Parish Programs

“Everyone is enriched when everyone shares time, talents and resources. We need to ensure that those in any kind of need are assisted.”

Description: St Luke’s Stewardship Program began in 2000 as a means of regular planned contributions of the parishioners for the maintenance of the parish buildings as well as the upkeep of the parish Priest. “A Christian Steward is one who receives God’s gifts gratefully, cherishes and tends them in a responsible and accountable manner, shares them in justice and love with others, and returns them with increase to the Lord.” The emphasis of the Program is “THIS IS OUR HOME!” and it follows that we are all responsible for its upkeep and care. The outcome of the Program is that we can all feel that we are in a partnership with fellow parishioners as we are all making our individual efforts to sustain our beautiful Church, Parish Hall and Center and gardens and at the same time hand it on to future parishioners who will follow us in years to come. “Faith without action is empty. God calls us through our faith to continue with all the gifts we have been given. By our actions and giving our Father will know us.” If you like to help the parish then please complete THIS from and send back to the parish by EMAIL.

Prayer of Faithful Stewards

Heavenly Father, We give you thanks for the inspiration of your Holy Spirit as we reflect on the gospel call to exercise Christ’s stewardship on our journey of faith.

We ask you to guide us in our discernment and show us how to be faithful in the plans we make, the actions we take, and the love we share on our pilgrim way.

Give us the courage to find wisdom in our sacrifices, joy in ungenerosity, and hope in the compassion we show, especially to those most in need of your comfort and care.

Create in us a more open heart and a greater awareness of our need to grow, to change, to be transformed, so that we may be better stewards of your gifts for the good of all. Amen.

If you have been away from the Catholic Church we invite you to consider returning. It is never too late to come home…

There’s an old saying that goes, “Once a Catholic, always a Catholic.” Maybe you have been away from the Church for a little while or for quite some time, but now you feel a tug at your heart calling you back to the Catholic Church. Listen to that tug. It’s your Heavenly Father reaching his arms out to you, the Holy Spirit whispering in your ear, hoping to draw you home. We hope you accept this as your invitation to rediscover the truth, wonder and mystery of the Catholic faith. As your brothers and sisters in our worldwide Catholic family, we want you back. We’ve missed you, and our Church is not the same without you.

No matter what your reason for drifting away from practicing your faith, God’s mercy is so much greater. Your reason for leaving may come from great hurt. If so, the healing love of God is waiting for you. Perhaps you have questions about what returning will mean for your life? The Church has answers. And, Our Lady of Grace may be just the place to experience them.

Jesus told a story to illustrate how God the Father responds when one of his children – and you are one of his children – squanders his inheritance. In Luke 15 we find the story of the Prodigal Son, the son who disowns his father by demanding his inheritance and then wasting it on partying and immoral living. Then a famine strikes the country where he is partying and he runs out of money. Realizing how far he has fallen he decides to return home to tell his father how sorry he is for what he has done. He practices what could be called an Act of Contrition as he prepares to approach his father and ask him to allow him to return home, not as a son, but as one his father’s servants. As he approaches his home the story continues…

But while he was yet at a distance, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.” But the father said to his servants, “Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet; and bring the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and make merry; for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.” – Luke 15:20-24

God the Father’s reaction when we waste our inheritance through neglect or sin is not to wave his finger and say “I knew he would do that” or “Too bad she will never be able to come home now.” No! He welcomes us with open arms and restores us as his children.

If you’re a Catholic and you’ve been away for a while, then usually all you need to do is go to Confession to return to the practice of your faith. We encourage you to talk to a priest, or parish staff to find out if there is anything else you need to do and to help you connect with other members of our parish.

Come home to the Father’s arms. We’d love to have you among us as we follow Jesus! Please invite your family members & friends who haven’t been to the Church for a while to come for this five weeks support program that aims at helping Catholics return to the Church commencing Tuesday …. …….. 2023 at 7.30 pm at our Church.

For more information please collect the pamphlet from church foyer or contact the Parish Office on (02) 9773 9065.