Mersey Leven Catholic Parish
Parish Priest: Fr Mike Delaney
Mob: 0417 279 437
Mob: 0417 279 437
Assistant Priest: Fr Paschal Okpon
Mob: 0438 562 731
paschalokpon@yahoo.com
Priest in Residence: Fr Phil McCormack
Mob: 0437 521 257
Mob: 0437 521 257
Postal Address: PO Box 362
Parish Office: 90 Stewart Street
(Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday 10am - 3pm)
Office Phone: 6424 2783 Fax: 6423 5160
Email: merseyleven@aohtas.org.au
Secretary: Annie Davies
Finance Officer: Anne Fisher
Finance Officer: Anne Fisher
Parish Mass times for the Month: mlcpmasstimes.blogspot.com.au
Weekly Homily Podcast: mikedelaney.podomatic.com
Archdiocesan Website: www.hobart.catholic.org.au for news, information and details of other Parishes.
Open Letter to All Parishioners
Dear
Parishioners
To say that this has been a challenging week is an
understatement.
I was a little bit buoyant following the Vatican Summit on
Abuse. But there were some issues about the event that concerned me. Much of
what was said within the Summit is not readily available but in the final
statements I felt that there was more which could have been said about the need
to improve dramatically the preparation process, firstly for the priesthood and
then for those appointed as Bishops. Again, not knowing all that was said,
there was nothing in statements about the significant issue of clergy who are
in relationships with women and what this says about the priesthood.
There has been significant media coverage of the Summit –
you can find some links here: https://www.ncronline.org/feature-series/vatican-abuse-summit/stories;
https://cruxnow.com/news-analysis/2019/02/25/four-take-aways-from-the-popes-summit-on-clerical-sexual-abuse/;
http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/vatican-summit-promises-course-change-on-sexual-abuse-concrete-actions-pend
The news of Cardinal Pell’s conviction, although a badly
kept secret for the past two months, still had a significant impact when made
public. At this time the legal (appeal) process is ongoing which means that the
Church process (what happens as far as his position within the Church) has to
wait until all avenues are exhausted – this might seem slow and cumbersome but
it is the normal legal practice.
You can access an interesting article by Jesuit Fr Frank
Brennan who attended a great deal of the trial last year here: https://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article/truth-and-justice-after-the-pell-verdict.
Another article by Bianca Hall of the Age can be accessed here: https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/cardinal-sin-critics-raise-questions-about-george-pell-s-conviction-20190227-p510iv.html.
The response of the Vatican can be found here: http://cathnews.com/cathnews/34330-vatican-announces-cardinal-pell-investigation
Please continue to pray for all victims of abuse and for
all who struggle with these challenges to their faith.
(Fr) Mike Delaney
Parish
Priest 
PLENARY COUNCIL PRAYER
Come, Holy Spirit of Pentecost.
Come, Holy Spirit of the great South Land.
O God, bless and unite all your people in Australia
and guide us on the pilgrim way of the Plenary Council.
Give us the grace to see your face in one another
and to recognise Jesus, our companion on the road.
Give us the courage to tell our stories and to speak boldly of your truth.
Give us ears to listen humbly to each other
and a discerning heart to hear what you are saying.
Lead your Church into a hope-filled future,
that we may live the joy of the Gospel.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord, bread for the journey from age to age.
Amen.
Our Lady Help of Christians, pray for us.
St Mary MacKillop, pray for us.
Come, Holy Spirit of the great South Land.
O God, bless and unite all your people in Australia
and guide us on the pilgrim way of the Plenary Council.
Give us the grace to see your face in one another
and to recognise Jesus, our companion on the road.
Give us the courage to tell our stories and to speak boldly of your truth.
Give us ears to listen humbly to each other
and a discerning heart to hear what you are saying.
Lead your Church into a hope-filled future,
that we may live the joy of the Gospel.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord, bread for the journey from age to age.
Amen.
Our Lady Help of Christians, pray for us.
St Mary MacKillop, pray for us.
Parish Prayer
Heavenly Father,
and calling us to serve as your disciples.
as we use our gifts to serve you.
as we strive to bear witness
to the Gospel and build an amazing parish.
Amen.
Our Parish Sacramental Life
Devonport Friday Adoration:
and calling us to serve as your disciples.
as we use our gifts to serve you.
as we strive to bear witness
Amen.
Our Parish Sacramental Life
Baptism: Arrangements are made by contacting Parish Office. Parents attend a Baptismal Preparation Session organised with a Priest.
Reconciliation, Confirmation and Eucharist: Are received following a Family–centred, Parish-based, School-supported Preparation Program.
Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults: prepares adults for reception into the Catholic community.
