Dear parents, friends, staff and students,

“And people were astonished at His teaching, for He was teaching them as a person with authority”. Mark 1:22

In this quote from last Sunday’s Gospel according to Mark, we are given a message about life. In this portion of the Gospel, we are never actually told what Jesus was teaching about and this is probably because it is not overly relevant to the message. The focus of the quote is around the notion that Jesus teaches with ‘authority’. We often interpret the notion of authority as synonymous with ‘power’. Authority in this context however, may rather be interpreted in the context that people believed and accepted his teaching because they saw the enormous value in it. The value lay not in the words but in the fact that Jesus backed up His message with action. The consistent message that He gave was reinforced by what He did and how He did it. From this Gospel, we get the simple but treasured message that to be Christ-like, means to hold high standards of values and ensure that when we deal with others, we live what we say. 

On Friday we held our annual High Achiever’s ceremony which recognises the many achievements of the HSC class from the previous year. This year we celebrated with 15 of our high achievers and some parents. Unfortunately due to COVID safety considerations, we were only able to invite one parent from each family. It was a great pleasure to be able to host all of these guests even in such limited numbers. At the assembly I spoke of Pope Francis’ call at the 2016 World Youth Day vigil for young people to get off the couch and get into the game. His open invitation for people (especially young people) to actively participate in the world around them and their own futures is counter-cultural given so many people are obsessed with their personal technological devices. The call to be active with those around us speaks to the Marist characteristic of ‘presence’. For our High Achievers, and all our students past and present, who gain from their time at Mount Carmel, I congratulate and thank them for making a difference to their own futures and to the world around them by making the decision to actively participate.

Next Wednesday evening (February 10) we will be hosting our Year 7 Meet and Greet evening beginning at 7pm. A letter was given to each student and sent to each parent earlier this week. This is a great opportunity for parents to meet the Pastoral Advisors and other key staff members so that you can recognise those directly responsible with supporting your child. It will also assist in the building of strong communication channels between home and the College. Again, due to current COVID safety requirements, only one parent will be able to attend and the evening will be conducted in a different way from previous years.

At this point in time we still intend on holding our Year 7, 2022 Information Evening on Monday March 1 in some form. The specific format for this evening will be communicated as the date draws nearer, however, I ask anyone who may be considering enrolling children at Mount Carmel in Year 7 next year, to keep this evening free and potentially join us. The final format of this evening will obviously be determined by COVID safety considerations at the time. Please circulate this date to any friends whom you know may also be interested in enrolling. 

Unfortunately, we have had to make the difficult decision to change the format of the College Swimming Carnival this year to a competitors only event. Our advice is clear that spectators are not permitted and singing and chanting is also banned. This means that sending Year 7 and 12 students who would normally attend as a community building event, will not be possible. Parents will be permitted only if assisting as carnival officials. Ms Bowen will outline what is required closer to the event. Our aim is to make sure community building occurs in subsequent events through the year.

Mr Steve Lo Cascio