for people, and especially

for people who are in challenging times.”

Low-cost and affordable counselling services

are offered at Blacktown, Emerton, Parramatta,

Penrith, and Springwood. There is even after-hours

counselling for those who need it.

CHAPLAINCY SUPPORT

Counsellors and chaplains often work side by side to

provide a listening ear. Bernard Ellis leads a team of

hospital and prison chaplains who guide individuals

and families experiencing difficult situations so they

are not alone.

He was among Catholic Care’s counsellors and

chaplains who attended the ‘Wrapped in Love’

Homelessness Week Memorial Service in August,

providing support to those struggling with life on

the streets.

Through its unwavering presence, Catholic Care is

there to provide care to anyone – regardless of age,

gender or background – when they need it most.

IF YOU NEED SUPPORT:

Call Catholic Care on 8843 2500

Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm

Outside those hours, call Lifeline

24/7 support on 13 11 14.

59

Fr Andrew Fornal OP at St Joseph's Kingswood. Image: Diocese of Parramatta

a cuppa

WITH A

FR ANDREW FORNAL OP

Parish Priest of St Joseph’s Kingwood

BY ANTONY LAWES

Fr Andrew Fornal OP should have a better idea

than most how large the earth is. A member of

the Dominican Fathers, he was born in southeast

Poland, moved to Melbourne as a young priest,

then BY ANTONY spent a decade LAWES in one of the world’s biggest

and busiest cities, New York, before returning to

Australia, to St Joseph’s Parish, Kingswood, where he

has been for 13 years.

But instead, all these moves have shown him the

opposite: how similar people are and how small the

world is.

“One day you are in Melbourne and the next day you

are in New York and there are people in both places

who are waiting for you to minister to them, to lead

them to faith, to lead them to Christ and to proclaim

the truth,” Fr Andrew says.

“In that moment the world shrunk, and it shrunk

even more when I came from New York back to

Melbourne for a visit," he says.

‘THERE IS WORK TO BE DONE’

Growing up in Communist-controlled Poland in the

1970s and ‘80s was not an easy time to be Catholic.

But Fr Andrew remembers the Church was still very

much “the centre of our lives and the beacon of

freedom”, thanks largely to the leadership of senior

church figures such as Blessed Cardinal Stefan

Wyszyński, the Primate of Poland, and Cardinal Karol

Wojtyła, who was later to become Pope St John

Paul II.

He attended Mass at a nearby Dominican Priory

during these years, eventually becoming an altar

server. By high school, he had decided to enter the

Dominican Order and become

a priest. So after finishing

school, he joined the

novitiate for a year before

embarking on six years of

study for the priesthood.

He had only been

ordained a few years

when his Provincial

asked if he would

go to Australia to

become a chaplain for

the Polish community

in Melbourne’s western

suburbs. He remembers

that it was a tough decision to

leave Poland and everything

he knew.

Eventually, he told his Provincial: “If you

want me to go, I will go because there is a

work to be done there. So I said ‘Yes’.

“I arrived on 2 April 1998, in Melbourne, and it was a

shock, with the distances, with everything, the life in

Poland was totally different,” he says.

During those early months he missed Poland and his

old life. He remembers, “It was a difficult time – to

adjust, to find my way there”. But all that changed

when, two years later, he again was asked to move,

this time to a parish in the Bronx, in New York, to

help with a new mission for the Dominican Province.

“When I went to New York, I didn’t miss Poland, I

missed Australia. And then I realised that the world

is small.”

60

He was to move again a few years later when the

Archdiocese of New York asked the Dominicans

to take over the Campus Ministry at Colombia

University, and Fr Andrew became “the youngest

Parish Priest in Manhattan,” at 32.

Because of this growth, especially among the Indian

diaspora, they were approached by the Syro-Malabar

community to hold Mass in the church on Sundays,

and this “cooperation is working very well for the

parish”, Fr Andrew says.

It was during his eight years

at Columbia University that

then-Bishop of Parramatta

Anthony Fisher OP visited

and planted the seed of

a return to Australia. So

when Fr Andrew’s time at

Columbia had ended and he

had finished visiting friends

in Melbourne, Bishop Fisher

asked if he and his

community would help with the Campus

Ministry at Western Sydney University;

some time later they were then

asked to take over the running

of St Joseph’s Parish.

Fr Andrew in Mexico

City for WYD 2019 in

Panama. Image: Diocese

of Parramatta

‘We need to do

whatever we can

with the means

we have.’

