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AUGUSTINIAN BULLETIN BOARD - for February 2012

Run on affection

So there is some walking, some travelling to be done; but that doesn't mean ointment for feet, a quest for mules and horses, the provision of ships. Run on affection, with your feelings, travel by love, ascended by charity.

Why look for a route or a way? Stick close to Christ, who made himself into the way by descending and ascending. Do you want to ascend? Hold on to him as he ascends. After all, you can't be hoisted up under your own steam, because No one has gone up into heaven, except him who came down from heaven, the Son of man who is in heaven. If no one has gone up except the one who came down, and he is the Son of our man, our Lord Jesus, do you too want to go up?

Be a part of him, who is the only one to have ascended. You see, he the head is, with the rest of his body, one person, one man.

And since none can go up unless they have been incorporated in him as members of his body, this text is verified, that no one has gone up into heaven except him who came down..

St Augustine: Sermon 91, 7...

 

Augustinian Reception and First Professions.

 

The Augustinians in Australasia and Japan joyfully announce the First Religious Profession of two of its members and the reception into novitiate of five candidates for the Order (one of them on behalf of the Vicariate of the Augustinian Martyrs of Japan, which is based in Tokyo, Japan).

Both of these ceremonies will take place on Sunday, 5th February 2012 within the celebration of the 9.30 am Parish Mass at the Church of St Kieran, Condamine Street, Manly Vale (Sydney) NSW. Refreshments will follow in the parish hall, courtesy of the Augustinian Formation Association and the local Filipino community. All are welcome.

 

Augustinian Spirituality

Much positive attention has been accorded a book on the spiritual life of everyday Christians by an Augustinian priest who is an Associate Professor of Theology at the Order’s Villanova University in Pennsylvania, U.S.A.

This book by Fr Martin Laird O.S.A. is entitled, Into the Silent Land: A Guide to the Christian Practice of Contemplation (ISBN 978-0-19-530760-3), produced by Oxford University Press. It contains recommendations by Archbishop Rowan Williams, who is the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury, and by Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

A sample of Fr Laird’s teaching is available on the internet at http://video.pbs.org/video/2177471279

His second book, developing the same topic further, was published in mid-2011: A Sunlit Absence: Silence, Awareness, and Contemplation (ISBN13: 978-0-19-537872-6 and ISBN10: 0-19-537872-5). It contains 208 pages, and was published by Oxford University Press.

 

Come and See video clip

The Australian Province of the Order of St Augustine has a You Tube account. Featured there is Come and See, a four-minute presentation for those interested in a brief look at life in the Augustinian Order, particularly for its latest candidates in Australia.

There are also a number of other video presentations there for viewing.

Go to http://www.youtube.com/osaaustralia

 

Augustinians in South Korea

The Order of Saint Augustine first went to South Korea in 1985, and two Australian Augustinians were in the group of four priests initially sent there. The Order in Korea accepted its first Korean-born candidates in 1990, and still regards the task of training its Korean-born Augustinians as a primary ministry.

The Augustinian Delegation of Korea has three communities, located at Incheon, Kanghwa Island and Yeon-Chon (north of Seoul).

Matteo (at right in photo), one of the Korean seminarians in solemn vows, received Diaconate on 10th January 2012 by the hands of Bishop Boniface Choi. Another three Augustinian candidates began their year-long novitiate at Kanghwa on 26th January 2012.

At present there are nine candidates in initial formation in the Augustinian Delegation of Korea.

For a summary elsewhere on this web site of Augustinian involvement in South Korea since the Order's arrival there in 1985, click here.

 

Augustinian Parish, Mareeba

The Parish of St Thomas of Villanova in Mareeba has been staffed by the Order of Saint Augustine since it began a century ago. Mareeba is located on the tableland behind the tropical tourist city of Cairns, in northern Queensland, Australia. It is part of the Diocese of Cairns.

The twenty-seventh annual celebration was held at St Thomas of Villanova Catholic Church in Mareeba on Sunday, 15th January 2012 at the 10.00 am Mass for the feast of Señor Santo Niño de Cebu (the Holy Child Jesus).

Parish priest Fr Michael Belonio O.S.A., Deacon Ralph Madigan and Fr Tony Lumusko O.S.A., (currently serving in Innisfail) concelebrated the Mass. Some of the hymns were sung in the Filipino language of Tagalog, and some in English. A Cairns-based choir participated.

