Student Spirituality

Spiritual Formation

“Everything is to be orientated towards the praise and glory of God”

MacKillop College provides students with a holistic education formed around Catholic tradition. We ensure that our educational endeavours are underpinned by a commitment to evangelisation, witness, worship, service and community. It is in the values taught by Jesus that we promote partnerships and quality relationships.

Prayer life, celebration of the Eucharist and opportunities to nurture personal faith and spirituality are central to life at MacKillop.

Retreats

The Retreat experience is one of the most valued opportunities by students as they reflect on their years of schooling in our HSC exit surveys.

The goal of our Retreat Program is to provide quality experiences for our students to explore their relationship with themselves, others and God. Years 7, 8 and 9 students participate in Reflection Days at the College or in the local area, organised and run by the College Leader of Evangelisation and assisted by the College Youth Ministry Officers. Year 10 participate in a two-day overnight Retreat, and Year 11 in a three-day experience. As these Retreats are such an important part of the spiritual, emotional and social development of students at MacKillop College, they are compulsory events.

Immersion Opportunities

MacKillop College is a secondary school of the St Agnes' Parish. Staff, students and families from MacKillop College are immersed in a variety of ministries within the St Agnes' Parish and wider Lismore Diocese.

Youth Ministry Officers (YMO’s)

These are young adults trained in Youth Ministry within our school and parish. These young people work with the Leader of Evangelisation in order to offer opportunities for our students to further explore their faith within their lives.

Lunchtime groups are organised by the YMO’s at the College throughout the year. These include experiences for Year 7 & 8, 9 & 10 and 11 & 12 on separate days. These groups provide an opportunity for students to socialise, ask questions and grow in their faith.

Youth Ministry Classes

Year 9 and 10 students are offered the opportunity to participate in Youth Ministry classes. These classes are designed to encouraged the students to explore their faith, serve the community and participate more fully in the life of the Church, while completing the Religious Education curriculum. Each year we offer one Youth Ministry class per year group.

LISMORE Diocese events that are offered to MacKillop Students

Year 7: Transitus Retreat (Diocesan)
Year 8: Festa Christi (Diocesan) and Catch the Wave (YMO at MacKillop)
Year 9 and 10: SHINE (Offered to Youth Ministry Students)
Year 11 and 12: KAIROS (St Agnes Parish initiative) LEAD (Diocesan) Street Retreat (Diocesan) SHINE (Diocesan)
IGNITE Conference – held in Brisbane, is an annual discipleship event offered to Year 9 – 12 students within our diocese. (Emmanuel Community, Brisbane)
Australian Catholic Youth Festival – A biennial event under the direction of the Australian Bishops

Youth Ministry

If you would like any more information please contact our Leader of Evangelisation Marg Gobius at marg.gobius@lism.catholic.edu.au

Proclaim Lismore Students:

Students at the College are invited to be a part of the Proclaim Lismore Student Movement. Proclaim Lismore Students provides a number of programs, retreats and conferences that are tailored for specific year groups and provide life changing experiences.

More information can be found online.

Proclaim Lismore website

Liturgy and Prayer

Liturgy and prayer are an important part of the life of our school community. They are at the heart of Christian life, as modelled by Jesus himself, who often took time out to pray and reflect on his mission. We are called to do the same. Whole school masses are celebrated frequently through our school year, and each year level celebrates a mass together during the course of the year. Other significant events throughout the year, such as Ash Wednesday, Lent, Easter and Anzac Day, also allow our school community to gather, reflect, stand in solidarity with others and pray. Assemblies, year level meetings and Pastoral Care classes all feature prayer at their core.

This rich tradition of our Catholic school incorporates music, symbols and actions, and students are encouraged to participate in the organisation and presentation of the liturgies and prayer services in order to develop their own spirituality, as well as grow in confidence in themselves and their gifts.

Sacramental Program

Sacraments are not merely signs. In the Catholic tradition, sacraments spring from Christ himself and bring with them a special dimension of the sacred, called 'grace'. Sacraments are points of contact for us with God at key moments in our life.

Students participate in the Sacrament of Reconciliation and Eucharist. Religious Education classes and our school Chaplain work together to prepare students in the ritual of reconciliation.