- Fr Andrew Fornal OP

LIVING THE TRUTH

OF JESUS

The 13 years that Fr

Andrew and his fellow

Dominican priests – Fr

Pawel Barszczewski

OP and Fr Piotr Kruk

OP – have been at

Kingswood has seen

the parish grow with

many young families,

professionals and hospital

workers, especially from

the Philippines and India.

He says the Dominican charism is to

live the truth of Jesus Christ and to

bring others to this truth through the

Gospels. One important way they are

doing this in the parish is through

their sacramental program, including

first confession, first communion

and confirmation. It is rigorous and

involves many weekly sessions – 14

weeks for confirmation.

“We want this to be a serious preparation for people

who receive those sacraments,” he says.

One of the first things Fr Andrew did when he took

over the parish was to renovate the church - a former

school run by the Josephite Sisters - into a permanent

place of worship with an altar at the back. Now with

a growing congregation the old classroom-church is

getting too small and Fr Andrew has a dream of one

day building a larger church that is fit-for-purpose.

“If we had a generous donor who could give us few

million dollars, I would gladly accept and build a

beautiful church here,” he says. “But we need to do

whatever we can with the means we have.”

His hope is that as the congregation grows this

will enable the parish to slowly build up the funds

necessary. In the meantime he is also praying hard.

“The Lord listens and the Lord provides,” he says.

Greeting young parishioners following Easter Sunday Mass in 2024.


61

Members of the faithfull during Mass.


PARISH PROFILE:

St Bernadette’s Parish Lalor Park

small in number

mighty in faith

BY ISABELL PETRINIC

62

After the 8.30am Sunday Mass, parishioners

of St Bernadette’s Parish, Lalor Park gathered

in the chapel for a group photo. Smiles and

laughter flowed easily among old friends. Finishing

one another’s sentences, they pieced together

cherished memories of a parish community that has

been their spiritual home for nearly seven decades.

This 'Seniors Group', which recently marked its 25th

anniversary, has been the backbone of the parish as

it approaches its 70th anniversary in 2026. Among

them are Frank Rowland, father of Australia’s current

Attorney General, Michelle Rowland, and families

like the Fields, whose sons Paul, John and Anthony

– better known as the Blue Wiggle – were founding

members of the band The Cockroaches.

Their stories of faith and friendship sit alongside

those of a new generation now finding a spiritual

home at St Bernadette’s.

BACK TO THE BEGINNING

At 95, Kevin Sloane, the eldest of the Seniors “by six

months,” took us back to 1958 when Mass was first

celebrated by Fr Bernard Massey of Blacktown in the

local Memorial Hall. “We’d clean it first,” he laughed,

remembering how families arrived in a procession of

prams “because nobody had cars in those days”.

By February 1960, the first church-school opened

on the school grounds next door. “The building was

in the form of a cross,” Kevin said. “They’d bring the

blinds down after Mass for it to be the school.”

Beside Kevin sat his contemporaries: Pauline Boys,

the “younger” 95-year-old; Frank Rowland and Marie

Tonissoo, both 93; and Jan Weaver, 86.

BUILDING A PARISH FAMILY

The Lalor Park Parish was officially established in

February 1961 with the arrival of its first Parish Priest

Fr Hugh Leonard. The Sisters of St Joseph began

teaching at the new primary school that same year,

and by 1963, a convent was built.

“Fr Leonard used to call the area ‘Labour Park’, there

were so many kids,” Kevin said. Jan added, “We have

35 children just among us five.”

The early parish was vibrant with families, sports

teams, picnics, walkathons and car rallies. To

fundraise, parishioners ran a bingo-style game called

Cash Housie from 1951 to 2000.

There was also the famous “250 Club,” where 250

members paid $2 a week for 20 weeks. Each month a

winner received $10 and, on the final draw, the prize

was a Holden car. Kevin still remembers being one of

the lucky winners.

Parishioners spoke fondly of Fr Leonard’s kindness:

giving people lifts, paying rent for struggling families,

even slipping Lotto tickets into greeting cards.

SHEPHERDS OF ST BERNADETTE’S

Fr Leonard was followed by Fr Tim Crowley,

Fr Andrew Robinson, Fr John Paul Escarlan, and

current Parish Priest Fr Clifford D’Souza MSFS,

who arrived in 2023.

