Week Eight: Archbishop’s Pastoral Parish visits

St Patrick’s School Cooma joins Archbishop Christopher for Mass

COOMA, ST PATRICK’S 

St Mary’s Adaminaby, St Patricks Jerangle, St Andrew’s Nimmitabel, All Saint’s Numeralla

It is now nearly nine months since the pandemic impacted Australia. We are still living with it, and some countries have entered a second lockdown. There is hope that there will be a vaccine available sometime next year, but it will probably take up to three years for all people in the world to be vaccinated. We continue to pray and help one another face this challenge.

The parishes of the Snowy Monaro region – Bombala, Cooma and Jindabyne, have endured all that the virus has thrown at them. From the very start of the lockdown, the Cooma Parish Pastoral Council reached out to all in all the parishes, offering support and Sunday liturgy helps. This graduated to on-line Masses celebrated by our two priests, Fr Mick Mac Andrew and Fr Adrian Chan. Fr Adrian arrived in the parish of Cooma just as the lockdown commenced and still hasn’t had an official welcome yet.

Younger parishioners and students from St Patrick’s School, Cooma and St Joseph’s School, Bombala shone as bright lights for our senior parishioners, making meals and greeting cards so that seniors would not feel abandoned.

Looking to Christmas, there will be open-air Masses to accommodate all those who wish to gather to celebrate the birth of Jesus this year like no other.

	During the Archbishop’s pastoral visit, Fr Adrian Chan and Fr Mick McAndrew were joined by students from St Joseph’s School, Bomballa and their REC Alice Shannon