The Men’s Scripture Reading Group at Our Lady of Victories Basilica (OLV) meets each month during the year on the second Saturday at 10.00 am for an hour in the Parish Meeting Room at OLV. 

The purpose of this group of like-minded men is to encourage the pursuit of their faith through regular examination of the Scriptures, both collectively and individually.  We hope to become better men by deepening our knowledge of the “Good News” of the word of God by examining and discussing the scripture readings of the day in a casual group scenario. Everyone is encouraged to provide their own personal thoughts so that the whole group can learn and benefit from the collective wisdom on offer.

Why a men’s group you might ask?  The genesis of our group resulted from an attempt in 2015 to conduct a “menAlive” Retreat Weekend, in the OLV Parish.  “menALIVE” is a National Catholic Ministry to Men which was founded out of a response to a great need in the hearts and lives of men, and a great need in the life of the Catholic Church.  Despite the honour of having the founder of “menAlive”, Robert Falzon, travel from Brisbane to attend our information evening in October 2015, we didn’t attract enough numbers to justify conducting this retreat at OLV.  However, we did have enough interest to establish a regular monthly gathering of men to form our Scripture Reading Group. This format has provided the ambiance for us men to be comfortable in expressing our views and listening to those of others, too. 

We are now in our sixth year of existence and currently, we have 6-8 attendees on average attending our monthly meetings. 

On a personal note, I have found that cultivating the habit of examining the scripture readings of the day EACH day, has given me a regular opportunity to develop a personal interest in my Christian faith and the readings themselves.  Previously, I am ashamed to say, I hardly thought about my God at all from one Sunday Mass until the next.  Now I look forward to hearing what others have to say about these matters, including the wonderfully thoughtful homilies that our dedicated priests, Fr Trac, Fr Brendan, Fr Frank O’Loughlin, and Archbishop Hart regularly present to us at Mass.

A warm invitation is extended to men of our now consolidated Parishes (and elsewhere too) to participate and investigate the potential benefits for themselves, if only as a trial.   If you would like to learn more about us please contact the Parish Office.

By Francis Bourke