Parishioners Bryan Naing and Justin Spiteri, with niece, Violet.


Under Fr Tim’s leadership, the current St

Bernadette’s Church was built and blessed by

Bishop Bede Heather in 1981.

“Small in number, mighty in faith” sums up the

parish well. As one parishioner recalled

Fr Andrew often saying: “It’s a boutique parish.”

The Sakopo family. Image: Alphonsus Fok/ Diocese of Parramatta

The seniors group.


FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION

Jan reflected on the changes she has seen:

“People leave, people go to God. But there are

a lot of young people coming through now. It’s

very multicultural whereas it used to be all Irish

Australians.”

Volunteer service has long characterised parish

life. In earlier years, the group was active in the

Legion of Mary and supported the Josephites,

while Kevin has faithfully served as president of

the parish St Vincent de Paul Society since 1961.

Reflecting on his decades of service, he said

humbly, “I think that’s part of the Catholic faith”.

That same spirit is alive in the younger

generation. At the 10am Mass, brothers Harrison

and Aidan Barbin ran the slideshow presentation.

Harrison, 15, a student at St John Paul II Catholic

College who also serves at the altar, said: “I come

here to get things off my chest. I like to have

something to believe in, someone to talk to. Here

we’ve got a good priest, good people.”

FAITH FOR THE FUTURE

That spirit of welcome and peace continues

to draw new parishioners. Among them was

18-year-old Justin Spiteri, holding his two-and-ahalf-year-old

niece Violet, alongside her father,

Bryan Naing. Justin, who joined after COVID, said

what kept him here was “the quiet.” He smiled

and added, “It’s an older population but peaceful.”

Bryan agreed: “It’s calm, more traditional, which I

like.”

Deacon Jerome Emmanuel describes the parish

as “very welcoming”, adding, “The Seniors do a

wonderful job – they’re deeply engaged and set a

great example for the whole community.”

63

Kids

Corner

Journey

OF faith

PEACE

HOPE

LIGHT

GROWTH

JOURNEY

TRUST

DEVOTION

PRAYER

FAITH

RENEWAL

COMMITMENT

DISCERN

BELIEF

thewordsearch.com

64

Listen Watch Read

The Spiritual Life with

Fr James Martin SJ

America Media

Perfect

Days

2023, PG, 2hrs 4mins

Everyday Sacrament:

The Messy Grace of

Parenting

By Laura Kelly Fanucci

(Liturgical Press, 2014)

Often, we ask

ourselves how

do we pray

and how do we know

if God is responding to

my prayers?

Launched in June, The Spiritual Life is a

podcast released weekly that explores

how people experience God in their

prayer and their daily lives.

Alongside interviewing a variety of

guests including British theologian

Cardinal Timothy Radcliffe OP, US

TV host Stephen Colbert, actor

Whoopi Goldberg and director

Martin Scorsese, Fr James offers up

practical tips to questions raised by

the audience on a range of topics

including what happens when I get

distracted in prayer and how to hear

God in a noisy world.

Rather than sticking with superficial

answers about faith, Fr James

Martin seeks to discover the joys,

consolations, challenges and struggles

of people’s spiritual lives, and hopes

that listeners will take something for

their own lives as well.

“Our conversations make clear that

God desires everyone’s friendship,” Fr

James said.

Listen to the podcast via Apple

Podcast, Spotify and YouTube. New

episodes are released weekly.

You can follow Fr James Martin on

Facebook, X or Instagram.

This film from acclaimed

filmmaker Wim Wenders was

chosen by the Dicastery of

Evangelisation to be part of its “Faces

and Counterfaces of Hope” film series

that it released in preparation for the

2025 Jubilee of Hope.

It follows the life of Hirayama, a toilet

cleaner who goes about his days with

a degree simplicity, structure and

wonder at the world around him. He

takes pride in his work and is grateful

for everything in his life, especially

his music cassettes, books and

photography.

As Greg Apparcel CSP, says in a review

in Vatican News: “hope here lies in

recognising the beauty in the ordinary

that is all around us. And Hirayama

memorialises that beauty in the

photographs he takes each day.”

In the period since it was released the

film has been nominated for, and won,

many international awards including

Best Actor at the Cannes Film Festival,

and Director of the Year at the Japan

Academy

Film Prize.

Available

to watch

on Stan,

Apple TV+,

Amazon

video and

Fetch.

