From the College Principal

Newsletter 9 2025

Dear Members of the St Andrews College Community,

Congratulations on another fortnight of successes, trials and tribulations. I have had the pleasure of witnessing significant learning and growth in a variety of learning activities, assessments and cocurricular pursuits. The student thought, imagination and application that went into the Year 10 Commerce classes ‘Shark Tank’ Assessment Task was great to see. I really enjoyed sitting in on the presentations for the middle part of the day. Both staff and students should be congratulated. I have also had the pleasure of seeing our team's progress to the finals stage of the CSDA Debating. Tonight our Year 10A team is in the semi-final against Marist Brothers Eastwood. I look forward to seeing the debate. It’s so difficult to get to this stage due to the complexities of debating, so any teams that make it through to the finals should be congratulated. I also viewed the Year 12 Music HSC Performances last week. It was an exhibition, in my opinion, of growth, talent and perseverance. I really enjoyed the night and look forward to the final product in the coming months. Remember: “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard”.

Gospel Reflection: Luke 9:11-17
They all ate and were satisfied.

Today, the second Sunday after Pentecost, we celebrate a second solemnity, which marks our return to Ordinary Time. Today is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. At one time, this day was called Corpus Christi, Latin for “the Body of Christ.” In the most recent revision of the liturgy, the name for this day is expanded to be a more complete reflection of our Eucharistic theology.

The feeding of the 5,000 is the only one of Jesus' miracles to appear in all four Gospels. Luke places it between Herod's question, “Who is this about whom I hear such things?” and Peter's response to Jesus' question about who he thought Jesus was: “You are the Messiah of God.” In Luke the feeding is not the result of Jesus' compassion for the crowd but is instigated by the disciples. They wanted Jesus to send the crowd away to town. Instead Jesus tells the disciples to give them some food on their own.

The passage is meant to remind us of two feedings in the Old Testament: the feeding of the Israelites in the desert and Elisha's feeding of 100 people with 20 loaves in 2 Kings 4:42-44. It is also connected to the institution of the Eucharist. As in the Last Supper accounts in Matthew, Mark, and Luke and in Paul's account in 1 Corinthians 11:23-24, Jesus takes bread, looks up to heaven, blesses the bread, breaks it, and then gives it to the disciples. In using this exact language, Luke is reminding his readers that in this miracle Jesus is doing more than feeding hungry people as God did for the Israelites and the prophet Elisha did as well. The bread he gives is his body, which he will continue to give as often as the community breaks bread in remembrance of him in the Eucharist.

Fidem in Christo

Dr Stephen Kennaugh
Principal