Dives And Lazarus - Spiritual Burden and Spiritual Waste
When we declutter, we feel lighter; and people declutter all the time. Here in Australia, households declutter all the time. Every suburb in the city or town is allocated a day in a year in which everyone is encouraged to leave out on the verge or on their front lawn those household items, which they no longer need or simply want to discard. But it always turns out that what one person discards another picks up as an item with which to redecorate their house. Thus the saying goes: “one person’s trash is another’s treasure.”
The problem with Dives as with many people, is that they want to hold on to the items that have flayed on the edges, past-their-use-by-date, no longer needed in the household, best for the rubbish-bin.
The sin of Dives is not his wealth, it is not his “gluttony and the gourmet feeding on exotic and costly dishes,” which was his daily practice. It is his unwillingness to discard that which was no longer useful to him, and which would eventually end up in his trash-can.
In the days of Jesus, people ate with their hands for there were “neither knives, nor forks, nor napkins.” In wealthy homes, therefore, people cleaned their hands with hunks of bread, and then the bread was discarded as trash. It was this bread used for cleaning hands that Dives was unwilling to make available to Lazarus.
One person’s pleasure, can become his spiritual undoing, which denies another her own pleasure.

Here are a few updates from Our Lady of Fatima School for the final week of Term 3:
• It was wonderful coming together as a whole on Wednesday of Week 9 for the finals of Fatima’s Got Talent. This involves students nominating themselves with their special talents to present to their classmates and then one or two performers are selected for the finals. And what a diverse number of talents that we witnessed - amazing music performances, dance and gymnastics and even comedy!
• After a false start, we held our school Athletics Carnival on Thursday in Week 9. Although the weather was gusty and we experienced a bit of rain, it was a fantastic day and we saw excellent performances and beautiful examples of sportsmanship. We are grateful to Seton Catholic College for providing the venue, as well as supporting us with their efficient, well-mannered and helpful students who assisted on the day.
• Tuesday was a special day for our school community, as we held our Open Afternoon. This provides an opportunity for parents and grandparents to come into classrooms and see the fabulous work that students have been doing. A massive thank you to the staff for their hard work in preparing this for families.
• We wish all our students, parents and staff a safe and happy school holidays!

The Rosary on Wednesday 7th September was very moving and uplifting. Before the Rosary
we unveiled the beautiful painting of Our Lady of Sorrows painted and donated to the Parish by young local artist Yusef Hourani.

Yusef gave a brief but very inspiring talk on his inspiration and insights into his painting. He explained the pose, the positioning of her hands, the dark background, the expression on her face. In essence the style of the painting presents a timeless and ever relevant image for our lives. We can draw solace and comfort from spending time with Mary, in our times of sorrow and hardship. All who attended were moved and impressed with Yusef’s talk.

How does the Christian person live as a steward of the Gospel message?
The language of the gospel may sometimes sound harsh: it can sometimes paint the picture of a steward clothed in his/her misdemeanours. Sometimes the picture of judicious blackmail becomes the hallmark of such a steward in his/her stewardship. In today’s gospel, the steward, by means of such stewardship, in her/his rascality, sets out to prepare to make gains should he or she be thrown out of office.
The gospel is reminding us that a Christian or any good woman or man - for that is what a Christian means, in all our relationships, should not be consumed with simply making profits for our own security or for the security of those within our circle of friends or loved ones. Such profits are ill-gotten, if in their accumulation, someone, innocent or not, is hurt.
The steward’s commission is, first, to practise fairness, and to ask herself/himself what service “can I, in all honesty, render to each person and to all humanity,” irrespective of the initial treatment meted out to him/her. Our commission is to make friends, not enemies. As Pope Francis puts it: “The evangelising community places [herself/himself] through works and gestures in the daily lives of others, shortens distances, lowers themselves to the point of humiliation if necessary, and takes on human life, touching the suffering flesh in Christ, in the people” they meet. It is a demanding but profitable commission: that’s the glorious optimism of a Christian.

Every family, every community, every establishment, needs someone who is either a nominal Father or a biological father.
Last week, we touched briefly on what a father or mother is: that he or she is one who must act wisely, in order that in his turn he might impart wisdom to all those who cherish their fatherhood and motherhood.
It is the essence of wisdom to grow larger and bigger in spirit: the God that he/she worships needs to be a God who is not narrow-minded; his/her God must be a God who has a large mind, a large heart; his/her God must not be petty. His/her God must be a God who is strong enough to entertain self-correction.
Only then, can he/she be able to understand that a prodigal son or daughter is crying out for help. That help comes when a father or mother can draw from himself or herself the ingredients or qualities, which can restore wholeness: compassion, patience, forbearance, trust.
Only then, will he or she be able to cure the jealousy with its envy, which tracks solely the weaknesses in others, to condemn and frustrate them further.
The father and the mother’s journey is long, tiring, but never burdensome. It is the joy of seeing the children grow to maturity, which revives and strengthens his or her spirit.
A father or a mother’s work is never done, never completed. It is a slow, recurring, but thoughtful, engaging state of mind.

