Our Lady of Mt Carmel Catholic Parish, Coorparoo
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Who Will Speak...?

20/5/2020

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In our modern secular society, have we allowed the voice of faith to be removed from conversations happening in the ‘market place’ and simply been sidelined as an irrelevant minority concern?

Pope Francis, who wrote recently of the role of the church for the future drawing upon the image of the women going to the tomb after Jesus’ crucifixion. The women who followed Jesus did not allow themselves to be paralysed by anxiety and suffering. They found ways to overcome simply by being and accompanying.

The message of faith must be spoken, not just within the confines of our churches but in the ‘market place’ as well. Yes, it will be a positive move when we can gather together again in our church buildings, but how we gather, and how we are heard as a community of compassion and inclusion are more important than just being in a building! There are many human issues that our people of faith are being challenged by in this current time, and a message of hope and solidarity is urgently needed to be spoken.

These are difficult times for many within our community. Solitude for some, is isolation and acute loneliness for others, living life without stress, is a time of high stress and anxiety for others, economical calm, is worry and feelings of desperation and depression for others,  having family members perpetually close by is good for some, and dangerous for others and for some simply painful separation ……and one could go on.

These are human issues with spiritual and religious ramifications within them.
We are not necessarily experiencing this time in the same way as each other. We may all be in the same storm, but we are not all in the same boat.

Through it all, how do I believe in a God who promises to dwell in all that is most human?
We are all listening for the next directive from government that will influence the way we live, however, the living of our faith beyond this time is seemingly absent from all dialogue. Surely it cannot just be ‘business as usual’!

There are concerns far beyond and significantly more important than when church buildings will again be open although it seems, without any directives or discussion to the contrary, that this is the only concern of our church leaders at present.

Where is the voice for the marginalised of our society, where is the word of justice for them? In last week’s Eureka Street, Dr Cristy Clark rightly observed that during this time, the frighteningly precarious nature of our lives has been thoroughly exposed, and so too has the inequality of it all. Even in a pandemic, we aren’t all suffering equally.

There can be no true community without a concern for each other, including those who are most in need. Dr Clark again: We can re-imagine a better kind of normal. We just have to be brave enough to try.
​

In recognising Jesus’ authority, this is exactly what his disciples were called to do. Jesus’ word was a genuine expression of God the Father’s compassion, healing, gratefulness, strength, and transformation. It changed lives and brought about freedom from oppression and hope in a future beyond the limits of what could be seen or imagined!

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given…Go, therefore and make disciples….” Matthew 28:17
This is who we are meant to be, to live our faith with bold confidence both within our churches and beyond, into the market place.

This is true discipleship, believing in God who is with us, in the highs and lows of our lived reality. Our very communion as a people of faith must come from a grateful heart for what we receive and for who we become, as one people in Christ, embracing of all humanity but especially the marginalised of our society.
We are church, within our homes, within our families and within our wider community.

We are ‘authored into living life fully’ when the word spoken is deeply rooted in the reality of life experienced. The voice we need to hear spoken, is that which ‘authors us into living our lives as best we can’, for the building up of a community that is always outward focused towards the poor and the marginalised in a true spirit of justice and mercy.

I continue to yearn for a church that is both totally vulnerable and transparently honest, could we not be that voice for all people at this time?

In her article, Clark goes on to observe that there are so many systems that do not serve (the majority of) us well, but which we have accepted as immutable for too long. She has previously quoted Booker Prize winning author Arundhati Roy who points out this pandemic represents a rupture in the fabric of our societies and is likely to act as a portal between one world and the next. We will have to be very careful about where this portal takes us. If we want to step through into a better world, we need to be crystal clear about what that looks like and deeply committed to the values we will use to guide us.

It makes sense that the values we use to guide us have a concrete form. From a discerning heart we must listen to a voice we recognise, as speaking from a place of shared story. We need to become contemplative and open to listening.

A contemplative person is someone who knows that they don’t know everything and trusts that they are being held by something much larger, wiser and more loving than themselves. Richard Rohr o.f.m.

The Christian of the future must be both reflective and humble. (feet on the ground!)

We can re-imagine a better kind of normal. We just have to be brave enough to try.

Fr. Wayne
​
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A Changed Landscape…….for Living Community.

12/5/2020

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A new reality is being lived by all of us, during this Covid19 pandemic. There is little that is, as we have known it to be, and we run the risk of not seeing beyond the threshold of NOW. What we have come to learn by experience, is that we are all, without exception in this maelstrom together!

Who would have imagined that creating physical distance from one another would create in us a greater concern for each other, and a stronger sense of being ‘community’!
We don’t know what lies ahead in this uncertain moment in history, but what we do know is that there will be a future to be lived.


Michael Casey, (Cistercian monk from Tarrawarra community in Melbourne) in his latest book, Grace On the journey to God, poses that:

There is much in life that is uncertain, and it is likely that too much certainty will insulate us from the demands of reality.

What does this mean for us as Church?

We see the companions of Jesus became insulated from the demands of the reality of Gospel living while Jesus was with them, and it was only after His resurrection that they began to truly understand His message.


