By Leanne Joyce
More than 200 Year 8 students from Kolbe Catholic College went on retreat on June 13.
The retreat was themed around the Quality Catholic Schooling framework and was designed to further strengthen the Catholic life and culture with the students’ parishes.
To achieve this, students spent quality time with their respective parish priests in order to learn more about the history and charisms of each particular parish.
The retreat started with Mass and during all the Masses students were presented with cross pins as a retreat gift from the College.
Each priest then addressed the students and outlined: the charism of the parish based on the patron saint; the history of the parish and its links with the primary schools; the importance and uniqueness of each community to the priest; what each student could contribute to his/her community; and if the student belonged in the parish, how could he/she make it even more special? Masses on June 23 then saw students of each particular parish participate in the Mass.
Students at St Bernadette’s Parish enacted the Gospel reading, while students from Our Lady of Lourdes performed the Mass readings and placed crosses that they had made during retreat around the church.
At Mother Teresa Parish the students also read the reading of the Mass, and at St Vincent’s, Kwinana, the Year 8 students spoke about what they did on retreat, the purpose of the retreat and what they got out of it.
Thanks must go to our local parish priests from Our Lady of Lourdes in Rockingham, St Bernadette’s in Port Kennedy, St Vincent’s in Kwinana and Mother Theresa in Baldivis for their patience, care and understanding in the spiritual formation of the students.
Kolbe students now have a better understanding of the role they can play in the enrichment of their spiritual life and in the strengthening of their roles within their respective parishes.