Principals Reflection

“In the evening of the first day of the week, the doors were closed in the room where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews. Jesus came and stood among them. He said to them, ‘Peace be with you,’ and showed them his hands and his side. The disciples were filled with joy when they saw the Lord, and he said to them again, ‘Peace be with you.’” The feast of Pentecost celebrates the power of the Holy Spirit coming upon the disciples and energising them to set about their mission of continuing the ministry of Jesus. The gospel reading is one of the post-resurrection appearances by Jesus when he breathed the Holy Spirit upon the disciples. For the weeks following the death of Jesus the disciples had lived in fear and confusion, not fully understanding what had happened and not really knowing what to do. They realised that the Spirit Jesus had breathed upon them was present and urging them to action.

In our busy lives, we are often influenced by the ‘15 second attention grabs’ in forming opinions and often making fairly impulsive responses; the weekend’s readings highlight the need for us to ‘stop and be’ and acknowledge and appreciate that just as the Holy Spirit can be reduced to ‘external signs’ by many, we know, however, from the first Pentecost and perhaps from our own experience that the Spirit works in unpredictable AND ordinary ways. From the Acts of the Apostles we learn that where the Spirit of God is active many gifts are present:

• boldness to stand up for what we believe;
• the ability to hear and listen;
• an end to fear that locks us in on ourselves;
• fidelity to Jesus' commandment to love;
• clarity about what's true.

Opportunity cost – the dilemma we often face when presented with choice – can be framed as opportunities rather than challenges. St Patrick’s School staff labour on discerning and implementing educational strategies for our students, which is complementary to the problem for many of us who are endeavouring to discern where the Holy Spirit is leading us; these judgements require the gift of the discernment of spirits. In the early sixteenth century, St Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits, left the church a guide for working out how we can tell if and where the Holy Spirit is leading us, which can also be a useful guide for us in most of our discernments:

1. Don't make a decision when you are down; let the crisis pass and take time to weigh all the options.
2. The Holy Spirit enables us to let go of our unhealed past and not live in the unknown future; The Holy Spirit draws us to deal with the here and now, as it is, not as we may like it to be.
3. The Holy Spirit frees us up to bring out into the open anything we keep buried in the dark; there is nothing that has ever happened to us that is beyond the Spirit's healing.
4. The Holy Spirit breaks down isolation and draws us into community with other people.
5. Be careful of things that appear too perfect, they sometimes have a sting in the tail and can be destructive.
6. Be guarded about all things that are urgent; The Holy Spirit brings a sense of perspective to problems.
7. The Holy Spirit is always present where compassion and forgiveness are demonstrated.

As educators/parents, our humanity compels us to be people of discernment, taking the time to ‘stop and be’ when faced with opportunity cost. The heartening message from last weekend’s church readings is that the Holy Spirit, when invited, can provide ‘right judgement’ and the Ignatian method of discernment can help frame our acumen. The ongoing forces of nature are recreative; life is sustained and perpetuated. Thank you to all in our school community who, in their decision-making, seek sufficient time for any consideration of opportunity cost, endeavour to be empathetic to the many other ‘stakeholders’ and appreciate that our school values of Respect, Mercy, Compassion and Hospitality have been thoughtfully chosen and promoted as supporting a ‘common good.’

Regards,

Rod Linhart

(Principal)