Marriage: arrangements are made by contacting one of our priests - couples attend a Pre-marriage Program
Anointing of the Sick: please contact one of our priests
Reconciliation: Ulverstone - Fridays (10am - 10:30am), Devonport - Saturday (5:15pm– 5.45pm)
Devonport Friday Adoration:
Devonport: Benediction (1st Friday of the Month)
Prayer Groups: Charismatic Renewal
Weekday
Masses 5th – 8th March, 2019
Tuesday: 9:30am Penguin
Wednesday: 9:30am Latrobe
12noon Devonport … Ash Wednesday
7:00pm Ulverstone
Thursday: 12noon Devonport
Friday: 9:30am Ulverstone
Next Weekend 9th & 10th March, 2019
Saturday Vigil: 6:00pm Penguin
6:00pm Devonport
Sunday Mass: 8:30am Port Sorell
9:00am Ulverstone
10:30am Devonport
11:00am Sheffield
5:00pm Latrobe
Ministry Rosters 9th & 10th March, 2019
Devonport:
Readers Vigil: V Riley, A Stegmann, G Hendrey 10:30am: F Sly, J Tuxworth, T Omogbai-musa
Ulverstone:
Penguin:
Latrobe:
Port Sorell:
Readings this Week:
Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year C
PREGO REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL:
Readings Next Week: First Sunday of
Lent – Year C
Let us pray for those who have died recently: Carina
Ubay, Sandra Allison, Joan Carter,
Ethan Maine, Jim Bleasel
Let us pray
for those whose anniversary occurs about this time: 1st – 8th March
Mersey Leven Parish
Community welcome and congratulate …..
Following on from the successful Prayer Evening with
Archbishop Julian during our 30 days of Prayer last year another evening of
prayer, song and adoration will be held on Tuesday 19th March (see
notice below). As part of the evening 6 members of the Palavra Viva
community will be here to support the program – and they require accommodation
for that evening. If anyone is able to accommodate groups of two members of the
team please contact the Parish Office asap.
A reminder about the requirements for Ash Wednesday and our
Lenten Season. Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are days of Fast and Abstinence.
The law of fasting applies to everyone over the age of 18 until they are 60.
The law of abstinence applies to everyone over the age of 14. Mass times for
Ash Wednesday can be found on the front page of the newsletter.
PROJECT COMPASSION – GIVE LENT
100%
The theme for Project Compassion 2019 is based around hope
and giving Lent 100% in the name of hope. Hope is one of the three pillars of
Christian virtue. The other two being faith and charity. It is a powerful force
for good and often helps to transform lives. Hope helps us to face life’s
challenges and sustains us as we work alongside the most marginalised and
vulnerable communities to achieve better lives.
Pope Francis has said that: “Jesus has given us a light
that shines in the darkness; defend it, protect it. This unique light is the
greatest richness entrusted to your life.” This light, is the light of hope.
Based on God’s love for all, hope enables us to rise above our fears and helps
those in great need to shape a better future for their communities.
For
Project Compassion 2019, we will be focusing on six stories which show the
power of hope and the work of Caritas Australia in communities in Zimbabwe,
Indonesia, Solomon Islands, Australia, Bangladesh and Vietnam.
We greatly appreciate
your support during Project Compassion 2019. You can make your donation through
Parish boxes and envelopes or by phoning 1800 024 413 or visiting www.caritas.org.au/projectcompassion.
The Parish Pastoral Team meets for the first time in 2019,
on Sunday. Please pray for us as we contemplate the fruits of the Parish in
2018, and discern the plans for 2019. Please take the opportunity to talk with
any of the Parish team about your concerns or interests: Felicity Sly, Mike
Hendrey, Glenys Lee Archer, Chris Miller, Grainne Hendrey, Carol Seager, John
Lee Archer, Mandy Eden, Frs. Mike and Paschal.
SUBMISSIONS TO THE PLENARY 2020:
Just a reminder that the final date for submissions to this
first stage of the plenary process close on Wednesday 6th March.
If you haven’t already put in your thoughts please go to the website http://plenarycouncil.catholic.org.au/resources/have-your-say/
and make your contribution.
LENTEN PROGRAM 2019:
You are welcome to join a weekly Lenten Program for six
weeks beginning Thursday 7th March 10am – 11:30am at Parish House, 90
Stewart Street, Devonport. Brisbane Lenten books are available at the
program. For more information contact Clare Kiely-Hoye 0418 100 402.
WORLD DAY OF PRAYER:
Friday 8th March 2pm Sheffield Bible Chapel. Shared
lunch – all welcome!
NO GREATER LOVE:
Following on from the evening with Archbishop Julian last
year during our 30 days of prayer we have another opportunity to share an evening
of song, testimony, preaching, adoration and prayer with the Archbishop at Our Lady
Of Lourdes Devonport on Tuesday 19th March commencing at 6pm.
This is part of our ongoing focus on prayer as part of our Parish Vision. All
parishioners are encouraged to make this night a great success by being part of
this Lenten prayer activity.
FOOTY TIPPING: The 2019 AFL footy season starts Friday
22nd March. The footy
margin is for the Friday night game
each week. For regular participants or anyone who would like to join tickets
can be purchased for the season for $54 (all games and finals) plus $10 for the
grand final ticket (total $64) Payments can be made in cash to the Parish
Office or Direct Deposit into Parish Account.
