Mission Update – Term 1 Week 1
The beginning of a school year is always a time of fresh starts. New classrooms, new routines, new friendships, and new opportunities to grow. Much like the start of a calendar year, it is a moment when many of us pause to reimagine what lies ahead, thinking about goals we want to set, habits we hope to form, and the ways we might “do better” this year.
Working to grow, improve, and develop positive habits is, of course, a beautiful thing. But the beginning of a school year doesn’t only have to be about what we plan to change or achieve. It is also an opportunity to notice what is already present among us…the strengths we bring, the challenges we have overcome, and the many quiet successes that often go unnoticed. It invites us to recognise the ways God is already at work in our community.
Our Marist theme for 2026, Full of Grace: Transform the World with God’s Love, speaks directly to this moment. Scripture reminds us that ‘from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace’ (John 1:16). God’s love is not something we earn through achievement or effort. It is a gift, freely given, without condition or exception. Each member of our school community is already held, valued, and loved, simply because of who they are.
To be full of grace as we begin this school year is to live with that awareness, and to allow it to shape the way we treat one another each day. When we live from a place of grace, we begin to see the goodness in others, and the world around us is transformed – not all at once, but through small, faithful acts of love. A word of encouragement to a student, patience in moments of challenge, or taking the time to be present to one another. These ordinary moments are where God’s love becomes visible and life-giving.
As we begin the school year together, our invitation is perhaps to worry less about becoming someone new, and instead to live more deeply from the grace we have already received, allowing it to shape our learning, our relationships, and the shared journey ahead.
Newman College Family Mass
Our Family Mass is a special opportunity for us to gather not just as a school, but as a faith community. While attendance is an important expectation for our students, the deeper purpose of this celebration is about connection between families, staff, students, and our shared Marist story. When families gather for Mass, we witness to our young people that faith is something lived together, strengthening our sense of belonging and reminding us that we walk this journey side by side. In the Marist tradition, community sits at the heart of who we are, and moments like this help bring that family spirit to life as we place the year ahead in God’s loving care.
Cathedral Outreach on Ash Wednesday
On Ash Wednesday, four of our Year 11 students will join Mr Box, Mrs Owen, and Mrs Scanlan in taking part in Cathedral Outreach at St Mary’s Cathedral. In preparation, students will cook soup and make sandwiches here at the College before partnering with Shopfront at the Cathedral to serve those in need, toasting sandwiches and sharing warm soup with members of the wider community.
This initiative brings to life a core part of our College’s vision for mission: outreach, service, and partnership with Church organisations. It is a practical expression of our commitment to stand alongside others with compassion, dignity, and respect, particularly at the beginning of the Lenten season.
In the Marist tradition, service is rarely about being seen. Marcellin Champagnat believed deeply in the power of quiet, faithful acts of love…the kind that may go unnoticed, but which carry lasting impact. Through this experience, our students are invited to encounter Christ in the ordinary moments of service: in preparing food, offering hospitality, and being present to those they meet.
As we begin our journey toward Lent, this outreach reminds us that transforming the world does not require grand gestures. It begins with simple acts, offered generously and humbly, that allow God’s love to become visible in the lives of others.
We are grateful to our students and staff for continuing the Marist tradition of service and for witnessing so beautifully to the Gospel through their actions.
Mr Stuart McClorey
DIRECTOR OF MISSION & CATHOLIC IDENTITY
