Llandudno -
Our Lady Star of
the Sea
Parish
Priest: Fr Antony Jones STL - Telephone: 01492 860546 [Email]
Farewell to Fr
Andrew
Dear Parishioner,
Today we bid a sad farewell to Fr
Andrew. Sad for us, but glad for Holywell.
It is twelve years now since I sat on the Admission Board which
accepted Andrew as a candidate for the priesthood back in 1995.
His first contact with the Parish was when he came here in the summer
of 2000 as a student “on placement”, here to see the workings of a
parish from the inside, as it were, and to gain some pastoral
experience.
He was ordained Deacon in 2002 in his College Chapel at Oscott and
returned to Llandudno to exercise his Diaconate during July and August
2002 and January 2003.
He was then appointed to the Parish as Deacon in August 2003, where he
remained until his ordination to the Priesthood on 3 July 2004.
You will remember the wonderful Mass of Thanksgiving we celebrated
together on 5th July and the Reception afterwards at the School.
From July 2004 to January 2007 he has served here as assistant priest.
He now moves on to Holywell where he will assist Fr Carr in running the
Parish but will have special responsibility for the Blessed Edward
Jones High School in Rhyl. For the past year virtually every
Wednesday Fr Andrew has been working as chaplain to this school.
He has found the work very challenging and rewarding and has been so
successful at it that the Bishop now wants him to spend two days a week
there instead of one. This will be a great boost for the Rhyl
School, which will be the only High School in the Diocese with a priest
as chaplain.
So we wish him well and thank him for all that he has done for the
parish here in Llandudno. I am quite sure you will want to say
your goodbyes to him personally, so I have arranged for there to be wine and mince pies
over at Stella Maris after all three Masses this weekend.
But don’t get too degalon, fearing that you will never see him again –
he is already booked to supply for me during my holidays in May and
September!
******************
The Repository is
now open. It has been relocated in the old confessional,
the room immediately beside the Sacristy. It will be open after
all the weekend Masses and in emergency at other times too (but do try
to save me hassle - by getting your purchases when it is officially
open). We are grateful to Mrs Des Blease who is in charge and the
other ladies whom she will no doubt ask to assist her.
I am keen that our Sunday Masses should
be as “user-friendly” as they possibly can be. I want
parishioners and visitors alike to be made to feel totally welcome and
at home. I want parishioners to be involved as much as possible
in the practical side of our Sunday Masses. Already very many
are, but there is still plenty of room for more. I mentioned some weeks
ago in the Newsletter that I would like to see families taking it in
turn to welcome people as they arrive for Mass and thereby to assist
the Ushers in this very important ministry. I would like many
different people to be involved in bringing up the Offertory Gifts,
with visitors as well as parishioners taking part. So, we need
volunteer families. Would those who have already volunteered
please remind me (I never made a list) and those who would like to
volunteer please do so. Let’s make the achieving of this our
parish’s New Year’s resolution.
The lessons for children making their First Holy Communion
this year begin on Monday, 22 January, at 4pm at Stella
Maris. The first part of the course will be for the boys and
girls who are not attending Blessed William Davies School. The
children in the Catholic sector will join the course later. The
Newsletter will keep you informed. We are deeply grateful to Mrs Elaine
Dingsdale (the Head Teacher), Mrs Jane McNamara and Miss Jane Varley
who will be the catechists.
The Week of
Prayer for Christian Unity begins on Thursday at 1030am.
See over page for the details and please do come along.
Feed my Lambs.
What a month December was, and what generosity! You gave, during
that month, a grand total of £3,053. That would feed 4,556
children for a week. Or, if you like, one child until he reached
his 87th birthday! And in his case the saying would come really true:
mutton dressed up as lamb!
God bless you, Fr Antony Jones