Our Lenten journey has begun. The ash daubed on our foreheads last Wednesday was a poignant reminder that each of us is dust, and that something must die before it can be resurrected—an idea that finds its ultimate expression at Easter and in the waters of baptism.

Many of this week’s stories show how, in the life of faith, we are often called to let go of one life so that a new one can be born. On Sunday, for instance, catechumens and candidates from more than 60 parishes gathered at St Patrick’s Cathedral for the Rite of Election, an important step on their journey to receive the sacraments of initiation at Easter, and to a new life in the Church.

We also share the wonderful news that eight new seminarians have recently joined Corpus Christi College—the largest single intake since 2017—and hear from two of them about the lives they have left to follow God’s call to a new life in the priesthood.

And we hear from Czech theologian Mgr Prof Tomáš Halík, who recently shared with us the remarkable story of his clandestine life as a priest under the former communist regime in his home country, some insights from his thriving ministry among young people and ‘seekers’ in Prague, and his (very Lenten) conviction that for the Church to be resurrected and transformed, first something must die.

You can find lots more stories below on what’s been happening in the Archdiocese of Melbourne and beyond, or you can visit the Melbourne Catholic news and stories page or follow us on Facebook. To connect with people and events across the Archdiocese, check out our events page for what’s coming up soon.

In a year, and a season, when we are called to deepen our commitment to prayer, Archbishop Peter A Comensoli invites us—in his video message for February—to journey back to God using the prayer Jesus taught us, the Our Father, which encourages us both to praise God and to depend on him for everything we need: love, forgiveness, protection, even our ‘daily bread’.

There is an intimate connection between our prayers and our actions, as we saw in the encouraging response to the Archdiocese’s recent Advent Appeal, where parishes raised $150,000 for the people of Ukraine.

The Church continues to play a vital role in serving society’s most vulnerable and has a valuable part to play in the wider social services sector, according to public policy expert Prof Mark Considine, who spoke at the recent Catholic Social Services National Conference.

Also this week: We hear about the most recent Encounter event, where young people came together in prayer and adoration to draw closer to Jesus. The upcoming ‘Mercy Melbourne’ night (19 March) similarly promises to bring more than 40 parishes across the city together in a powerful night of prayer, bearing witness to God’s forgiveness through the sacrament of Reconciliation. We also recall the story of how seminarians at Corpus Christi College were moved, in the years after the Second World War, to reach out to brother seminarians in Cologne, Germany, in their hour of need. And we find inspiration for our Lenten prayer journey in a Carthusian’s short letter on the vastness of God’s love.

For more news and events, visit the Melbourne Catholic news and stories page, our events calendar or follow us on Facebook.

To learn more about upcoming events and opportunities, visit the Melbourne Catholic events page.