DIOCESE OF PARRAMATTA

The Spotlight is on:

Young Christian Workers (YCW)

From the Diocesan Youth Office: Revealed at the Youth Breakfast with Bishop Anthony on Saturday 21 August, was the exciting news that the Diocesan Youth Office has a new name and logo!

Catholic Youth Parramatta (CYP)

The new logo has been designed by Timothy Wong.

It has deep meaning and symbolism including the Eucharist being Christ as head of the Church, fire-representing the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Youth & the Blue Circle symbolising our intimate & dynamic relationship with the Holy Trinity.

Youth Breakfast with the Bishop St Patrick’s Cathedral hall witnessed a memorable event on the 21st Aug 2010 with 140 young people across the Diocese having breakfast and chat with their shepherd Bishop Anthony Fisher. Though the Breakfast with the Bishop event has been happening for quite some time, this one will remain in the memory of the young people for a long time. The presence of Bishop Anthony made all the difference among the young people. It was a significant day since it was also the day of election of the nation.

The programme began with the meeting and chatting of all. It was a good opportunity to get to know one another from across the Diocese. The programme began with the welcome by Fr. Suresh Kumar MSFS who is the new Director of the Diocesan youth office. Bishop Anthony prayed the Grace before breakfast! The delicious hot breakfast was served by Amadeus caterers.

The young people from Holy Family parish, Emerton added beauty by their melodious singing. This was their first performance at the Diocesan level event.

Bishop’s pre filmed video invitation to join the pilgrimage to Madrid was shown to the young people.

Bishop Anthony’s address was the much awaited event of the day. He spoke on the topic, ”World Youth Day, Sydney to World Youth Day, Madrid”. His deep insights mingled with the colorful PowerPoint presentation helped us to recall the greatest youth event in the history of our nation, WYD 2008! He thrilled us with the excitement to join him on the pilgrimage. His speech covered some of the statistics from the survey made by the Australian Catholic University on the WYD 2008, before, during and after WYD. It was an eye opener to see how much of influence WYD has had on the young people. He invited the young people to work together to realize the dream of taking 500 young people to WYD Madrid.

After his speech Bishop Anthony announced the new name of the Diocesan Youth Office, CATHOLIC YOUTH PARRAMATTA and presented the logo designed for the office. He also introduced the new Director Fr. Suresh Kumar MSFS to the young people. With the new name, new logo, new Director and new ideas, we move forward to meet those new challenges. There was a good opportunity for Q&A with the Bishop.

The logo has been designed with meaningful insights, resembling the nature of the Diocese with its geographical and spiritual aspects. Fr. Suresh explained the inner meanings of the logo which was very well designed by Timothy Wong. It was a good opportunity for us to have a photo session with the Bishop after the event in the cloister of the cathedral. -Fr. Suresh Kumar MSFS

Photos by Patrick Lee and David Tang

Upcoming Diocesan Events:

Prayer for Our Lives and Purpose—Starts Thursday 2nd Sep @7pm A new gathering every 1st Thursday of the month: Adoration, Inspiration, A Shared life Story with youth/young adults and others. Starts at 7pm. Share a café meal with others at 8pm or be on your way. (Photo by Hamilton Lund)

Where: St Patrick’s Cathedral, 1 Marist Place, Parramatta. For more details contact: Fr Paul, Vocations Director- 0419 219 819, Fr Suresh, Diocesan Youth Director - 8838 3419

Theology on Tap (TOT) with Bishop Anthony Fisher - 6th September

Bishop Anthony will be the guest speaker for September's TOT.

The address is PJ Gallagher's, 74 Church St, Parramatta. Time: 6:30pm-9.30pm (For 18+years)

Your chance to win a pilgrimage to WYD 2011 Madrid

PJ Gallagher’s Irish Pubs has generously offered to fully sponsor one TOT attendee a World Youth Day Madrid 2011 Direct Pilgrimage Trip, priced at $3,590.

To be in the running for this prize you must fill out a raffle ticket at a TOT event between the months of July-November 2010. Tickets are FREE!

Going back to Basics Faith Formation Nights: Going back to Basics Faith Formation Nights: (by Fr Suresh Kumar, Diocesan Youth (by Fr Suresh Kumar, Diocesan Youth Director)Director)

23rd September: The Human Person (Grace, Virtues The 7 Gifts of the Holy Spirit)

Where: DAC (underneath the Institute for Mission), cnr Flushcombe Rd & Marion St, Blacktown, from 7.30-9pm. For more info please contact the Diocesan Youth Office on 8838 3418, youth@parra.catholic.org.au or for more info.

