LOVE
Our parishioners see love in our relationships. This includes our connections with other parishioners, parish priests, the broader community and with God. We also see love in the celebration of the liturgy and Sacraments. We associate love with actions, such as helping, caring and giving. For us, love is experienced in our parish communities and the way we express our faith – whether that be through joyful celebration or quiet reflection.
In the future, we would like to see love expressed through a strengthened sense of community – building on the great community atmosphere that currently exists within the parishes. Events and opportunities to increase love and our connections to one another and those outside our immediate community were suggested.
We are a community that expresses and experiences Love. We welcome new life and people, abundant relationships, justice and outreach in both temporal and spiritual ways.
“To love is to will the good of the other.” St Thomas Aquinas, Catechism of the Catholic Church 1766.
CONNECTION & COMMUNITY
Our community is committed to being connected with each other, working together and reaching out to the broader community. We are multi-cultural and multi-generational. We grow from the life experience of elderly members and the life view of our children and young people. Our connectedness promotes safety, security and togetherness and reinforces community spirit and support.
HELPING OTHERS
Our community expresses Love in our hospitality and the ways we help others through volunteering, charity, contributions and prayer. We are a generous and welcoming community, and provide comfort to others.
CELEBRATION
Our community celebrates our Love of God through liturgy and the Sacraments. We celebrate joyously, loudly and quietly together as may be appropriate to the event or the people involved. Our good humour and speed to smile reflect our Love for God and each other.
TRUTH
Our parishioners see truth in our faith, our actions and the way to speak to one another and God. Many of us feel that truth comes directly from God and His teachings. It is this truth that is experienced through Mass, and communicated in the liturgy and via sermons. We associate truth with words like ‘honesty’ and ‘clarity’, and value the importance of being true in our words and actions.
When thinking about the future, honest and transparent communications within the faith community is seen as an important expression of truth. We also value the importance of creating opportunities to engage with the Gospel.
We are a community that expresses and experiences Truth. Truth opens the door of faith to God. We seek Truth and draw meaning from the Gospel, which is preached with joy and clarity.
Jesus said “For this I have been born and for this I have come into the world to testify to the truth.” (John 18:37) St Paul’s letter to the Ephesians (4:15)
FAITH
Our faith is grounded in the Truth of the Gospel, Scripture and tradition. Like St Augustine said, we are pilgrims with “faith seeking understanding”. Through this understanding we are able to find Truth, face it and follow it to nourish our own relationship with God.
ACTION
As members of the Body of Christ we seek to bear witness to Christ’s Truth through good deeds, charity and sharing our faith with our family, friends, neighbours and the broader community. We are committed to being courageous, daring and positive in expressing and living the Truth of the Gospel.
COMMUNICATION
Truth is the foundation of our communication with one another. Our community is committed to speaking the Truth to those around us. Whether it be through sharing news, telling stories, praying or discussing the Word of God, we display honesty and trust in our communications.
BEAUTY
We see beauty all around us – from nature to social justice actions to the flowers and music in our parishes. We also see beauty in the caring and welcoming atmosphere of our parishes. Many of us see beauty in our faith – from the beauty of the Sacraments to the beauty of physical spaces within which we worship.
We see opportunities to grow the beauty that surrounds us. This could be through more outreach opportunities, different and more creative ways to express ourselves at Mass, or improvements to the physical spaces used by our parish communities.
We are a community that expresses and experiences Beauty. Beauty leads to Truth. It has the power to draw people in and transform them. Beauty gracefully invites one into the transcendent. Music, art, awe, worship and sacraments are celebrated with dignity and reverence in our community, which welcomes and celebrates our diversity.
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works.” Ephesians (2:10)
ACTION
Beauty is seen in our community in our creativity, prayer, devotion and dedication to our faith. Actions such as simple smile or the singing of a hymn, spread joy and Beauty to those around us.
FAITH
The Beauty of our faith is captured through sacred rituals, liturgy, Sacraments and sacred images. These expressions of our faith represent our beautiful relationship with God.
LIFE & NATURE
Our faith is found in the Beauty of life and nature. As God’s creation, the life-giving and healing forces of our natural world remind us to exercise stewardship with the nature all around us.
ATMOSPHERE
A diverse and colourful atmosphere is seen as beautiful by our community. It may be vibrant or peaceful, or a combination of both. Though it cannot be seen or touched, a positive community feeling supports and nourishes those around us.
