Powerful Insights into Catholic Identity at Damascus College

The Damascus College full staff Religious Education Inservice day was held on Friday 19^th August on campus. The College theme for 2022 was the approach that was taken to the whole day: “Abide in my love and you will bear much fruit. (John 15:5) adapted.” The day commenced with an Acknowledgement of Country. The opening prayer focused on the need to think creatively and metaphorically by being attentive, intelligent, reasonable, and responsible when attending to our personal relationship with Jesus and his inclusive message.

What is the abiding love of God that lies at the heart of Enhancing Catholic School Identity Project (ECSIP)? Our College community has recently completed the ESCIP survey with an excellent number completed. It was most timely to address the question “What is the Spirit of ESCI?” Our guest presenters, Associate Professor Robyn Horner and Dr Teresa G. Brown from Australian Catholic University took up this question with us. Their method was to present the approach of the ECSIP to the nature of Catholic school communities and to observe the results of Damascus College data across time. In the complexities of the secularising processes at work in Australian culture, the Catholicity of our College is under pressure. How can this be identified and what can be done to address these realities?

The afternoon focused on the second clause of our theme and so addressed the question: “How might we bear fruit, fruit that will last?” This took the form of workshops run by members of our Catholic Culture and Religious Education Team and invited guests.

• Youth Ministry in Schools: The Power of Encounter and Witness (Sally Murphy and Jasmina Kirkham)
• Reconciliation Action Plan: The Uluru Statement and us. (Andy Robertson and Claudia Griffin)
• Sustainability: The Cry of the Earth and the Cry of the Poor at Mt Clear (Inga Hamilton from ResourceSmart Schools with Natalie Ventra)
• Sacred Space and Time: Prayer Beyond God in the Sky (Susannah Berens)
• Social Justice in Action: Who are the poor? (Kristen Sheridan from the Salvation Army with Adrian Newman)
• Christian Initiation: What are Catholics saying about being a Catholic (Plenary Council)? (Felicity Knobel, Ballarat Diocese Representative at the Plenary Council with Tony Haintz)

The day was highly participatory and was valued by both the staff and presenters.