On Friday 15 March, St Bernard’s College was invited by the Melbourne Archdiocese to attend the Mass of St Patrick for Schools as a part Catholic Education Week, 2024.
On the day, a group of nine St Bernard’s students assembled before the grand doors of St Patrick’s Cathedral alongside many other Catholic primary and secondary schools who make up the Melbourne Archdiocese.
The mass was celebrated by the Most Reverend, Peter Comensoli, Archbishop of Melbourne, and was well accompanied by a congregation of bishops and priests from across the Archdiocese. Also, in attendance were numerous Victorian Parliamentarians including former St Bernard’s student and current Deputy Premier and Minster for Education in Victoria, Mr Ben Carroll MP.
The Mass was a tremendous gathering, commencing with a procession of students bearing their school banners down the centre aisle. The liturgy was complimented with hymns performed by a choir of Students from Sacred Heart Girl’s College, lead chiefly by a Cantor from the girl’s college who all the boys agreed was equally entrancing with her incredible vocals.
A powerful part of the liturgy was the homily by Father Peter Comensoli. He opened by welcoming the congregation home and proceeded to reflect on the power of being a part of a family, particularly the guiding effect of mothers and fathers in our lives. He likened the Archdiocese to that of a family and truly highlighted what the liturgy was about.
Through the coming together of Catholic schools to this mass, the realisation dawned upon our students that us, as a College, are a part of such vast and broad network of schools. There is a powerful acknowledgment to be made in that despite being a part of our own St Bernard’s community, the collection of Catholic schools demonstrated to the students the strength that lies in unity of faith and the meaning of being righteous adherents to our own beliefs.
As an inclusive community, practicing justice and solidarity, and guided by gospel spirituality, this experience was valuable in allowing our students to grasp the importance of faith, the power of our religious community, ultimately amounting to a truly liberating aspect of our education.