Could this time in our lives be experienced as an invitation to be open to God’s grace, to transform and to change both our attitudes and what we had hold as values, in our lives and in our faith practice?                Has our previous certainty insulated us from the demands of reality?

What have we experienced in our lives that we hope to retain?

What do we wish to let go of, as we come back together in our church building?

We have been given time to explore opportunities to live life differently, to form community from a changed landscape with a new perspective.

God is Love and Eucharist is a verb. It is what we do, give, and receive. In giving what we can and receiving what we need, the foundation for the building of a strong sense of community, becomes relationship. It is who I am and who we are to each other, a connection at the level of our hearts that matters!


Jesus in his relationships really believed God was present in each person, so he constantly looked for that presence until he found it, in spite of all messages to the contrary. This presence of the divine in a person was who he came to free, to heal, to become the heart energy for Gospel living.

“Love one another; just as I have loved you, you also must love one another.” Jn 13:34

When this is the basis of how community is formed there are no barriers to belonging, all must be included. When we are open to recognising God’s presence within each person, and all of creation, there is no room for exclusion, no one is rejected.

We all have gifts, and in this pandemic time, there have been great expressions of generosity, compassion, courage, sacrifice, acceptance, equality and solidarity.

Two people excited about the same thing are the beginning of almost everything new, creative, and risky in our world. Surely this is what Jesus meant by his first and most basic definition of church as ‘two or three gathered.' (Matthew 18:20)
Richard Rohr.
 
‘I greet the presence of God in you’. Could this be an expression of our grounded connection with God, ourselves, each other and our world without exclusion?

A new landscape upon which community, at a heart level, can begin to form.

“He is with you, he is in you…..” Jn 14:17


Fr. Wayne
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New Finance Officer

6/5/2020

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We extend a warm welcome to Gabrielle Linning the new Parish Finance Officer.  Gabrielle's office hours are Monday and Friday, 9am-2pm and she can be contacted via the office phone (07)  3397 1587 or by email fin.mtcarmel@bne.catholic.net.au

Welcoming Gabrielle to our Parish Team does raise for me the issue of our financial reality as Parish and Carmelite Community here at Mount Carmel. I have been reluctant to speak of finances, being very conscious of some parishioners facing loss of employment and loss of significant income during this COVID19 time. 

The Carmelites are extremely grateful for the financial support parishioners have been able to continue in support of the parish and the Carmelites, especially through their direct debit pledges. The Carmelites are also very grateful for the gifts of meals and the occasional bottle of wine we have received, thank you. The fact remains that the income for the Carmelites has reduced significantly during this time.

I would be extremely grateful if anyone who is not currently involved in parish giving by direct debit, would consider doing so. Gabrielle can assist you with regard to making either a ‘one off’ gift or an ongoing financial contribution to the parish or the Carmelites. The Finance Council has for some time been planning for the discontinuation of planned giving envelopes and replacing them with direct debit and online transfers within the coming year. The current circumstances prompt the move to this way of supporting parish giving.
 
While all major parish projects have been put on hold to minimise expenses during this time there are still the ongoing running costs of the parish as well as the Carmelites who live and serve here. Your support of the Carmelites extends to supporting our Carmelite communites here in Australia and in Timor-Leste.

Thank you for the many ways you support our lives and ministry. You and your families are remembered by us in our daily prayer. May we continue to stay both well and safe.

In gratitude,

Fr. Wayne, Fr. Januario, Br. Donato and Br. Matthew
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A Blessing Prayer for Mothers

6/5/2020

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​by Greg Sunter

Mother God,
You are the great Creator.
You gave birth to the world and through love brought all things into being.
You are our mother who feeds us;
Our mother who comforts and consoles us;
Our mother who defends us;
Our mother who calms and cares for us.
Before you formed us in our mother’s womb, you chose us.
Before we were born you set us apart.
You have carved us in the palm of your hand.

Bless all women who bring life into the world.
Bless all women who cannot give birth.
Bless all women expecting the birth of their child.
Bless all women who mourn their unborn child.
Bless all women who love and care for their children.
Bless all women who share their love and care with others.
Bless all women who tend the needs of their families.
Bless all women who tend the needs of the world.
Bless all women supported by a partner.
Bless all women who parent alone.
Bless all women of integrity.
Bless all women who struggle with who they are.
Bless our mothers and our grandmothers.
Bless our teachers and our carers.
Bless the dads who also mother.
Bless the mums we never knew.

God, our Mother and our Father,
Look with favour on all those we call ‘mother’.
Bless them and keep them as they bless and keep us.
We make this prayer through Mary, who intercedes for us.
​
Amen.


(As taken from Liturgy Help)
​.
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our lady of mt carmel catholic parish


312 Cavendish Road, Coorparoo, QLD, AUSTRALIA, 4151
(Office entry is via Norfolk Street)
Phone:  07 3397 1587
Email:  mtcarmel@bne.catholic.net.au

Carmelite Community
Fr Martinho Da Costa O.Carm, Parish Priest
Fr Matthew Tonini O.Carm, Associate Pastor, Prior
Fr Albino Dos Santos O.Carm, Associate Pastor
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