Mission Update – Term 2 Week 4
This week, I had the joy of taking some families on a tour of our College. One of the highlights of these moments is being able to introduce families to what it means to be part of a Marist school community – to speak about our Marist charism, the characteristics that underpin our way of being, and of course, the story of our founder, Saint Marcellin Champagnat.
In establishing his vision for the education and formation of young people, Marcellin said:
“To educate children, you must first love them and love them all equally.”
It sounds so simple, and something we might hope to take for granted, but I find myself reflecting on this call often. To not just love children… but to love all children.
Loving all children equally means seeing the dignity, worth, and value in every child, not just those who are well-behaved or high-achieving. It also includes those who may challenge us. It means recognising the quiet child, the restless child, the upset child, and the child who carries wounds from a story we may not yet know or fully understand.
In our Marist community, ‘all children’ includes every young person in our care. But as we approach National Reconciliation Week, it’s an opportunity to widen our lens – to include children and families from communities we may not yet fully know or understand. This includes our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander brothers and sisters. Loving them equally means listening to their stories, honouring their experiences, and walking alongside them toward healing.
This is the heart of reconciliation.
At its core, reconciliation is about healing relationships. Not only between individuals, but also with the truth of our shared history, and with those whose voices have often gone unheard. It asks us to take the first step: to listen with humility, to reflect with honesty, and to approach one another with the Marian qualities of simplicity, gentleness, and presence.
In the Gospels, we see Jesus reach out to those who were hurting or excluded. He met people where they were and reminded them of their worth. As Marists, we hope to follow his example by how we live, how we treat others, and how we respond with compassion.
This year’s theme for National Reconciliation Week, ‘Bridging Now to Next,’ encourages us to honour the past, including the pain and injustice experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, while working together to build a more just and united future. It reminds us that reconciliation isn’t a one-off event, but an ongoing journey.
It’s natural to wonder, in the face of something so significant, whether our small actions make a difference.
But it is easy if we begin with something simple.
We can begin by listening to the call of St. Marcellin and simply loving all children, even those we don’t yet fully understand. We can honour the dignity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples by continuing to walk with them, to learn from them, and to commit ourselves to truth and healing.
Next week especially, we are invited to be bridge-builders: people who listen, who learn, and who choose to lead with love.
Mr Stuart McClorey
DIRECTOR OF MISSION & CATHOLIC IDENTITY