News from Blackall
Outstanding Success – Lenten Retreat
The recent Lenten Guided Retreat in Blackall was a huge relief to many older parishioners and a very big surprise for many not so old parishioners! This welcome time with the Lord was led by two extremely approachable and creative Missionary Sisters from the Verbum Dei Brisbane Community.
The Retreat began on Friday 8th March with and an evening meal and registration (eleven people including two from Barcaldine and one from Tambo) followed by a talk, reflection and Mass. Saturday was busy with more talks, sharing, confession, Mass, dinner and adoration. Sunday was another day of learning, sharing and reflecting.
At the Retreat we were given the opportunity to accept into our lives the very important step of Praying the Word of God so each day we will be able to find God’s perspective for the choices we make. The Sisters had prepared many strong, clear talks relating to the theme of walking with Jesus or rejecting Him. We are very grateful to the Sisters for accepting our invitation to come out to the West to help begin work that is desperately needed. May more of these such Retreats filter through all our parishes to help bring back life into our faith communities. Many more people were wanting to come but due to illness and drought situations were not able to be with us this time.
Some comments from participants were, “It was refreshing to have two such vibrant, youthful nuns to lead us and passionately witness to the will of God. The retreat itself was challenging, a wake-up call for me, something I have wanted and needed for quite some time, and not sure how to access. I hope this can become an annual event.”
“The retreat was a reminder that the Ten Commandments are still God’s Law; Satan....the devil is working very hard in our country and world; hell still exists and sin still needs to be confessed - just a few of the topics covered over the weekend. All of these topics were covered in the Bible readings which tells us what God wants us to do.....we just need to listen.”
“I thank the LORD our GOD for giving us such wonderful sisters to lead this Retreat. Thank you for the reminder of the importance of the Bible, Prayer and the 10 Commandments. Moreover, this retreat cleansed my soul and heart by attending reconciliation.”
“Information that Australia is a very pagan country was a reality check! The Sisters have been given a huge mission in Australia to help people return to God through prayer and listening to the Word of God.”
“In a country where many of us have turned away from God, this retreat was a much- needed sign of hope. It all comes back to ourselves if we are willing to be part of this change. It will not happen by ignoring the voice of Jesus. Thank you to the Verbum Sisters who came to share their mission with us.”
In closing, we thank Most Rev. Bishop Michael and Fr Jayanthi Maddala for supporting our Lenten Retreat which has offered a way to move forward with hope and renewed strength.
Moira Kent