Acts 1:1-11

In my earlier work, Theophilus, I dealt with everything Jesus had done and taught from the beginning until the day he gave his instructions to the apostles he had chosen through the Holy Spirit, and was taken up to heaven. He had shown himself alive to them after his Passion by many demonstrations: for forty days he had continued to appear to them and tell them about the kingdom of God. When he had been at table with them, he had told them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for what the Father had promised. 'It is' he had said 'what you have heard me speak about: John baptised with water but you, not many days from now, will be baptised with the Holy Spirit.'

Now having met together, they asked him, 'Lord, has the time come? Are you going to restore the kingdom to Israel?' He replied, 'It is not for you to know times or dates that the Father has decided by his own authority, but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and then you will be my witnesses not only in Jerusalem but throughout Judaea and Samaria, and indeed to the ends of the earth.'

As he said this he was lifted up while they looked on, and a cloud took him from their sight. They were still staring into the sky when suddenly two men in white were standing near them and they said, 'Why are you men from Galilee standing here looking into the sky? Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven, this same Jesus will come back in the same way as you have seen him go there.'

Psalm 46:2-3. 6-9

R God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: a blare of trumpets for the Lord.

All peoples, clap your hands, cry to God with shouts of joy! For the Lord, the Most High, we must fear, great king over all the earth. R.

God goes up with shouts of joy; the Lord goes up with trumpet blast. Sing praise for God, sing praise, sing praise to our king, sing praise. R.

God is king of all the earth. Sing praise with all your skill. God is king over the nations; God reigns on his holy throne. R.

Hebrews 9:24-28. 10:19-23

It is not as though Christ had entered a man-made sanctuary which was only modelled on the real one; but it was heaven itself, so that he could appear in the actual presence of God on our behalf. And he does not have to offer himself again and again, like the high priest going into the sanctuary year after year with the blood that is not his own, or else he would have had to suffer over and over again since the world began.

Instead of that, he has made his appearance once and for all, now at the end of the last age, to do away with sin by sacrificing himself. Since men only die once, and after that comes judgement, so Christ, too, offers himself only once to take the faults of many on himself, and when he appears a second time, it will not be to deal with sin but to reward with salvation those who are waiting for him.

In other words, brothers, through the blood of Jesus we have the right to enter the sanctuary, by a new way which he has opened for us, a living opening through the curtain, that is to say, his body. And we have the supreme high priest over all the house of God. So as we go in, let us be sincere in heart and filled with faith, our minds sprinkled and free from any trace of bad conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us keep firm in the hope we profess, because the one who made the promise is faithful.

Acclamation

Alleluia, alleluia! Go and teach all people my gospel. I am with you always, until the end of the world. Alleluia!

Luke 24:46-53

Jesus said to his disciples: 'You see how it is written that the Christ would suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that, in his name, repentance for the forgiveness of sins would be preached to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses to this.

'And now I am sending down to you what the Father has promised. Stay in the city then, until you are clothed with the power from on high.' Then he took them out as far as the outskirts of Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. Now as he blessed them, he withdrew from them and was carried up heaven. They worshipped him and then went back to Jerusalem full of joy; and they were continually in the Temple praising God.

The Living Word

In every conceivable manner, the family is the link to our past and the bridge to our future. —Alex Haley

ASCENSION OF THE LORD C - MAY 08 2016

Ingham

Sat 6.00pm Sun 8.30am Sun 7.00pm

Halifax Sun 7.00am

Canossa Sun 10.00am

Abergowrie Sun 10.00am

Sunday Masses 14-15 May

Mon 9.15am Blue Haven 5.30pm St Patrick’s

Tues 5.30pm St Paul’s

Wed 10.30am Palms 5.30pm St Patrick’s

Thurs 5.30pm St Patrick’s

Fri 7.00am St Patrick’s Our Lady of Fatima

Sat 8.00am St Patrick’s St Mathias, Apostle

Weekdays 9-16 May

The May Crowning of Our Lady, at Saint Patrick’s last weekend, was beautiful. Thank you to the many people who offered positive feedback. Thanks, again, to those who assisted: Monica, Lucy, Katie, Kaila, Gemma, and Ella. Thanks to the men who took the statue down, have worked on repairing her, and will remount her at the end of the month. The crowned Statue of Our Lady will stay in its current prominent position throughout this month of May. You are invited to bring flowers to decorate her altar.

