COLLECTIONS: Offertory collection for weekend 18/19th May amounted to €1,461. 2nd collection for the Church Refurbishment fund came to €913. We greatly appreciate your continued financial support.

 MINISTERS OF WORD & EUCHARIST: Rotas for the summer months of June, July and August are now available in the sacristy, please collect your copy. The rotas will also be displayed in the church porch. If you are rostered and are unavailable for your ministry please ask another Reader/Eucharistic minister to cover for you. Also in the absence of the designated ministers please be prepared to read or distribute Holy Communion at the weekend Mass you are attending during the holiday season. Thank you.

GRANGE PARK MASS: The annual Mass at Our Lady’s Grotto at Grange Park will be celebrated on Tuesday, 4th June at 7.30pm. Everyone welcome.

ADORATION: Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is every Friday in the room at the back of the church from 10.30am to 8pm. Next Friday, 31st May, we invite you to remember in your prayers all the students who are sitting exams shortly.

HOLY HOUR: Pope Francis will preside at an Hour of Eucharistic Adoration in St. Peter’s Basilica on next Sunday, 2nd June at 5pm (Rome time) in communion with all bishops and their local diocesan communities around the world. There will be a Holy Hour of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in this church next Sunday, 2nd June, at 4pm. Everyone welcome.

CORK EURCHARISTIC PROCESSION: The Eucharistic Procession will be celebrated on next Sunday, 2nd June. The procession will commence at the North Cathedral at 3pm and process to the altar in Daunt’s Square, where the homily will be delivered and benediction will be celebrated. This year Archbishop Charles Brown, the Papal Nuncio to Ireland, will preach the homily.Parishioners from the Southside parishes should assemble by the Monument on South Mall at 3pm.

NAOMI PRE-MARRIAGE COURSES: For information on: established Pre-Marriage Courses. One full day on Saturday’s 10am-5pm. Cost: €90 per couple. Pre-Marriage Course 2013 will be held as follows: Sat. 25th May & Sat. 29th June. Also counselling to achieve/postpone a pregnancy and couples counselling. Contact: Naomi, 119, Patrick Street, Cork. Tel: 021 427 2213, Office Hours: Mon-Fri 9.30am–1pm.

ACTIVE RETIRED: Cuppa and chat every Wednesday after 10am Mass the Parish Centre. Light exercise class will continue on Mondays 2-4pm in the Parish Centre. All are very welcome.

Sunday Evening Devotions: In the children’s room at the back of the church every Sunday at 7pm.

MASS CARDS: A new selection of Mass cards and other cards are now available in the Parish office. Cost €2 and €3. A new collection of Baptismal candles are also available.

Mass bookings:  see parish office page.

Baptismal Bookings: see Baptism

Parish Centre: If any group or organisation is interested in hiring a room in the parish centre, please contact Fr. John or the parish office. You are responsible for your own public liability insurance.

Welcome to our parish community the following who were recently baptised:

Amelia Rose Sheehan daughter of Patrick & Elaine, Grange Park.

Donnacha George Walsh-O’Mahony son of Padraig & Olivia, Bracken Court.

Cooper William McInerney son of James & Helen, Ardfield Grove. 

Zoe Ellen O’Connor daughter of Dermot & Anne, Donnybrook.

Cian Joseph O’Donvan son of John & Triona, Clifton.

Mia Sophia Rogders daughter of Neil & Martina, Alderbrook.

Liam Denis Nyhan son of James & Amelie, Woodlands.

Ned James McSweeney son of Patrick & Sarah, Parkgate.

Emmet Emil Foley son of Edmund & Gergania, Maryborough Ridge.

Isabelle Margaret Holden daughter of Adam & Niamh, Greenvalley.

Anna Kathleen Hayes daughter of Darren & Chiara, Pinecroft.

Robyn Louise Tanner daughter of Rob & Graine, Ardfield.

Sophia Lilly Rice daughter of Paul & Catherine, Donnybrook.

Damian Damarodas son of Jonas & Iriva, Alderbrook.

Congratulations and best wishes to Annemarie McCarthy, Pinecroft and Karl O’Mahony, Ardfield on their recent wedding. May they have a long and happy life together.

The Blessed Sacrament is exposed every Friday from 10.30am - 8pm in the children’s room at the back of the church.  Volunteers are needed to commit to one hour’s adoration on a Friday; if you have the time to spare and feel called to commit please contact one of the Adoration organisers on the list in the children’s room.