In Everyday Sacrament, Laura Kelly

Fanucci, a mother who has faced

infertility, miscarriage, and the

heartbreaking loss of premature twin

daughters, offers a candid and deeply

personal reflection on the challenges

and blessings

of parenting

through a

Christian

perspective.

At the time of

writing, she had

four sons and

now has five

children.

Inspired by the Catholic Church’s

teaching that the family is the

“domestic church,” Laura explores

the sacred moments embedded in

the everyday chaos of parenting.

She highlights not only the children’s

growth but also the spiritual and

emotional growth of parents

themselves.

This compassionate and honest

book will resonate with any mother.

Through the challenges of parenting,

she invites readers to recognise

the Lord’s grace even in pain and

messiness, encouraging parents to

see their journey as a vocation rich

with opportunities to encounter God’s

love.

Everyday Sacrament is a practical

and uplifting companion for parents

striving to keep faith at the heart of

family life.

Available online or at Christian

bookstores.

65

Directory of services

Call us on (02) 8843 2500 or visit catholiccarewsbm.org.au

66

Chancery Office

www.parracatholic.org

(02) 8838 3400

diocese@parracatholic.org

Bishop Vincent Long OFM Conv

(02) 8838 3400

bishop@parracatholic.org

Catholic Schools Parramatta Diocese


(02) 9840 5600

communityliaison@parra.catholic.edu.au

Community Ventures

(Catholic Diocese of Parramatta Services

Limited)

1300 2VENTURES (1300 283 688)

enquiries@cdpsl.org.au

www.communityventures.org.au

Ambrose Early Years Education

and School Age Care

1300 4AMBROSE (1300 426 276)

enquiries@ambrose.org.au

www.ambrose.org.au

Catholic Care Western Sydney

and the Blue Mountains

(02) 8843 2500

catholiccarewsbm.org.au

Mission Enhancement Team

(MET Parramatta)

Catholic Youth Parramatta;

Peace, Justice, Ecology; Marriage; Natural

Fertility; Worship; MET Facilitators

met@parracatholic.org

parracatholic.org/connect

Confraternity of Christian Doctrine

(02) 8838 3486

ccd@parracatholic.org

Tribunal Office

(02) 8838 3480

tribunal@parracatholic.org

Vocations

(02) 8838 3460

vocations@parracatholic.org

Parramatta Catholic Foundation

(02) 8838 3482

yourfoundation@parracatholic.org

Diocesan Development Fund

(02) 8839 4500

enquiries@parraddf.org.au

Holy Spirit Seminary

(02) 9296 6300

Office for Safeguarding

(02) 8838 3419

safeguarding@parracatholic.org

Catholic Care Western Sydney and the Blue Mountains is the Diocese of Parramatta’s social

welfare agency. Guided by the mission of Christ, it serves our community – regardless of

background or faith – with compassion, dignity, and a commitment to offering care when it’s

needed most. Services include:

Family services

Family support programs include positive parenting workshops in Blacktown and Penrith to

help vulnerable and disadvantaged families, as well as counselling and casework support for

families, parents and carers.

Supporting women and young mothers

Houses to Homes provides holistic support and medium-term housing across Blacktown and

Parramatta for pregnant women and young mothers aged between 16 and 25 with children, who

are homeless or at immediate risk of homelessness due to financial hardship, family, domestic

and sexual violence or relationship breakdown.

Project Elizabeth provides trauma counselling, and practical parenting support for women and

their families who are expecting a baby, have lost a baby, have had a termination, or who need

support with a child aged up to three years.

Homes for Older Women (HOW) supports women aged 55 and over with housing insecurity and

homelessness in the Blue Mountains region.

Counselling services

Confidential and affordable counselling for individuals, couples and families experiencing

life’s challenges, including grief and loss, parenting, financial issues, relationships and

trauma, including domestic, family and sexual abuse, as well as family law.

Early learning and children’s services

Through the home interaction program for parents and youngsters (HIPPY), a family day care

service in 50 locations across Western Sydney, and a creche at Mamre House and Farm in

Orchard Hills, Catholic Care provides essential care and support for children, with engaging

activities to promote early learning development during their first 2000 days of life.

Community engagement

Catholic Care’s community drop-in centres, activities and programs support people from cultural

and linguistically diverse backgrounds, including First Nations communities; as well as those

experiencing disadvantage or social isolation. Programs include wellness, English classes,

reading groups, work readiness groups for women, food banks, material aid, art and craft groups,

men’s health groups, free legal advice, community garden working bees and more.