Thursday Nights - OLOL Hall,
Devonport. Eyes down 7.30pm!
Callers Thursday 7th
March – Rod Clark & Merv Tippett.
ATTENTION PARISHIONERS:
Like the AAMI add on TV the bingo team in currently "broken down at Ship Creek!" currently three significant members of the Bingo team have health issues and without somebody stepping forward to assist the team we may not be able to continue in the near future. This is a significant fundraiser for our Parish (in excess of $40,000 per year) and it helps the whole Parish not just Devonport and the Bingo players. Contact Merv Tippett 6424:1025, Tony Ryan 6424:1508 or Parish Office 6424:2783 if you can help with this worthy fundraiser.
GRAN'S VAN:
The month of April has again been allocated to our Parish to assist with Gran's Van on the four Sundays in the that month. Help is required as follows; (a) Cooking a stew (meat supplied), (b) assisting with food distribution, (c) driving the van. Helping with (b) and (c) would take two hours of your time, 6:30pm - 8:30pm.
If you are able to assist on any of the Sundays in April please contact Shirley or Tony Ryan on 6424:1508
OUR LADY OF LOURDES SCHOOL:
Our Lady of Lourdes currently have places available for enrolment in Kinder and Grade 1. Allow your children or grandchildren to flourish in a learning community where we are Christ-centred, student-focused with learning for life. Inquiries phone: 64241744; email: olol@catholic.tas.edu.au
Giving Yourself
This article is taken from the Daily Emails from Fr Richard Rohr OFM and the Center for Action and Contemplation. You can subscribe to receive the emails here
Turning around, Jesus saw John the Baptist’s disciples
following him and asked, “What do you want?” —John 1:38
Quaker author and elder Parker Palmer writes about his
evolving perspective and priorities as he grows older:
But the junk I really need to jettison in my old age is
psychological junk—such as longtime convictions about what gives my life
meaning that no longer serve me well. For example, who will I be when I can no
longer do the work that has been a primary source of identity for me for the
past half century?
I won’t know the answer until I get there. But on my way to
that day, I’ve found a question that’s already brought me a new sense of
meaning. I no longer ask, “What do I want to let go of, and what do I want to hang
on to?” Instead I ask, “What do I want to let go of, and what do I want to give
myself to?”
The desire to “hang on” comes from a sense of scarcity and
fear. The desire to “give myself” comes from a sense of abundance and
generosity. That’s the kind of truth I want to wither into.
Parker Palmer, On the Brink of Everything: Grace, Gravity
and Getting Old (Berrett-Koehler Publishers: 2018), 26-27.
Struggling Inside Our Own Skin
This article is taken from the Archives of Fr Ron Rolheiser OMI. You can find the original article here
I’ve been both blessed and cursed by a congenital restlessness that hasn’t always made my life easy. I remember as a young boy restlessly wandering the house, the yard, and then the open pastures of my family’s farm on the prairies. Our family was close, my life was protected and secure, and I was raised in a solid religious faith. That should have made for a peaceful and stable childhood and, for the most part, it did. I count myself lucky.
But all of this stability, at least for me, didn’t preclude an unsettling restlessness. More superficially, I felt this in the isolation of growing up in a rural community that seemed far removed from life in the big cities. The lives I saw on television and read about in the newspapers and magazines appeared to me to be much bigger, more exciting, and more significant than my own. My life, by comparison, paled, seemed small, insignificant, and second-best. I longed to live in a big city, away from what I felt to be the deprivations of rural life. My life, it seemed, was always away from everything that was important.
Beyond that, I tormented myself by comparing my life, my body, and my anonymity to the grace, attractiveness, and fame of the professional athletes, movie stars, and other celebrities I admired and whose names were household words. For me, they had real lives, ones I could only envy. Moreover, I felt a deeper restlessness that had to do with my soul. Despite the genuine intimacy of a close family and a close-knit community within which I had dozens of friends and relatives, I ached for a singular, erotic intimacy with a soulmate. Finally, I lived with an inchoate anxiety that I didn’t understand and which mostly translated itself into fear, fear of not measuring up and fear of how I was living life in face of the eternal.
That was the cursed part, but all of this also brought a blessing. Inside the cauldron of that disquiet I discerned (heard) a call to religious life which I fought for a long time because it seemed the antithesis of everything I longed for. How can a burning restlessness, filled with eros, be a call to celibacy? How can an egotistical desire for fame, fortune, and recognition be an invitation to join a religious order whose charism is to live with the poor? It didn’t make sense, and, paradoxically, that’s why, finally, it was the only thing that did made sense. I gave in to its nudging and it was right for me.
