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St. Matthew’s Church Ballyfermot PARISH NEWSLETTER 26 Nov (Feast of Christ the King) PLEASE TAKE THIS HOME WITH YOU TO SPREAD THE WORD Jesus Christ
St. Matthew’s Church Ballyfermot PARISH NEWSLETTER
26 Nov (Feast of Christ the King)
PLEASE TAKE THIS HOME WITH YOU TO SPREAD THE WORD
Jesus Christ
PARISH SHOP Cards, Calendars, Candles
and much more available at the shop in the Parish Centre
FAITH MOMENT
Faith is necessary for salvation. The Word of God and the Sacraments of the Church nourish and sustain us to live, grow and persevere in faith till the end.
Gospel Readings for the Week Ahead Mon 27/11 Lk 21: 1-4 ‘But she from the little she had has put in all she had to live’ Tue 28/11 Lk 21: 5-11 ‘The time will come when not a single stone will be left on another’ Wed 29/11 Lk 21: 12-19 ‘Your endurance will win you your lives’ Thu 30/11 Mt 4: 18-22 ST. ANDREW ‘As he was by the Sea of Galilee he saw two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and his brother Andrew’ Fri 1/12 Lk 21: 29-33 ‘My words will never pass away’ Sat 2/12 Lk: 21:34-36 Stay awake, praying at all times
Mass Times Weekdays:
Saturday: Vigil Mass 6.30 Monday Sunday: 9.00, 9.45 (Convent) 10.00 Prayer Service 10.30,12.00 Masses
Tuesday: 7.30 only Wed, Thur, Fri: 10.00
Mass Intentions 6.30 Saturday 25 Nov Annie Dunne, John Kelly, Bridget, Bernard Murphy, Eileen, Vera Murphy, Thomas Burke, Bridget Lynch 09.00 Sunday 26 Nov Susan, Alan Kearney, Arthur, Rose Jacob 10.30 Sunday 26 Nov Evelyn, Gerard O’Duffy & O’Duffy Family 12.00 Sunday 26 Nov Maura Cummins, Mary Reilly, George Reilly Snr. & Jnr. 7.30 Tues 28 Nov Rosaleen Brennan, Molly, Tom Ritchie 10.00 Fri 1 Dec John Kerrigan
Recent Funerals Ann Culleton
May She Rest in Peace
BOOK OF THE WEEK CAN WE SAVE THE CATHOLIC CHURCH?
Hans Kung William Collins, London 2013. Pp 350
Hans Kung is a Catholic Priest and Theologian. He and Joseph Ratzinger were the youngest advisers at Vatican II. He is a professor at the University of Tubingen. This fascinating book includes clear diagnosis and recommendations for recovery.
WEEKLY COLLECTIONS 12/11
First Collection €825 Share Collection €605 Family Offering €800
TRIDUUM OF PRAYER Three Special Days in honour of Our Lady of Fatima. This Triduum marks the centenary of the apparitions at Fatima. Wed Dec 6: Opening Mass 7pm Thu Dec 7: Scripture Rosary 6pm Solemn Mass of Our Lady of Fatima 7pm Eucharistic Adoration 8 - 9pm Fri Dec 8: Concluding Mass 7pm
St. Vincent De Paul Monthly Collection
Amount Collected October: €670 Thank you for your support.
Monthly Collection for November This Weekend
Ethiopia School Project Church Gate Collection Next Weekend 2/3 December
Collection for Bill O’Shaughnessy
Amounted to a whopping €3200 Thank you for your amazing generosity.
Concert November 24 A very big thanks to Ken and all those who participated in or helped to organize the wonderful concert that took place here in St. Matthew’s on Friday Nov 24.
EUCHARISTIC ADORATION We are going to try to increase our dedication to Eucharistic Adoration in the parish. Look out for the talks and materials about this important part of parish life and think about ways in which you may become involved.
Caritas College News Well done to Caritas College junior Gaelic
football team who recently played their first Gaelic football championship match. They were delighted to have the opportunity to pose with the Sam Maguire Cup afterwards. Well done girls!
Boots skincare consultants visited Caritas to deliver a workshop to our 5th and 6th year applied students. One of the facilitators on the day was past pupil Natasha Byrne. It was wonderful to have her back in Caritas. She is a great role model for our aspiring hair and beauty students.