It was nice to be able to wear the new Our Lady of Lourdes Chasuble, which is quite stunning. Thanks to Our Lady of Lourdes School for providing this vestment which will serve us for many years for our significant school events.

I was delighted, also, that Halifax decided to follow suit and crown their statue of Our Lady last weekend. What an incredibly speedy assembling of the floral crown for Mary. Thanks to Joe and Julie for the thought and effort. Now, this weekend, we will crown the statue of Our Lady at Canossa. It really is lovely to see this beautiful tradition revived.

The next big event will be a Corpus Christi Procession on Sunday 29 May, following the 8.30am Mass. The procession will take place in the grounds of St Patrick’s / Our Lady of Lourdes with five stations positioned

around the Church as way-stations for prayer. We will conclude with Benediction as we return to the Church.

May is not just Mary’s Month it is also Mission Month. So, we take up our annual May Mission Appeal this Sunday. The second collection in Ingham will be designated for these purposes. Please feel free to take an envelope home and return it next weekend at Mass or during the week at the offices.

At great expense, we are having the air system in Saint Patrick’s repaired this Tuesday and Wednesday. We need to repair the insulation on the left hand side which has been shredded during these past months. That’s a few thousand dollars I didn’t expect to be spending.

Speaking of money, St Patrick’s Parishioners should have received a letter and brochure about our Thanksgiving Renewal. Please pray for the success of the programme.

Confirmation is almost upon us… Please spare a prayer or two for the 50 children who are preparing for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

Finally, Happy Mother’s Day to all our mums.

Welcome to all visitors and new parishioners. Please make yourself known to us.

Rosary

9.30am Monday St Patrick’s

Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament

Tuesday 9am to 8.30pm in St Paul’s Chapel

Devotions

Confessions

7.00pm Thursday 11.00am Saturday 5.00pm Saturday

or by appointment

Parish Contacts Parish Priest: Fr Damian McGrath Associate Pastor: Fr Vitalis C Oguh

Parish Secretary: Pauline Pennisi Assistant and RE Co-ordinator: Marcella Cantatore Pastoral Care: Sr Nina Barra

Mail: PO Box 375, Ingham Q 4850 Phone: 4776 2600 Fax: 4776 5199

Web: www.inghamcatholic.com Email: parishoffice@inghamcatholic.com

Office Hours: 9am to 12pm Monday to Friday, 1pm to 3pm Monday to Thursday

The Pastor’s Pen!

returning to St Patrick’s Church for Benediction. Morning tea will be provided in Mercy Hall following.

Mary – An Evening of Prayer and Song

13th May from 6:00 pm at Sacred Heart Cathedral. The evening includes prayer, the inspired teaching of Pope Francis and singing of traditional and new Marian Hymns led by the Diocesan Choir. The evening will commence with the praying of the Angelus.

Fiji Appeal - Nabukadra Village

Donations of money, non-perishable foods, kitchenware, clothing, beddings etc. Donations of money are able to be deposited in the following account: Westpac; Acc. Name: Fiji Appeal - Nabukadra Village; BSB: 034187; ACC. NO.: 259607. There will be boxes placed in each church to receive your donation of any of the above items (not money). Items may be brought to offices

Upcoming Events

Confirmations—16 & 17 May

Relay for Life — 28/29 May

Corpus Christi Procession, St Patrick’s —29 May

St Anthony’s Feast Day Celebrations —12 June

Walkathon for Missionaries of the Poor—17 July

Marian Musings in May:

Mary is shown as central to our faith each day in the liturgy: she is always honoured in the Eucharistic Prayer; her Magnificat is sung daily in the Evening Prayer of the Church; the daily prayer of the church at Compline (Night) always ends by calling on Mary. The Magnificat has many hymn tunes which could easily be included in our celebrations in the month of May as we join Mary in praising God’s mercy.

Relay for Life Fundraising Dinner 14 May

St Patrick’s Angels, our Relay for Life team, will be hosting a fundraising dinner on Saturday 14th May after the 6.00pm Mass. Tickets $17-50 pp adults and children over 12yrs of age, under 12 $10 pp. This includes Crumbed Steak/Chicken, Fettucine, Salads, Tea/Coffee and home baked biscuits. Entertainment by Tony Fracchia, raffles and fun guaranteed. BYO cold drinks. Tickets are available from the Parish Office.