It landed me inside religious life and what I’ve lived and learned there has helped me, slowly through the years, to process my own restlessness and begin to live inside my own skin. Beyond prayer and spiritual guidance, two intellectual giants in particular helped me. As a student, aged 19, I began to study Saint Augustine and Thomas Aquinas. My mind was still young and unformed but I grasped enough of what I was reading to begin to befriend the restless complexities inside my own soul – and inside the human soul in general. Even at age 19 (maybe particularly at 19) one can existentially understand Augustine’s dictum: You have made us for yourself, Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.
And then there was Thomas Aquinas who asked: What is the adequate object of the human intellect and will? In short, what would we have to know and be in love with in order to satisfy every flame of restlessness within us? His answer: Everything! The adequate object of the human intellect and will is Being as such – God, all people, all nature. Only that would satisfy us.
Except … that’s not what we mostly think. The particular restlessness that I experienced in my youth is today in fact a near-universal disease. Virtually all of us believe that the good life is had only by those who live elsewhere, away from our own limited, ordinary, insignificant, and small-town lives. Our culture has colonized us to believe that wealth, celebrity, and comfort are the adequate object of the human intellect and will. They are, for us, “Being as such”. In our culture’s current perception, we look at the beautiful bodies, celebrity status, and wealth of our athletes, movie stars, television hosts, and successful entrepreneurs and believe that they have the good life and we don’t. We’re on the outside, looking in. We’re now, in effect, all farm kids in the outback envying life in the big city, a life accessible only to a highly select few, while we’re crucified by the false belief that life is only exciting elsewhere, not where we live.
But our problem is, as Rainer Marie Rilke once pointed out to an aspiring young poet who believed that his own humble surroundings didn’t provide him with the inspiration he needed for poetry, that if we can’t see the richness in the life we’re actually living then we aren’t poets.
Weekday
Masses 5th – 8th March, 2019
Tuesday: 9:30am Penguin
Wednesday: 9:30am Latrobe
12noon Devonport … Ash Wednesday
7:00pm Ulverstone
Thursday: 12noon Devonport
Friday: 9:30am Ulverstone
Next Weekend 9th & 10th March, 2019
Wednesday: 9:30am Latrobe
12noon Devonport … Ash Wednesday
7:00pm Ulverstone
Thursday: 12noon Devonport
Friday: 9:30am Ulverstone
Next Weekend 9th & 10th March, 2019
Saturday Vigil: 6:00pm Penguin
6:00pm Devonport
Sunday Mass: 8:30am Port Sorell
9:00am Ulverstone
10:30am Devonport
11:00am Sheffield
5:00pm Latrobe
Ministry Rosters 9th & 10th March, 2019
Devonport:
Readers Vigil: V Riley, A Stegmann, G Hendrey 10:30am: F Sly, J Tuxworth, T Omogbai-musa
Ministers of Communion:
Vigil: B, B & B Windebank, T Bird, R
Baker
10:30am: S Riley, M Sherriff, R Beaton, D
& M Barrientos
Cleaners: 8th March: K.S.C. 15th March: P & T Douglas
Piety Shop: 9th March:
R Baker 10th March: D French
Ulverstone:
Reader/s: R Locket Ministers of Communion: E Reilly, K & M McKenzie, M O’Halloran
Cleaners: M McKenzie, M Singh, N Pearce Flowers: M Swain Hospitality:
M Byrne, G Doyle
Penguin:
Greeters P Ravallion, A Landers Commentator:
E Nickols Readers: M & D Hiscutt
Ministers of
Communion: J
Barker, M Murray Liturgy: Penguin
Setting Up: E Nickols Care of Church: G Hills-Eade, T Clayton
Latrobe:
Reader: M Eden Minister of
Communion: H
Lim Procession of
Gifts: Parishioner
Port Sorell:
Readers: G Bellchambers, P Anderson Ministers of Communion: L Post Cleaners: G Richey, G Wyllie
Readings this Week:
Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year C
First Reading: 1 Samuel 26:2, 7-9, 12-13, 22-23
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 15:45-49
Gospel: Luke 6:27-38
PREGO REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL:
Aware that God desires my company, I begin my prayer time
gently and slowly. I allow myself to become increasingly conscious of God’s
loving presence in this moment ... of his living Spirit within me. I read Jesus’s
parables a couple of times. Can I sense his presence as I read them? I listen
to his voice as he teaches. Which of the vivid pictures that they evoke invite
me to linger? Perhaps I am conscious of some blindness that prevents me from
following Jesus’s teachings. I speak to him of this. Maybe my heart has been
judgemental of others. Am I able to recognise and acknowledge how my life is
not always based on God’s love and truth? Perhaps the third parable of the tree
and its fruit draws me. As Jesus’s disciple, I may want to examine the fruits
of my own life with an open heart. I speak to the Lord about what has arisen in
my prayer time. I give thanks for the ‘sound’ fruits of my life … and if I can,
ask forgiveness for the ‘rotten fruits’. I end with a slow sign of the cross.
Our Father ...
