ames 1:12-18; Mark 8:14-21.

I find the beginning of a new school year is invigorating! We leave the more restful and
reflective time of summer and now face up to the challenges and pace of a new year.
Its invigorating because of the excitement of new classes, meeting new students and
teachers, and undertaking new initiatives. I hope all of you find that spring in your step,
and some new energy and enthusiasm as you consider all the possibilities of 2016 for
you here at OurLady ofPillar College.
Today is not only a very pleasant occasion, but it is also very important that we all come
together for this Mass at the beginning of the school year. The staff at this College, I
know are dedicated to teaching. Teachers work hard to make your classes as inspiring
as they are intellectually engaging and they spend long hours to make important
contributions in their curriculum fields. I feel tremendous gratitude to all those who are
committed to working in and for Catholic Education, so I am delighted to join you in
asking Gods blessing on your work at Our Lady of Pillar college this year.
Students, you are very important and we need all of you to reach your full potential: that
is, to be the best person you can possibly be! It goes without saying then, that parents
and teachers also have a very important task, and that is to undertake that they will see
to it that you have all the appropriate resource and support to ensure that each of you
becomes your best self!
I think we all are aware that much is written and reported in the media about education.
Researchers tell us that to live in the increasingly globalised world, we must all be able
to comfortably interact with people and confidently move across cultures, as well as the
virtual and physical worlds. To do this we all need a deep understanding of the
interconnectedness and interdependence of all human beings. In addition we need to
develop a set of global skills to appreciate and accept people from other cultures and
have the emotional and psychological capacity to manage the complexity of living and
working in our world of today and tomorrow.
Students, many of you will be learning more about such matters in your studies this
year. Many of you have already set, or are working towards goals to ensure you achieve
a happy and productive life. All of this is not too easy, and sometimes we are tempted to
stop doing the things that we know we should do to achieve our goals, and we are
tempted to perhaps slacken off, and be distracted, or find ways to spend our time that
are not in keeping with our Christian life.
So, its good we have St James reminding us in todays reading to be on our guard: that
maybe temptation comes in many forms. We may be tempted not to tell the truth, to
take something that does not belong to us, to take advantage of someone, to gossip, to
hold a grudge, to feel superior and look down on others, or to give in to that part of us
that constantly wants more money and things. So how do you handle temptations?
Even though people around us may not appear to be doing so, everyone is wrestling
with temptation just like you and I are. We may be tempted to strike out or strike back,
to feel resentment, or to respond in other ways that are harmful to us or to others.

The good news is that we can resist temptation and as Christians we understand that in
adversity we may well be tried and tempted, but through prayer we can persevere. We
know that Christ came on earth to save us and we know always if we seek forgiveness,
that our loving God will forgive us if we do fail. Think of this when you next pray the
words of the beautiful prayer, the Our Father.
As Christians, we must never forget that the centre of our life is Jesus Christ. In our
second reading, St Mark tells us that Jesus performed miracle after miracle to
demonstrate to his followers that he was the Christ. Despite all the miracles the
disciples still did not believe. At this point in his mission following two feedings of
great crowds, numerous healings and walking on water and raising the dead his
disciples still werent convinced he was the Son of God. Here he was moved ask his
disciples again, perhaps even in exasperation: Do you still not understand? The
disciples believed Jesus was the Son of God but their understanding was incomplete.
They had difficulty understanding many of the concepts Jesus brought to them.
Remember, they loved Jesus but were still growing in understanding and maturity.
I am sure that like the disciples, you also love Jesus, but you need to think deeply about
this and learn more about him. Galen College especially should also be a place where
we make time for prayerful moments. These times of prayer are important in that they
allow us to listen to the subtle promptings of the Spiritnot our spirit, but Gods Spirit
that speaks to us and guides us. We need this time; we need this guidance of the Holy
Spirit to enrich our lives as Christians.
So lets get on with the exciting, invigorating, busy work of this new school year! Lets
set high goals, and direct our individual and collective energies to achieve them. Lets
teach well, learn well, and achieve much. But lets also listen to the Spirit, and work on
your studies, but also work to deepen your understanding and relationship with Christ.

Did you know that the adult human brain weighs only about three pounds? Three
pounds. That's not very much. Yet all the knowledge in a set of encyclopedias can fit
into this little space.
The famous writer, Shakespeare, know about 25,000 words. 25,000 words! And they
can all fit into this little brain. How many languages does the pope know? I hear that he
knows eight. Eight languages can fit into this little brain.
We are at the beginning of a new school year. Just imagine how much stuff you will
put inside your brain by the end of the year. You will put lots of English, math, science,
social studies, spelling,
art, music, etc. Isn't it a wonder -nahihiwagahan that our little brains can hold so much
knowledge?
This is a Catholic school. Besides reading, writing and 'rithmatic, you will fill your
brain with knowledge of Jesus. You will learn about his words, his actions, his death
and resurrection. When you put knowledge of Jesus in there, your brains become holy,
the dwelling place of truth.
How big is the human heart? The average adult heart weighs about eleven ounces.
A child's heart weighs less than that. Not even a pound. Yet if I looked inside your
heart, I bet I would find there your mother, your father, your brothers and sisters, your
grandparents, your teachers. Yes, these little hearts can carry lots and lots of love.
A lot of schools don't bother with the heart. They only focus on the brain. But this is a
Catholic school. And the heart is very important to us. We learn here how to welcome
Jesus into our hearts. Our second graders will do this in a special way this year when
they make their first Holy Communion.
When we welcome Jesus into our hearts, he comes with all the people he loves.
That's everybody. That means this little less-than-a-pound organ expands and expands
until it makes room for many people - over six billion people.
When Jesus enters our hearts and all his people with him,
holy. They become the dwelling place of love.

our hearts become

Brain. Heart. We also have a will. The will is an amazing part of us. When our will
tells our feet to jump, they jump. When our will tells our hands to clap, they clap. When
our will tells our mouth to speak, it speaks.
A lot of schools don't bother with the will. They only focus on the brain. But this is a
Catholic school. The will is very important to us.
Here we teach our wills when to choose the word "Yes," and when to choose the
word "No." When we keep the commandments, we are saying "Yes" to doing what God
wants us to do, and "No" to what God doesn't want us to do.

That means,
"Yes." We choose to speak the truth.
"Yes." We choose to be kind.
"Yes." We choose to help others.
"Yes." We choose to go to church.
"Yes." We choose to obey my parents.
That means,
We choose to say "No" to lying
We choose to say "No" to cheating
We choose to say 'No" to hurting others.
We choose to say "No" to bullying.
We choose to say "No" to illegal drugs.
Making right choices, our wills become holy, bonded to God's law.
The goal of a Catholic school is to unite our minds, our hearts and our wills with the
mind, the heart and the will of God.
That's a big order.
So here at Mass today we ask God the Father to send his powerful Holy Spirit upon
us. The Holy Spirit will come and enlighten our minds with lots of knowledge, will fill our
hearts with lots of love, and will strengthen our wills with lots of determination.
In the bible the prophet Isaiah proclaims, "O God, we are the clay and you are the
potter. We are all the work of your hands." (Isaiah 64:7)
At this Mass we offer ourselves to God and say "Amen. Yes, Lord. Take us, mold us,
shape us, and form us according to your likeness."
God is the master artist. We are his works of art.
Come, let us give thanks.