| The Door of Mercy is now open. The Tower Door nominated by Bishop Jarrett as the Door of Mercy was opened on Sunday 21 February. Pass through the door at any Mass at the Cathedral and experience the Mercy of the Heavenly Father. |  |
| The start of Holy Week presents to us the drama of the last days of Our Saviour’s earthly life. Holy Week is an incomparable opportunity to take time out each day for prayer and meditation. The contemplative Liturgies celebrated during this week are not simply pious recollections of events which took place 2000 years ago. The Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday has a startling variation to the normal text of the Eucharistic Prayer. The text states, “On the day before he was to suffer for our salvation and the salvation of all, that is today” (italics added). The prayer make the remarkable claim that the Last Supper is not consigned to history. In a real but mysterious way the event is made present on Holy Thursday. Indeed the whole mystery of Christ’s Death and Resurrection is made present in the Liturgies of Holy Week. May Holy Week be a retreat for each of us opening our hearts to the rich graces the Heavenly Father desires to communicate to us. |  |
 | On Tuesday we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord also called Candlemas. The name Candlemas arises because there is the opportunity to have candles blessed at the start of the Mass. The light of a candle reminds us of the true Light, Christ Our Saviour. The association between the light of candles and Candlemas is found in the Gospel report of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple (Luke 2). The devout man Simeon holds the Infant Jesus in his arms and declares Him to be a, ‘light to enlighten the pagans’. May Christ, the Light of the world, continue to shed light in our lives this 2016. Fr Nicolas Maurice |
| The prayers of the Church rise up on this day especially for those fallen in armed conflict for our country. On ANZAC Day we remember those to made the supreme sacrifice: those who gave up their lives for the nation. May ANZAC Day be a moment to pause in gratitude for the sacrifices of our fallen. Lest we forget. |  |
| This week we start our annual penitential season of Lent with Ash Wednesday. The practice of fasting from food and abstaining from meat on Ash Wednesday echoes the theme of self-discipline found in the liturgical prayers of Lent. Self-control can seem to be downplayed in the modern day. Yet there are contemporary examples that remind us that nothing worthwhile is attained without effort and sacrifice. We see this most clearly with our elite athletes. Every single sports champion regardless of natural talent has had to exercise self-discipline to attain excellence. Lent does not teach us that Heaven is gained by natural human effort and striving. But it does remind us that cooperation with God’s grace involves effort and sacrifice. Fr Nicolas Maurice |  |
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