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NORTH EAST TEAMS CONVENE

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In mid November many members of Teams of Our Lady gathered in the beautiful garden of St Augustine’s Presbytery, Wodonga. The Wodonga members had prepared a paraliturgy to be followed by a dinner, but more than anything else this was a social occasion where members shared what their teams had been doing over the last year.

All four Wangaratta Parishes’ Teams were represented. Our Wangaratta Sector Couple Sector couple thanked the Wodonga teams for their organisation and Fran and John Whelan, our Regional Couple also travelled from Bendigo to wish us well for Christmas and the year ahead.

It is not generally known around Wangaratta and Wodonga that some of the earliest Teams of Our Lady outside Melbourne were formed here. In fact, one founding couple, Ruth and Kevin O’Hagan, belonged to Melbourne’s first Team. Today the movement is strongly rooted in the Sandhurst Diocese and has been blessed with enthusiastic chaplains and spiritual directors such as Mgr Frank Marriott.

Each Team has five to seven married couples who meet monthly, usually to share a meal and strengthen their Christian lives by listening to others’ family successes, struggles and challenges. Some teams also arrange purely social get-togethers, retreats and once a year at least two Teams come together in what is well named, Crossroads. So members of other teams are well-known.

Monthly meetings are held in a family’s home and one couple will have organised a paraliturgy which includes a discussion that arises from selected biblical readings and/or an article on a current issue such as , Muslim discrimination or refugee policy, or Creation and the Environment. Helping each other to discern a Christian approach is fundamental. Some Teams also set a theme to follow for the year, such as the Pope’s Amoris Laetitia, The Joy of Love.

Teams are not just a talkfest. We help each other in very practical ways such as at times of illnesses, deaths, and children’s problems. That can mean cooking, gardening, providing transport, cutting fallen timber, babysitting, etc. We recognise that it is in the giving that we receive and grow in faith.

People in Teams do our best to meet Pope Francis’ challenge: ‘A Christian is a man or woman of joy; a man and a woman with joy in their heart. There is no Christian without joy.’ We can also add, ‘There is no Team of Our Lady without joy.

Caritas and Social Justice

Caritas Australia is part of a global network that spans over 200 countries and territories.

For over 110 years, Caritas has worked towards the creation of a just world. In 1964, Caritas began in Australia. A Catholic Agency for International Aid and Development, Caritas is Latin for love + compassion – two qualities which are central to our work.

Vision Statement: That we work together for a just and fair world

Mission  Statement:

  • Respond generously to the needs of people for humanitarian relief and development.

  • Help to end poverty and marginalization, promote justice and uphold dignity.

Action: Early each year we meet with Kerry Stone, Diocesan Coordinator of Caritas to plan for Project Compassion and annual justice events for the coming year e.g. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Sunday, Refugee and Migrant Sunday, Social Justice Sunday (Australian Catholic Bishops’ Statement.)

We communicate and/or meet informally when events such as natural disasters occur within Australia and overseas and regarding significant national issues.

We promote fundraising and raise awareness for Project Compassion, for natural disasters and for Caritas Global Gifts for Christmas. Project Compassion Sunday is celebrated at Our Lady’s Gathering Room with pancakes.(The annual Parishioner Lenten Meal with a Caritas Lenten Visitor was not held in 2016 due to the cut in overseas aid by the Federal Government.)

We advocate and encourage Parishioner involvement in campaigns such as the Refugee Petition Walk to Canberra and A Fairer World with postcards to the Prime Minister.

We speak about Caritas projects and use the Bulletin to inform Parishioners about Caritas fundraising results and campaigns and ways to encourage action e.g. The Ten Steps from the Australian Catholic Bishops’ Statement.

Assist with Liturgy Preparation for Sundays in Lent e.g Prayers of the Faithful.

We work co-operatively with other local social justice groups e.g. Vinnies, Wangaratta Oxfam.

 We report on our activities each year in the Parish magazine Contact.

Contact the parish office to find out more and to become involved with the Wangaratta Parish Caritas and Social Justice Group.
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St. Vincent De Paul Society

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Our Mission: The St Vincent de Paul Society is a lay, volunteer, Catholic organisation that aspires to live the gospel message by serving Christ in the poor with love, respect, justice, hope and joy, and by working to shape a more just and compassionate society.

Our Service: The Society adopts a holistic approach, no work of charity is foreign to us. This means we help people with their many and varied assistance.

In the Wangaratta parishes there are two St Vincent de Paul Conferences, St Patrick’s Conference, and Our Lady’s Conference.

Involvement by the Parishes: Fifth Sunday collections, Donations, Winter appeal, Christmas appeal, and interaction with Primary and Secondary schools.

Please contact us through the Parish Office at 1 Ford Street Wangaratta or via the email form at Contact Us pages in this website or telephone the Parish Office on (03) 5722 1970

Our Lady's Support Group

Our aim is to support and encourage all parishioners including our older, sick and housebound parishioners who are living alone.

 

We meet on the last Wednesday of the month in the gathering Room at Our Lady’s Parish at 2pm. On these days we have varying activities such as Bingo, Board games, Films, BBQ Lunch. We also celebrate Christmas in July with a meal. In November, we have our Christmas breakup. For this we hire a bus and go out of town for a Christmas meal.

Please contact us through the Parish Office at 1A Ford Street Wangaratta or via the email form at Contact Us pages in this website or telephone the Parish Office on (03) 5722 1970
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St. Patrick's Altar Society

The Altar Society is a group of approximately 12 people who each week take on the responsibility of maintaining the altar and surrounds. This involves cleaning of the altar, porches, altar cloths and arrangement of flowers for weddings, funerals, weekly Masses and special Church seasonal occasions.

 

This dedicated group of people also tend to the sacristy and the cleaning of the Sacred Vessels. We thank them for their past and ongoing kindness for the role they play in our Church.

 
Please contact us through the Parish Office at 1 Ford Street Wangaratta or via the email form at Contact Us pages in this website or telephone the Parish Office on (03) 5722 1970
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Our Devotional Group

For enquiries about the group meetings and prayer times, they are all posted in the foyers of the church,
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Please contact us through the Parish Office at 1A Ford Street Wangaratta or via the email form at Contact Us pages in this website or telephone the Parish Office on (03) 5722 1970
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