Relay for Life

Taxable donations can be made online if anyone wishes to donate more to support our Team. Ingham Relay for Life 2016 - Click on St Patrick's Angels under "Top Teams" and click donate.

We are still looking for participants to join our jolly Team. Staying all night is not a requirement. If interested please contact Giovanna Melvin 47763574 and leave a message.

Raffle for the Abergowrie Boys going on Mission Trip

As part of the fundraising efforts, the boys will be selling tickets in their Monster Chocolate raffle after Mass in Ingham this weekend. Please come prepared to purchase a ticket and support these young men. Raffle will be drawn on 13 May.

St Patrick’s Parish Council Meeting

Members, please note that our next meeting is this Monday 9th May at 7.30pm in the parish meeting room.

Knights of the Southern Cross

Next meeting will be a combined meeting with Tully on Thursday 12th. May. The bus will leave St. Patrick’s car park 6.00 pm. Please ring John 0407635175 to reserve your special seat.

St Anthony’s Feast Day Celebrations

The St Anthony committee is once again calling for volunteers to help set up and take down marquees and stalls used for The Feast of St Anthony day which is on Sunday the 12th June this year. All people interested can contact Anthony Girgenti on 0408877328 or be at the church grounds in Bemerside by 8.30 am on Sat 11 June. Also looking for parishioners interested in joining our Committee. To keep this 90 year tradition going we need to have more people involved as it is the only celebration left of a Saint in the Townsville Diocese.

St Teresa’s Abergowrie Pre-Harvest Mass

The St Teresa’s Parish Pre-Harvest Mass will be held at Tom & Eva Duffy’s residence on Saturday 21 May at 5.30pm followed by a shared plate meal. During the Mass Fr Damian will bless a very large piece of machinery and the fields. Please bring a chair and drinks.

2016 Gilroy On Show

Thursday 19 May 2016—3:30pm - 6.30pm Showcasing our excellent facilities and educational programs. Subject Displays – Demonstrations – Guided Tours Entertainment – Chance to win an IPAD mini – Refreshments Available. For more information contact the office 4776 2888

Corpus Christi Procession May 29th

A Corpus Christi Procession will take place to commemorate the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, a feast day honoring the true presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. The procession will begin after the 8.30am Mass at St Patrick’s Church. Along the route, we will stop to pray at a series of prayer stations before

Week by Week in Mercy

Ascension of the Lord

As the liturgical year—and this Jubilee Year of Mercy—unfold, we reflect on what Jesus’ ascension meant for the first disciples and means now for us. Stay in Jerusalem, Jesus had instructed, awaiting “the promise of the Father. In a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:4–5, 8). Despite Jesus’ absence, they wait “with great joy . . . continually in the temple praising God” (Luke 24:52–53). But as we join them, waiting and worshiping, the enduring challenge—theirs and ours—is delivered by “two men in white” (Acts 1:10). In every age, disciples must stop looking at the sky, head down the mountain, and go back into the world, “commissioned,” says Pope Francis, “to announce the mercy of God, the beating heart of the Gospel,” inviting everyone to find “in our parishes, communities, associations and movements . . . wherever there are Christians . . . an oasis of mercy” (Misericordiae Vultus, 12).