Readings Next Week: First Sunday of
Lent – Year C
First Reading: Deuteronomy 26:4-10
Second Reading: Romans 10: 8-13
Gospel: Luke
4: 1-13
Your prayers
are asked for the sick:
Charlotte Milic, Jason Carr, John Kelly, Uleen Castles, Pam
Shepheard, David Cole, Joy Carter,
John Otenasek, Christina Okpon, Rose Stanley, Hilario
Visorro & ….
Let us pray for those who have died recently: Carina
Ubay, Sandra Allison, Joan Carter,
Ethan Maine, Jim Bleasel
Ethan Maine, Jim Bleasel
Let us pray
for those whose anniversary occurs about this time: 1st – 8th March
Eileen Costello, Darryl
Webb, Aileen Hill, Sr Jodie Hynes, Glen Halley Snr, Pat Chisholm, Pauline
Lamprey, Romualdo Bibera Snr, Barbara Moncrieff, Doris Roberts, Graham
Nicholson, Betty Waldon-Cruse.
May they Rest in Peace
Mersey Leven Parish
Community welcome and congratulate …..
Ada Maree
McCoy
On her Baptism this weekend at Holy Cross Church, Sheffield
Weekly
Ramblings
There is still time for people to join one of the Lenten
Discussion Groups using the Compassion Booklet – sharing our faith with others is
significant way to get the support we need to grow in our faith life. Sign-up
sheets are available in each of our Mass Centres. A reminder that there are
also copies of the Daily Reflection program – Trust – available for your
personal reflection.
Following on from the successful Prayer Evening with
Archbishop Julian during our 30 days of Prayer last year another evening of
prayer, song and adoration will be held on Tuesday 19th March (see
notice below). As part of the evening 6 members of the Palavra Viva
community will be here to support the program – and they require accommodation
for that evening. If anyone is able to accommodate groups of two members of the
team please contact the Parish Office asap.
A reminder about the requirements for Ash Wednesday and our
Lenten Season. Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are days of Fast and Abstinence.
The law of fasting applies to everyone over the age of 18 until they are 60.
The law of abstinence applies to everyone over the age of 14. Mass times for
Ash Wednesday can be found on the front page of the newsletter.
Please take care
PROJECT COMPASSION – GIVE LENT 100%
LIVES CHANGE WHEN WE ALL GIVE
100%
The theme for Project Compassion 2019 is based around hope
and giving Lent 100% in the name of hope. Hope is one of the three pillars of
Christian virtue. The other two being faith and charity. It is a powerful force
for good and often helps to transform lives. Hope helps us to face life’s
challenges and sustains us as we work alongside the most marginalised and
vulnerable communities to achieve better lives.
Pope Francis has said that: “Jesus has given us a light
that shines in the darkness; defend it, protect it. This unique light is the
greatest richness entrusted to your life.” This light, is the light of hope.
Based on God’s love for all, hope enables us to rise above our fears and helps
those in great need to shape a better future for their communities.
For
Project Compassion 2019, we will be focusing on six stories which show the
power of hope and the work of Caritas Australia in communities in Zimbabwe,
Indonesia, Solomon Islands, Australia, Bangladesh and Vietnam.
We greatly appreciate
your support during Project Compassion 2019. You can make your donation through
Parish boxes and envelopes or by phoning 1800 024 413 or visiting www.caritas.org.au/projectcompassion.
The Parish Pastoral Team meets for the first time in 2019,
on Sunday. Please pray for us as we contemplate the fruits of the Parish in
2018, and discern the plans for 2019. Please take the opportunity to talk with
any of the Parish team about your concerns or interests: Felicity Sly, Mike
Hendrey, Glenys Lee Archer, Chris Miller, Grainne Hendrey, Carol Seager, John
Lee Archer, Mandy Eden, Frs. Mike and Paschal.
SUBMISSIONS TO THE PLENARY 2020:
Just a reminder that the final date for submissions to this first stage of the plenary process close on Wednesday 6th March. If you haven’t already put in your thoughts please go to the website http://plenarycouncil.catholic.org.au/resources/have-your-say/ and make your contribution.
LENTEN PROGRAM 2019:
You are welcome to join a weekly Lenten Program for six weeks beginning Thursday 7th March 10am – 11:30am at Parish House, 90 Stewart Street, Devonport. Brisbane Lenten books are available at the program. For more information contact Clare Kiely-Hoye 0418 100 402.
WORLD DAY OF PRAYER:
Friday 8th March 2pm Sheffield Bible Chapel. Shared lunch – all welcome!
NO GREATER LOVE:
Following on from the evening with Archbishop Julian last year during our 30 days of prayer we have another opportunity to share an evening of song, testimony, preaching, adoration and prayer with the Archbishop at Our Lady Of Lourdes Devonport on Tuesday 19th March commencing at 6pm. This is part of our ongoing focus on prayer as part of our Parish Vision. All parishioners are encouraged to make this night a great success by being part of this Lenten prayer activity.
