The 3rd parish assembly was formed in December 2013 and started work in January 2014 with a mission statement: To reach out to everyone with compassion and understanding; creating a joyful, hopeful and inclusive community; to pass on the faith to all especially our youth with The Holy Family as our inspiration.
Chairperson: Jim Connolly Secretary: Paula O’Leary
There are 3 groups within the assembly undertaking various work to fulfil our mission statement.
Community Connections Group Chairperson: John Swanick Secretary: Noel Daly
The group undertook various community focused initiatives in the last 5 months. The main ones were as follows:
The introduction of shared masses which would include a maximum of three intentions
Suggestion Box in church
Preparation of Dues Envelopes
Catering for Visiting choirs ( Russian and Church of the Real Presence, Curraheen)
Repeat Defibrillator Training , planned for Sept 14
Replace Boiler in Parish Centre during summer 2014,
Two members support the Active Retired every week .
The Faith Enrichment Group Chairperson : Norman Carroll Secretary: Mary Syndham
The goal of the group is to help towards faith enrichment in the parish and we organised and assisted in a number of Liturgical events.
A Healing Mas was organised on the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes on the 11th of February and was well attended. A special word of thanks to Fr Christy and the other priests who officiated at the ceremony. The parish choir led our community singing and added greatly to the enjoyment of the night.
We assisted Fr Christy in organising Lenten talks in the parish centre in the run up to Easter. The topics covered were:
“Lent, our journey to Baptism”
“Celebrating the Easter Tritium”
“A reflection of St Matthew’s Passion”
Fr. Christy stated he got a very positive feedback to the talks.
The group was involved in planning of the Easter Ceremonies and helped organise volunteers for the following ceremonies:
• The washing of feet on Holy Thursday
• The veneration of the Cross on Good Friday.
• The prayers around the Cross on Good Friday evening.
• Prayers for the intentions of examination students were offered at the 11.30 mass on Sunday 25th May
A programme around faith enrichment over a 2/3 year period is currently being planned leading up to 40th anniversary of the Parish in 2016. A talk was delivered by Ann Francis to the group recently.
CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE Chairperson & secretary: Mary Lynch and Kate O’ Connor
The Children and Young People section of the Parish Assembly has been working on a variety of projects over the last few months.
Our first outing was to attend the 10 o’clock mass on Valentine’s Day. Fr. Christy gave a reflection on love of self and others, and sweets were distributed to all those who attended. The Fourth Class pupils from Scoil Nioclais received heart-shaped lollipops!
We decided we would like to send two young people from the parish, as helpers, on the Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes in June. Two volunteers were found and so the fund-raising began. A very successful cake sale was held in the Church after Masses on the weekend of April 12th. The proceeds of this, along with a verygenerous donation from the Active Retirement Group, helped us to reach our target. We wish our two young parishioners well and look forward to hearing how they got on.
Our most recent undertaking was the Children’s Stations of the Cross on Good Friday. Students from fifth class in Scoil Nioclais were invited to take part and we found ourselves with a most enthusiastic and capable crew. The children worked extremely hard and produced a very touching and meaningful interpretation of Our Lord’s Passion.
We look forward to including more young people in our liturgies over the coming months.
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