Welcome to new children of God: Darcy James Cerutti &

Ethan James Gin Phong Cerutti baptised this Sunday at St Patrick’s

Requiescant in pace Please Pray For: David Fascetti, Arnold Columbano, Jim McLachlan, Charlie Viglione (Murwillumbah) (died this week), Maria Ring (died recently), Tricia Caelli, Nunziatina Musumeci, Carmelo Pennisi, Francesca Motti, Sheila McCool, Olga Boccalatte, Pat Kayrooz, Nardo Girgenti, Battista Brazzale, Johnny Giacomi, Giuseppe & Linda Fracchia, Rina & Luigi Pozzebon, Giuseppina (Pina) Accornero, Winnie Reinaudo (annivs at this time), Neil Rose, Jessica Luxford, Michael Mina, deceased members Sartoresi & Vella families, Sam Bonanno, Dec’d members Valese families, Elda Zatta, Cesira Valese, Peggy Borello, Ada Cantamessa, Marianne Ferrero, Graziella Spaminato, Sam Di Bella, Vittorio & Maria Cantoni, Reg Jillett, Marlene Gueho, James & Colin McCool, Maria Fichera, Baldo Fanti, Sam Cavallaro, Sr Nora, Joan Hobbs, Lucia La Rosa, Santa Marano, Ester Cantoni, Hazel Simpson, Eddie Shanahan, Sarah Leonardi, Jeanette Stevens, Erminia McComiskie, Anne Cavallaro, Winnie Reinaudo, Alma Giacobone, Irma Marbelli, Faust Giacobone, Lisha Kayrooz, Franca Milan, Santo & Giuseppina Contarino, Emilia Garutti, Magoni family, Elliott Francis Mathiesen, Tina Lagorio.

Rosters Counters This Week:

J Devietti L Sullivan J Devietti

Counters Next Week:

J Gollogly S Pennisi F Gangemi

Children’s Liturgy—No Children’s Liturgy this week

Altar Servers 14/15 May:

Sat 6.00pm: Darcy Di Bella

Sun 8.30am: Elizabeth Price & Jessica McFayden

Sun 7.00pm: Help needed

Organists 14/15 May:

Sat 6.00pm: Pam Harris Sun 8.30am: Monica Vitale Sun 7.00pm: Lynette Di Bella

Commentators 14/15 May:

Sat 6.00pm: Linda Pisano Sun 8.30am: Maddie Cunnington Sun 7.00pm: Virginia Scovazzi

Readers 14/15 May:

Halifax: Mary Cavaliere & Arthur Bosworth

Canossa: C/1 Andrea Hardy 2/3 Brian Hurley Sat 6.00pm: 1 Michael Pisano 2 Nadine Jorgensen 3 Linda Pisano Sun 8.30am: 1 Jane Bortolanza 2 Connie Corradini 3 Maddie Cunnington Sun 7.00pm: 1 Paula Martin 2 Kathryn Scovazzi (Fill-in)

3 Virginia Scovazzi Abergowrie: College

Special Ministers 14/15 May:

Halifax: Santina Cross & Elizabeth Castorina

Canossa: Trevor & Julie Nowak

Sat 6.00pm: Brian & Jenny Olivero Carmel Sorbello

Sun 8.30am: Mario Bortolanza Carmel Fazio Sam Spina

Sun 7.00pm: Barbara Di Prima Rosemary Di Prima

Mary Girgenti

Abergowrie: John Vella

The author of the gospel of Luke is also recognised as the author of the Acts of the Apostles. The works are regarded as originally being intended as a two volume single work sometimes referred to as Luke-Acts. Their separation occurred in the development of the canon of the Bible. In today’s gospel and first reading we get the very end of the first volume and the very beginning of the sec-ond volume of the Luke-Acts work – the very point of intersection

between the two books. The gospel of Luke is the only one of the four canonical gospels that de-

scribes the Ascension of Jesus and, to reiterate it, the writer be-gins with the same event at the beginning of Acts.

If we regard the two volumes of Luke-Acts as a single work, we see the events as all part of the one story. The life and ministry of Jesus is only the first half of the story. The story continues through the Book of Acts as the disciples and believers enter into a new way of witnessing to the ministry of Jesus – attempting to

take on that ministry themselves and spread the message even fur-ther than Jesus was able to do in his life. Seen in this light, the gos-pel account of Jesus’ ministry es-tablishes a model and a pattern for the ministry that the followers of Jesus seek to emulate in their own lives after his Ascension. The Ascension is the pivotal event be-tween the two volumes but it was also the pivotal event in the min-istry of Jesus. The Ascension, and the subsequent events of Pente-cost, was essential for the shift in emphasis from the ministry being carried on by Jesus to the same ministry carried on by millions of people throughout time.

A message for all people

One of the defining features of the Gospel of Luke is the fact that the message preached and practised by Jesus made salvation available to all people. At times in the

gospel some of the Jewish audience became quite angry at Jesus because he said that pagans and gentiles were also included in the salvation he promised – something

they regarded as exclusive to the ‘chosen’ people. The two accounts of the Ascension make very clear that the

message and ministry of Jesus are to be carried to all nations – even to the ends of the earth!