Institute for Mission

For all the Saints - 13th September To mark the canonisation of Blessed Mother Mary MacKillop and the beatification of Cardinal John Henry Newman, the Institute for Mission has planned a series, “For all the Saints”. Bookings are essential! To book, contact Institute for Mission on: 9831-4911 or ifm@tpg.com.au

Held at the Diocesan Assembly Centre at 1-5 Marion Street, Blacktown from 7pm-9pm

Dates: 13th September - An introduction to the life, works & spirituality of Cardinal John Henry Newman who is to be beatified by Pope Benedict XVI on Sep 19th. Presenter: Daniel Ang

13th October - Mary MacKillop. Presenter: Sr Bridie O’Connell RSJ

Notices from around the Diocese:

"How to be a Leader" by communicating your ideas - 2nd, 9th, 16th & 23rd September

Features: How to start communicating your ideas, begin and end a talk, add clarity & interest, gather & present your facts, convince & persuade, speak on the spur of the moment & play a more effective role in any group. Practical exercises on OH&S, resume writing, job interviews & how to conduct a journalism workshop are optional depending on those interested and available as agreed.

On the 9th September, the Guest Speaker will be Fr Kevin Lee, Police Chaplain and Parish Priest of Glenmore Park parish.

Venue: Holy Spirit Parish, Cnr Moore St & Todd Row, St Clair from 7.30pm to 9.30pm. Participants (16+) interested can enrol their name at the Holy Spirit Parish, St Clair on 9670 8222

Comments on the Course from Jannik Mathias:

“ The communication course was a great experience for me because I have learnt a lot about various speech techniques and how to speak confidently in front of a crowd. In this course we did a practice job interview and also had to speak on the spot on a subject of our choice. Two representatives from the Rural Fire Service came and spoke to us on fire safety and how we can keep our homes safe and less prone to fires. The best thing I liked about this course was to learn about the various components of the fire engine and their uses. This course will be a great help to me when I do speeches at school and apply for jobs when I am older. The course was really enjoyed and very

interesting. ”

Return to the Upper Room - 3rd September “Return to the Upper Room” - is a call to help the People of God return to the Upper Room in adoration and intercession - to experience a Pentecost not only of a moment or a day, but a permanent Pentecost.

Come and experience Adoration, Worship, Praise, Intercession, Thanksgiving.

Dates: Friday 3rd September Venue: Our Lady of the Rosary Church, cnr Mamre Rd & Swanston St, St Marys Time: 7:30pm

Sexual Ethics Talk - 3rd September St Aidan’s Eucharistic Youth Group & Laity aBlaze invite you to an amazing talk on Sexual Ethics to be given by Fr John Flader. He is a Canon Lawyer with a PhD dissertation on "mixed marriages", published by the University of Navarre. He has preached numerous retreats to priests in many dioceses of Australia, as well as to lay people in many cities. He has published numerous articles on issues of canon law, the spiritual life and the

Church. Time: 7:30pm arrival for 7:45pm start to 8:45 pm with Q & A session.

Address: Mary MacKillop's Hall, St Aidan's Catholic Church - 9 Adelaide Rd, Rooty Hill

Charismatic Healing Mass - 4th September The Charismatic Healing Mass will be Held on Saturday 4th September at 2:30pm followed by Prayer for Healing & Individual Ministry

The Celebrant will be Fr Porathur Joy (PJ) M.S.

Address: St Nicholas of Myra Church, High St, Penrith (entry via Higgins St)

DISCOVER YOURSELF - 17th-19th September

Weekend Retreat for Young Women aged 18-30 years

Where: Mt Schoenstatt - 230 Fairlight Rd, Mulgoa Cost: $120 includes accommodation, meals, linen and towels

Registration essential—To book or for further info contact: Sr M Julie Brcar

Email: juliebrcar@gmail.com Ph: 02 4773 8338 Trivia Night - 25th September (WYD fundraiser) Cor Youth from Kellyville Parish are organizing their annual fundraiser Trivia Night which will be held on 25th of September.

Time: 7:00pm Address: Our Lady of the Rosary Parish Hall, 8 Diana Ave, Kellyville Tickets: $10 (can be bought at the door or contact Adrian to pre-book: 0430-533-647)

So grab a group of friends together to make a team and enjoy the night! Golf Day - 8th October OASIS Youth from St Michael's, Blacktown, invite you to a Golf Day! This day will help raise funds to attend World Youth Day 2011 in Madrid, Spain.

Date: Friday 8th October Venue: Ashlar Golf Club, Blacktown Cost: $70 per person. This includes a game of 18 holes within a team of 4, breakfast, lunch and opportunities to win cool prizes!

Sponsor Option: We invite business owners who would like to sponsor a hole on the day. They will receive a game for four people, chances to win prizes, breakfast, lunch and their business advertised on the pin hole. This is covered under the sponsorship cost of $400.