FOOTY TIPPING: The 2019 AFL footy season starts Friday 22nd March. The footy margin is for the Friday night game each week. For regular participants or anyone who would like to join tickets can be purchased for the season for $54 (all games and finals) plus $10 for the grand final ticket (total $64) Payments can be made in cash to the Parish Office or Direct Deposit into Parish Account.
SUBMISSIONS TO THE PLENARY 2020:
Just a reminder that the final date for submissions to this first stage of the plenary process close on Wednesday 6th March. If you haven’t already put in your thoughts please go to the website http://plenarycouncil.catholic.org.au/resources/have-your-say/ and make your contribution.
LENTEN PROGRAM 2019:
You are welcome to join a weekly Lenten Program for six weeks beginning Thursday 7th March 10am – 11:30am at Parish House, 90 Stewart Street, Devonport. Brisbane Lenten books are available at the program. For more information contact Clare Kiely-Hoye 0418 100 402.
WORLD DAY OF PRAYER:
Friday 8th March 2pm Sheffield Bible Chapel. Shared lunch – all welcome!
NO GREATER LOVE:
Following on from the evening with Archbishop Julian last year during our 30 days of prayer we have another opportunity to share an evening of song, testimony, preaching, adoration and prayer with the Archbishop at Our Lady Of Lourdes Devonport on Tuesday 19th March commencing at 6pm. This is part of our ongoing focus on prayer as part of our Parish Vision. All parishioners are encouraged to make this night a great success by being part of this Lenten prayer activity.
FOOTY TIPPING: The 2019 AFL footy season starts Friday 22nd March. The footy margin is for the Friday night game each week. For regular participants or anyone who would like to join tickets can be purchased for the season for $54 (all games and finals) plus $10 for the grand final ticket (total $64) Payments can be made in cash to the Parish Office or Direct Deposit into Parish Account.
Thursday Nights - OLOL Hall,
Devonport. Eyes down 7.30pm!
Callers Thursday 7th
March – Rod Clark & Merv Tippett.
ATTENTION PARISHIONERS:
Like the AAMI add on TV the bingo team in currently "broken down at Ship Creek!" currently three significant members of the Bingo team have health issues and without somebody stepping forward to assist the team we may not be able to continue in the near future. This is a significant fundraiser for our Parish (in excess of $40,000 per year) and it helps the whole Parish not just Devonport and the Bingo players. Contact Merv Tippett 6424:1025, Tony Ryan 6424:1508 or Parish Office 6424:2783 if you can help with this worthy fundraiser.
GRAN'S VAN:
The month of April has again been allocated to our Parish to assist with Gran's Van on the four Sundays in the that month. Help is required as follows; (a) Cooking a stew (meat supplied), (b) assisting with food distribution, (c) driving the van. Helping with (b) and (c) would take two hours of your time, 6:30pm - 8:30pm.
If you are able to assist on any of the Sundays in April please contact Shirley or Tony Ryan on 6424:1508
OUR LADY OF LOURDES SCHOOL:
Our Lady of Lourdes currently have places available for enrolment in Kinder and Grade 1. Allow your children or grandchildren to flourish in a learning community where we are Christ-centred, student-focused with learning for life. Inquiries phone: 64241744; email: olol@catholic.tas.edu.au
Giving Yourself
This article is taken from the Daily Emails from Fr Richard Rohr OFM and the Center for Action and Contemplation. You can subscribe to receive the emails here
Turning around, Jesus saw John the Baptist’s disciples
following him and asked, “What do you want?” —John 1:38
Jesus stopped and called to the blind men: “What do you want
me to do for you?” —Matthew 20:32
What do you want? What do you most deeply desire? Jesus was
a master at helping people connect with their authentic longings. Sometimes
that meant meeting a very practical or physical need, like hunger or pain.
Sometimes that meant connection and acceptance. Our needs and dreams change
over time. Every once in a while, it’s good to take stock and check if our
day-to-day choices align with our values and goals.
Quaker author and elder Parker Palmer writes about his
evolving perspective and priorities as he grows older:
Most older folks I know fret about unloading material goods
they’ve collected over the years, stuff that was once useful to them but now
prevents them from moving freely about their homes. There are precincts in our
basement where a small child could get lost for hours.
But the junk I really need to jettison in my old age is
psychological junk—such as longtime convictions about what gives my life
meaning that no longer serve me well. For example, who will I be when I can no
longer do the work that has been a primary source of identity for me for the
past half century?
I won’t know the answer until I get there. But on my way to
that day, I’ve found a question that’s already brought me a new sense of
meaning. I no longer ask, “What do I want to let go of, and what do I want to hang
on to?” Instead I ask, “What do I want to let go of, and what do I want to give
myself to?”
The desire to “hang on” comes from a sense of scarcity and
fear. The desire to “give myself” comes from a sense of abundance and
generosity. That’s the kind of truth I want to wither into.
What do you want to let go of in the coming year?
What do you want to give yourself to?
What is keeping you from giving yourself fully?
Parker Palmer, On the Brink of Everything: Grace, Gravity
and Getting Old (Berrett-Koehler Publishers: 2018), 26-27.
