A Call to commit to Prayer during the Pandemic every evening at 7pm

The faithful across the Diocese of Wollongong are urged to join with other members of the National Council of Churches, so that all Christians pray 7pm every night until Easter Sunday during the Pandemic crisis.

PRAYING FOR OUR WORLD, AMIDST COVID-19

Gracious God,

We give thanks anew for your providence and presence.

We prayerfully seek your grace, amidst COVID-19 here and overseas. We pray for those in need of healing.

We pray for your peace with those who are anxious or grieving. We pray you will continue to strengthen and sustain all those who are serving in response.

We pray for your Holy Spirit’s discernment amidst the many choices and decisions facing our national, community and medical leaders. We pray we each might see quickly what more we can do to help those who are vulnerable.

This prayer for our nation in the family of nations, with all that is on our hearts, we gather now and pray through Jesus Christ our Lord.    Amen

The Wollongong Diocese website att https://www.dow.org.au/covid-19/  provides up to date information and spiritual resources you might be looking for, especially now. These include:

• Journey Catholic Radio at https://www.dow.org.au/media-resources/journey-radio/
• Lenten program at https://www.dow.org.au/product/grace-lenten-program-2020-triple-cd-mp3-digital-download-free/

Weekly Mass Online:

Many parishes are providing a live streaming of Sunday Mass so that we may all participate in the celebration of the Eucharist.

Bishop Brian and other clergy are live streaming Mass every Sunday. If you are interested, go to their Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/WollongongCatholic

Holy Week Celebration and Prayer

Next week each class will be learning about Holy Week. The teachers are preparing resources for online use. We will also have a prayer service available for each class on their Google Classroom page. So keep an eye out for it!

Sacramental Programs

As you are aware, all sacraments are on hold at the moment. We have not made a decision yet about dates for the Sacrament of First Holy Communion (which was originally June) as we do not know how long restrictions will be in place. We have kept all envelopes from students and parishioners.

Talents to share

Do you play an instrument? Or have a talent that may be of benefit to the faith and spirituality of students while online?

Would you be interested in playing a song to accompany a prayer posted online in upcoming months? Do you have a talent that you think could enrich the learning experiences of our students online? If so, please leave your email address and contact details with the office staff.

Deanna David

Religious Education Coordinator