What a Celebration!
Dear Parishioners and friends,
Last weekend we celebrated the 70th anniversary of our parish. And what a great celebration we had! It was a joyful, beautiful, reverent and spiritually uplifting occasion. I was deeply touched to see so many people coming together as one parish family to give thanks to God for 70 wonderful years of faith and community.
For 70 years, St Bernadette’s has been a place where people have prayed, celebrated the sacraments, mourned the loss of loved ones, and found strength and consolation in the Lord. Countless people have given their time, gifts and faith to build the parish community we have today.
What was particularly beautiful was the way our diversity was reflected in our unity. The different-coloured candles brought to the altar by our young people represented people of different languages, cultures and traditions who have come together as one family in Christ. This has always been one of the great blessings of St Bernadette’s, and something we should treasure and nurture.
My heartfelt thanks to everyone who contributed to making the celebration so memorable. I thank Bishop Martin Ashe for presiding at Mass, the concelebrating priests, and all those who prepared and participated in the liturgy. My sincere thanks also go to our technical volunteers who made the livestream possible, our multi-cultural choir and musicians, readers, Eucharistic ministers, altar servers, sacristans, flower ministry, cleaners and all those who worked quietly behind the scenes.
Many thanks to our organising team, secretaries, school principal and staff for their support, and every parishioner who came, helped, encouraged and supported this celebration in any way.
Above all, we give thanks to God. Whatever we have achieved during these 70 years has been possible because of His grace, made visible in generations of parishioners, including our early pioneers and those who generously donated the land.
Now we look towards the future. The story of St Bernadette’s is not finished. May we continue to grow as a welcoming and vibrant community where everyone feels at home, our young people find their place, and families are supported. May all who come through our doors encounter the love and mercy of Jesus, and may we grow together as missionary disciples, sharing the joy of the Gospel and bringing Christ’s love to our world.
God bless you
Fr Silvio