Faith & Social Justice

from Loreto Normanhurst Yearbook 2021

Sport Profiles

The Midday Gong

The gong is a time of reflection that we experience each day at 12pm. This period of reflection involves the whole school putting aside their work and taking a minute or two to contemplate the words delivered over the loudspeaker. Sometimes we listen to a parable or reading from scripture and reflect on the key message. At other times we listen to prayers that relate to things going on in the world at that time. On Fridays, we participate in an Ignatian Examen in which we think over the events and our actions that week. The gong gives us time to put our worries aside and take a minute to just listen. I have loved participating in the gong because it gives me time to put my mind on hold. It makes me feel relaxed and it gives me a chance to remember who and what I am grateful for. I have learnt that having the gong is an important part of the day because it gives me an opportunity to focus on the readings and reflecting on how we can be better and improve on ourselves and our actions.

Lucy Jenkins, Year 6

Reflection on the Bush Cemetery

This year, the students of Loreto Primary were taken down to our school’s cemetery during our weekly Wednesday See, Think, Wonder time. Mrs Parker led us all down through the bush and into the cemetery to show us the headstones of many honourable Nuns who helped shape our school. We learnt about the history behind a few of the headstones, who they belonged to and each person’s contribution to the IBVM and the Loreto traditions. The two that stood out the most for me were Mother Evangeline Kendall and Mother Dorothea Frizelle. They have personally helped our school on a spiritual level, grow and evolve. Year 5 and Year 6 students completed an activity which involved choosing a headstone that we were intrigued about and sketching it, while Mrs Parker helped us to learn the meanings of the various engravings on the headstones. This trip to the cemetery helped the Primary students to become more connected to the heritage and history of our wonderful school.

Lara Vuckovic, Year 6

Day of the Girl Webinar

It was wonderful to join together with our Loreto Schools all around Australia for the Day of the Girl webinar. We were deeply moved by what we witnessed during the webinar and equally amazed by the incredible work of Mary Ward International who have made a real difference in the lives of so many. We were so shocked and deeply devastated at the troubles women across the world go through but were even more surprised about what the younger girls face. It was truly upsetting to hear the stories about what young girls go through during their lifetime from the true words of those individual survivors.

It is so hard to hear about the diligent working girls at the brick fields in India. It’s just not right that young girls spend hours working because their families are desperate. We are so lucky we can enjoy life and our valuable childhood without having the burden of hard work to pay for our survival. In India all the men and boys get the privileges such as the beds, better food and a proper education. In Timor Leste, girls spend hours walking to school over the mountains. They only spend half the day at school because of the challenge of not having quick transport. Many stay in the city with other family members and have to cook and clean before going to school until they could afford to stay somewhere else. We felt very guilty as we are so fortunate in Australia and we reflected on how important it is to appreciate the smaller things. We came together as followers of Mary Ward to learn about the injustices that girls in today’s world face. The Mary Ward International Association (MWIA) has worked tirelessly with dedication and effort for the lives and futures of girls all over the world. The MWIA have already built schools for girls, helping them to get the education they deserve. They are helping girls’ struggles become visible to the world.