Llandudno -
Our Lady Star of
the Sea
Parish Priest: Fr Antony Jones STL - Telephone: 01492 860546 [Email]
Sunday, March 11th, 2007 - Lent 3 (C)
Parish Priest: Fr Antony Jones STL - Telephone: 01492 860546 [Email]
Sunday, March 11th, 2007 - Lent 3 (C)
Dear
Parishioner,
I was very pleasantly surprised last week-end. You will remember (I hope you will remember) I spoke to you about the bad habit we have got into as a parish of leaving Mass early. To my delight, I found that very many parishioners felt just as strongly about it as I do.
The attendees of the Welsh Mass are the biggest culprits. Maybe it is because they cannot understand the final hymn. But that is no excuse. The church literally half empties by the time I walk down the aisle at the end of the Mass. The other Masses have the same problem, but not quite to the same degree, but still sufficiently to be a scandal we must remedy.
I am always put in mind of our non-catholic fellow Christians. When their service is over, they always kneel or sit down for a whole minute or two before rising to leave.
Why are we so anxious to get out? Indeed, as I said last week, it sometimes resembles a stampede. I really do not know why. Someone suggested to me that this is a bad habit that has come over from Ireland. I don’t know whether this is the case or not, but even if it is, it is no justification. To leave before the Mass is ended is really disrespectful - to God, to the Mass, to the Priest, and to one another, as the Mass is a community celebration, and one does not normally walk out of a party without at least saying a polite goodbye. So, our Parish Lenten Resolution for 2007: after Mass, kneel down and say a Hail Mary before you leave. Please! Of course, sometimes one has to leave early.
Now something else to remember: It ain’t what you give; it’s the way you give it. So Mr Bill Homewood described last week the Finance Committee’s campaign go get you to gift-aid your offertory. Just look at last week’s collection. Only 28% of the collection was gift aided; yet that will yield to the Parish £62 in refunded tax. Had 75% of the collection been gift aided (the percentage we are aiming at), it would have yielded £165. In real terms, our collection would then have been £954 instead of £789. It’s a lot of extra money just for signing a form.
Every Sunday from now on there will be leaflets available at the back of the church with the Mass readings in Polish and a brief homily. As those Poles who do not speak English are unlikely to read this newsletter, please tell them about it. The first of our monthly Polish Masses will be at 7pm next Sunday.
We have recently recruited as Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist four young couples who have come to live among us from abroad. Two couples are Slovaks (Ivan and Eva Greno; and Lubo and Erika Benedikt), one couple Indian (Joju and Mariamma Jose); the husband of the third couple is Italian with his wife English (Antonello and Suzie Mosca). We are very pleased thus to welcome them into the very heart of our parish life, their presence a constant reminder to us of the world-wide character of our Catholic Faith.
The UCMW had a wonderful Conference at the St George’s Hotel at the beginning of the week, with representatives there from all over Wales, together with the three Welsh Bishops and many of the priests of the diocese. The conference made plain that the UCMW is still very much alive and well, and a parish group that can add substantially to your own Catholic social life. On 19 March, at 730pm at Stella Maris, Fr John Toole will be giving a talk entitled Lenten Reflections. Knowing Fr Toole, there will be lots of fun and laughter, and the UCM extends a warm welcome to anyone in the Parish who may like to attend.
Interested in a trip to Taize with Fr Andrew? His number is 01352 713181
God bless you,
Fr Anthony Jones
I was very pleasantly surprised last week-end. You will remember (I hope you will remember) I spoke to you about the bad habit we have got into as a parish of leaving Mass early. To my delight, I found that very many parishioners felt just as strongly about it as I do.
The attendees of the Welsh Mass are the biggest culprits. Maybe it is because they cannot understand the final hymn. But that is no excuse. The church literally half empties by the time I walk down the aisle at the end of the Mass. The other Masses have the same problem, but not quite to the same degree, but still sufficiently to be a scandal we must remedy.
I am always put in mind of our non-catholic fellow Christians. When their service is over, they always kneel or sit down for a whole minute or two before rising to leave.
Why are we so anxious to get out? Indeed, as I said last week, it sometimes resembles a stampede. I really do not know why. Someone suggested to me that this is a bad habit that has come over from Ireland. I don’t know whether this is the case or not, but even if it is, it is no justification. To leave before the Mass is ended is really disrespectful - to God, to the Mass, to the Priest, and to one another, as the Mass is a community celebration, and one does not normally walk out of a party without at least saying a polite goodbye. So, our Parish Lenten Resolution for 2007: after Mass, kneel down and say a Hail Mary before you leave. Please! Of course, sometimes one has to leave early.
Now something else to remember: It ain’t what you give; it’s the way you give it. So Mr Bill Homewood described last week the Finance Committee’s campaign go get you to gift-aid your offertory. Just look at last week’s collection. Only 28% of the collection was gift aided; yet that will yield to the Parish £62 in refunded tax. Had 75% of the collection been gift aided (the percentage we are aiming at), it would have yielded £165. In real terms, our collection would then have been £954 instead of £789. It’s a lot of extra money just for signing a form.
Every Sunday from now on there will be leaflets available at the back of the church with the Mass readings in Polish and a brief homily. As those Poles who do not speak English are unlikely to read this newsletter, please tell them about it. The first of our monthly Polish Masses will be at 7pm next Sunday.
We have recently recruited as Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist four young couples who have come to live among us from abroad. Two couples are Slovaks (Ivan and Eva Greno; and Lubo and Erika Benedikt), one couple Indian (Joju and Mariamma Jose); the husband of the third couple is Italian with his wife English (Antonello and Suzie Mosca). We are very pleased thus to welcome them into the very heart of our parish life, their presence a constant reminder to us of the world-wide character of our Catholic Faith.
The UCMW had a wonderful Conference at the St George’s Hotel at the beginning of the week, with representatives there from all over Wales, together with the three Welsh Bishops and many of the priests of the diocese. The conference made plain that the UCMW is still very much alive and well, and a parish group that can add substantially to your own Catholic social life. On 19 March, at 730pm at Stella Maris, Fr John Toole will be giving a talk entitled Lenten Reflections. Knowing Fr Toole, there will be lots of fun and laughter, and the UCM extends a warm welcome to anyone in the Parish who may like to attend.
Interested in a trip to Taize with Fr Andrew? His number is 01352 713181
God bless you,
Fr Anthony Jones