Students from five schools in western Victoria have joined together at Henley Park in Edenhope to commemorate 200 years of Catholic education in Australia.
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The event saw students from Our Lady Help of Christians school in Murtoa, St Patrick's primary school in Nhill, St Malachy's primary school in Edenhope, St Joseph's primary school in Coleraine and Sacred Heart primary school in Casterton gather together to celebrate.
They were among thousands across the country who took part in celebrations of the milestone.
Our Lady Help of Christians school principal Cathy Grace said the event marked the growth and development of the Ballarat Diocese in the Wimmera.
The Diocese of Ballarat was home to the second Catholic school in Victoria - All Saints Parish School in Portland which opened in 1849.
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"Since then we have grown to a Diocese of 64 schools together, so that is huge growth in that time. We are thinking about faith in the future and how our school might grow in the next 200 years. So the milestone is huge," she said.
"Even the way we teach religious education today is recontextualised so it has more meaning in students' lives. It is about teaching them and empowering them to be the best that they can possibly be. It is a huge milestone if you stop and reflect on it over time."
The day featured various "200" themed activities; 200 cupcakes were presented to 200 students who stood in the shape of the number 200 on an oval.
The students also sung Faith in the Future together, a song written for the bicentenary by Rob Galea of the Sandhurst Diocese.
Ms Grace said the song's lyrics captured the spirit and message of the bicentenary event.
"Our schools are open to all and we embrace all faiths and all cultures, we don't just have Catholic faiths in our schools. So that song was about embracing that and working together and coming together to achieve and pursue fullness of life for everyone," she said.
"Also to put our small schools on the map as well. A lot of people in Australia would not know where Murtoa is. There was also another purpose here in acknowledging all of our Catholic schools, in our Diocese, in Victoria and in Australia."
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