HAPPY FATHER’S DAY!

THE BEST DAD
The best dad is one who is his own man, and so, is not a camp follower but a disciple. He is, therefore, a good student, always learning and growing. At the same time he is weak, and so understands the weakness in others, especially the weaknesses of those within his own household. He is full of understanding even of those who start building but cannot finish. And he does not judge them for their lack of serious prebuilding considerations. For he knows we are all the wiser and prudent in hindsight.
He is also strong - he is not a hangers-on. But his strength comes from his weakness. A man is strong when he is always aware where lies his weakness. That is, his strength is clothed in wisdom of the ages.
He is not puffed up; he speaks truth to the reality that is, aware that being puffed up is like a balloon that is deflated, in time, by that reality.
He is not afraid beyond the fear of not being himself.
He works on his relationships within and outside his family. He does not go to bed with anger and envy in his heart. He is a witness to his family. He counts the cost of discipleship.

“WEEPING AND GRINDING OF TEETH”
When we assume that a place of privilege is our lot and station, as we shut out the unpriviledged, the metaphor of fear and dread, which is the feature of biblical accounts, can sometimes lead us to believing that what awaits us after this life is hell fire.
Why do we need to search outside our world for what Jesus means? A survey of the world easily tells us that unless we keep striving, irrespective of where we find ourselves in life, life’s response can be brutal. We always run a certain risk, either in the Church or in our given professions in this world, when we presuppose that we have attained our goal or that we have come to the end of the road, and that there is no longer any need to keep striving to shed the dross that covers the carapace we wear all the time. The natural constitution of our world could be less merciful on us than heaven would. We only need to open our eyes, put our ears to the ground and read the tea leaves. We should never assume that we are, in any way, better than anyone else, and, therefore, relegate them to the back of the queue. That is merely a mentalistic way of looking at life, for our “life in this world is full of twists and turns, particularly when we cease struggling to be better.

Term 3 is always a busy time at Our Lady of Fatima School.
Here are a few highlights:
Three of our Year 6 students competed in the Speak Up Awards in recent weeks. The students competed against 4 other schools in Scarborough and spoke on the following topics: Healing Paws, which is a foundation dedicated to saving dogs in Columbia, love of McDonalds and preventing and responding to climate change.
Students in Years 2 and 6 recently competed in the Catholic Performing Arts in Choral Speech. Our Year 2 students received an Excellence award and our Year 6 students received an Outstanding award. Congratulations to our students and teachers for their wonderful efforts!
Thank you so much to all of our hard-working parents and community members who have been busy working on the P&F Wine Raffle and Mulch Drive. We are so grateful to their commitment in giving up spare time to support the school and we recognise how much effort goes into the running of these fundraisers.
Thank you to the parish for supporting these inititives.
Thanks!
Jacinta

“FOR WHERE YOPUR TREASURE IS, THERE WILL YOUR HEART BE ALSO”
This Gospel is Jesus’ invitation to us to live differently, with a different set of values that puts love of others - with God as the sustaining structure - and transformative action in the world, before the baubles of fame, power and fortune. Then we can live confidently and without fear when we have become free from all forms of iternalised false worship.

In 2023 our Parish turns 100 and as it happens to be, Father Francis' golden anniversary of ordination. The inaugural celebration is on the 13th May, which is the feast of Our Lady of Fatima. 

If you would like to particiapte in planning and coordinating events for this special celebration year please contact Stefano Zagami szagami@me.com or any member of the Parish Council.

Look out for updates from the Organising Committee here and on our Facebook page. All are welcome to get involved and share their ideas.

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Due to health concerns and other reasons not all of our Parishioners have returned to mass following the COVID lockdown. If you or a loved one would like to stay connected and receive a phone call from the Parish Council please register your interest with the Parish office.  
Someone from the Parish Council will give you a call to say hello, give you an update on the Parish and answer any questions you may have. Please share this opportunity with anyone you think might need it and email emyfrank@iinet.net.au or phone 93391298 to register your interest.

Enjoy a cuppa after 9:00am Mass each Monday in the Parish Hall. All are welcome!

MY JESUS, I believe that you are in the Blessed Sacrament. I love You above all things, & I long for You in my soul. Since I cannot now receive You Sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. As though You have already come, I embrace You and unite myself entirely to You. Never permit me to be separated from You. Amen.

If you have updated your address or contact details recently please update the Parish office so we can keep in touch.

To update your contact details or register for electronic communications email emyfrank@iinet.net.au or phone 93391298.