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Tuesday 9am - 3:30pm Wednesday 9am - 3:30pm Thursday 9am - 3:30pm Friday 9am - 1:30pm

St Raphael's Parish, Cowra

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Cowra, NSW
St Raphael's Parish, Cowra

St Raphaels Parish encompasses: St Raphael's, Cowra; St Edward's, Canowindra; St John the Baptist Eugowra; Goloogong; Woodstock; Wyangala Dam.

Our Parish Priest is Fr Thao Van Nguyen

08/09/2026

*Reconciliation* A reminder that the Parent Meeting for Reconciliation is coming up:
Thursday 15 October, 6:00 pm, Held at St Raphael's Catholic School, Cowra, Mother Scholastica Learning Centre

The Program begins: Weekend of 17–18 October (Enrolment Mass)
Preparation: 4 sessions over 6 weeks
Commitment: Attend Mass each weekend
Retreat Day: Wednesday 18 November
Celebration: Wednesday 18 November at 6:30 pm

28/08/2026

This Father’s Day, we will celebrate and give thanks not only for our fathers and grandfathers, but also for the mentors and father figures who have guided, supported and inspired us throughout our lives. It is also
an opportunity to recognise and honour the devoted service of our retired priests, who have
faithfully served our communities and shared their unwavering commitment to pastoral care
and spiritual leadership in service to others. Your generous support for the
Father’s Day Appeal helps ensure our retired priests receive the care, support and dignity
they deserve in their retirement. All donations collected go directly towards the care and
support of our retired priests.
You can EFT your donation to Acc Clergy Support Foundation
BSB 066 781 Acc No 100013415, by placing your donations in the special collection bag,
or scanning the QR Code provided, use the below link, or kindly send your donation to the Clergy Support Foundation.
https://www.bpoint.com.au/pay/CATHOLICDIOCESEOFBATHURST?billercode=1700384

Interested in lending a hand ✋? Contact our Parish office on (02) 6342 1369 or office.cowra@cdob.org.au.

27/08/2026

Interested in lending a hand ✋? Contact our Parish office on (02) 6342 1369 or [email protected].

26/08/2026

This weekend, we celebrate Confirmation with our parish candidates, Fr Thao, and Bishop Michael McKenna.
We would love you to join the celebration;
☕️🍰 St Raphael's Hall (following 5 PM Mass, Saturday the 29th)
☕️🍰 St Edward's School Hall (Following 10 AM Mass, Sunday the 30th)
If you wish to bring a plate, please drop it off at the Hall before Mass! We look forward to celebrating with our Parish community.

23/08/2026

A WEEKEND OF GREAT JOY FOR OUR PARISH! 🎉🙏⛪
What a wonderful and joyful weekend for our parish community as we welcomed seven people into full communion with the Catholic Church!
At St Raphael’s, Cowra, we had the great joy of welcoming Lynne Dowd, Stacey Collins, Tahne-Rae Rice and Ted Henningham.
At St Edward’s, Canowindra, the celebration continued as we welcomed Kellie Ryan, Douglas Rice and Deborah Howath.
After many months of prayer, preparation, learning and discernment, they made their profession of faith and were joyfully welcomed into full communion with the Catholic Church.
At Mass, we reflected on the beautiful question Jesus asks his disciples in the Gospel:
“But you, who do you say I am?”
This is not simply a question about what we know about Jesus. It is a deeply personal question: Who is Jesus for me?
For those received into the Church this weekend, this beautiful moment is not the end of their journey — it is only the beginning. The journey of faith continues throughout our whole lives as we come to know Jesus more deeply, trust him more completely and follow him more faithfully.
Following both Masses, the celebrations continued with refreshments and wonderful fellowship with families, friends and our parish communities. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who helped make these celebrations so special, and especially to those who have accompanied our candidates throughout their journey of faith.
We give thanks to God for Lynne, Stacey, Tahne-Rae, Ted, Kellie, Douglas and Deborah, and above all for the work of the Holy Spirit, who has gently accompanied and led them to this beautiful moment.
Please continue to keep them in your prayers, and may our parish community become for each of them a true home of faith, love and belonging, where they can continue to grow in friendship with Christ and with one another.
And the journey continues! 🙏 We are also blessed to have a number of other candidates continuing their journey with us, whom we hope will be ready to receive the Sacraments of Initiation by the end of the year. We pray for them as they continue their journey of discernment, prayer and deepening faith, trusting that the Holy Spirit will continue to guide them.
What a blessing for our parish family! ❤️🙏
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” — Matthew 16:16

