Saturday 5 April 2008

Cross & Icon beside the seaside on last day in Wollongong

St Michael’s Parish, Thirroul were the first to greet the Cross & Icon in its last day in the Diocese of Wollongong. A fantastic procession led by the school students was a highlight of the day, with brightly coloured costumes and giant doves giving the procession a distinct seaside feel. The Cross & Icon remained in the Church for a short while, before being taken to a nearby stage as part of the annual Thirroul Seaside Festival.

A group of lively youth (a couple decked out in their Diocese of Wollongong t-shirts that read “Does this shirt make me look Catholic?”) led the singing in great style and explained to the community at large what this giant cross was doing in the middle of the town’s annual festival. It was great to see the young people witnessing to their faith in such a bold and vivid way.

The next part of the day was a real highlight as we walked the Cross & Icon over the iconic Seacliff Bridge – a procession that was remarkable for the colour and vibrancy it added to the spectacular landscape.
The people of Helensburgh then took the Cross & Icon to Bald Hill Lookout, another beautiful location as it looks out over the ocean and the Seacliff Bridge. The final event for the Diocese was a Mass at Holy Cross Parish, Helensburgh where the Bishop reflected on the past days and the road to Emmaus story was told, particularly fitting given the amount of processions that have been held in the Diocese over the past days!


It has been an incredible 13 days in the Diocese of Wollongong. So many events (63 to be exact!) have been jam-packed in to make sure that every community can make the most of this once-in-a-lifetime chance to be with these amazing symbols. The events have reached out to those in the wider community and I have been amazed by the BIG scale and BIG impact of the events. Thanks to the Diocesan team for all that you contributed towards the JCI and thanks to all those friendly faces we met along the way. I’m looking forward to seeing heaps of Wollongong youth in Sydney in July!


Bernadette :)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Thanks JCI Team! That sky bridge walk looks absolutely awesome!
Keep up the good work.
Love and blessings :)

 
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