Sunday evening devotions with rosary and exposition of the Blessed Sacrament at 7pm in the children’s room at the back of the church.

Do not abandon yourselves to despair. We are the Easter people and hallelujah is our song. -
 Pope John Paul II

At Easter we celebrate the Christian Spring, the morning of new life. Not a fairy story, but the reality that, for those who wait long enough, spring will come, Easter will be a reality. When you have been hurt by life you may not want to wander out of the valley of the familiar. However, do not be afraid to look beyond the familiar to what is promised by Easter. Never be afraid to hope. Good Friday is only the means to the end. The end is Easter, the end is Resurrection, and therefore the end is about the beginning, new beginning. The Easter story ultimately is about our God journeying with us through all that comes our way.

May the Peace and Joy of the Risen Lord renew each of us, so that in this Year of Faith we may grow in love, care and friendship for each other.   Happy Easter.

Beannachtaí na Cāsca dibh go léir – Fr John & Fr Colin.

 It seems much easier to find darkness than light in the world today. Despite the seemingly hopeless situation, we are called to hope. It is for this that the light came into the world – the one who will lift up the lowly and fill the hungry with good things. Pope Benedict XVI reminds us that Year of Faith is a time to ‘rediscover the joy of believing.’

This Christmas let us celebrate the Saviour who has brought the light of God’s love to the world, and may you enjoy many blessings throughout the New Year.

An indroduction by Fr John: When someone we love dies, it seems that time stands still. What moves through us is a silence…..a guilt sadness….a longing for one more day…..one more touch. We may not understand why our loved one left us so soon, or before we could say goodbye, but, little by little, we begin to remember not just that they have died, but also that they have lived. Every year at this Mass we are reminded that death is no respecter of age or circumstance. Different faces join with those whose loved ones went to God in different years; yes faces change but the heartbreak of death is universal. And so you may have lost a loved one over the last few weeks, some months ago or wherever the loss occured; tonight the prayers of this community are offered for you.

The annual parish bereavement Mass was celebrated on Tuesday, November 13th at 7.30pm. The Mass was organised by the liturgy group of the parish assembly and was a very prayerful and moving experience. The Mass was offered for the souls of all our deceased loved ones, remembering especially those who had died within the previous twelve months in our parish, and for healing for the bereaved who grieve their passing. The  Mass was very well attended with  Fr John being the chief celebrant and Fr Colin delivering the homily. Gene Sheehan and Jean Downey supplied the music and the congregation joined Gene in singing the hymns. Rose read the lesson and Fr Colin, in his homily, spoke about the practical ways in which we can support the bereaved in their grief  by visiting them, telephoning them or sending them a letter; in these ways we show them that we are thinking of them and that they are never very far from our thoughts and prayers. However, we also need to give the bereaved hope that while they will always remember their loved ones, their pain at their passing will ease a little with each passing month and that one day they will be able to remember them without the heartache.

Directly following Fr Colin’s homily Betty and Tim read out the names of the parishioners who had died in the previous twelve months. Their families were then invited to bring up lighted candles with their loved-one’s names on them and place them on the specially designed heart-shaped remembrance table in front of the altar. The rest of the congregation was then invited to bring up their lighted candles to remember their own dead and place the candles on the tables either side of the remembrance table.

Members of bereved families read the Prayer of the Faithful, and brought up the Offertory gifts.

After Holy Communion Daragh played An Cuileann on his violin, it is one of the oldest and most beautiful of Irish airs; Fr John read a Prayer of Blessing in time of Grief and offered this prayer on a postcard to members of the congregation as they departed the church. The bereaved families and the congregation were invited to take home their candles after the ceremony.

Everyone was invited back to the parish centre where members of the community and communication group of the parish assembly provided refreshments.  Sincere thanks to all who provided food for this occasion and to our sponsors Supervalu Grange and Frankfield House who provided big platters of sandwiches.

                                                                                                  Pope Benedict XVI

In 2011, Pope Benedict XVI declared a Year of Faith that will begin on 11th  October 2012, on the 50^th anniversary of the opening of the Second Ecumenical Vatican Council, and will conclude on 24th November 2013, the Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, Universal King.