22/08/2026

✨ Please note changes to Mass times next week ✨

20/08/2026

🏡 HOME SWEET HOME – WELCOME HOME, FR MATTHEW! ⛪

Last weekend, we had the great joy of welcoming our newly ordained Fr Matthew Pinson and his family back home to Cowra for his Thanksgiving Mass at St Raphael’s Parish.

It was a very special evening filled with faith, gratitude, memories and plenty of surprises for Fr Matthew!

One particularly beautiful moment was having our most senior parishioner, Jean Mary Fagan, with us. Jean Mary recently celebrated the wonderful milestone of 100 years of age. Fr Matthew gave Jean Mary a special blessing, and Fr Thao presented her with a Papal Blessing and flowers to congratulate her on this remarkable milestone. 🌷

There were many other surprises throughout the evening. Our choir sang a Christmas song written by Matthew when he was only nine years old. We also looked back on his journey of faith, from Baptism to Priesthood, heard memories shared by one of his former teachers from his childhood in Cowra, and presented him with a Mass kit to accompany him on his journey of priestly ministry.

It was a wonderful reminder that a vocation is nurtured not only by an individual, but also by family, parish, school and community.

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who contributed to the beautiful and reverent liturgy, and to all who prepared and served the wonderful refreshments afterwards. Your generosity helped make Fr Matthew’s homecoming such a memorable celebration.
Following the celebration, Fr Matthew and his parents, Louise and David Pinson, sent beautiful messages of thanks to our parish.

Louise and David wrote:
“St Raphael's was a place of deep faith and warm community throughout our time living there. It still is. Thank you for making us feel we always have a home among you.”

And Fr Matthew wrote:
“Thank you to you and the parish for such a warm welcome this weekend. It was so lovely to feel the continuing care of a community that still rightly considers me one of their own.”

Fr Matthew, Cowra will always be home, and St Raphael’s will always be your parish family.

May God bless you abundantly in your priestly ministry, and may you continue to bring Christ’s love, hope and joy to all those you are called to serve.

Welcome home, Fr Matthew! 🙏

17/08/2026

📌 **Presbytery Office Closure**

Please note that the Presbytery Office will be closed from Tuesday 18 August to Thursday 20 August, while Sue and Claudia attend a Parish Secretaries’ Conference.

During this time, emails and voicemail will be monitored intermittently, and we will respond as soon as practical.

For **urgent enquiries**, please contact Fr Thao by email at [email protected].

Thank you for your understanding.

14/08/2026

🕔 Saturday 5 PM - Thanksgiving Mass for Fr Matthew Pinson, followed by a light supper at St Raphael's Parish Hall.

We warmly welcome Fr Matthew Pinson back to our parish as he celebrates his Thanksgiving Mass with us. It is particularly special to have Fr Matthew home to the community where his own faith journey began. Fr Matthew was baptised at St Raphael’s, received his First Eucharist here and was also Confirmed in our parish. We feel truly honoured and privileged that he has chosen to return to St Raphael’s to celebrate his Thanksgiving Mass and to share this important and life-changing moment with our parish community. Please join us in warmly welcoming Fr Matthew Pinson, congratulating him on his journey and praying for him as he continues to serve God and His people.

Following Mass, please stay and enjoy light refreshments in the Parish Hall. This will be a wonderful opportunity to spend time together, and personally thank Fr Pinson for his service
and dedication. We look forward to celebrating this special occasion with you all.

**Note that morning Tea on Sunday has been cancelled

Address

Lachlan Street
Cowra, NSW
2794

Opening Hours

Tuesday	9am - 3:30pm
Wednesday	9am - 3:30pm
Thursday	9am - 3:30pm
Friday	9am - 1:30pm

Telephone

+61263421369

Website

http://bathurst.catholic.org.au/

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