Religion Education and Moral Development During our Centenary year, three major liturgies were celebrated at the College — the Founder’s Day Mass, the Year 12 Valedictory Mass and the Social Justice Mass. Ash Wednesday, the ANZAC Day memorial liturgy and our Lenten Liturgy once again reminded us of the fragility of human life and the love of a forgiving God. The end-of-year Masses for each year level marked the beginning of Advent, the time in the Church year when Christians worldwide prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus the Christ. Once again, my sincere thanks go to the College Chaplain, Mrs Joan Ferguson for her guidance, advice and assistance in the planning of the major liturgies, Homeroom Masses and Sacramental Programme. This year we introduced a series of individual Homeroom Masses celebrated by Father Hien Vu (Parish priest of St Michael’s Ashburton) and Fr John Sherman OMI (Director of Oblate Vocations), involving Years 4, 5, 6, 7, 9 and 10’s. In 2013 we would like to engage every Homeroom throughout the College. Today we live in a context where we often meet indifference towards God. In our young people who are distant from God for whatever reason, there is a grappling for a spirituality that adds meaning to their lives. By enabling our students to experience the true spirit of liturgy, we hope to empower our students to live their lives in the Christian faith. Through Eucharist, the living Christ invites each one of us to live a
Fr Hien Vu, parish priest of St Michael’s, Ashburton, celebrates Mass for Years 7/8 in St Joseph’s church.
more fully human life and become transformed with the fire of his love. The Year 9’s and 11’s attended separate day retreats at the Syndal Baptist Conference Centre. The Lasallian Youth Ministry team facilitated each retreat and provided a context for the boys to listen, rest, talk and become refreshed. It was an informal time of sharing together in fellowship, inspiration, recreation, and spiritual growth. One of my aims is to continue to challenge the boys academically, by introducing them to various topics in the Catholic tradition. The Year 11’s studied Religion and Society, Unit 1: Religion in Society. This course 16
provides the opportunity for students to understand the often complex relationships that exist between individuals, groups, religious traditions and the society in which they live. The Year 12’s continue to study Religion and Society, Unit 2: Ethics and Morality. Here the boys explore contemporary ethical issues in the light of their investigations into ethical decisionmaking and ethical perspectives, and moral viewpoints in religious traditions. Students from Grades 4–10 continue to use the mandated textbook “To Know Worship and Love” and study a large range of topics including St Paul, Church Community, Prophets, Eucharist, Reformation, and Moral DecisionMaking.
