Llandudno -
Our Lady Star of
the Sea
Parish Priest: Fr Antony Jones STL - Telephone: 01492 860546
Sunday, August 19th 2007 - Twentieth of Ordinary Time (C)
Parish Priest: Fr Antony Jones STL - Telephone: 01492 860546
Sunday, August 19th 2007 - Twentieth of Ordinary Time (C)
Dear
Parishioner,
It has been a week of ups and downs. I’ll tell you about the downs first, so as to end on a happier note!
You will remember how up-beat I was only three weeks ago when I told you of the promising new start with our choir, under the leadership of our new young choirmaster Alex.
Well, we are back to square one. Again the bubble has burst. Alex has announced that he is leaving us. He has received an offer he can’t refuse with a touring theatre group. We are happy for him. This could be the break of a lifetime. We wish him well.
But we are not happy for the choir. We have invited Joan to come out of her semi-retirement and continue to play, along with Irek, at the 9:30 am Sunday Mass. I was encouraged by the stoic reaction of the faithful members of the choir – they had all been there before and were just as resolute to carry on as ever.
But I think the time has come for this parish to get its act together with regard to this ministry of music. This is part of our service of God. In a parish of this size there are certainly plenty of people who can play the piano and/or sing. Let them come to the aid of the parish now.
The up side of the week was the Mass of Anointing last Saturday evening. We thank Fr Toole for helping. It was, as it always is, a really wonderful occasion. The spirit of the ceremony and the joy on people’s faces as they came out reminded me of just how much we have to offer to those who do not know Christ or who do not know our Catholic Faith. That joy spoke of a deep seated sense of well-being, awareness that God is a God of love who really does care about us, holds us in his hands and wants our welfare. How much anxiety and depression which would otherwise be in our lives is dispelled by such grace-filled awareness!
And on a related topic, let me remind you of the opportunities we have in this parish for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. As you know, we have been celebrating a Service of Reconciliation every Saturday morning at 10:30 am, directly after the Children’s Prayers. Those who have taken advantage of it find it beneficial and encouraging. It provides us with a proper preparation for the Sacrament and due thanksgiving after it. But the numbers each week are small and the service itself would benefit from an increase in its congregation. So I have decided to hold it monthly in future instead of weekly. From now on it will be celebrated on the first Saturday of the month at the usual time of 10:30 am. I hope you will make an effort to attend it. If we really appreciate our relationship with the all holy God, we should be getting to Confession at least a few times a year. Confessions are also held after both Saturday Masses and on call. By on call I mean that you are welcome to ring the Presbytery door at any time and ask for the Sacrament. That’s one of the reasons why you have a resident priest.
At a Cytûn meeting recently held, it was decided to change the former way in which the regular Cytûn prayers are conducted. From now on, there will be a weekly prayer session, held at St John’s, at 12:15 pm every Thursday. These services will last approximately twenty minutes and will be conducted by the various denominational communities. As the time clashes with our 12:00 noon Mass, Sr Philo at the Convent has kindly agreed to lead these services when it is our turn to do so. The thinking behind the timing is to catch people in the lunch break.
And, finally, we are to have a new deacon. His name is Andy Roberts and he will be with us from the middle of September. You will remember him – he was with us last year for a six week “placement”. Since then he has been ordained deacon and will be with us in this capacity until he is ordained priest next year. Whether he will stay on for a while afterwards as priest is a decision the Bishop will make at the time. We welcome him and look forward to his coming.
God bless you,
Fr Antony Jones
It has been a week of ups and downs. I’ll tell you about the downs first, so as to end on a happier note!
You will remember how up-beat I was only three weeks ago when I told you of the promising new start with our choir, under the leadership of our new young choirmaster Alex.
Well, we are back to square one. Again the bubble has burst. Alex has announced that he is leaving us. He has received an offer he can’t refuse with a touring theatre group. We are happy for him. This could be the break of a lifetime. We wish him well.
But we are not happy for the choir. We have invited Joan to come out of her semi-retirement and continue to play, along with Irek, at the 9:30 am Sunday Mass. I was encouraged by the stoic reaction of the faithful members of the choir – they had all been there before and were just as resolute to carry on as ever.
But I think the time has come for this parish to get its act together with regard to this ministry of music. This is part of our service of God. In a parish of this size there are certainly plenty of people who can play the piano and/or sing. Let them come to the aid of the parish now.
The up side of the week was the Mass of Anointing last Saturday evening. We thank Fr Toole for helping. It was, as it always is, a really wonderful occasion. The spirit of the ceremony and the joy on people’s faces as they came out reminded me of just how much we have to offer to those who do not know Christ or who do not know our Catholic Faith. That joy spoke of a deep seated sense of well-being, awareness that God is a God of love who really does care about us, holds us in his hands and wants our welfare. How much anxiety and depression which would otherwise be in our lives is dispelled by such grace-filled awareness!
And on a related topic, let me remind you of the opportunities we have in this parish for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. As you know, we have been celebrating a Service of Reconciliation every Saturday morning at 10:30 am, directly after the Children’s Prayers. Those who have taken advantage of it find it beneficial and encouraging. It provides us with a proper preparation for the Sacrament and due thanksgiving after it. But the numbers each week are small and the service itself would benefit from an increase in its congregation. So I have decided to hold it monthly in future instead of weekly. From now on it will be celebrated on the first Saturday of the month at the usual time of 10:30 am. I hope you will make an effort to attend it. If we really appreciate our relationship with the all holy God, we should be getting to Confession at least a few times a year. Confessions are also held after both Saturday Masses and on call. By on call I mean that you are welcome to ring the Presbytery door at any time and ask for the Sacrament. That’s one of the reasons why you have a resident priest.
At a Cytûn meeting recently held, it was decided to change the former way in which the regular Cytûn prayers are conducted. From now on, there will be a weekly prayer session, held at St John’s, at 12:15 pm every Thursday. These services will last approximately twenty minutes and will be conducted by the various denominational communities. As the time clashes with our 12:00 noon Mass, Sr Philo at the Convent has kindly agreed to lead these services when it is our turn to do so. The thinking behind the timing is to catch people in the lunch break.
And, finally, we are to have a new deacon. His name is Andy Roberts and he will be with us from the middle of September. You will remember him – he was with us last year for a six week “placement”. Since then he has been ordained deacon and will be with us in this capacity until he is ordained priest next year. Whether he will stay on for a while afterwards as priest is a decision the Bishop will make at the time. We welcome him and look forward to his coming.
God bless you,
Fr Antony Jones