What a great day it was! We were blessed with perfect weather for the reunion. 55 turned up to reminisce and renew friendships which had started decades ago through the vibrant youth groups at St Anthony’s. The reunion held a true sense of community as we gathered on a bright and sunny spring day. There was no better place than in the fields of St Anthony’s. Our thanks to Fr. Jose for granting us permission to use the grounds of…
International Passionist Family Group Day 2014 was celebrated at the birthplace of the PFGM, St. Anthony in the Fields, Terrey Hills. It was a beautiful autumn day with lovely blue skies, warm temperatures and lots of Family Group people to share our Mass. At the end of Mass, Mary Ingham and Bede Alexander, on behalf of the PFGM coordinators of the Frenchs Forest Parish, talked briefly about the Family Groups and what they mean to the Parish. Everyone in a…
The parish hall was decked out with streamers and bunting. Music played as nearly 100 parishioners – ages 2-92 arrived Saturday afternoon, 9 November. Tables were festooned with imaginative cooking, baking, and confectionary. Parents rushed their children back from rugby practice and ballet lessons. Senior parishioners altered their schedules. Our clergy freed their diaries. The centrepiece of the festivities was an iced birthday cake, with just one candle – because we in the parish of St Mary’s and Holy Family,…
On the weekend (31st May – 2nd June) I was in Melbourne for the annual Australian Directors Gathering of the Passionist Family Group Movement (PPFM) by kind invitation of the Provincial Fr. Tom McDonough CP. Whatever misgivings I may have had in accepting the invitation to travel such a great distance and spend a weekend with people I had never met, they soon dissipated with the warmth of welcome I received. It was in keeping with the Motto of the Movement, a ‘Family for All.’
I guess it was 1988 when we joined the Lunnon Family Group, having been members of the St Anthony in the Fields community since 1983. We’d migrated to Australia in 1981 and after a couple of house moves ended up in Terrey Hills, where by 1988 our three children were at primary school. St Anthony’s was a special place for us as a family and joining a Family Group, capital letters or not, seemed a natural thing to do. We…
On Saturday 17 November 2012, members of several Family Groups from the Frenchs Forest Catholic Parish journeyed to St. Brigid’s for celebrations of 125 years since the arrival of the Passionists at Marrickville. The afternoon commenced with a Mass at 2.00 pm, which encompassed a portrayal of the Passionists’ work with a large variety of people from various backgrounds and cultures. The Mass was celebrated by Fr Joachim Rego cp, the newly elected Superior General of the Passionist Order, assisted by St.…
Dearest Fr Peter, Where do I start???? I didn’t realise the impact that our presence at the change of leadership handover last night would have on everyone. It really is a special moment when you can feel so loved and welcomed amongst a group of people who you haven’t seen for a few years but have come to know as your ‘extended’ family. I must thank you for letting me be a part of this wonderful Family Group all those…
We had a lovely sunny day for the annual meeting of our motivational day for leaders, mainly from the PFGM Sydney area, as this was the first time it was held at Grace Cottage, our PFGM home in Frenchs Forest . The day started with an inspiring Morning Prayer service, run by the wonderful Marg and Paul Casey, from Callala Bay. Each year they surprise us with their innovative thinking. Mary Ingham welcomed all the people, starting with Ron and…
Occasionally you meet someone with a dynamic personality whose memory lives through what they can inspire, when the dream becomes the reality.
Such a person is Fr. Peter McGrath, an Australian Priest, who has had an amazing impact in St. Wilfrid’s School and Parish recently. Rarely have I experienced so much spontaneous joy and laughter, especially in the Church, shedding new light on aspects of God’s love, and raising our awareness for the need of friendship, support and love in tparish. Through his wealth of stories and anecdotes he enkindled a new desire for love and belonging.
As we all remembered the tragedy of 9/11 ten years ago, Father Peter McGrath was celebrating a Mass of Remembrance in Auburn, Maine USA with the parish of St. Phillips where their 7 Family Groups were celebrating 15 years. Fr. Roger Chabot, Pastor when Family Groups were first started but now retired, returned to take part in the Mass and the following celebration. Also, Chief Dan Daly was giving a heart rending presentation in Dublin to remember the victims of…