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A CHRISTMAS PRAYER
Loving Father, Help us remember the birth of Jesus,
that we may share in the song of the angels,
the gladness of the shepherds,
and worship of the wise men.
Close the door of hatred and open the door of love all over the world.
Let kindness come with every gift and good desires with every greeting.
Deliver us from harm by the blessing which Christ brings, and teach us to be
merry with clear hearts.
May we renew our faith through the joy of our children this Christmas.
We ask this prayer through Christ, the Saviour of the world, AMEN
Dear Parents and Carers,
I would like to wish our students and their families a Christ-centred festive season and a safe, relaxing and enjoyable holiday. I look forward to welcoming students in Years 1 to 6 back to school on Thursday 28 January 2021. Our new Kindergarten students will be involved in hour-long Best Start Assessments with their teacher during the first week of school before officially starting on Thursday 4 February 2021. I thank our wonderful students for their efforts in all aspects of school life and our parents for being so supportive especially with all the changes due to the COVID-19 restrictions. I will hopefully see many families at one of the Christmas Masses at our Parish, All Saints.
STUDENT LEADERSHIP POSITIONS 2021
After a period of voting involving students in Years 3-6 and staff, I am proud to announce that the School Captains for 2020 will be Bronte Grove and Lucas Krstevski. Our Vice-Captains will be Charlotte Gelfius and Jack Broadhead. As well as these positions, the following students have been voted in as Sports Captains for next year:
SMYTH: Tahlia Muller and Kai Correa
MACKILLOP: Eden Corcoran and Kingston Obednikovski
AIKENHEAD: Addison Wright and Cody Cannon
WEATHERALL: Maya Hopkins and Jett Parker.
Well done to these students and we know that they will do an amazing job. Thank you to all children who nominated for these positions. Every student in Year Six will continue to be involved in leadership as members of various groups. These include Leaders of Liturgy, Fund-Raising, Hospitality, Technology, Student Support, Public Speaking, The Environment and Bus Travel.
As we head into the Christmas break I would like to remind all families that before purchasing shoes, our school policy states that joggers need to be predominantly white and school shoes are to be black leather and not jogger style. I would encourage parents to consider Athlete’s Foot at Stockland Shellharbour as the school receives a donation based on the number of shoes purchased by Stella Maris families.
SCHOOL PICNIC DAY
Next Wednesday is the last day of the school year. To celebrate we
will be having a school picnic at Keith Hockey Oval from Midday to 2pm. All children are to wear their sports uniform and will need to bring their lunch as the school canteen will not be open. Unfortunately due to Covid 19 restrictions we are unable to invite parents to join us this year. The children will be involved in some fun activities whilst at the oval before returning to school for the traditional Year 6 send-off. Parents will be able to come onto the school grounds from 2.20pm to view the Year 6 Farewell and Blessing. Parents are asked to socially distance and are to gather on the Middle and Top Courts to observe the farewell. Afterwards parents are able to take their children home.
SCHOOL REPORTS
The Yearly student reports will become live on COMPASS for parents to view on
Monday 14 December. A resource list and each child’s class & teacher will be sent home, with the students (hard copy), also on that day. As previously mentioned, it is a detailed exercise to form classes for the following year and the teachers spend a great detail of time considering a range of factors. I thank parents for their understanding in this matter and I can assure everyone that the students will be given continued support and commitment by all teachers here at Stella Maris in 2021. This year we will be holding a Meet the Teacher session for students next Tuesday from 11.30am. They will be going to their 2021 teacher’s class for an hour which will hopefully ease any anxiety that they may be feeling. This will not apply to new Kinder students as they have already had their orientation sessions.
ANNUAL SCHOOL REPORT SURVEY RESULTS
Thank you to the parents who completed the Annual School Report Survey for 2020. The responses were on the whole quite positive and it is good to see that we are largely maintaining our improvement from previous surveys. Around 40% of parents participated (up from 30% in 2019) and as you can see below, the majority of areas scored higher than last year. I believe the drop in the favourable responses for Items 2 and 6 can be put down to the impact of COVID-19 and the inability for us to have parents involved in the school and the cancellation of extra-curricular activities especially sporting related. In regard to Item 4, I am always open to parental feedback in how we can better meet the children’s learning needs. Whilst the result indicates that four out of five parents are satisfied that the school does well in this area we are always striving for improvement so any ideas would be appreciated.
- The school helps my child to develop a knowledge and understanding about Catholic tradition. 2017- 95% of parents agreed; 2018- 98%; 2019- 99%; 2020- 100%.
- The school provides various opportunities for me to become involved: 2017- 69% of parents agreed; 2018- 95%; 2019- 99%; 2020- 90%.
- My child is challenged to maximize his/her learning outcomes. 2017- 59% of parents agreed; 2018- 91%; 2019- 87%; 2020- 90%.
- The school strives to meet my child’s learning needs. 2017- 69% of parents agreed; 2018- 91%; 2019- 82%; 2020- 84%.
