28 June 2020 – SOLEMNITY OF SS PETER & PAUL
MASS INTENTIONS THIS WEEK – Both parishes
Parishioners
Maurine Jennings RIP
Holy Souls NDL
Therese Laybats RIP
Foundation Mass
Ann Worswick RIP
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OUR LADY’S and Ss PETER & PAUL’S – No Masses or services. Church can no longer open for private prayer. Fr Anders will continue to say Mass for the intentions listed above. |
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JOINT NEWSLETTER
LATELY DEAD: Of your charity, please pray for the repose of the soul of Ann Worswick RIP (Tarleton) who died recently. May she rest in peace.
PRAYER INTENTION FOR THE FEAST OF THE SOLEMNITY OF SS PETER & PAUL We pray for our Holy Father and all those who work in the Church, that the care of St Peter and the charity of St Paul may inspire them as they work tirelessly for the good of the Church.
MESSAGES FROM FR ANDERS Happy Feast Day everyone – and special prayers and greetings for the parishioners of Ss Peter & Paul’s Mawdesley, as we celebrate their feast day this Sunday! We read for the preface of the Mass for this Sunday that by God’s providence: “…the blessed Apostles Peter and Paul bring us joy. Peter, foremost in confessing the faith, Paul, its outstanding preacher, who established the early Church from the remnant of Israel, Paul, master and teacher of the Gentiles…each in a different way gathered together in the one family of Christ; and revered together throughout the world, they share one martyr’s crown…”.
THE RE-OPENING OF CHURCHES This week’s announcement by the government that churches could re-open for services as from 4 July, means that we are now waiting for specific guidance on this from the Archdiocese. Our Archbishop has said, “There will be a gradual process of returning to the public celebration of the sacrament as safety requires remembering the importance of the continuing requirement for sanitising and observation of the social distancing guidelines”. A number of volunteers will be needed, to clean and sanitise the church, as well as to act as stewards during the services / sessions of private worship. Stewards will be required to be under 70 years, in good health and have a current DBS certificate. Fr G Anders
PRAYER FOR GOD’S MERCY DURING THE PANDEMIC – Archbishop Malcolm invites us to pray together with him through these times
God Our Father,
each person is precious to You.
You are the Giver of life.
Have mercy on us and protect us at this time,
as the coronavirus threatens health and life.
You are an ever-present Helper in time of trouble.
Watch over those who are suffering, give strength to those who are aiding the sick and give courage to all in this time of anxiety.
We ask this of you in the name of your Son,
Jesus Christ
Amen
HOLY FATHER’S PRAYER INTENTION We pray that those who suffer may find their way in life, allowing themselves to be touched by the Heart of Jesus.
CHURCH OPENING – PRIVATE PRAYER While churches begin the complicated process of opening for Masses and other services, our deanery parishes will continue to open for private worship. In our pastoral area of Leyland, the two churches are:-
- St Teresa’s RC Church, 34 Queensway, Penwortham PR1 0DS Tel. 01772 743337 http://www.catholic-penwortham-longton.btck.co.uk/
- Opening times: Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays 11am to 1pm
- St Mary’s R C Church, Broadfield Drive, Leyland PR25 1PD Tel. 01772 455955 leylandstmarys.org.uk
- Opening times: Sundays 11.30am – 12.30pm; Wednesdays 11.30am to 12.30pm
- Please keep a distance of 2m from others. A one-way system is in operation so entrance is by the side door only – on the right-hand side. Please follow the signs.
Please note: You will not be able to light candles, nor will there be any holy water.
Please wear a face mask
Use the hand sanitisers when you enter and when you leave
Do not accept a car lift from anyone who is not in your household.
NEIGHBOURING CHURCHES
Only one church will be opening in Southport, Preston and Chorley, as follows:-
Southport – St Marie’s, Seabank Road, Southport PR9 0EJ Tel. 01704 531229 http://www.stmariessouthport.org.uk
• Opening times are Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 10am to 12noon
Preston – St Clare’s, Sharoe Green Lane, Fulwood PR2 9HH Tel. 01772 719604 www.saintclares.co.uk
• Opening times are Monday to Friday 4.30pm to 6.30pm, Saturday 11am to 1pm and Sunday 2pm to 4pm
Chorley – St Mary’s, Mount Pleasant, Chorley PR7 2SR Tel. 01257 262357 www.stmarys-chorley.org.uk
• Opening times are Mondays to Saturdays, from 11am to 1pm
Please note that the same conditions apply to visits to any church during this period, as we slowly ease out of lockdown.
Should the infection rate (R rate) show signs of increasing then the churches will have to be closed again.
THIS WEEK’S GOSPEL REFLECTION – FEAST OF SS PETER & PAUL
“Who do people say that I am?” How often in life have you found yourself saying reassuringly to someone, “Just be yourself – you’ll be fine!” How often have you had that self-same thing said to you, “Just be yourself!” Have you ever come away from such an encounter wondering, “What does it actually mean?”
After all, short of a talented acting ability or a propensity for pretence, who can I be except myself? So what is meant by, “Just be yourself”.
The question was clearly hanging around, even for Jesus. First he wanted to know what people thought of the Son of Man, asked in the third person. Then it changed: that was not at the heart of what he wanted to hear. So his next question is asked in the first and second person: “But you, who do you think I am?” It becomes more personal, more intimate and much more important to him. It is addressed to his closest friends, those with whom he has come to share all that he has learnt from his Father, those whom he loves. It is Peter who speaks up on behalf of them all: “You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God”. What a moment for them both! Jesus’s gradual realisation of who he was has been passed on. It has been revealed not only to himself but now to Peter and hopefully to the other disciples. His Father has spoken. And for this declaration of faith Peter is greatly rewarded. Whether he returns the question to Jesus, “Who do you say I am, Jesus?” or not, he gets his answer. “Be yourself” addressed to Peter now means, “Be Peter, the rock on which I will build my Church ….”