The Church was overflowing with people from Townsville, Cairns and surrounding areas travelling to share the day. Three Augustinian Filipino Sisters and three Augustinian seminarians attended from Sydney (see photo above).

Following Mass the statue of Santo Nino was carried around the Church and School grounds, followed by a shared meal on the school basketball courts.

 

The parish web site is: http://www.stthomass.com.au

MAREEBA CENTENARY BOOK

The first one hundred years of the parish of St Thomas of Villanova, Mareeba, has been penned into book form by parishioner, Jeanette Hartley. The title of the book, “Where the Pelican Builds,” pays tribute to the Irish Augustinians who travelled so far from their homeland in Ireland to carve out what would become a diocese in Far North Queensland, with Mareeba being part of that diocese.

The book's title links with Saint Thomas of Villanova himself, who featured a pelican on his episcopal coat of arms.

The book has 211 pages, and is filled with anecdotes of the parish of Mareeba, profiles of all the priests who have ministered there in one hundred years, details of the three churches, the work of the Sisters of Mercy, the many (and changing) committees and societies throughout the years and the celebrations, both religious and secular.

It was written as a three-way tribute to the Augustinians, the Sisters of Mercy and the parishioners.

Interspersed with many photos and naming well-known and hardworking families of the one hundred years, the book is proving to be popular with its readers.

To obtain a copy
..........Available at St Thomas’s Priory, P.O. Box 308, Mareeba, Qld 4880.
..........For mail orders, please calculate the cost of the book ($25.00) plus postage:
..........Posting Australia wide: $3.50. Posting overseas by airmail: $25.00
..........Cheques should be made out to St Thomas’s Catholic Church.

 

Augustinian book available

A publication was launched late last year by the Augustinian Order in Australia. This book, “Grace Chapel – Augustinian Sacred Space,” (ISBN 978-0-9750686-1-8) illustrates and describes the art works in Grace Chapel (see photo at left ) at the Order's Formation Centre at Brookvale.  

It contains  forty pages of high-quality art paper, and is lavishly illustrated with professional colour photographs by Kris Smith of the chapel’s exterior, interior and numerous artworks. The book was the inspiration of Fr Lawrence Mooney O.S.A., who wrote the text.

Enquiries about purchasing a copy of the book can be made at the Augustinian Province Office: phone (02) 9938 0200 during office hours, or by e-mailing osaadmin@bigpond.com


Augustinian Centre for Spirituality, Sydney

A small oasis of quiet and hospitality in western suburban Sydney, Australia, the Augustinian Centre for Spirituality at Greystanes (photo below) assists persons and groups of all faith backgrounds in their spiritual journey.

Some members of its Augustinian community offer spiritual direction, reflection days, courses in prayer and meditation, and individual residential directed retreats.

One of the events at the Centre in March 2012 will be Take the Fire, not the Ashes: The 2012 Lenten Journey towards Easter.

It will take place from 2.00 pm to 5.00 pm on Sunday, 4th March 2012, and be conducted by Br Paul Skippen O.S.A. The fee is $20 (concession available).

To read the full program of the Augustinian Centre for 2012, click here.

For bookings, or for more general information about the Centre, please phone (02) 9896 6794, or e-mail osaspirit@bigpond.com.au

 

St Augustine's College, Sydney

St Augustine's College is an Augustinian day school for approximately 1,100 male pupils in the upper primary and secondary years of education.

Founded in 1956, it is located at Brookvale (Sydney), Australia.

The 2012 academic year has begun with the usual activities, including staff formation days. On the afternoon of 27th January, the staff were addressed by Frank Crawford (see photo), who spent the last fifteen years as the Chief Inspector of Education in Scotland.

He spoke on how technology and learning space impact on how students learn, and encouraged the teachers to create rich, engaging tasks that require students to develop higher-order thinking skills.

He said that one of the greatest contributions that teachers can give is to make their students curious and to provide a stage for them to display their interests and talents.

Soon after the students returned for the 2012 academic year, a gathering was held for parents whose sons have just become pupils of the College.

The College conducts an Open Day annually, which almost 2,000 people usually attend. Details are included in the graphic below. For general enquiries contact the College on 9938.0200, or the Enrolment Registrar on 9938.8223.