Struggling Inside Our Own Skin
This article is taken from the Archives of Fr Ron Rolheiser OMI. You can find the original article here
I’ve been both blessed and cursed by a congenital restlessness that hasn’t always made my life easy. I remember as a young boy restlessly wandering the house, the yard, and then the open pastures of my family’s farm on the prairies. Our family was close, my life was protected and secure, and I was raised in a solid religious faith. That should have made for a peaceful and stable childhood and, for the most part, it did. I count myself lucky.
But all of this stability, at least for me, didn’t preclude an unsettling restlessness. More superficially, I felt this in the isolation of growing up in a rural community that seemed far removed from life in the big cities. The lives I saw on television and read about in the newspapers and magazines appeared to me to be much bigger, more exciting, and more significant than my own. My life, by comparison, paled, seemed small, insignificant, and second-best. I longed to live in a big city, away from what I felt to be the deprivations of rural life. My life, it seemed, was always away from everything that was important.
Beyond that, I tormented myself by comparing my life, my body, and my anonymity to the grace, attractiveness, and fame of the professional athletes, movie stars, and other celebrities I admired and whose names were household words. For me, they had real lives, ones I could only envy. Moreover, I felt a deeper restlessness that had to do with my soul. Despite the genuine intimacy of a close family and a close-knit community within which I had dozens of friends and relatives, I ached for a singular, erotic intimacy with a soulmate. Finally, I lived with an inchoate anxiety that I didn’t understand and which mostly translated itself into fear, fear of not measuring up and fear of how I was living life in face of the eternal.
That was the cursed part, but all of this also brought a blessing. Inside the cauldron of that disquiet I discerned (heard) a call to religious life which I fought for a long time because it seemed the antithesis of everything I longed for. How can a burning restlessness, filled with eros, be a call to celibacy? How can an egotistical desire for fame, fortune, and recognition be an invitation to join a religious order whose charism is to live with the poor? It didn’t make sense, and, paradoxically, that’s why, finally, it was the only thing that did made sense. I gave in to its nudging and it was right for me.
It landed me inside religious life and what I’ve lived and learned there has helped me, slowly through the years, to process my own restlessness and begin to live inside my own skin. Beyond prayer and spiritual guidance, two intellectual giants in particular helped me. As a student, aged 19, I began to study Saint Augustine and Thomas Aquinas. My mind was still young and unformed but I grasped enough of what I was reading to begin to befriend the restless complexities inside my own soul – and inside the human soul in general. Even at age 19 (maybe particularly at 19) one can existentially understand Augustine’s dictum: You have made us for yourself, Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.
And then there was Thomas Aquinas who asked: What is the adequate object of the human intellect and will? In short, what would we have to know and be in love with in order to satisfy every flame of restlessness within us? His answer: Everything! The adequate object of the human intellect and will is Being as such – God, all people, all nature. Only that would satisfy us.
Except … that’s not what we mostly think. The particular restlessness that I experienced in my youth is today in fact a near-universal disease. Virtually all of us believe that the good life is had only by those who live elsewhere, away from our own limited, ordinary, insignificant, and small-town lives. Our culture has colonized us to believe that wealth, celebrity, and comfort are the adequate object of the human intellect and will. They are, for us, “Being as such”. In our culture’s current perception, we look at the beautiful bodies, celebrity status, and wealth of our athletes, movie stars, television hosts, and successful entrepreneurs and believe that they have the good life and we don’t. We’re on the outside, looking in. We’re now, in effect, all farm kids in the outback envying life in the big city, a life accessible only to a highly select few, while we’re crucified by the false belief that life is only exciting elsewhere, not where we live.
But our problem is, as Rainer Marie Rilke once pointed out to an aspiring young poet who believed that his own humble surroundings didn’t provide him with the inspiration he needed for poetry, that if we can’t see the richness in the life we’re actually living then we aren’t poets.
JOIN OUR FISHING EXPEDITION
This article is taken from the weekly blog written by Fr Michael White - Pastor of the Church of the Nativitity, Timonium, Maryland. You can find the blog here
We are about to launch a very interesting project in the life of the parish. We’re going to complete the balcony we left unfinished when we opened our new church last year. Because of the success of our Vision Campaign we were able to complete some of the more costly items involved in a balcony in the original construction, including an elevator and bathrooms. Now, all that is left to do is woodwork, railings, carpeting, and pews (by far the costliest piece).
When complete this space will afford an additional 500 seats, bringing our total capacity to 1500. How, one might well ask, in the current climate of crisis in the larger Church, with people walking away as never before, how can we fill those seats? Many churches are quietly reducing their seating capacity.
Well, all this month we’ve been reflecting on that in our current message series “Hooked: Followers Fish.” (You can watch the whole series on our web site: www.churchnativity.com.) Jesus promised to make his friends and followers fishers of men. Bringing others into a loving relationship with the living Lord is basic to what disciples do. And what was true for the first followers is true for us.
