FAITH MATTERS: Love is the greatest
It was Christmas 2021 that everyone was looking forward to. COVID had started to slow, holidays had been booked, but out of now where, Newcastle ended up in the thick of an outbreak.
FAITH MATTERS: The Mountain Symbol
It was only a couple of weeks ago that Sister Margaret O’Sullivan approached me one Sunday morning at Mass and asked about the initiative of Share our Story, which is often featured in Faith Matters.
FAITH MATTERS: Waiting in Joyful Hope
Having recently visited the DoMN library to assist Mandy Greaves the Diocesan Librarian sort through the thousands of donated books, I came across several books on Advent.
FAITH MATTERS: The day our house burnt down
I have always known that God loves me. Mum and Dad were religious, and every Sunday took us eight kids off to Mass. Such a Catholic family - all our aunts and uncles and grandparents were Catholic, except for one relative on Mum’s side who was a Mason. We went to a Mercy school - Monte St Angelo in North Sydney. It was a good school.
FAITH MATTERS: Mystagogical connections
Earlier this year I noticed Gilbert Ostdiek OFM promoting his book, Reweaving the Ministries: The Emmaus Paradigm, on Facebook and I asked Mandy Greaves our Diocesan Librarian to purchase a copy. My initial thought was it should be a relevant addition to our diocesan collection as we are currently traveling through a synodal process and reconsidering new ways to approach ministry is part of the ongoing conversation.
FAITH MATTERS: All are welcome here
This year the Season of Creation’s theme, A home for all? Renewing the Oikos of God, we see Abraham’s tent being central.
FAITH MATTERS: Care of Creation
The natural environment is something that has always fascinated me, there is so much beauty in creation that I am often stuck with wonder and awe. This may have something to do with my childhood when the bush was my playground, we were encouraged to explore and discover. Catching tadpoles and watching them transform into frogs, creating perfumes from flowers and herbs, creating paints and dyes with elements found within nature is something that my siblings and myself lived and breathed.
FAITH MATTERS: Nourishment in a Pandemic
In this week's Faith Matters, Rev. Christine Sheppard OAM reflects on how maintaining her faith journey nourishes her during lockdown, especially when access to Eucharist is limited.