|  First Friday Prayer
There will be no First Friday Prayer at St Mary’s Church, Gosport in August as Father Peter Glas will be away. The next will take place on Friday 4th September 2009. The theme will be Our Lady of Walsingham. We will start with Adoration and Rosary at 10.30am. This will be followed by the Angelus at 12.00 noon and Mass. After lunch there will be a discussion followed by the Divine Mercy Chaplet at 3.00pm. For further details, contact Rebecca on 023 9238 1802.
Entrance Antiphons for this week
Monday - God, come to my help. Lord, quickly give me assistance. You are the one who helps me and sets me free: Lord, do not be long in coming.
Tuesday – The Spirit of God is upon me; he has anointed me. He sent me to bring good news to the poor and to heal the broken-hearted.
Wednesday - Hail, holy Mother! The child to whom you gave birth is the King of heaven and earth for ever.
Thursday – In the shining cloud the Spirit is seen; from it the voice of the Father is heard: This is my Son, my beloved, in whom is all my delight. Listen to him.
Friday - The saints are happy in heaven because they followed Christ. They rejoice with him for ever because they shed their blood for love of him.
Saturday - The Spirit of God is upon me; he has anointed me. He sent me to bring good news to the poor and to heal the broken-hearted. |
Sponsored Walk for Park Place
The St Philip Howard Choir Ramblers’ Group is going to do a ten mile walk on 5th September 2009 and will be asking for sponsorship from parishioners. Members of the St Philip Howard Choir will be in attendance at the end of certain Masses. For more details contact Barbara or Dave on 01329 314001. |
From Father Joe
My thoughts about the liturgy in the last two newsletters have had two issues underlying them: how should we priests celebrate the Mass, and how should parishioners participate in it? But before we know what we must DO, we should think about what Mass IS. This is why I said two weeks ago that the liturgy concerns the meaning of the Mass and the Church.
The liturgy is the worship which the entire Church, lead by Jesus, the High Priest, offers to the Blessed Trinity. In the Liturgy of the Word God speaks to us through the readings from Scripture and we meditate on the good news of the Gospel. In the Liturgy of the Eucharist, Jesus, through his priests, re-presents his saving sacrifice to the Father, and we can receive the benefit of that sacrifice, especially in Holy Communion. Each Mass is then a renewal of the Paschal Mystery in which Jesus saves us from sin and gives us new life.
Now, if that is what the Mass IS, what should we DO at Mass? Well, the first thing is to come to the liturgy knowing that it is not about what we do, but about what God does for us. God saves us! (Thank God.) And we the priests must remember that we do not celebrate Mass as private individuals:-trying to be interesting and relevant - but as ministers who act in the person of Christ. The Mass is the Mass of the Church, not of Fr Joe or Fr Pat or even Bishop Crispian. On the other hand, you, the congregation, must remember that YOU do not come to Mass as private individuals, but as members of the body of Christ, joining your prayers to the great prayer of Jesus to the Father. Christ meets your needs, yes, but he knows better than you what you need!
These simple truths suggest why understanding the New Mass 'in continuity' rather than 'as a break' is so important. As we learn at the Paschal Vigil, Christ and the Church are the same Christ and the same Church down the ages. Even if we do things a little differently in today's liturgy, we cannot break with the past without breaking with the Church and Jesus.
Next week, we will look at why these ideas are important for the participation of the people in Mass. |
Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament
During the summer break Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament will take place at St Philip Howard Church on Tuesdays from 10.00am to 12.00 noon and on Wednesdays in Sacred Heart Church from 8.00am to 9.00pm.
Book of Remembrance
On 1st November, the Book of Remembrance will be open again in Sacred Heart Church. If anyone would care to have a photo of a departed loved one put into the Book or maybe a special prayer, please put it in an envelope marked “Book of Remembrance” and leave it in the Parish Office. No picture or prayer can be returned.
St Jude's
Catholic Primary School
Web site here
Welcome
A warm welcome to all visitors to Fareham and Portchester and welcome, also, to those who are newcomers to our parish. If you have recently moved to this area, please fill in one of our “Are you new?” forms to be found at the entrance to the church and return this to the parish office. Alternatively
complete our online form.
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2nd August 2009
18th Sunday of the Year |
 Thank You
Special thanks must go to Michael Coleman for a most entertaining and captivating evening on ‘the life of a successful author’. Thank you to everyone who supported this event and to all who helped make the evening such a good parish gathering. A total of £360.50 was raised for church refurbishment within the Parish.
Church Car Park
Meetings for the Clergy of our Pastoral Area take place in this Parish and sometimes no parking spaces are available for them in the church car park. This car park, at the bottom of Hartlands Road, is for Clergy and parish Staff and it would be appreciated if this was respected.
Newsletter and Biddings
Biddings and items for the Parish Newsletter for this coming weekend should be sent to Joan at the Parish Office by mid-day on Tuesday as the Office will be closed on Friday 7th August.
Table Top Sale
Sacred Heart Hall:
Sunday 2nd August following 9.00am Mass
St Philip Howard Hall:
Sunday 2nd August following 11.00am Mass. Proceeds to church refurbishment.
Day of Prayer
Fr John Edwards, SJ will lead a day of prayer on Saturday 26 September from 9.30am to 4.30pm at Heath Lodge, Trampers Lane, North Boarhunt. Programme includes talks, quiet time, Mass and Confessions. Cost is £12.00 and includes a ploughman’s lunch. Advance booking is essential. Call Yvette or Larry on 01329 832781 to reserve your place.
Altar Servers’ Newsletter
All Altar Servers are asked to collect a copy of the July/August newsletter from the Sacristy this weekend.
Visit the Relics of St Thèrèse of Lisieux
An all night vigil of prayer and veneration of the relics of St. Thérèse of Lisieux will take place at Portsmouth Cathedral from 10.00pm on the 16th of September to 7.00am on the 17th of September.
St. Thérèse of Lisieux is a well known and loved Saint who impacted the Church in a very deep way by her simplicity and trust in God. In her short life she showed a depth of Faith remarkable in a young person. In a long standing Catholic tradition, her relics will be honoured in our Diocese as a sign that holiness and Faith can be attainable. Holiness is within the reach of everyone.
The Vigil will take the form of meditation on the Stations of the Cross. Fr. Peter Glas representing the Solent Pastoral Area will lead the meditation on the 12th Station from 3.30am to 4.00pm. To spend a night in a vigil of prayer is a very ancient Christian tradition. It is an expression of how seriously we take our Faith. Fr. Joe and Fr. Pat would encourage as many as possible to join our Parish, our Pastoral Area and our Diocese in this night of prayer. We hope that people may be able to offer lifts to those who have no transport. More information on these arrangements will come in next week’s newsletter.
Please take an explanatory leaflet from the church porch regarding the veneration of relics.
Finance
Offertory Collection - £1765.70
Day for Life - £338.00
Interested
in Becoming a Catholic?
A series of meetings and talks takes place each year for those interested
in becoming a member of our Church. If you would like to know more, please
fill in the form and return it to Father Joe, or complete the online
form
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