PORT KENNEDY PARISH INVITED TO BE A LAMP ON A LAMPSTAND FOR THE WHOLE COMMUNITY
By Jamie O'Brien
The theme of keeping the flame alive in our hearts was reflected in last Sunday’s Gospel, said Perth Auxiliary Bishop Don Sproxton, in his homily for Divine Mercy Sunday. Speaking at Port Kennedy Parish, St Bernadette’s Church, Bishop Sproxton formally installed Fr Giovanni Raffaele as the new Parish Priest.
“Fr Giovanni’s major mission here will be to be one who can keep that light of faith alive certainly in his own heart, but certainly in the hearts of each and every one of those people in this community,” Bishop Sproxton explained.
“So that this community can be a light on a lampstand in the wider community in which we live. And for that to happen, Fr Giovanni will be asked to work with the Parish
Pastoral Council,” he said. Bishop Sproxton continued by explaining the importance of the Parish Pastoral Council.
“The Parish Pastoral Council is one that is drawn from members of the community, made up of people who are able to dream; who are able to create a vision for their community.
“In the commercial world, it would be called a strategic plan. A group of people who are skilled at looking at the needs of the people of the parish community; and seeing what do we need to do to provide for those needs in the community.
“What methods should we use to answer those needs, what are the initiatives that as a community we need to take, in order for those needs to be answered, or for that direction to be accomplished.
“So, the Pastoral Council is a very important group, and needs to be made up of people skilled in that work of strategic planning; of
creating vision and of working out what will be the steps in order for us to achieve those directions that we set.”
Originally from the town of Messina, Sicily, Fr Giovanni told The Record, in a story for his diaconate ordination in 2016, that had planned to become a chef during his teenage years, and while already in the advanced stages of a course in hospitality, he felt called to enter the seminary.
“I hope the Lord will give me the same love and the same experience of Thomas in front of the risen Christ,” Fr Giovanni exclaimed, speaking to his new parishioners at Port Kennedy.
“Because the people that come to our churches many times are wounded; to see these wounds with the love and mercy of Christ, and to have the courage and the zeal like the apostles to go to announce his resurrection,” he said.
New Port Kennedy Parish Priest, Fr Giovanni Raffaele proclaims the Gospel, Sunday 24 April at St Bernadette’s Church. He was officially installed by Auxiliary Bishop Don Sproxton. PHOTO: JAMIE O'BRIEN.
EASTER IN THE PARISHES 2022: ARMADALE, WANNEROO AND LYNWOOD/LANGFORD
By Jamie O'Brien
Lynwood Langford
Parishioners from St Jude’s Church
Lynwood Langford parish came together for the Easter Vigil. More than 150 people came together for the 6.30pm service, which included a Liturgy of Light outside led by Parish Priest Fr Terry Raj.
Wanneroo
Parishioners from Wanneroo St Anthony’s Church presented a performance on Good Friday called The Contemplative Way of The Cross, written and directed by parishioner, Gerald Searle. Fellow parishioners assisted with the different aspects of the production. The performance enabled parishioners to see and contemplate Jesus, played by Bruce Plint, interacting with all those He meets on his way to Calvary.
And Jesus speaks to all as they contemplate him on his journey. Parishioners were also able to meet all those who interacted with Jesus and how they were transformed by their encounter with him. Many were brought to tears by the experience.
Parishioners from Wanneroo St Anthony’s Church presented a performance on Good Friday called The Contemplative Way of The Cross, written and directed by parishioner, Gerald Searle. PHOTO: SUPPLIED / WANNEROO PARISH.
Armadale
More than 250 people gathered on the hill behind the Schoenstatt shrine in Armadale to follow The Way of the Cross for Good Friday. The young people of St Francis Xavier Church have been leading the community in this Good Friday journey every year since 2006, with the exception of a pause during the pandemic in 2020.
Following the Stations as used by Saint Pope John Paul II in the year 2000, the young people formed a tableau for each station, depicting the scene, while a reader described the scene, and another read a
reflection.
The leaders then moved to the next Station followed by the crowd, singing traditional hymns as they continued up the stony hill into the bush.
This year the re-enactment included children from Xavier Catholic School, members and graduates from the Parish youth group Youth Building Community, several musicians, two acolytes and some altar servers. The event was enabled by several weeks of practice and the preparation and clearing of the track by members of the Knights os the Southern Cross. Armadale parishioners were grateful for the hospitality shown by the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary.
children from Xavier Catholic School, members and graduates from the Parish youth group Youth Building Community, several musicians, two acolytes and some altar servers.
Lynwood/Langford Parish Priest Fr Terry Raj blesses the new Paschal Candle, Saturday 16 April, during the 6.30pm Vigil Mass. PHOTO: SUPPLIED / LYNWOOD / LANGFORD PARISH.
Lnwood/Langford Parish Priest Fr Terry Raj lights the fire during the Liturgy of Light, Saturday 16 April, during the 6.30pm Vigil Mass. PHOTO: SUPPLIED / LYNWOOD / LANGFORD PARISH.
Youth of St Francis Xavier Church Armadale Parish during The Way of the Cross Tableau style on Good Friday, 15 April. PHOTO: SUPPLIED / ARMADALE PARISH.
