Liturgy News

Distinguished Guests, Elders, Brothers and Sisters… greetings One and All,

For thousands of years it has been customary for the original inhabitants to welcome neighbouring groups and visitors to country as the keepers of the age old traditions that reach back to the days when our people walked this land for the first time. We are the keepers of the deep rooted stories of nature and nurture that are embedded in Mother Earth, the dwelling place of Father God, our spiritual guide and giver of life to all.

I am a descendant of the Ngugi people. We are one of the three clan groups (Nunukul, Ngugi and Gorempul) who are acknowledged as the Quandamooka Peoples. My place of belonging is across the waters of Moreton Bay and it is in this vein that I come with greetings and blessings from the Quandamooka People. We are the peoples of the sand and waters, Yulu Burri Ba peoples of Moreton Bay.

For thousands of years before time was recorded the Indigenous peoples were placed on this land by the one God of all creation. Throughout this time span the Great Spirit of our Dreaming continues to watch over us and remain central to our lives.

The teachings of our Dreaming relate the stories of sacred land and the importance of respecting that all living things matter. Our relationship with the land is central to our whole being; and nature and nurture our very lifeblood.

Traditionally from early childhood our teachings relate respect for Mother Earth, the dwelling place of Biame who is the giver of life to all living things here in this area of country.

Children always have been, and must continue to be, central to our lives. The old way of teaching meant that children remained children until the first signs of approaching adulthood, the time to be prepared for initiation. Initiation was a journey of being taught the roles and responsibilities of becoming custodians and keepers of the land and waters of their particular place of belonging. In this way the custodianship of country was handed down from generation to generation.

Millions of footsteps are imprinted in the land across Australia from the days when groups moved from place to place, at all times seeking permission to travel through another country. This lifestyle that endured for thousands of years ensured that the food supply was never depleted in any one place.

Hunting and gathering was governed by the seasons; and the dawning of each day brought new life into our lives as we watched nature respond to God’s harvest. The life-giving strength of the sun and the waters of the rain provided a wholistic approach to the well-being of body, mind and spirit.

The land is truly Mother Earth, our source of wholistic wellbeing of body, mind and spirit. Mother Earth is the dwelling place of the Spirit of our Dreaming Father God.

The mythology of our religion is deeply rooted in the land and therein lies the foundations of our religious beliefs and practice.

People and places are the most important factors in our identity and spirituality.

Our rituals, celebrations and ceremonies from birth to death are fine-tuned to nature as we nurture living life in the spirit of peoples and places – land is our livelihood.

We search for the voice of Spirit in the wind, in the song of the birds, the babbling brook and the stillness of the billabong, the grandeur of the mountains and the tracks through the rainforests. The roar of the oceans embracing the beaches and rubbing shoulders with the rocky shores constantly reminds us that Creator Spirit is always with us, watching and waiting for us to respond.

We also feel the groaning of the land and the pain of Mother Earth as the struggle for survival of the land continues against the odds of modernisation in today’s world.

Our Spiritual Dreaming has nurtured our identity, spirituality, our culture and ways of sharing with one another.

The 2010 theme “Called to be Stewards of a Sustainable Future” recognises that the Catholic school focus on ecological responsibility and the ethos of Christian practice and teachings is a call to care for creation. There is also the capacity to work more closely with the original inhabitants of your particular homelands.

Please join with me in a moment of quiet reflection as we share together in the stillness of our hearts and minds the memory of the first peoples of this land and all who have dared to strive for justice and equity for all peoples of Australia.

May we walk the extra mile journeying together in the Spirit of Reconciliation where the importance of practical and symbolic Reconciliation prevails and creates an environment that can rid us of the alarming health crisis that exists amongst our Indigenous Australians. Together we can make a difference.