The girls at Caritas wish to sincerely thank the many members of our community who generously supported our recent Fancy Dress Fun Run.
Our Lady’s Hospice & Care Services Harold’s Cross
Light up a life event with Guest of Honour Daniel O’Donnell Sunday 26th November @ 3.45pm Sponsor a light www.lightupalife.ie
The 9, 16, 49 and 54a buses all pass the hospice. Thank you for your support over past 25 years.
Youth 2000 Christmas Retreat Youth 2000 invites all young adults between ages of 16-35 to a Catholic weekend retreat taking place from 8th - 10th December 2017 at Newbridge College, Co. Kildare This will be an exciting weekend attracting over 600 young people from all over the country. Booking is essential. For more information on the event see www.vouth2000.ie. Youth 2000 Ireland Facebook page or Tel: 00353 (0) 1 6753690
TOUGH TIME TO BE A PRIEST?
That's exactly what she said. It was just after a funeral Mass. It was a lady that has visited St. Matthew's a few times. I think she comes up from down the country. This was the comment she made to me when she came over to say thanks. We had a little chat about Priesthood and in lamenting that it had lost a lot of the respect it previously had, she also felt that it must also be a time of low morale for priests, pointing to both lack of vocations and falling Mass attendance. Whilst there is some truth in what she was saying, and she was speaking without harshness, and I know many priests who are tired and a few who are demoralised, I take a different tack on this. Of course I agree these are challenging days for all of us trying to live Church. It is not an easy time to try to bring up children and to do so in a way that gives them a good moral compass and some sense of the sacred. However all that said I have been of the opinion for a while now that whilst priesthood is not without its challenges it is actually an exciting time to be a priest. Some of this excitement is directly related to the changing face of the Church in relation to a rapidly changing society. Of course my friend after Mass put her finger on a very important point, namely that we priests do not ‘command the absolute respect’ we once did. My response to that is, surely that is a good thing. When we reflect on it, with the benefit of our experience, we can now say that respect earned is always better than respect commanded or demanded. Perhaps we should also be a little uncomfortable with the word ‘absolute’. In any case all this got me thinking. Indeed I myself can be critical of priesthood but I actually believe it is still a beautiful vocation and I would like to say a few words in it’s defence.
In recent days I have attended an Ordination. It was held in the Pro-Cathedral on November 14th, the Feast day of St. Laurence O’ Toole. This was a fitting day indeed because one of those ordained was our own Deacon Bill, Bill O’ Shaughnessey. Bill is a native of Castledermot, the birthplace of St. Laurence who together with St. Kevin of Glendalough is a patron of this diocese. We had the privilege of having Bill here in St. Matthew's for nearly a year. The diocese rejoices, as do all of us here in St. Matthew's in a very real way, in Bill’s generosity of heart. Speaking after his Ordination I put it to the assembled gathering that Bill had all the qualities necessary for being a lovely father and a great husband and yet because of the persistent whispering of the Holy Spirit in his heart he had decided to put all this at the service of God and his people. Of course he can only do this with God’s grace. This is what priesthood is about. Essentially service of God and his people. For us as priests a major part of that service is through the celebration of the Eucharist and preaching God’s word. Having had the privilege of getting to know Bill over the past year or so and listening to the prayerful passion with which he preached at his first Mass I am happy to say that our diocese had just received a really wonderful new priest.
Sadly beside all the joy of the past few days I received news that a good friend of mine had died. He was ninety three years of age. For the past forty years he has been editor of the well respected and world renowned journal of theology, The Furrow. He was also the Professor of Homilecties in Maynooth. I am of course speaking of Fr Ronan Drury. Last Christmas Ronan celebrated Midnight Mass in his home parish in Mullagh for the sixty - third year in succession. He often greeted us with his mischievous smile, ‘Is there anything I should know?’ Or ‘Tell me all!’ Those of you who suffer my own rambling homilies, will enjoy a comment he made to
me in class one day. I had just delivered a homily and Ronan was critiquing it: ‘ You know Joe, you have some wonderful things to say… but remember you do not have to say them all today!’ That was Ronan, witty, sharp, incisive, never hurtful. When I left him I always felt I mattered. I felt encouraged. To thousands of priests in Ireland he was our Professor, our brother and our friend. I will miss him very much. May he rest in Peace.
J MC DONALD. 18.11.17
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