This year the Armadale Parish Good Friday re-enactment of The Way of the Cross included
PHOTO: SUPPLIED / ARMADALE PARISH.
Mary Magdala finds the empty cloths in the tomb during the Armadale Parish Good Friday re-enactment of The Way of the Cross. PHOTO: SUPPLIED / ARMADALE PARISH.
ST JOHN OF GOD HEALTH CARE APPOINTS NEW
CEO ST JOHN OF GOD MT LAWLEY HOSPITAL
St John of God Health Care has appointed Ms Vanessa Unwin as its new CEO at St John of God Mt Lawley Hospital taking effect from 9 May 2022.
She takes over from incumbent CEO Paul Dyer, who was recently appointed CEO St John of God Midland Public and Private Hospitals.
Ms Unwin is currently Director of Nursing and Midwifery at St John of God Mt Lawley Hospital, a position she has held since 2016.
Making the announcement, Chief Operation Officer Hospitals, Mr Bryan Pyne, said that Ms Unwin was selected through a rigorous recruitment process, from a competitive field of internal and external candidates.
Her deep operational experience of the hospital, outstanding administrative skills and extensive clinical credentials made her the standout candidate.
“Ms Unwin has demonstrated exceptional leadership skills since taking over a Director of Nursing at St John of God Mt Lawley Hospital in 2016. She has deep
understanding of the hospital, is an excellent communicator who leads by example and has acted up in the CEO role numerous times.
“She is ideally suited to take on the role of leading the hospital.”
Ms Unwin has experience across both the public and private health care systems, an important skill set at St John of God Mt Lawley Hospital which administers a number of important public contracts in addition to providing a broad range of high quality private services.
Ms Unwin said she was delighted to be appointed to the role and looked forward to continue working with a wonderful and committed team of caregivers at the hospital.
“St John of God Mt Lawley Hospital is a highly regarded and much-loved hospital in the community with an important and longstanding legacy,” she said.
“I feel extremely privileged to have the opportunity to take over the reins and continue working with our dedicated caregivers to ensure we continue to provide high quality health care services to the
community, and an outstanding patient and client experience to every person who walks through our doors.
Ms Unwin commenced her career with St John of God Health Care as a clinical audit nurse at St John of God Murdoch Hospital and progressed through various leadership roles across St John of God Health Care’s Western Australian hospitals.
Mr Pyne said that a number of recent senior roles at St John of God Health Care had been internal appointments, demonstrating the importance and benefit of developing internal talent and creating career paths for outstanding employees.
“St John of God Health Care is one of the largest non-government employers in Western Australia,” he said.
“The benefits of working for a large health care provider like St John of God Health Care, is that we can offer a wide and varied career path, including opportunities to work at our network of hospitals in Victoria and New South Wales.”
Ms Vanessa Unwin has been appointed as the new CEO at St John of God Mt Lawley Hospital taking effect from 9 May 2022. PHOTO: SUPPLIED.
OF JOYS, CHALLENGES AND NEW OPPORTUNITIES
By Michelle Tan & Jamie O'Brien
https://youtu.be/EAZB9N8E-fw
Ukrainian Catholic Bishop Mykola Bychok recently sat down with The Record Editor Jamie O’Brien to share his experience as the new leader of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in Australia, and in light of the current crises facing Ukraine.
The third Eparch for Ukrainians in Australia, New Zealand, and Oceania, Bishop Mykola is just 42 years old and has served in Ukraine, Russia and New Jersey, prior to his arrival in Australia.
MISSIONARY PRIEST IN UKRAINE: “THEIR LIFE
IS MY LIFE, THEIR FATE IS MY FATE”
By Maria Lozano
Enduring a war in the capital of Ukraine, Fr Lucas couldn’t feel much further from Brazil, where he was born and raised. Yet he refuses to leave the country
and is moved by the many examples of hope that he has witnessed during this conflict.
Father Lucas Perozzi is in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine.
Since the first days of the war, he and three other priests have hosted around 30 people in the parish of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Nowadays he doesn’t sleep or eat much, and during this period he even fell ill for a while.
But even though he could leave the country if he so wished, he decided to remain with the people he came to serve and love.
“In this time of war, the people couldn’t remain in their own houses and were spending their nights in bunkers and in underground stations.
“It was terrible, because these places are cold, dirty, and the atmosphere is very dark. They were scared, terrified. Those who came to stay with us can now sleep through the night, in a peaceful atmosphere, despite the war. There is brotherly solidarity here, people help each other out. When someone is down, sad and afraid, somebody else isn’t doing so badly and helps out”, Fr Lucas explains, while he gets on with his daily activities.
While speaking to pontifical charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) he says that the sounds of war raged on all day long. Goods are getting scarce as well.
Ukrainian Catholic Bishop Mykola Bychok speaks with The Record Editor Jamie O’Brien about his experience of becoming a Bishop in the midst of a pandemic, the war in Ukraine as well as his vocation story of becoming a priest. PHOTO: MICHELLE TAN.
Father Lucas Perozzi (center) is praying at the Eucharistic celebration during the war. PHOTO: AID TO THE CHURCH IN NEED.