Spirituality
Say a little prayer for marriage
In October a few years ago, the Australian bishops called the entire Catholic community to pray for marriage and family. The initiative was joined by around thirty other Christian churches making it the largest ever prayer campaign in the nation. It raises the question: does prayer really make a difference? Cynics might say that a…
Read MoreRetired, Extremely Dangerous
A few weeks ago, we watched the action comedy R.E.D. featuring Bruce Willis as retired black ops agent whose peaceful retirement is disrupted by a CIA order to eliminate him. The comedy rests in the ridiculously casual way the characters approach their killing careers. RED, it turns out stands for his classification: ‘retired, extremely dangerous’.…
Read MoreSt Valentine and Revolutionary Marriage
It’s St Valentine’s day next week. This year, it coincides with Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent and a traditional day for penance and fasting. Oh dear! What to do?! Some think this is a pity; normally we focus on romance and joy for the lover’s feast and it’s hard to do that on…
Read MoreCelebrating Saint Valentine
Bulletin Advertisment A Message for Married Couples on St Valentine’s Day God does not call us to mediocrity. God calls us to be a radical witness; to bring alive within our marriage the passionate love and extravagant mercy he has for every human person. God calls us to live this reality within our own marriage…
Read MoreNewsflash: Pope says sex is ‘a gift from God’
In Amoris Laetitia (The Joy of Love), Pope Francis writes extensively about many aspects of marriage and family life. In it is a section that is dedicated to affirming the sexual relationship of the married couple as good and holy. Saint John Paul II wrote extensively about the sacredness of marital love making. In this…
Read MoreRomance in Scripture
Why is the Song of Songs favoured by mystics? What is it about this book in the Bible that attracts so much attention? Surely the answer is that the language – poetic, erotic and sensual – speaks profoundly to the hearts of those who hunger for intimacy with the lover of our souls. This…
Read MoreHealing Emotional Injuries
If you have been emotionally injured in anyway, you can use this activity to process your experience. Full instructions are available on the PDF handout.
Read MoreWindows of the Soul
A useful framework for developing our Emotional Intelligence, The Johari Window, helps us visualise how we can expand our self-awareness and deepen our intimacy. Picture a four-paned window that represents you. Within the window is everything that is known and unknown about you. It includes factual information such as your age, sex, which school you…
Read MoreThe Fine Print
It’s important to read the fine print before you sign on a dotted line and marriage in the Catholic Church is no different. Matrimony is more than just getting married in a church; in order to make a free and informed commitment on your wedding day, there are specific obligations of which you should be aware. THE FREEDOM TO MARRY…
Read MoreIn The Image of Christ and The Church
Revelation 19:6-8 The Wedding of the Lamb Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude… crying out,“Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready;…
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