Welcome to the new school week

Every culture has its customs, its rules by which people live. In the modern world we write some of these rules and customs down into law books – Don’t cause grievous bodily harm. Don’t sell drugs, for instance – and we impose heavy penalties on people who break them. Some customs are unwritten: we know it is wrong to show disrespect towards disabled people; towards people of a different race; or the elderly.

In the early time of the First Testament, before Jesus, one of these unbreakable customs was hospitality. For tribes living in semi-desert regions, travel would not be possible if you couldn’t count on being welcomed when you came to the camp of another tribe. The custom demanded that they offer you water, food and shelter for a few days, so that you could then continue your journey.

A feature of our school community is hospitality. Fr. John invites us to share in a celebrating mass community each Sunday or special liturgies like the “Pet Blessing” last Friday evening. Our School Parent Association (PSA) focus on hospitality via classroom co-ordinator programs, events for our students, activities like our “Second-Hand Uniform” stall last Friday and the opportunity to have a family photograph on Saturday. At the heart of each of these activities is hospitality; opening up an opportunity for family, staff or students to welcome others, share our bounty and support each other. 

Hospitality (and the underpinning concepts to kindness, inclusion, care and friendship) spreads; I saw this in the school playground last week. Cricket season has started and the students had respectfully asked our grounds crew to mark out several pitches. This was done with grace and care which allowed several groups to play in a variety of areas. All had space, a facility, and the best aspect was the attitude of the students to include many, play fairly and just enjoy our beautiful play area.

Being hospitable to guests demands that the person offering hospitality has to exercise self-restraint and work hard. Being a generous host does cost us. But the custom that obliged people to offer hospitality in the Old Testament times was not one-sided. In return, the visitor was expected to offer some gift or favour. 

This story in Genesis is designed to teach us an important truth about God and humanity. It tells how God visited Abraham and Sarah. What does Abraham do? He hurries to get water for them to wash their feet. He and Sarah rush around to prepare food for them. The food is generous and lavish. Abraham and Sarah are astonished when their visitor, who turns out to be God, promised them they will have a family. The message this Old Testament story is asking us to consider; share hospitality with each other and the reward is for our community and each other. (Theology aspects of this reflection today came from the Homily by Fr. Peter Murnane). 

Other School News

Weather Forecaster for a Day

A big congratulation to Ava Gleeson on winning the Coast FM “Monkey In The Morning” be a weather forecaster for a day. This opportunity gave Ava the chance to work in the radio studio early one morning and do the daily weather report. Ava was then recorded and the report ran over the course of the day. Well done Ava and thanks to the Coast FM Team.

Second-Hand Uniform Sale

A special thanks to our PSA team for two great family opportunities on Friday and Saturday. Families could drop off uniform items to be priced and re-sold. Items could then be purchased at very reasonable prices for future wearing.

Annual Blessing of the Pets

A week ago on Friday evening Fr. John invited parishioners and school families to bring along a pet to be blessed in the church grounds. Dogs, cats, birds and even a racehorse arrived! Prince of Penzance paraded in the grounds for some pats and photos. This was a special opportunity to celebrate God’s bounty; as we all know pets bring fun, responsibility, love and friendship to the lives of many; the Blessing ceremony invited us to remember the importance of stewardship of our natural world.