Monthly Adoration  – All Welcome

Each month our young adults will be offering and facilitating an hour of Adoration for all parishioners. The first Adoration night is Wednesday 9 March from 6:30pm – 7:30pm in OLR Church. There will be various prayer opportunities including led music, the Sacrament of Reconciliation, gospel of the day and guided reflection, periods of silence, Benediction, and more. All parishioners are welcome to attend at any point in the hour that suits them, and may come and go as it suits you.

Taizé Prayer

In the monastery at Taizé, short mantra-like songs create a relaxing style of prayer. As the words are repeated, their reality gradually penetrates our whole being. Singing becomes a way of listening to God. The simplicity and repetition allow us to wait attentively on God.  This is a prayer of ‘watching’, awakening and listening.  It is very much in the spirit of the Lenten Scriptures. Come and relax in this beautiful prayer at OLR on Tuesday 15 March at 7pm OR St. George’s Anglican Church,  2 Walkers Drive, Maleny on Sunday 6 March at 6.00pm.

Lenten Reflection Program 2022 Maleny

A reflective program called “Let there be Light” using the Lenten Gospels and images from art (Van Gogh) will be held on the six Fridays in Lent beginning Friday 4th March in the Pat Daley Centre, beneath the Sacred Heart Church, Maleny from 12.30-2pm. Program material will be provided. All welcome, including those from other churches in the Hinterland. If interested contact Judy Berlak [email protected]

OLR Lenten Group

Parishioners are invited to join an OLR Lenten group which is open to women, men and married couples. Please Contact Bill Cunningham on email: [email protected] or ring Bill on 0481 847 035 to register for the group. The group will commence on Ash Wednesday 2\03\22 after the 9am Mass and meet each Wednesday during lent (except on 9\03\22 the last day of the parish mini mission) concluding on the Wednesday of Holy Week. The group will meet in the Egan Room of the Parish Centre between 9.30am-10.30am each Wednesday in lent.

Evangelization & Pastoral Council

This is a report from the Evangelization & Pastoral Council that held its meeting on Wednesday, February 23^rd, at the Caloundra Parish Centre. In attendance were Kristie McManus, Grant Allen, Julie Gerhardt, Mark Downey, Levin Joboy, Jacinta Elks, Jim Robinson, Fr Josh Whitehead, Fr Peter Brannelly with an apology received from Fr Ejikeme Ntamaka. The meeting began with prayer at 4pm.

• Matters discussed included the momentum of the Aura development and our Parish response to the dramatic population increase. The developer, Stockland, has given us access to a disused coffee shop in Baringa to be used as the initial Catholic presence in the development until the new school opens in 2024. Fr Josh reported on making contact with  Catholic families in the area and organizing gatherings including BBQ and other functions as a first step in forming a mission-focused Catholic community. At the same time the architects have been in conversations with Fr Peter and Fr Josh on the requirements of the Catholic community which will be incorporated into the new school development. If you have recently moved into Aura we would love to make contact with you – please email us [email protected]

• The Parish has employed a new youth coordinator, Felicity Jones, to take over from the NET teams that were working in our Parish over the past two years. This is a joint venture with Unity College and is designed to build upon the solid foundation laid by the NET teams in connecting youth to faith and parish.  A more detailed report will be provided at the next meeting of the OLR Evangelization & Pastoral Council.

• Following on from the successful Parish Mini Mission last year the Council was informed that Br Damien Price, a Christian Brother of the Oceania Province will be the retreat master for this year’s mission.  The mini mission will take the same format as last year’s with a morning session at Caloundra (commencing at 9:30) and an afternoon session at Maleny (commencing at 4:30) – as well as two informal conversation sessions on Monday and Tuesday with Br Damien aimed at those who work during the day, commencing at 7pm in the Parish Centre. Parishioners from neighbouring Parishes have been invited.

• Members of the Council were given an update on the progress of the Caloundra Parish Centre redevelopment with the next stage to be completed being the reinstallation of a covered walkway from the school to the end of the Parish Centre/presbytery. Simultaneously, plans are being finalized and the necessary approvals being obtained to commence with the building of the covered area, which will link the church to the Parish Centre.

• The completion of the refurbishment of the Parish Centre and the construction of the covered area will be a major part of our celebrations to mark the Golden Anniversary of the formation of Our Lady of the Rosary Parish in 1972. Members of the Council spent some time brain storming about other activities that could be undertaken to mark this milestone. To this end, a sub-committee was formed to coordinate celebrations in October, coinciding with our feast day, and the completion of a book to mark the 50 years. More information will be provided to the Parish over the next couple of weeks.

• A member of the Council tabled information regarding how individuals and our Parish Community can become better stewards of our natural resources. Attention was drawn to the instillation of the solar panels on Our Lady of the Rosary church and the question was raised about other parish churches and the Parish school.  The Old Testament clearly identifies the challenge for us to be good stewards of God’s good creation.

• A summary unaudited report from the Parish Finance Committee was distributed to the members of the Council outlining the positive financial position of the Parish. This is a tribute to the continued financial generosity of each member of the Parish. Thank you!

The meeting concluded with prayer. The next meeting of the Our Lady of the Rosary Evangelization & Pastoral Council will be on Wednesday, 25th May 4pm.

Kingdom Youth Launch

A reminder that our Youth Launch is coming up on FRIDAY 11 MARCH from 5pm-9pm at Unity College.

All Year 7-12 students welcome! Arcade games, ping pong, pizza, cotton candy, popcorn, slushies, raffle rego, and more. Please register via the QR code. All registered go in the running to win Apple Airpods! See you there!

Kingdom YA

Next Wednesday our young adult group is meeting again in the OLR Parish Centre from 6pm for another Testimony Night. These are designed to help us get to know one another more deeply and to show that we are not alone in our faith. Hear from one of our very own young adults about their experiences! Followed by some worship. All young adults welcome. $5 for dinner. For more info please contact Felicity [email protected]. 

Sisterhood – Lenten Program

All ladies 18 – 35 are invited to join our Sisterhood Lenten Group meetings on Thursday at 5pm in the OLR Parish Centre throughout the duration of Lent. If you are interested in being a part of this group, it is $10 to join. Snacks/treats and more offered each week. Please contact Felicity if you would like to be a part of this.

Thank you

If you would like to join the Planned Giving Programme by either using weekly envelopes or utilizing on-line options or if you would like to make an adjustment to your financial support, there are brochures at the entrance to the church.  Simply complete them and return it to the Parish Office.  Alternatively, by far the easiest way is to go to our Parish Web Page and follow the different options.  Scan the QR code below for more simple online giving.

In Transition

As a parish family we welcome Mitchell & Ethan Hanlon who will be baptised at OLR this weekend. We also pray for all the souls of our deceased priests, religious and parishioners  Rest in Peace.