Chaplaincy services

Catholic Care’s chaplaincy services offer spiritual and emotional support to people in correctional

facilities and hospitals across Western Sydney and the Blue Mountains. Our trained chaplains

journey with individuals in times of illness, isolation, crisis or incarceration, offering comfort,

pastoral care, and the healing presence of Christ to all – regardless of faith or background.

COMMUNITY DROP-IN

CENTRES

Emerton

Holy Family Parish, Aboriginal Catholic Services

13 Emert Parade

Emerton NSW 2770

Orchard Hills

Mamre House and Farm

181 Mamre Road

Orchard Hills 2748

Springwood

Unit 3

163 Macquarie Road

Springwood NSW 2777

Contact Catholic Care for opening hours of our

centres and further details on activities

at each centre.

VOLUNTEER

WITH US

Interested in using your skills to

support Catholic Care’s ministry

in Sydney’s west? Scan here to

become a volunteer.

Latest appointments

Most Rev Vincent Long Van Nguyen OFM Conv, Bishop of

Parramatta, has confirmed these appointments in the Diocese

of Parramatta:

Rev Jobi Payyappilly

Administrator at St Paul the Apostle Parish, Winston Hills,

from 7 July 2025.

Rev Pio Young Ho Jang

Assistant Priest at St Paul the Apostle Parish, Winston Hills,

from 11 July 2025.

Rev Vince To IVE

Assistant Priest at Our Lady of the Angels Parish, Rouse Hill,

from 11 July 2025.

Good deeds will live beyond your

lifetime with a gift in your Will to

your parish and faith community.

After providing for your family and loved ones,

please consider sharing God’s blessings with

future generations.

For information on remembering your family in Christ and our

compassionate Catholic ministries in your Will, please scan

SIMPLIFYING GIVING THROUGH

DIGITAL PAYMENT SOLUTIONS

The Diocesan Development Fund (DDF) offers a selection of secure digital payment

solutions that support parishes, schools, ministries and other Catholic organisations in

today’s cashless society, making it easier for people to make a payment - whether it’s for

Planned Giving, donations, facility hire, weddings, sacraments, or fundraising events.

The DDF can help with online payment platforms provided through the Commonwealth

Bank of Australia including CommBank’s:

SMART

TERMINAL

SMART TERMINAL

WITH DONATION

TAP

SMART

MINI

Digital systems assist your organisation by:

• Offering secure online giving through trusted platforms provided by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

• Receiving funds promptly for Planned Giving, one-off events, donations, purchases.

• Minimize on-site cash handling while ensuring financial transparency.

• Reducing reliance on physical cash, you not only streamline your event and transaction management

but also make reconciliation and financial tracking more efficient.

The DDF provides financial services that helps to promote the continued growth and development of a vibrant and

evangelising Catholic Church in the Diocese of Parramatta by:

• Providing loans to assist Catholic agencies to further their Mission.

• Facilitating transactional services available to all Catholic organisations.

• Operating efficiently to generate income for the Diocese to support the Mission of the Church,

pastoral priorities, and ministry programmes.

• Developing deep long-term relationships with all Catholic entities within the Diocese.

To contact the DDF please phone (02) 8839 4500 or email enquiries@parraddf.org.au

Visit the DDF website at www.parracatholic.org/ddf

Disclosure Statement: The Diocesan Development Fund Catholic Diocese of Parramatta (DDF) (the Fund) is required by law to make the following disclosure.

The Fund is not prudentially supervised by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority nor has it been examined or approved by the Australian Securities

and Investments Commission. An investor in the Fund will not receive the benefit of the financial claims scheme or the depositor protection provisions in the

Banking Act 1959 (Cth). Investments in the Fund are intended to be a means for investors to support the charitable, religious and educational works of the

Catholic Diocese of Parramatta and for whom the consideration of profit are not of primary relevance in the investment decision. The investments that the

Fund offers are not subject to the usual protections for investors under the Corporations Act (Cth) or regulation by Australian Securities and Investments

Commission. Investors may be unable to get some or all of their money back when the investor expects or at all and any investment of the Fund are not

comparable to investments with banks, finance companies or fund managers. The Fund’s identification statement may be viewed at https://parracatholic.org

or by contacting the Fund. The Fund does not hold an Australian Financial Services Licence.

68

Catholic Outlook Magazine | Spring Edition 2025

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