Celebrating sharing faith

The Annual Catechist Mass will be held on 15 February 2019 at 2pm at Sacred Heart Cathedral Hamilton.

The Catechist Mass is a great opportunity for priests, parishioners, families and friends to celebrate the ministry of Special Religious Education (SRE), Sacraments of Initiation (SOI), Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) and Children’s Liturgy. The theme this year is In The Light, from Isaiah 60:1 “Arise, shine out, for your light has come.” 

The Mass asks a blessing on the work of catechists and honours those who have reached a milestone in their service of the Lord Jesus and the church. Recognition of Service awards are given to those who have served 15 years and over. These awards will be presented at Mass. Those who have served five and 10 years as catechists will receive certificates presented in parishes.

These awards celebrate that catechists have a long term commitment to students while teaching from an approved curriculum. Those who have just completed training to become catechists are also presented with a certificate at Mass.

Catechists in the media

Much has been discussed about the need for catechists in public schools by the media recently.

Paul Green MLC said in the Catholic Weekly, “Keeping SRE in schools is about giving choice to parents and students. The majority of parents and school communities support SRE, with over 70 per cent of parents of primary students across NSW opting into the program.

“Keeping SRE in our schools will continue to support the whole development and wellbeing of our young. It agrees with the commitment of the Wellbeing Framework for Schools of the NSW Department of Education, which aims: “ … to create quality learning opportunities for children and young people. This includes strengthening their cognitive, physical, social, emotional and spiritual development.”

ARTD (a public policy consulting firm) did an Independent Review of SRE in 2017 and found that “SRE builds tolerance in schools around diverse communities and promotes multiculturalism through joint celebrations of different faith groups and the recognition of different cultural heritages.”

Recognition of Service Award Recipients:

5 years:

NAME

MINISTRY

PARISH

Irene Gover

SRE

Raymond Terrace

Jenny Blyth

SRE

Kurri Kurri

Margaret Blyth

SRE

Kurri Kurri

Nona Gardiner

SRE

Kurri Kurri

Henry Sowa

SRE

Taree

Frances Fischer

SRE

Wingham

Pauline Williams

SRE

Wingham

Clare Walsh

SRE

Newcastle

 

10 years:

NAME

MINISTRY

PARISH

Ursula Lynch

SOI

Toronto

Petrina Massey

SOI/CLOW/RCIA

Toronto

Diana Dolan

SRE

Blackbutt North

 

15 years:

NAME

MINISTRY

PARISH

Kathy Weir

SRE

Raymond Terrace

Heather Sertori

SRE

Nelson Bay

Lorna Vidler

SRE

Forster Tuncurry

Yvonne Dixon

SRE

Forster Tuncurry

 

30 Years:

NAME

MINISTRY

PARISH

Patricia Simpson

SRE

Raymond Terrace

 

 

35 Years:

NAME

MINISTRY

PARISH

Helen Gibson

SRE

Raymond Terrace

Judy West

SRE

Kurri Kurri

Kay Fox

SRE

Forster Tuncurry

 

Training Certificates:

Renew

NAME

MINISTRY

PARISH

Mary Horsburgh

SRE

Forster

 

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Brooke Robinson Image
Brooke Robinson

Brooke is Content Officer for the Communications Team in the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle