Social Justice News – November 4, 2016

As the spring weather fluctuates from cold to warm, sometimes in one day, sometimes in the space of 10 minutes, it is easy to get lost in a state of frustration. Within this state can come a sense of wanting the weather to be constant, stable, warm, and nourishing. However, the individual nuances of the weather grant the opportunity to experience sensation, from the flooding in of colours into our eyes, to the sound of the wind rustling through the trees. These nuances remind us that we are feeling beings that have been blessed with a way to connect to the world around us, something to be truly grateful for.

The same openness to the experience of the world can allow us to appreciate the nuances of the people that surround us. From their sense of humour, to the way they start each day with a crossword, to the same smile greeting you each day you walk past them in the corridor. Appreciating the nuances of people is essential to appreciating the unique contributions they make to the world -“ this is the essence of the call to recognising everyone’s human dignity.

-‘We are never more than one grateful thought away from peace of heart’ -“ Brother David Steindl-Rast

At St. Patrick’s College through St. Vincent de Paul, we have a range of boys that volunteer their time to helping out those that are less fortunate then themselves. This is not because they want recognition, or to feel a sense of importance, instead this is because they recognise the dignity of each person. Also, they are grateful for the opportunities they have been provided.

Some of the activities that occur at St. Patrick’s for Social Justice include:

• Bread Runs;

• St. Alban’s Tutoring;

• Fundraising for various causes;

• Edmund Rice Day;

• Edmund Rice Camps;

• Exodus house; and

• St. Vincent de Paul conferences.

Each of these requires the boys individually accepting the invitation to help, not out of external pressure to do so, but instead out of the students’ own calling.

On a final note, this Thursday coming there will be a sausage sizzle to support the recent victims of hurricane Matthew in Haiti. Please look out for this in the notices.

With gratitude,

Nathaniel Winfield.