- The school provides appropriate information about my child’s progress. 2017- 51% of parents agreed; 2018- 84%; 2019-76%; 2020- 85%.
- The school offers a range of co-curricular activities. 2017- 71% of parents agreed; 2018- 93%; 2019- 93%; 2020- 84%.
- The teachers are genuinely interested in the welfare of my child. 2017- 86% of parents agreed; 2018- 93%; 2019- 96; 2020- 99%.
- The school provides a safe and supportive environment. 2017- 83% of parents agreed; 2018- 91%; 2019- 93%; 2020- 96%.
- The school effectively communicates information about activities and events. 2017- 76% of parents agreed; 2018- 91%; 2019- 79%; 2020- 93%.
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION NEWS
The priests and Levites question John's identity.
GOSPEL
A reading from the holy Gospel according to John
There stands among you, unknown to you, the one who is coming after me.
A man came, sent by God.
His name was John.
He came as a witness,
as a witness to speak for the light,
so that everyone might believe through him.
He was not the light,
only a witness to speak for the light.
This is how John appeared as a witness. When the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ‘Who are you?’ he not only declared, but he declared quite openly, ‘I am not the Christ.’ ‘Well then,’ they asked, ‘are you Elijah?’ ‘I am not,’ he said. ‘Are you the Prophet?’ He answered, ‘No.’ So they said to him, ‘Who are you? We must take back an answer to those who sent us. What have you to say about yourself?’ So John said,
‘I am, as Isaiah prophesied:
a voice that cries in the wilderness:
Make a straight way for the Lord.’
Now these men had been sent by the Pharisees, and they put this further question to him, ‘Why are you baptising if you are not the Christ, and not Elijah, and not the prophet?’ John replied, ‘I baptise with water; but there stands among you – unknown to you – the one who is coming after me; and I am not fit to undo his sandal-strap.’ This happened at Bethany, on the far side of the Jordan, where John was baptising.
This is the Gospel of the Lord.
Background on the Gospel Reading
Lord is near.” Some people mark this Sunday on their Advent wreath with a pink candle instead of a purple candle. This Sunday is a joyful reminder that our salvation is near.
This week's Gospel Reading continues our Advent reflection on the person and message of John the Baptist. Last week we heard John speak about his relationship to the coming Messiah, Jesus. This week, we hear Jesus' message to John the Baptist, now in prison, about the signs of the kingdom found in Jesus' ministry and Jesus' assessment of John's role in the Kingdom of God.
The Gospel of Matthew tells the story of John's arrest in chapter 14:3-12. In today's Gospel, John sends word to Jesus from prison, asking if Jesus is the Messiah for whom he has been waiting. Jesus responds by pointing to the miracles that he has worked and invites John and the other hearers to make their own determination. In his next breath, however, Jesus praises John for his role in preparing the way for Jesus. Then Jesus says that all of those who work for the Kingdom of God will be as great as John and even greater.
Jesus' message to John about the signs of the kingdom being performed recalls the salvation described by the prophet Isaiah. This passage is a reminder that the beginning of salvation is already mysteriously present to us, but also yet to be fulfilled. Salvation is already in our midst as manifest in the miraculous deeds of Jesus and in the Church. But salvation is also to be fulfilled in the coming reign of God. Even as we observe our world today, we can find glimpses of God's work among us. Even more, we help to prepare the way for God's kingdom by our words and our deeds. This message is indeed a cause for rejoicing.The third Sunday of Advent is traditionally called Gaudete Sunday. Gaudete is the Latin word meaning “rejoice.” This Sunday is so named because “Rejoice” is the first word in the entrance antiphon for today's Mass taken from Philippians 4:4,5: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice!
ALL SAINTS CATHOLIC PARISH
Please see the Parish Bulletin for all updated Parish Mass Times and Christmas Services..
ALL SAINTS CHRISTMAS TREES
You may have noticed the two Christmas trees on the Sanctuary...they are our gift giving trees. If you would like to contribute a Christmas gift for a child for a family in need, please bring the gift along with you to Mass and give it to Fr Joe to place under the tree
Vinnies Christmas Appeal
Thank you to everyone who supported the Vinnies Christmas Appeal. The Stella Maris Community raised over $1700 for this worthy cause. The St Vincent De Paul Society are extremely grateful for your contributions and send thanks for your generosity.
Thank You
We would like to thank all the families in our Stella Maris Community for your support over this difficult and challenging year.
We wish you a safe, holy and happy Christmas.
Julie Hopkins
Acting Religious Education Coordinator
Canteen News
We are a school run canteen and rely on volunteers to operate.
Canteen is open Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays to make and prepare lunch orders and serve the children over the counter.
Online orders can be made via the My School Connect app - www.myschoolconnect.com.au/stellamarisps click on create account.
ALL SAINTS CHRISTMAS TREES
You may have noticed the two Christmas trees on the Sanctuary...they are our gift giving trees. If you would like to contribute a Christmas gift for a child for a family in need, please bring the gift along with you to Mass and give it to Fr Joe to place under the tree.
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