The College's web site is www.saintaug.nsw.edu.au


Villanova College, Coorparoo

Villanova is a college of the Order of Saint Augustine at Coorparoo in Brisbane, Australia. Villanova is a day school of over 1,200 male students in the upper primary and secondary years of education. It began at Whinstanes on 25th January 1948, and in 1954 moved to Coorparoo, on the southern side of the Brisbane River.

The earliest sporting facilities developed by Villanova on its campus at Coorparoo were two tennis courts (see old photo above) built late in 1955 or early in 1956. They were located to the immediate right of the driveway that forms the main entrance of the college.

The 2012 Academic Mass took place on the college campus at Goold Hall at 10.30 am on Tuesday, 31st January 2012. The college's Open Day for 2012 is set for Tuesday, 28th February; tours of various sections of the school are scheduled throughout most of that day. Contact the college office for details about the Open Day.

The college web site is: http://www.vnc.qld.edu.au

Augustinian Parish, South Yarra

In Melbourne, the capital city of the Australian State of Victoria, the Augustinians have care of the Parish of Saint Joseph, South Yarra. The parish also has a second church, dedicated to St Thomas Aquinas, at Bromby Street, South Yarra. The Order of St Augustine has ministered in the parish since 1976.

The Parish conducted a number of short courses in Adult Faith Education during the final quarter of 2011. The first two courses took place in September, and were entitled Science, Faith and the Universe, and Changed Catholicism.

 

A further course was then presented in early December, entitled What is the Future? Scientific, Secular and Advent Responses.

 

The first course of 2012 has now been announced. Entitled 21st Century Faith, its two sessions will be repeated at two different times (10.00 am and 7.00 pm) on Monday, 20th and 27th February in the Barry Library of the Parish Centre. The course is advertised as being interesting, enjoyable and challenging, and as being open to persons of any belief or background.

The cost is $5.00 per session, including refreshments. The Parish can be contacted by phone on (03) 9826 9677 during working hours or by e-mailing stjosephsparish@internode.on.net  

 

The South Yarra parish website is: http://www.parishofsouthyarra.org.au


Augustinian Parish, North Harbour, Sydney

The Catholic Community of North Harbour in the Diocese of Broken Bay is the union, which happened on 1st July 2006, of the two previous adjacent Augustinian-administered parishes of Manly Vale and Balgowlah in the northern beaches area of Sydney, Australia's largest city.

The Augustinians began their pastoral leadership at Manly Vale in 1952 and at Balgowlah in 2004.

Over 120 members of the Catholic Community of North Harbour contributed to the recording and production of our North Harbour Parish CD entitled One Heart, One Mind.

The music was recorded in many different locations including the churches of St. Cecilia and St. Kieran, the Parish Centre, the ‘Ignite Retreat” 2011 and in the homes of some parishioners.


Copies of the CD are available at the Parish Centre for $20 and proceeds will go to further supporting our parish music ministry

The parish website, now extensively renovated, has received many plaudits. A new feature is the addition of video clips. The most recent inclusion in that regard is a four-minute presentation on Celebrate Sunday, which centres on the 6.00 pm Sunday Mass at St Kieran's Church, Manly Vale.
Go to http://www.vimeo.com/15978171

The parish web site is located at http://www.northharbourcatholic.org.au

 

Augustinian Parish, Coorparoo

The Parish of St James, Coorparoo (Brisbane) has been in the care of the Augustinians since 1952. Villanova College, also conducted by the Order, is located within the parish.

The parish is offering the program called RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults) for those wishing to embrace full communion with the Catholic Church.

The first meeting for 2012 took place on Sunday, 29th January. For information about the date, venue and topic of the next meeting, contact the parish office at (07) 3397 1671 during business hours.

You can view the parish web site: http://www.stjames-coorparoo.org.au/


Augustinian Parish, St Clair

Holy Spirit Parish at St Clair in western Sydney, Australia, was established in 1981, and has been administered by the Order of Saint Augustine since 1995.

Couples celebrating wedding anniversaries are invited to renew their marriage vows at a Eucharistic Celebration which is held in the parish church (photo at right) on the third Wednesday of every month at 7.30pm. So that invitation letters can be sent, couples are requested to sign the registration folder in the church foyer before the tenth day of the preceding month.

Family and friends of the participating couples are also invited to attend this special occasion. Mass is followed by fellowship. This initiative is conducted by the Spirituality Commission of the parish.

