Llandudno -
Our Lady Star of
the Sea
Parish Priest: Fr Antony Jones STL - Telephone: 01492 860546
Sunday, June, 10th 2007 - The Solemnity of Corpus Christi
Parish Priest: Fr Antony Jones STL - Telephone: 01492 860546
Sunday, June, 10th 2007 - The Solemnity of Corpus Christi
Dear
Parishioner,
The children of the Parish make their First Holy Communion at the9:30am Mass today. This is the day they will remember all their lives long. They will remember it for the fuss and the presents and the dressing up and the parties. That’s natural; that’s how we all were as children. But it must be the prayer of each one of us today that as these children grow, so will their understanding and appreciation grow of just what God has given them and offers them for the rest of their lives. You cannot expect the children to appreciate it now – indeed, the gift is so sublime that none of us appreciates it as we ought to. Only when we see the Son of God face to face will we understand how stupendous a gift God has lavished upon us in the Blessed Eucharist.
The Parish Pastoral Council met last Tuesday, and as usual it was a good and fruitful occasion. Many things were discussed, but I would like to draw your attention today to just two of them.
You will notice that the on the heading of our Newsletter the post of Property Manager has appeared. And alongside that is the name John Dennison. Let me explain.
Since I invited John some eight months ago to join the Finance Committee my workload has been considerably reduced. John, trained in management skills and well experienced in putting them into practice, began to get increasingly involved in the care of the parish properties. When Stella Maris was undergoing its refurbishment some years ago, I bore all the responsibility myself and took all the decisions. When John noticed the damp problem there that had baffled us from the time of the refurbishment, he immediately took it in hand and in a thoroughly professional manner got it sorted, going through all the right procedures in the right order. I was impressed and increasingly asked his advice on every other problem that arose, be it in Stella Maris, the Church or the House. It was not only I who was impressed but the Diocese too. When the huge job came up of overseeing the conversion of Sr Jennifer’s house into flats, the Diocese confidently put it into John’s hands.
But with all the negotiations that have to go on, with architects, surveyors, health and safety, the council, builders, electricians etc, it was necessary that John be seen to have official standing within the parish. Simply a member of the Finance Committee wasn’t adequate; the Pastoral Council decided that Property Manager would be a more appropriate job description. John consults me, of course, in all the steps he takes, but in these matters of property maintenance and development I usually bow to his superior expertise. We are most grateful to him.
The second matter I want to tell you about is the discussion the Pastoral Council had on the question of volunteers. When you think about it, the church would grind to a halt if it were not for the host of volunteers who give of their time and energies so generously. Just think: parish secretary, brass cleaners, flower- ladies, choir, readers, special ministers, altar servers, the Pastoral Council, the UCM, the SVP, GAS, the Justice and Peace Committee, the Pro Life Committee, Friends of Stella Maris. All of them volunteers.
We decided at the Pastoral Council to focus our attention on these volunteers over a six week period and this for two reasons. First because we appreciate their work so much and secondly because we need many more people involved.
We can’t focus on every type of volunteer in six weeks, so we decided to centre our attention on the parish groups. Each week, beginning Sunday 24 June, we will focus on one particular group. The Pastoral Council decided on the following order: GAS, Stella Maris, SVP, UCM, Pro Life, Justice and Peace. In the appropriate Newsletter I will remind you what that group does; the Chair of the Parish Council, Mrs Elaine Dingsdale, will speak briefly about it at the 930am Mass; and there will be members of that particular group over at Stella Maris after the Mass to explain things in further detail to any prospective new member. And when the six weeks are over there will be party – for every volunteer in the Parish. Wine and sticky buns, perhaps.
God bless you,
Fr Antony Jones
The children of the Parish make their First Holy Communion at the9:30am Mass today. This is the day they will remember all their lives long. They will remember it for the fuss and the presents and the dressing up and the parties. That’s natural; that’s how we all were as children. But it must be the prayer of each one of us today that as these children grow, so will their understanding and appreciation grow of just what God has given them and offers them for the rest of their lives. You cannot expect the children to appreciate it now – indeed, the gift is so sublime that none of us appreciates it as we ought to. Only when we see the Son of God face to face will we understand how stupendous a gift God has lavished upon us in the Blessed Eucharist.
The Parish Pastoral Council met last Tuesday, and as usual it was a good and fruitful occasion. Many things were discussed, but I would like to draw your attention today to just two of them.
You will notice that the on the heading of our Newsletter the post of Property Manager has appeared. And alongside that is the name John Dennison. Let me explain.
Since I invited John some eight months ago to join the Finance Committee my workload has been considerably reduced. John, trained in management skills and well experienced in putting them into practice, began to get increasingly involved in the care of the parish properties. When Stella Maris was undergoing its refurbishment some years ago, I bore all the responsibility myself and took all the decisions. When John noticed the damp problem there that had baffled us from the time of the refurbishment, he immediately took it in hand and in a thoroughly professional manner got it sorted, going through all the right procedures in the right order. I was impressed and increasingly asked his advice on every other problem that arose, be it in Stella Maris, the Church or the House. It was not only I who was impressed but the Diocese too. When the huge job came up of overseeing the conversion of Sr Jennifer’s house into flats, the Diocese confidently put it into John’s hands.
But with all the negotiations that have to go on, with architects, surveyors, health and safety, the council, builders, electricians etc, it was necessary that John be seen to have official standing within the parish. Simply a member of the Finance Committee wasn’t adequate; the Pastoral Council decided that Property Manager would be a more appropriate job description. John consults me, of course, in all the steps he takes, but in these matters of property maintenance and development I usually bow to his superior expertise. We are most grateful to him.
The second matter I want to tell you about is the discussion the Pastoral Council had on the question of volunteers. When you think about it, the church would grind to a halt if it were not for the host of volunteers who give of their time and energies so generously. Just think: parish secretary, brass cleaners, flower- ladies, choir, readers, special ministers, altar servers, the Pastoral Council, the UCM, the SVP, GAS, the Justice and Peace Committee, the Pro Life Committee, Friends of Stella Maris. All of them volunteers.
We decided at the Pastoral Council to focus our attention on these volunteers over a six week period and this for two reasons. First because we appreciate their work so much and secondly because we need many more people involved.
We can’t focus on every type of volunteer in six weeks, so we decided to centre our attention on the parish groups. Each week, beginning Sunday 24 June, we will focus on one particular group. The Pastoral Council decided on the following order: GAS, Stella Maris, SVP, UCM, Pro Life, Justice and Peace. In the appropriate Newsletter I will remind you what that group does; the Chair of the Parish Council, Mrs Elaine Dingsdale, will speak briefly about it at the 930am Mass; and there will be members of that particular group over at Stella Maris after the Mass to explain things in further detail to any prospective new member. And when the six weeks are over there will be party – for every volunteer in the Parish. Wine and sticky buns, perhaps.
God bless you,
Fr Antony Jones