Some things Catholics can do during the Year of Faith:

Attend Mass regularly

Go to Confession regularly

Spend time in prayer, especially in front of the Blessed Sacrament

Recite the Angelus daily

Read the Bible 

Read the Catechism in a Year: For this Year of Faith, Pope Benedict encourages us to study and reflect on the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Well, here’s an easy way to do it. Simply enter your email address and – starting October 11, 2012 – you’ll start getting a little bit of the Catechism emailed to you every morning. Read that little bit every day and you’ll read the whole catechism in a year. If you would like to share the catechism follow this link www.flocknote.com/catechism and click on Simply share this link: and you will be requested to enter your email address.

Perhaps you could make an bigger effort to be an instrument of peace in your relationship with others, in the manner of St Francis of Assisi, by following his guidelines:

1. Focus on people’s good points. Tell all with whom you come into contact the good things you see in them.
2. Develop a positive approach toward life. Compliment more than you criticize.
3. Build a climate of trust and support in all your relationships. Cooperate with others instead of competing with them.
4. Use gentle, loving, respectful language dealing with others. They won’t hear your words if they’re too busy dodging your sharp tongue.
5. Take a genuine interest in the work and activities of others. Make a point to ask about new projects. 
6. Listen patiently, with your heart, when others are talking. It’s Christlike to put aside one’s own interests for the love of another.
7. Learn how to refuse with a smile. If you have to say “no” to something, do it respectfully. 
8. Put the devil of jealousy far behind you. Deal with your personal insecurities in some other ways, but don’t put others down to make yourself look better. 
9. Be loyal. Never allow yourself to tear down the kingdom of God by destructive, behind-the-back criticism of others.
10. Do extra little things that are nobody’s job. Be generous by volunteering— especially for the jobs for which there is no great reward.

 Let us learn to tame too what is wild and violent within ourselves and the world around us.

For diocesan information on the Year of Faith please visit their website:  www.corkandross.org 

                                              Saint Francis of Assisi

To honour St Francis of Assisi, whose feast day is celebrated on October 4th each year, the parish assembly organised a blessing of all pets/animals and their owners in the church car park on Saturday, 6th October at 3pm.

We were blessed with a beautiful warm and sunny day; we can be forgiven to think St Francis, who loved all nature with a passion, had some influence on the weather! Just after 2.45pm parishioners began congregating with their pets, mainly dogs, though we did have guinea pigs, gerbils and one girl brought a photo of  her pet fish. All then assembled in the car park. It was a memorable sight to behold. A table held a statue of St Francis, kindly lent to us, for the occasion, by the Poor Claire Sisters, College Road, also, figures of animals, a floral display and a lighted candle graced the table.

Just after 3pm Fr John began the ceremony with the above quotation from St Francis. John, a parishioner, read from the Book of Genesis on the creation of the world, and five children read the Prayer of the Faithful in which we asked God’s blessing on our furry, and not so furry, friends. Fr John then prayed a blessing over all pets and their owners, and blessed them with holy water.

For single householders, a pet can be a true companion. Many people arrive home from work to find a furry friend overjoyed at their return. Many a elderly person has a lap filled with a purring fellow creature. Children, who are fortunate to have pets, learn to love, look after and care for them, and in doing so they learn how to be a little less selfish.

The bond between person and pet is like no other relationship, because the communication between fellow creatures is at its most basic. Eye-to-eye, a man and his dog, or a woman and her cat, are two creatures of love.

No wonder people enjoy the opportunity to take their animal companions to church for a special blessing. Church is the place where the bond of creation is celebrated.

Every creature is important, because they have been created by God. The love we give to a pet, and receive from a pet, can draw us more deeply into the larger circle of life, into the wonder of our common relationship to our Creator.

Fr John promises that this blessing will be an annual event and it is hoped that more and more parishioners will be prompted to bring their pets/animals to this ceremony. 

Prayer for Pets:  Almighty and everlasting God, Creator of all things and giver of all life, let your blessing be upon all these animals. May our relationships with them mirror your love, and our care for them be an example of your bountiful mercy. Grant the animals health and peace. Strengthen us to love and care for them as we strive to imitate the love of Jesus Christ our Lord and God’s servant Francis. Amen.