Further details of parish life appear on the web site of Holy Spirit Parish: http://www.holyspiritstclair.com.au



Augustinian Formation Association (A.F.A.)

The Augustinian Formation Association prays for and raises funds for the formation of current Augustinian candidates and for future Augustinians.

It has now fulfilled this role for a number of decades.

Based in Sydney, Australia, its current office bearers are Trudi McFadden (president), Eddie Robinson (treasurer), Lesley Sing (assistant treasurer) and Yvonne Clark (secretary).

The AFA is hoping to expand its membership, especially seeing that the number of Augustinian students in formation is increasing, meaning that additional support would be very timely.

The final AFA event for 2011 was the annual Christmas Dinner on 26th November at the Warringah Golf Club. About a hundred people attended. The students from the Augustinian Formation Centre in nearby Brookvale performed choral singing for the occasion, and $1,450 was raised to help in the support of these students.

To obtain more details about the Augustinian Formation Association generally, and their plans for 2012, contact the staff of the Provincial Office at Brookvale on (02) 9938 0200 during office hours.


Augustinian Friends

Augustinian Friends is a lay group conducted in Australia for those wishing to learn more about the spirituality of Saint Augustine of Hippo, and to have contact with others who share this goal. Branches of the Friends operate at a number of Augustinian venues in Brisbane, Mareeba, Melbourne, Northern Victoria, and Sydney.

The Friends' newsletter, Amici, has now reached its tenth anniversary, and much has happened within Augustinian Friends during this decade. For example, there have been four Lay Congresses: in Echuca in 2001, in Brookvale (Sydney) in 2004, in South Yarra (Melbourne) in 2007, and in Coorparoo (Brisbane) in 2010.

An annual meeting of the National Committee of Augustinian Friends took place at the Augustinian Centre for Spirituality at Greystanes (Sydney) on the weekend of 6th-8th November 2009 (see photo below). The most recent annual meeting took place there on 17th-19th September 2010.

These meetings approved a parish programme for the Easter period developed by the Augustinian Spirituality Team. Local Augustinian groups have offered to run the programme in Augustinian parishes. It is particularly suitable for those who have just completed the RCIA program.

The leader of the Augustinian Friends for 2011 is Sylvia Phillips, and Fr. Paul Maloney O.S.A. is the chaplain of the group.

The English and U.S. Augustinians are involved with generally similar Augustinian Friends movements in their respective nations.

In England, “Friends of Augustine” has now begun its own website:
http://www.friendsofaugustine.org In the United States, the web site is http://www.augustinianfriends.org

For an Amici newsletter subscription or for any additional information on the Friends, contact Fr Paul Maloney at Greystanes (Sydney) at paulmal@bigpond.com.au or phone him on (02) 9631 0340.

Augustinian Friends at North Harbour Parish (Manly Vale and Balgowlah) had the Australian Augustinian Provincial, Fr Tony Banks O.S.A., speak at a gathering of Augustinian Friends of North Harbour on the Augustinians and Asia today. This took place on Thursday 31st March 2011.

For additional information about Augustinian Friends on this web site, click here.


Augustinian Volunteers Australia 2011

In February 2008, Augustinian Volunteers Australia was launched with a group of five part-time co-workers. These three women and two men offered their assistance to Church ministries in the poorer suburbs of Western Sydney. This was subsequent to a formation course which included an immersion experience in that same region of Sydney.

The annual Augustinian Volunteers formation course for 2012 is taking place from 30th January to 10th February, and will be reported here soon after its conclusion.

More details about Augustinian Volunteers Australia appear in the social justice section of this web site.

Augustinian Volunteers contact: Mr Paul Wilson, Justice and Peace Officer, c/- St Augustine’s Priory, P.O. Box 679, Brookvale NSW 2100, Australia. Mobile phone: 0438 646 294 Email: paul.wilson@augustinians.org.au Website: www.augustinians.org.au

Augustinian Ministry Websites 2012

FOR SOME CURRENT NEWS ABOUT THE ORDER OUTSIDE AUSTRALIA Click here

The Augustinian international web site is:
http://www.osanet.org/home.asp

AUGUSTINIAN CENTRE FOR SPIRITUALITY PROGRAM 2012
2 Hewitt Avenue
Greystanes 2145
Enquiries (02) 9896 6794
www.augustinians.org.au/communities/greystanes.html

 

 

    
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