We look forward to welcoming you all on Sunday at 3pm to our special Mass of thanksgiving and celebration for Canon Frank's 41 wonderful years as a Parish Priest in Clifton Diocese and in Sao Paolo.
It looks like it will be a lovely turnout and we have plenty of refreshments organised for after the Mass, in the school, to help him celebrate with everyone his years of devotion. It should be a 'good craic'! 😄
* Please can we ask our local parishioners to consider either walking up to church, parking in the school staff car park or parking, considerately, in the nearby streets if they're able to, in order to leave as many places in the church and hall car parks free for those who are visiting our church and for those who have limited mobility...
A big Thank You to all who are helping to organise and run the event, to make it a special day for Fr Frank to remember.
Photo credit: Stewart Clark Photography.
Thank you to Deacon Vincent for your reflections for 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
1st Reading from the Prophet Isaiah 66: 18-21.
This selection is taken from the Third or Trito-Isaiah and is probably dated after the return from Exile in Babylon. This writer is dealing with the disappointment of those who had loyally returned from Exile, as encouraged by the Second Isaiah, but were finding it rather disappointing. They were poor, Jerusalem was very run down, and the wealthy were inclined to oppress them. The Faith that had enabled them to cross the vast desert was visibly weakening. This writing is encouraging them to look to the future, the Lord will help them overcome their disappointment and build up the faith which will rebuild Jerusalem and missionaries will go out from there to bring those of the dispersal back home bringing gifts, and God’s name will be proclaimed to all the nations of the world, who will come to worship, and some will become priests and Levites. This is a remarkable theologian who is announcing this vision of the future. There is a lesson that when things are bad and looking gloomy, we need to realise that with God’s help we can turn things around. Christians should always be optimistic because we should realise that God is the one who is really in charge and when we get it wrong, he will inspire us to turn things around for the better.
Psalm 116.
An acclamation rather than a song for us to go out and proclaim the greatness of our God and his mercy and goodness, which lasts for ever. God is in charge, not man.
2nd Reading from the letter to the Hebrews 12: 5-7, 11-13.
Following the theme of the first reading this letter is almost an urgent appeal to keep going in the face of adversity, he gives the analogy of correction by a father who disciplines his children by illustrating that getting it wrong has consequences, one is looking at a time when corporal punishment was more common than today, but the analogy holds good. There are trials for us, but they can be used to help our self-discipline and keep us optimistically going in the right direction till the end.
The Holy Gospel according to Luke 13: 22-30.
This is just a snippet of chapter 13. The whole of the chapter deals with sin and rejection as its’ deepest theme. For the first time this Gospel speaks of the inclusion of the Gentiles and the exclusion of some of those who think they have an automatic entry. This is not only addressed to Jesus’ Jewish hearers; Luke might well have been sniping at the over-comfortable members of his community. Luke uses an individual’s question to address the answer to all of us. The “Depart from me all you doers of evil.” (Nicholas King’s translation) is a direct quote from psalm 6: 8. Their own scriptures. Jesus, once again showing his deep knowledge of the Scriptures in talking to his own people. They are condemned by their own teachings not by Jesus. This is a troublesome reading but there is great encouragement for us as members of the people from east and west. We must also remember to try to enter by the narrow gateway. There are no easy passages into the Kingdom, there will always be trials, but we must stay optimistic, keep our self-discipline, and as St. Paul says, “keep going to the end.”
God Bless us all on the Journey in the footsteps of JESUS.
Deacon Vincent.
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