So, all this month we’ve been challenging parishioners to invest in their unchurched friends, and at some point, invite them to join us for our upcoming Lenten series (more on that to come).
Specifically, we challenged everyone to name one person, just one person, to make that investment and subsequent invitation.
To make this commitment more deliberate, and more fun, we’re incentivizing it this weekend, doing something we’ve never done before.
Following all weekend Masses this weekend we’re inviting everyone to visit the balcony. Our host ministers will direct them there and other safety precautions will be in place as well. Since this is the very first time its been open for view, that in itself is worth the trip.
But there’s more: on the unfinished floor, beneath what will be the balcony seats, we’re inviting parishioners to write the name of the unchurched person they’re inviting to fill that seat. Of course, the floor will eventually be carpeted, but those names will be a permanent part of the space.
Together, the parishioners and parish staff have to see themselves as fishing partners, and in that partnership we really can fill those seats.
The writings of Ignatius of Loyola are not the only texts to which we can turn as we seek to understand and practise discernment. The authors of the New Testament, as they sought to explore what it meant for God to have revealed himself in Christ, had plenty to say about how we can discover where God is, and is not, at work in our lives. Nicholas King SJ identifies certain passages that can aid our Lenten study of discernment. Nicholas King SJ is a Tutor and Fellow in New Testament Studies at Campion Hall, University of Oxford.
The pope is currently asking the Church to do something at which he and his Ignatian brothers and sisters are well-practised, namely to ‘discern’ or to listen where God is wanting to take us; and he is quite clear that this is no longer a matter of looking up the rule-books or consulting the list of previous papal utterances. The world needs something else from the Church today. That ‘something else’ is Ignatian discernment, to discover where the Spirit is leading; and it is not a magic formula. For what we have to remember is that self-deception is a constant danger in the area of spiritual discernment (which is why we should always have Ignatius Loyola’s Rules for the Discernment of Spirits ready to hand).
This article is taken from the ThinkingFaith.org website - you can find the complete article here
This article is taken from the weekly blog written by Fr Michael White - Pastor of the Church of the Nativitity, Timonium, Maryland. You can find the blog here
We are about to launch a very interesting project in the life of the parish. We’re going to complete the balcony we left unfinished when we opened our new church last year. Because of the success of our Vision Campaign we were able to complete some of the more costly items involved in a balcony in the original construction, including an elevator and bathrooms. Now, all that is left to do is woodwork, railings, carpeting, and pews (by far the costliest piece).
When complete this space will afford an additional 500 seats, bringing our total capacity to 1500. How, one might well ask, in the current climate of crisis in the larger Church, with people walking away as never before, how can we fill those seats? Many churches are quietly reducing their seating capacity.
Well, all this month we’ve been reflecting on that in our current message series “Hooked: Followers Fish.” (You can watch the whole series on our web site: www.churchnativity.com.) Jesus promised to make his friends and followers fishers of men. Bringing others into a loving relationship with the living Lord is basic to what disciples do. And what was true for the first followers is true for us.
So, all this month we’ve been challenging parishioners to invest in their unchurched friends, and at some point, invite them to join us for our upcoming Lenten series (more on that to come).
Specifically, we challenged everyone to name one person, just one person, to make that investment and subsequent invitation.
To make this commitment more deliberate, and more fun, we’re incentivizing it this weekend, doing something we’ve never done before.
Following all weekend Masses this weekend we’re inviting everyone to visit the balcony. Our host ministers will direct them there and other safety precautions will be in place as well. Since this is the very first time its been open for view, that in itself is worth the trip.
But there’s more: on the unfinished floor, beneath what will be the balcony seats, we’re inviting parishioners to write the name of the unchurched person they’re inviting to fill that seat. Of course, the floor will eventually be carpeted, but those names will be a permanent part of the space.
Together, the parishioners and parish staff have to see themselves as fishing partners, and in that partnership we really can fill those seats.
The writings of Ignatius of Loyola are not the only texts to which we can turn as we seek to understand and practise discernment. The authors of the New Testament, as they sought to explore what it meant for God to have revealed himself in Christ, had plenty to say about how we can discover where God is, and is not, at work in our lives. Nicholas King SJ identifies certain passages that can aid our Lenten study of discernment. Nicholas King SJ is a Tutor and Fellow in New Testament Studies at Campion Hall, University of Oxford.
The pope is currently asking the Church to do something at which he and his Ignatian brothers and sisters are well-practised, namely to ‘discern’ or to listen where God is wanting to take us; and he is quite clear that this is no longer a matter of looking up the rule-books or consulting the list of previous papal utterances. The world needs something else from the Church today. That ‘something else’ is Ignatian discernment, to discover where the Spirit is leading; and it is not a magic formula. For what we have to remember is that self-deception is a constant danger in the area of spiritual discernment (which is why we should always have Ignatius Loyola’s Rules for the Discernment of Spirits ready to hand).
This article is taken from the ThinkingFaith.org website - you can find the complete article here
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