- The Trócaire collection last Sunday was €960.00.
Events This Week
- EASTER LITURGY MEETING: We are holding a meeting in connection with the Easter Vigil on tomorrow, Monday night at 8.00pm in the Priory. This is a full 'dress rehearsal' so we will need everyone who is involved in the ceremony in any capacity whatsoever present at the rehearsal. This is a very complex ritual. We really need to go through it fully before the event itself.
- COMMUNICATIONS: It has often been observed that more people use our Church during the week than on Sundays. An amazing number of people drop in casually each day. We have very little contact with these, in the sense that they are never invited to meetings, celebrations or any of our community events. In many ways they are our most faithful supporters, and yet they are the very people with whom we have least contact. We are now trying to address this 'communications gap' . You will find 'information cards' on the church seats. The idea is that our weekday people will write their names and addresses on the cards and drop them into the box provided at the end of the Church. Then we could contact then about meetings, celebrations, and so on.
- LOURDES PILGRIMAGE (A): The Galway Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes will take place this year from the 1st to the 6th July. Fare will be €620. (Special arrangements for the sick: €483). All bookings through Fahy Travel, Bridge St. (594747)
- LOURDES PILGRIMAGE (B): Lourdes & the Shrines of France: 1-10th July. €899 per person. From Shannon to Lourdes, returning via Paris to Dublin. For information on this, contact Seán O'Flaherty, the Cathedral (563577).
- LOURDES PILGRIMAGE (C): Remember, the parish here will once again sponsor one person to travel on the above pilgrimage. The person will be advanced in years and someone who can't afford it. Can you think of anyone? If you can, contact me.
- PENITENTIAL SERVICES: We call your attention in particular to both the 'Amnesty' celebrations this week, the two Penitential Services: Spy Wednesday at 8.00pm and Holy Saturday at 4.00pm. It has been our experience up to now that the bigger the congregation, the more effective the celebration. So we look forwards to seeing a good many of you there.
- WELL DONE: Des and Mary Kavanagh celebrated the 40th anniversary of their wedding this week. Des and Mary were actually married on Friday April 1st, 1964. And, while they were at it, they passed under a ladder on their way from the church! Whatever they did obviously worked! May your years together be long and happy ones!
- ECUADOR FUND: There was just over €5,976.00 in the Ecuador account, thanks in the main to the two nights of music in the Taibhdhearc by the choir members and others at the end of October last. Noel Hession has now asked that this amount be withdrawn and forwarded to the parish in Ecuador for the completion of the Parish Centre there. The Provincial is travelling out to that country the week after Easter and he will act as 'bagman' for the project!
AS I WAS SAYING...
You may wonder why the sheep are climbing up the wall in the Augustinian Church this Palm Sunday morning? And the other seemingly unseasonal props? Well, the First Communion class from St.Patrick's School, Lombard Street, were preparing for their 'Big Day' during the week. And the most important act of preparation was their 'First Confession', titled 'Lets Celebrate Together.'
There are 50 boys involved. Wouldn't you think that 50 young fellows in a church at the one time would be a recipe for either unintended chaos or deliberate mayhem. Far from it. They are prepared by two lay teachers. And how brilliantly and thoroughly the preparation is done! It is actually impossible to convey the level of excitement, activity and actual celebration that was so evident in the First Confession celebration!
The Service contained song, dance, drama, mime and silence, all co-ordinated very skilfully by the two teachers and knit together imaginatively with the image of The Good Shepherd. And the children entered into the celebration with such enthusiasm and, yes, I'll say it.....reverence. It really was impressive.
I have mentioned the sacramental preparation of the children to make three simple but nonetheless valuable points. They are as follows:-Dick Lyng.
