Last week I attended the Good Samaritan Principals Meeting as well as the meeting with Good Samaritan Education in Melbourne.

One of the presentations over the two days was made by the Chair of Good Samaritan Education as she shared with us the experience the Congregational Leader Sr Patty Fawkner had when she met the Pope with leaders of other religious institutes. As she recollected in The Good Oil (July 2019) the highlight was when the Pope opened the discourse with those gathered by saying “let’s have a conversation”. Through this invitation he encouraged the 850 leaders present not to be afraid of dialogue but to embrace the opportunity to have an adult conversation about the issues that matter. She said Pope Francis listened intently and responded with deep respect. Follow the link to the article: The Good Oil

There is, at times, a reluctance for individuals to have an adult conversation about issues that concern us as it can be viewed as being disrespectful or contrary to our beliefs. Over the last few years we have had a few issues that have needed adult conversations. They include the gay marriage debate, the role of women in the church and the very current abortion debate in parliament now. The benefit of an adult conversation on issues that matter, often leads a person to deepen their faith and guides them to a greater commitment to their belief. Sadly, there are some in our community who fail to see the benefit of these conversations and so withhold opposing views which rob the individual of experiencing the benefits of knowing the two sides of the issue.

Pope Francis is a leader in our Catholic Church who very much believes in building a church that is aware and respectful of the other. One of his first actions once becoming the Pope was to share time with those in prison. He released ‘Laudato Si’ which calls for action on climate change. He recently publicly confronted and held bishops accused of the sexual abuse of children accountable for their actions. He is the only pope who has made a commitment to promote world peace by opening a dialogue between Christianity and Islam. His visit to the great Imam of Al-Azhar in Egypt and his Mosque is a profound gesture of mutual respect and interconnectedness.

At St Patrick’s we also seek ways of engaging girls in adult conversations that will broaden their understanding and respect for the other. Once again the Year 11 students visited the Auburn Mosque for their Studies of Religion course and found it to be both informative and insightful. For some families this is a challenge. Fortunately the excursion to the Buddhist temple, held in the years prior, doesn’t create the same concern. My hope is that over time, all in our community will have the courage to follow our Pope’s lead and engage in adult conversation with each other.

Finally, we all have an opportunity to contribute to the future of the Australian church through participation in the Plenary Council 2020. I encourage you to participate in this process where possible and make your contributions so that the final statement reflects what the congregation believes to be true for the future.

I will leave you with a short reflection on courage.

Blessings

Sue Lennox - Principal 

Let us pray and support one another in taking up the Good Samaritan call to have courage; 
“the courage to see, 
the courage to feel 
and the courage to act”, 
and be encouraged by the words of Yahweh to Joshua 
when he is taking up a new role of leadership 
after the death of Moses: 
“Be strong and courageous. 
Do not be afraid; 
do not be discouraged, 
for the Lord your God will be with you 
wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9).

This is the edited text of an address Sister Sonia Wagner delivered on July 9, 2017 during an event in Brisbane, to celebrate 160 years of Good Samaritan life and mission.