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TRANSCRIPT
Issue 27 Volume 02 24th June 2013
First Holy Communion
On Friday 14th June, the Grade 2 students of St Benild celebrated a special day which they will surely remember for life—their First Holy Communion. It also marked the close of their 2-year stay at St Benild, so they were also presented with their
graduation certificate along with a memento of the occasion. Following the Eucharistic celebration at Sacro Cuor parish church (Sliema), a reception was held at St Benild. A big thank you to Brother Ben, all the hardworking members of staff and the administration for the excellent organization of the event and for preparing the students so well for this memorable occasion.
Welcome to “Living Lasallian” : a newsletter for all Lasallians in Malta (and beyond). Any material for publication or correspondence may be sent to: [email protected]
• “Too often we underestimate the
power of a touch, a smile, a kind
word, a listening ear, an honest
compliment, or the smallest act of
caring, all of which have the
potential to turn a life around” ( Leo
Buscaglia)
• “You can make many plans, but the
Lord’s purpose will prevail” (Prov
19:21)
• “In the world you will have
tribulation. But take heart; I have
overcome the world” (Jn 16:33)
• “There is no fear in love. But perfect
love drives out fear, because fear
has to do with punishment. The one
who fears is not made perfect in
love” (1 Jn 4:18)
• “Live in harmony with one another.
Do not be proud, but be willing to
associate with people of low
position. Do not be
conceited.” (Rom 12:16)
Some thoughts to help you in your personal
reflec�ons or with your Form Tutor slots
Formation Day for Young Lasallian Leaders (Chile)
For the second year in a row, a Young Lasallian Leaders workshop was held at the De La Salle Brothers retreat house in the town of Constitución, Chile. This activity seeks to nurture the Christian spirituality of the young people in our schools, by trying to instill in them the desire to be of service to others and to be promoters of justice and fraternity in the world around them.
“Enkindle the love of Jesus in the
hearts of the young” (Med 102.2)
Form 2 Live In (DLS) The last Live-In for this scholastic year took place during the weekend starting Friday 31st May at the Brothers’ Retreat House in Mellieha. This was a repeat live-in for Form 2 to accommodate the large number of applicants. The themes discussed included peer pressure, bullying, self-esteem, and the motto which emerged from the movie we watched: “see a need, fill a need” - inspiring us to be of service to others. A big thank you to Fr Mario who celebrated out concluding Mass. Another big thank you to Mr Sammy and his family for making us feel at home throughout the year. We also thank all the members of staff who supported and helped out during this year’s Live-Ins.
Eucharistic day at Stella Maris College
A Eucharistic Day was organised at Stella Maris College (Senior School) on Thursday 31st May. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament took place throughout the day in St Joseph Hall (Form 3 level) where the prayer area (photo above) was arranged so as to offer a suitable atmosphere. Each class had the opportunity to spend 10 minutes of adoration in front of the Blessed Sacrament. Student David Cortis shared his experience of involvement in this activity with us:
“A week before Eucharistic day was due, I was approached by Mr Antoine Hili to animate the adoration session, followed by Mass. So on the day before, I took my electric guitar and effects pedals to school in order to rehearse the songs. I believe that the students really appreciated the songs, as I could see them absorbed in prayer. It is always a pleasure putting my talents into practice whilst praising the Lord”.
David Cortis
Form 3—Stella Maris College
Alan Spiteri and James Felice of Form 1 Yellow had this to say:
On 30th May we had a visit , a visit not like any other our visitor was no-body but Jesus. We felt happy inside us to see Jesus one more because we knew he would forgive us in what we done. When we were praying we felt that Jesus was happy to see all of us thinking of him and how much he had done for us . Our way back to the Brothers house was exciting. We will never forget this visit. We would like to thank Mr. Hili because without him this visit wouldn’t have been be possible!!
CELAS 24-hour Live In (SMC)
Wednesday 12 June is a day which all the novice teachers and LSAs will remember. After having met for six sessions for the CELAS formation course in Lasallian pedagogy and spirituality, the participants were invited to go through a 24-hour live-in which replaced the last three lectures. The aim of this live-in was for the teachers and the LSAs to put into practice the three Lasallian values of faith, service and community. To experience faith, we prayed together. To experience community, we lived together. To offer service, the group had to fulfil a specific task.
We met at 3 pm after a hard day at school. In spite of all the hurdles that a typical school day offers, all the participants arrived full of zeal, energy and enthusiasm. After a most appetising lunch together, we moved to the Lasallian centre where the service task had to be done. The objective was to re-vamp the old prayer room in the centre. After a full hour of brainstorming – it honestly seemed at first that we were not going to manage to get anything done by the end of the day – the participants divided into small groups and went on a hunt around the island to buy all necessary tools and products. By half six the work started. In the meantime another group took care of the cooking. Supper was ready by nine, but the room was still not complete. However, the workers strove on, and an hour later the room was done. And lo and behold, the end result was little short of a miracle – or indeed a miracle….the miracle of community life. The room was transformed into a stunning and trendy space which was pleasing to the eye and soothing to the soul. Totally exhausted, but certainly satisfied, the participants could not stop gazing at the final product. The evening ended with a prayer service. Then there was the agonising finale: a mixture of
overtiredness, accompanied by the need to spend further time together, and a generous share of mosquito bites did not allow much sleep! One can just imagine the state of the all participants the morning after.
Cruelly enough by six everyone was on his or her feet, packing and preparing for Mass with the community of the Brothers. It happened to be the feast day of Anthony of Padua, patron saint of lost items, and I am sure many were devoutly praying for their energy to be found. But being his feast day, Anthony of Padua was on leave, and everyone had to return to work dead tired. However, in spite of the exhaustion, the satisfaction still reigned, and everyone could not simply stop showing off the transformation of the room to the rest of the staff, and sharing the fruits of this experience which was enriching spiritually and socially.
Mr Tyrone Grima Asst. Head (Stella Maris College)
Useful contacts
Brothers Vocations Contact: Br Saviour Gatt Email: [email protected] Lasallian Mission Team (LMT) Contact: Leonard Griscti Email: [email protected] Signum Fidei Contact: Br Edward Galea Email: [email protected] Website: www.signumfideimalta.wordpress.com Old Stelmarian Association (OSA) Contact: David Musu or Mark Grech Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]
De La Salle Drama Group Email: [email protected]
Parents & Teachers Association (PTA) of Stella Maris College Contact: Angela Formosa Melillo or Matthew Micallef Email: [email protected] Former Students Association (FSA) of De La Salle College Contact: Keely Vella Email: [email protected] Parents & Teachers Association (PTA) of De la Salle College Contact: Ray Baldacchino Email: [email protected] Brothers’ Retreat House—Mellieha Email: [email protected]
If you notice any inaccuracies in the above contact details or wish to sug-gest additions to the list, feel free to send an email on [email protected] to inform us. Your input is most welcome.