So get a team together and let's play Golf! It will be heaps of fun! For more details and to book, please contact: Joan 0425 840 160/ Clive 0420 400 604/ Nichole 0402 613 033

Parramatta Marist 190th Anniversary Dinner - 29th October

Parramatta Marist High School, Westmead is holding its 190th Anniversary Dinner. Where: Sarah Grand Ballroom, Le Montage, Lilyfield. When: Friday 29th October Tickets: $90 each. Corporate sponsorship available. Contact the school (02) 9635 7066

The Young Christian Workers (YCW) are a global movement founded by Cardinal Joseph Cardijn who as a young priest was witness to the injustices of work faced by the masses and many young people during the industrial revolution. Today the YCW operate and work in the same spirit of Cardijn with a purpose to

transform the contradiction of our own experiences and using our faith and values to respond with action. This method, which we call the Review of Life and Worker Action, informs everything we do in life by constantly reflecting on our action to form our lives, our decisions, our faith and vocation to discover the deepest meaning in our life. Cardijn has always said “each young worker has a divine vocation and mission to himself, in his life and his working environment” …

So it is this reality that faces each of the young people’s lives, to make a difference in their own life and others as well as their specific environment. This is what the YCW do in Australia with groups based in Parramatta, Melbourne, Adelaide, Townsville, Canberra and Perth. We have review groups in parishes, social teams, leader’s team, formation team and collaborators who each serve a different purpose. At Parramatta we run services such as homework centres, English and computer classes for local young people, which

are a part of our 3 campaigns: ‘Newly Arrived Young People’, ‘Education and Pathways’ and ‘Just and Meaningful Work’. The dynamic nature of the YCW requires new young people to be involved and engaged in the formation of leaders and Catholic Lay Apostolic action. The Young Christian Worker has a life-teaching dignity about each person and their work, the movement being a vibrant ongoing community to be a part of, to grow in making life-long friends and to practice putting faith into action.

I came to Australia as international student to study community welfare. One of my friends from TAFE was a YCW member. Through her I started volunteering for a service called Job Club. I find it interesting to meet new people and also I felt comfortable by the welcoming approach of YCW towards new arrivals like me. I met lots of people and I felt more comfortable to be a part of YCW. A year later I was offered a part time job to run a campaign. I was overwhelmed with the new start. I was looking after a number of volunteers from various services and was challenged to make key leaders out of the services. YCW believes strongly in challenging young people to take action, based on their faith and using the ‘see, judge, act’ method to change the reality (bad) of young people. Through YCW I got a chance to respond to a huge issue at the time with international students. I was challenged to take action based on my faith and values. I myself was an international student which helped me to understand the difficulties that were faced. YCW challenged me to take up the leadership role to represent the issue to the wider community. I started working with a couple of

international students and volunteers to organize a forum to talk about the issues. YCW started a project for international students as a follow up of the forum. This project tried to present, educate and serve the particular community by doing various actions. I believe that I was lucky to get an opportunity to start my career in Australia with YCW.

Saint Rosalia (d:1160) Feast day: September 4

St. Rosalia, daughter of Sinibald, Lord of Roses and Quisquina, was a descendant of the great Charlemagne. She was born at Palermo in Sicily. In her youth, her heart turned from earthly vanities to God. She left her home and took up her abode in a cave, on the walls of which she wrote these words: "I, Rosalia, daughter of Sinibald, Lord of Roses and Quisquina, have taken the resolution to live in this cave for the love of my Lord, Jesus Christ." She remained there entirely hidden from the world. She practiced great mortifications and lived in constant communion with God. Afterward she transferred her abode to Mount Pellegrino, about three miles from Palermo, in order to triumph entirely over the instincts of flesh and blood, in sight of her paternal home. She is said to have appeared after death and to have revealed that she spent several years in a little excavation near the grotto. She died alone, in 1160, ending her strange and wonderful life unknown to the world. Her body was discovered several centuries later, in 1625, during the pontificate of Pope Urban VIII. Her feast day is September 4th.

Article provided by Catholic.org Reprinted with permission of Catholic Online www.catholic.org http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=157

Saint Raphael (1894 - 1941) Feast day: September 29 Patron of Travelers

St. Raphael is one of seven Archangels who stand before the throne of the Lord. He was sent by God to help Tobit, Tobiah and Sarah. At the time, Tobit was blind and Tobiah's betrothed, Sarah, had had seven bridegrooms perish on the night of their weddings. Raphael accompanied Tobiah into Media disguised as a man named Azariah. Raphael helped him through his difficulties and taught him how to safely enter marriage with Sarah. Tobiah said that Raphael caused him to have his wife and that he gave joy to Sarah's parents for driving out the evil spirit in her.

He also gave Raphael credit for his father's ability to see and for receiving all good things through his intercession.

Besides Raphael, Michael and Gabriel are the only Archangels mentioned by name in the Bible. Raphael's name means "God heals." Raphael is also identified as the angel who moved the waters of the healing sheep pool.

He is also the patron of the blind, of happy meetings, of nurses, of physicians and of travelers. His feast day is celebrated on September 29th.

Article and photo provided by Catholic.org Reprinted with permission of Catholic Online www.catholic.org http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=203