- I could not help but contrast the preparation of these children with the memories I have of my own preparation for First Holy Communion almost 50 years ago! (I concede that distance leaves a certain haze, but the broad outline of my recollections will find an echo with many of my vintage! We can't all be wrong, or can we?) The stress then was on reverence, 'getting everything right', having your prayers off by rote and ready for inspection at any hour of the day! The school had more in common with an army barracks than with an environment suitable for children. We were somehow regarded as performing fleas, being rigorously coached to negotiate a particularly long and arduous course! It was all very serious stuff. There wasn't even a whiff of celebration anywhere near the vicinity. It is a great joy to see today's First Communion children actually enjoying themselves in church.
- Contemporary catechetical programmes in the schools have often suffered severe muggings at the hands of right-wing, disgruntled Catholics, the old 'religion is not being taught in the schools anymore' syndrome. But, like the Prodigal's elder brother, some people just don't 'do celebration'. They are much more at home with misery! They have been conditioned to misery. They will always be miserable. The notion of a joyful religion is a contradiction to them. In a nut-shell, they are a Good Friday people. They are strangers to Easter Sunday!
- Lay teachers are quite capable of passing on the faith in a professional, 'faithful manner.' They have an enthusiasm, a vitality and a professionalism that is not always obvious in the lives of the clergy. The faith is in safe hands indeed!
TRÓCAIRE FAST BOXES:
Please return your Trócaire Boxes to the Church some day this week. We will tot it up on the Tuesday after Easter and send it away. So do your best to have it in by Easter Sunday so that we won't be sending it away in dribs and drabs for the next two months!
HOLY WEEK AND EASTER, 2004
CONFESSIONS: Thursday: 11.00-12.30; 4.00-6.00 Friday: 11.00-12.00 ; 6.30-8.00 Saturday: 11.00-1.00; 2.30-3.30; 5.00-6.00 PENITENTIAL SERVICES: Wednesday: 8.00 Saturday: 4.00 EASTER SERVICES: Holy Thursday: 8.00: Mass of the Lord' s Supper 9.00-11.00: Eucharistic Adoration Good Friday: 12.00: Stations of the Cross. 3.00: The Lord's Passion. 8.00: Galway Gospel Singers. Holy Saturday: 9.00: Easter Vigil. Easter Sunday: Usual Sunday programme.
EASTER AT SUAIMHNEAS, BALLYLOUGHAUN ROAD, RENMORE.
Phone 091-753515.
Wednesday April 7th, 8:00 pm -10:00pm: Celebration of Seder Meal (Passover) Cost: €5:00 Saturday April l0th, 10:30am-4:30pm: Day of Prayer on the Easter theme. Facilitator: Rev. Pat Murray. Cost: €25:00.
LOVING CHURCH
If our Church is to be a Christ centred Church then it must also be a loving Church. 'By this shall all people know that you are my disciples if you love one another.'
As imperfect human beings love does not always come easy. Yes it is easy to love those who love me. But to love those with whom I may be in conflict, to love those who appear unlovable is a constant challenge. It seems to me that Christ's commandment of love at the very least demands that I respect the dignity of every other person no matter what differences may arise between us.
At a very basic level our Church often presents as less than loving to those whose lives are in some way in conflict with official teaching. I have in mind people in second/irregular unions, people of homosexual orientation, people who feel alienated by teaching on family planning.
This raises the issue of preaching ideals and yet respecting those who for any of a variety of reasons may be unable at this time to live by those ideals. For example the couple in an irregular union may well subscribe to the Church teaching that marriage is a lifelong commitment but may be unable to live out that ideal because one of them married at a very young age and found themselves in an intolerable relationship which they had to leave.
Can we reconcile the ideal of marriage as a life long commitment and yet treat with respect and with tangible love the couple who are unable to live that ideal in their lives right now? Is it consistent with a Church which is forgiving, loving, compassionate to permanently exclude them from full participation in the Sacraments of Penance and Eucharist? Precisely the same dilemma arises for many couples in relation to family planning.
-Dr Willie Walsh, Killaloe.
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