The annual Mass of Remembrance and blessing of graves was held in St John’s Cemetery, Ballinrea on Wednesday, 8th August at 7.30pm. With every passing year the number of bereaved parishioners attending the Mass increases as more of our loved ones, and those of our neighbouring parishes, are called to God. Fr John was the chief celebrant with Fr Colin preaching the homily. Our two readers Sarah and Ciaran have loved ones buried in St John’s and we thank them for their participation in the Mass. We also thank Mary from Togher Parish for helping to distribute Holy Communion, and members of our parish assembly who helped organise the Mass. Many thanks too to Michael Meade, the cemetery caretaker for facilitating the celebration of the Mass, and to Finbarr, the sound operator, who ensured the Mass could be heard all over the cemetery.

The weather on Wednesday began very misty, despite promises by the meteorologist that it would be a fine day. To be fair the afternoon was quite pleasant and we dared to hope that the evening would be as well, as we had had rain the previous year in the cemetery. As the time for the Mass approached the sky clouded over and rain threatened to descend on the clergy and the congregation, it was indeed a very grey evening; but in retrospect perhaps the weather was only reflecting the feelings of grief and loss that accompanies the deaths of our loved ones. However, we are a resurrection people and our presence at the annual cemetery Mass and blessings of graves bear testimony to our hope and belief that one day we will be re-united with our loved ones who have departed this earthly existance. So next year Lord how about a little late evening August sunshine showing us that death is never the end and that there is room for rejoicing in the midst of all our grief? 

Parish Assembly

Newsletter

The current Parish Assembly is now coming to the end of its second year. We would like to thank you all for your support. We continue to welcome your suggestions and input.

Chairperson:Sr Elizabeth Bradley,Vice Chairperson:Sheila Glavin, Secretary:Pauline Flahive.

 
         Community and Communications Group

The group continues to support the Active Retired Group on Wednesday mornings and presently the “Go for life” course which is being facilitated by Anna on Monday is a huge success. Over Easter, Ger kindly gave a festive flower demonstration to the Active Retired Group.

We made and distributed St Brigid’s crosses on February 1st and marked Ash Wednesday with hot cross buns. We would like to carry on these simple traditions into the future.

On May the 6^th, the Ateneo de Manila College Glee Club from The Philippines paid our parish a visit. Their beautiful singing was greatly appreciated and refreshments afterward were enjoyed by all.

For the Month of May – the reciting of the Rosary was encouraged among families. A named decade and beads were distributed. The rosary was “shared”.

It is planned to provide a defibrillator in the church and fundraising for same will commence in September – your support will be greatly appreciated.

Chairperson: Marion O’Connell       Secretary: Anna Heffernan

                            Liturgy Group

The Christmas Carol Service on Tuesday 20^th December was well attended by families and individuals, who joined in singing the traditional Christmas Carols. We hope to make this an annual event.

In February the group once again organised the annual Healing Mass in February which is growing in popularity as the years progress.

The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil was placed on the sanctuary during Lent. The congregation was invited to write words, on cards provided, describing the good and evil in our world today, which they then hung on the tree.

Members of the group helped erect the Tomb during Lent and the Resurrection Garden at Easter. These remained on the sanctuary until the end of the Easter season. The group also placed on the sanctuary a tree for Pentecost displaying the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit, which are received at the Sacrament of Confirmation.

To the left of the sanctuary the group placed a small table dedicated to the 2012 Eucharistic Congress which was held in Dublin from the 10^th to 17^th June.

In May there was a Mass of Intercessions organised by the Liturgy Group. This Mass was aimed particularly at students sitting college and Leaving Cert. exams, as well as for the special intentions of the parish community.

The group continues to organise the monthly Family Mass with the children’s own liturgy of the Word. This is for pre-first Holy Communion children.

Chairperson:  Kay Murray   Secretary:  Jachanthia Bracken

                 Faith Enrichment Group

 The group is very short of members with the result that it’s hard to plan any events. We organised 4 nights based on the Eucharist run by the diocesan support group based in The Holy Cross Parish in Mahon as a lead up to the Eucharistic Congress. The response was disappointing but as Marian Mortell the organiser said quoting Jesus “where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them”.  We also had Evelina’s (our parish’s first  catechumen) Baptism during the Easter Vigil Mass on Holy Saturday night. It was indeed a beautiful ceremony conducted by Fr. Colin. Evelina’s Father travelled from Lithuania for the occasion and how proud he was of his daughter on the night.

Chairperson:  Tom O’Byrne

The Parish Assembly hopes you all have an enjoyable summer break. Please continue to visit our website for the latest parish notices and news.