Religious Education and Faith Development Religious and Moral Education During my first year as Director of Religious and Moral Education, there have been significant liturgical celebrations in the life of the College. The major liturgies were the Founder’s Day Mass and the Year 12 Valedictory Mass, both celebrated by Fr Michael Elligate, and the Social Justice Mass, celebrated by Monsignor Tony Ireland. Ash Wednesday, our Lenten Liturgy and the ANZAC Day memorial liturgy reminded us all of the fragility of human life and the love of a forgiving God. The end of year Masses for each year level marked the beginning of Advent; the time in the Church year when Christians worldwide prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus, our Lord and Saviour. My sincere thanks go to the College Chaplain, Mrs Joan Ferguson for her guidance and assistance in the planning of the major liturgies during the year. The celebration of Mass at De La Salle is indeed very significant and goes to the core of what we, as Catholics believe and attempt to model our lives upon. We have Mass to worship and to receive God, and enter into a common union with Him and with those who venerate with us. If we do not find much importance or relevance in the Mass, it is because our whole mind, heart and soul are not there. We will only get out of this relationship with God what we put into it. Our students and staff are called to actively participate in the various celebrations throughout the year. The academic focus of Religious Education at De La Salle is one which attempts to teach the traditions of the Church, in addition to lifting the academic levels of the students. This year, Religious Education was studied by every student at VCE level. Texts and Traditions, Unit 1 aimed at giving each student in Year 11 a solid grounding in the truth and beauty of the faith. Central topics such as the Creation
myths, the Covenants between God and mankind, the Passover and the Institution of Eucharist, all attempted to provide students access to God’s love. Religion and Society was studied at a Unit 2 level by Year 12 students. The academic and spiritual focus of Ethics helped to provide each young man with a background to the challenges of life and the dignity of the human person. 10
At De La Salle, we continue the fundamental task of supporting and sustaining the faith and religious knowledge of our students. This is not as straightforward as it may sound, particularly when there are so many factors in our world that seem to detract from the fundamental Gospel message: to love one another. In order to give priority to this ministry, we need a team of enthusiastic, capable and empathetic teachers. It is with pleasure that I acknowledge those who teach in the Religious Education faculty. It com-
