Project Compassion

Thank you to those families who have already donated to the Project Compassion Appeal. Project Compassion runs during the entire season of Lent. All classrooms have Project Compassion boxes in their classrooms.

How does Caritas help others ?

Think for a moment about some of the things you have on your walls at home. They don’t have to be fancy or expensive. They might be photos of your family or perhaps of deceased grandparents. They might be prints of famous paintings or posters with sayings that mean a lot to you. It is very common that Christians have special things: crucifixes or images of saints. All of these things inspire us in one way or another. If ever you have had to pack up to move house and looked at your bare walls as you leave, they will seem empty and colourless.
Art is one of the things that transfigures our world and makes it more beautiful. Other things do this as well: laughter, tears, cooking, music, hugs and sharing stories. They all transfigure our houses and allow us to see them as homes. They unlock the true potential of an otherwise ordinary space.

This week Project Compassion, organised by Caritas Australia, presents us with the story of Tereesa, a 27-year-old indigenous woman from Western Sydney, the area with the largest urban indigenous population in the country. Tereesa became pregnant at the age of 16. With your help, Project Compassion has been able to support the Mums and Bubs program run by Baabayn Aboriginal Corporation. This allowed Tereesa to find accommodation, gain skills and continue her education. She was also able to connect with her culture. Her glorious artwork was featured on the Wulugul Walk during Sydney’s Vivid Light festival last year. Her use of light and colour transfigured the environment where it was displayed. In so many places, Project Compassion helps people to achieve their vision.
Of course, the transfiguration of Jesus is unique. We hear in today’s Gospel that Jesus took his closest friends to the top of a high mountain. His face shone like the sun and his face became ‘as white as the light.’ A voice from heaven said ‘this is my beloved son; listen to him.’ Peter said how wonderful it was to be there. The transfiguration may have only lasted a few minutes but it was clear that Jesus’ friends never forgot it. Like a work of art on a wall, the memory made the world seem very different. During Lent, we are also called to transfigure the world, to make a difference.

Sunday Gospel: Matthew 17:1-9, First Sunday of Lent  – Year A

His face shone like the sun.

Just when some of us think Lent is a grim season of self-denial, the Church gives us the story of Jesus’ Transfiguration to put our sacrifices in context. The only reason we deny ourselves anything or commit ourselves to actions of service for these 40 days is to grow more deeply in love with the God who loves us into life. Penance is not meant to attack our self-esteem, it’s intended to help us sort out what really matters, to cast some light in the darkness of our lives and to focus on the relationship which gives meaning and purpose for this world and the next.

The God of Mount Tabor is not interested in each of us feeling isolated as we fulfil the letter of a legal code. God wants all of us to have hearts that listen to the Gospel of love so that we can gain the power to transform the world through the sacrifices of our daily lives.

On a much gentler scale, Mass is meant to be a weekly mountaintop experience for us where we hear God call us by name and confess his love for us; where we feel re-energised for the commission we have to bear God’s light to the world. In this context anything we can do this Lent that helps remove the blocks in our full response to God’s love, must be worth effort.

(adapted from Richard Leonard)

Have a great week!

Sharee 

REC