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*The Ukraine Crisis ~ How can we help?*
At this time when we feel so helpless, please look out for information on things our Parish Community can do at this time.

1st - PRAYER.
This Wednesday is Ash Wednesday and we are called by Pope Francis to pray and fast for peace in Ukraine.
We will hold 2 Masses on Ash Wednesday for people to attend - at 11.30am and 7.30pm.

Shared from Clifton Cathedral - A prayer for Ukraine...
"Loving God, We pray for the people of Ukraine,
for all those suffering or afraid,
that you will be close to them and protect them.
We pray for world leaders, for compassion, strength and wisdom to guide their choices.
We pray for the world that in this moment of crisis, we may reach out in solidarity to our brothers and sisters in need.
May we walk in your ways so that peace and justice become a reality for the people of Ukraine and for all the world.
Amen"

Please read the article from the Bishop's Conference.

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2nd – Financial donations for the relief efforts…

We wish to share links to organisations that are taking donations to help with the relief efforts.
If you are in a position to be able to make a donation, please feel free to use 1 or more of the following links if you would like to.

The International Committee of the Red Cross is active in the region and has been working there since 2014.
“Working closely with the Ukrainian Red Cross Society, we are increasing our response to the humanitarian needs in Ukraine. Our support to people includes emergency assistance such as food, water, and other essential items.”
See details of the organisation with a link for donations at their website: https://www.icrc.org/en/document/ukraine-crisis-statement-florence-gillette-head-icrc-delegation-kyiv

There is also a fundraising appeal organised on behalf of Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain (AUGB) via facebook

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*The Ukraine Crisis ~ How can we help?*
At this time when we feel so helpless, please look out for information on things our Parish Community can do...
3rd – practical help... ** UPDATE SINCE - LOCAL DROPS OFF POINTS HAVE CLOSED **

If you are able to buy some items from the list below, please either drop them off directly to Emerson's Green Hall by Wed 2nd March
or you can bring them to church anytime this week/weekend and we will store and deliver them to the 2 links we have for transport going over to Ukraine for the front line and to Poland for the refugees.
Please only new/clean items and only the ones on the list.
(good ideas for the non perishable food items are: cup a soups, protein bars, small packets of nuts etc)
~
Emerson Green Village Hall Post: Helping Ukraine - Drop off point
The hall has offered itself up to be a collection point for aid needed for the soldiers defending their country
Here is a list of items they are desperately in need of
1st Aid kits
Bandages and wound dressings
Syringes
Single use gloves
Sleeping bags
Warm blankets
Camping/Yoga type mats
Camping stoves
Non perishable food items (cup a soups/ energy bars etc)
Torches and batteries
Men's essential toiletries
NEW- Mens thermal socks and thermal shoe insoles and thermal gloves
Hot water bottles
Thermos flasks
Also needed
Babies dried milk and nappies that can be sent to the hospitals.
Medicines for babies
Ladies toiletries and sanitary products
We also need some boxes to pack the items in to transport if anyone has any.
Collection will be on Wednesday so please ensure they are dropped off here ASAP.
(please ensure you sign your vehicle onto the monitor if using our car park to drop off)



Thank you Deacon Vincent for your Reflections for 8th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
1st Reading from the book of Ecclesiasticus 27: 4-7.
This passage is part of the treatise on how to be happy and is sound advice on discernment. We need to be careful who we listen to for advice. It is a very appropriate bit of advice for today with people seeking the internet for answers. One needs to discern who is giving advice and check their credentials and consult with people who have had dealings with them and examine the results. We should be careful about applauding someone before we have heard what they have to say. Good trees bring forth good fruit, so it is with people, we need to step back from the throng and really examine whose advice we absorb because rubbish will produce rubbish and heartache. Scripture and an excellent commentary, or a Study Bible by a renowned Biblical Teacher, is an excellent way to train one’s mind and inner being to discern the good from the dross, which is crowding in on us every day in this present age. God is faithful and can be relied upon to be with us when we cry out to him for help. That is one of the great lessons to be gleaned from studying the Scriptures.
Psalm 91: 2-3, 13-16.
This song is designed to be used on the Sabbath day to give thanks to God for his faithfulness.
2nd Reading from the first letter to the Corinthians 15: 54-58.
This concludes Paul’s explanation of what Resurrection will look like. Over the last couple of weeks, we have followed Paul’s various illustrations. It may all seem too good to be true, but don’t forget Paul has been there before us and faced the difficulty. For Paul, it is the certainty of Christ’s unfailing presence, that assures him and should assure us also. We need to trust in Christ more and more.
The Holy Gospel according to Luke 6: 39-45.
We are invited to take notice of Jesus' rather amusing use of exaggeration to illustrate that we must get ourselves right before we can be of assistance to anybody else. The test is how good a disciple of Jesus am I? We need to listen to the authentic teaching of Christ that is found within the Church he founded on Peter and the other Apostles. That is the rock that we cling to, in order to become more Christ-like. Study our scripture under the guidance of the Church’s authentic teachers and we will discover a new person within us, and that person is Christ. He will form us, save us from despair and inspire us, just like he inspired the Apostles and that other Apostle Paul; who, like us, encounter the Risen Christ. Paul put his trust in him and that is the best lesson any of us can take from this week’s readings. Rely upon trustworthy evidence, produced by the most trustworthy person, Jesus Christ.
God Bless us All, as we draw near to Lent.
Deacon Vincent.

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