There we have it, in that moment of shared identity as it were: Peter the fisherman; Peter the man who had second thoughts about walking on water; Peter who is to betray his best friend when he needs him most and go on to doubt whether anything is going to become of it all after the resurrection – so he will just go back to the fishing; that Peter is now chosen to be the rock on which the Church would be built. “Simon, Son of Jonah. You are a happy man! Because it was not flesh and blood that revealed this to you but my Father in Heaven.”
Jesus’ mission is drawing to its completion: it is time to hand it on. They know who he is: they are the friends to whom he has entrusted his identity and the message given to him by the Father. He is the Christ, Son of the Living God.
And Peter? Peter is the far from perfect but very loving man with an ordinary job, to whom is given at that moment a most extraordinary mission: “You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church and I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven”, a mission which has in time affected the lives of us all.
Sr Kathleen McGhee SND
READINGS FOR 28 JUNE – SS PETER & PAUL
1st Reading: Acts of Apostles 12:1-11 Now I know the Lord really did save me from Herod
Psalm 33 – From all my terrors the Lord set me free
2nd Reading: 2nd Letter of St Paul to Timothy 4:6-8,17-18 – All there is to come now is the crown of righteousness reserved for me.
Gospel: Matthew 16:13-19 – You are Peter and I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven
Gospel acclamation: Alleluia, alleluia! You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church. And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it. Alleluia!
Communion antiphon: Peter said to Jesus: You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus replied: You are Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church.
THE ACT OF SPIRITUAL COMMUNION
My Jesus, I believe that you are present in the Most Holy Sacrament.
I love you above all things, and I desire to receive you into my soul.
Since I cannot at this moment receive you sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart.
I embrace you as if you were already there and unite myself wholly to you.
Never permit me to be separated from you. Amen.
HOW TO MAKE YOUR OFFERTORY DONATIONS DURING THE LOCKDOWN
Instead of putting money in offertory envelopes each week, those who are able to make an offering are asked to either:
• Write a monthly cheque and post to the presbytery with a covering letter
• Contact the office (by phone or email) to request a Standing Order mandate for your bank
• Make your offertory donation online or by text – please see the May newsletters for information on this.
Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you would like to discuss this further.
MASSES ONLINE
Locally, there is St Clare’s, Sharoe Green Lane, Fulwood: www.saintclares.co.uk which streams Mass daily at 10am. Please follow the easy links on the website.
https://www.vaticannews.va/en Pope Francis
https://www.churchservices.tv/whats-on-now/ Great selection of Masses and other Church services https://www.lourdes-france.org/en/tv-lourdes/ Mass and daily at 2pm, the Rosary in English
https://www.livemass.org Extraordinary Form (1962 Missal)
Use the website links to EWTN, those who have Sky can tune in on channel 588, or the Archdiocese to access daily Masses
On the radio: Catholic Radio Channel 0147
Also, you may wish to try the Pray as you Go phone app: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=pl.foxcode.prayasyougo&hl=en
PRAYERS from the Archdiocese, for Stations of the Cross etc: https://www.liverpoolcatholicresources.com/
Please email the Parish Office with details of any other online services you know of that may help parishioners at this very difficult time. We will try to include them in next week’s Newsletter.
FEAST DAYS THIS COMING WEEK 3 July – St Thomas, Apostle: he is thought to have taken the gospel to India, where he was martyred near Madras
4 July – St Elizabeth of Portugal (1271-1336): a devoted wife and mother, she married the King of Portugal at the age of 12 and bore him two children. She founded a hospital and house of Poor Clares at Coimbra.
USEFUL CONTACTS: GETTING HELP – WEST LANCS PARTNERSHIP Please see the May newsletters
THE ARCHDIOCESE ALSO RECOMMENDS THE FOLLOWING HELP LINES Please see the May newsletters
NEWS ITEMS FEATURED IN THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSE & TIMES THIS WEEK
• Cardinal Nichols’ response to the news of the opening of churches
• Bishops of Southwark have told young people in catholic schools that there is ‘no place for racism’.
• CAFOD, SCIAF and other faith-based international development agencies have joined forces to condemn the Prime Minister’s decision to merge the Dept for International Development with the Foreign & Commonwealth Office.
• Footballer Marcus Rashford’s free school meal campaign will still not be enough to end child hunger, claims Caritas Westminster. This comes as evidence emerges that around two-thirds of households receiving Universal Credit have been forced in to debt during the Lockdown.
• Laudate Si must inspire building a better world – environmentally and ecologically
• Chris McDonnell’s Journey of Faith – ‘Give me a hand, will you?’ – the significance and symbolism of our (helping) hands
• Fr Francis Marsden on Ss Peter & Paul – the patrons of Rome
• Beatification of Italian teenager Caro Acutis (died aged 15 in 2006) in October
• Five minutes with actor Nigel Havers
• The best plants to sow and grow this summer
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IF YOU HAVE ANY QUERIES OR NEED ANY HELP, PLEASE CONTACT FR ANDERS AT THE PRESBYTERY IN TARLETON ON 01772 812242, OR EMAIL EITHER OFFICE.
WITH EVERY BLESSING FOR THE COMING WEEK