Your Parish Newsletter for Sunday 29th August 2021:
TWENTY-SECOND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME (YEAR B)
GOSPEL: ST MARK 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
‘Nothing that goes into a man from outside can make him unclean;
it is the things that come out of a man that make him unclean’.
The religion of the Pharisees and Scribes was bound up with rules, rituals and tradition. Today, some people may still look on religion as a ‘bind’ of rules, rituals and tradition. Jesus, however, taught that religion is not a matter of scrupulously keeping laws or adhering to external rituals, but a matter of acting from the heart, living in right relationship with God, with others, and with the created world. Jesus’ teachings remind us that God is not interested in how we appear to others: He is concerned with what is in our hearts. If our hearts are in the right place, we will seek and accept the will of God, and grow in relationship with Him.
The teachings of Jesus in Scripture provide values and boundaries that allow us to act from the heart, where our real encounter with God the Father takes place. We ask God today for the grace to hear His call and for our words and actions to reflect the message of the Gospel.
Mass Schedule for the Parish this Week:
For those who are unable to come out to church, all our Masses will continue to be available on our parish webcam, and our 11.00am Mass is also broadcast live each Sunday on Finn Valley Radio: 95.8FM
Thursday and Friday: Mass at 10.00am
I am on retreat on Monday Tuesday and Wednesday this week.
Saturday, Vigil Mass: 6.30pm Sunday: Masses at 9.00am and 11.00am
The Rosary will be recited Thursday and Friday at 9.40am, before Mass.
Everyone attending church is asked to wear a face covering, use the hand sanitiser that is available and maintain social distancing. Please enter the church by one of the back doors and leave by the side door that is closest to you. It is important that everyone attending feels safe and welcome in our church. The church continues to be ‘fogged’ and cleaned each day, after use. Thank you very much for your co-operation.
†
Denis Brown, late of The Diamond, Lifford
As a parish faith community, we offer our sympathy and our prayerful support to Bernie, to Dorina and Declan,
to Holly and Oisín, to Patsy, Mary, Billy and George and to the wider family circle and friends of Denis whose Funeral Mass took place in St Patrick’s on Tuesday.
May he rest in peace.
MASS INTENTION THIS WEEK:
Sunday 5 September, 9.00am: Harry Patton, Coneyburrow
ANNIVERSARIES:
Wilma Dolan, Cloughfin; Stephen McBrearty, The Common
May they rest in peace.
COLLECTION:
THANK YOU for your generosity to the collection in the last two weeks: 15 August – €1,842, 22 August – €2,026 . Please note: Envelopes / weekly contributions can be left in the baskets inside the doors any morning of the week at Mass time. For those unable to attend Mass, you can drop your envelope into the Parochial House letter box at any time.
Download our Standing Order Form here.
You can also request envelopes by simply clicking on this link: ‘Get in Touch‘ and then select Parish Envelopes from the drop-down menu.
SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION:
CONFIRMATION: I very much look forward to the celebration of the Sacrament of Confirmation next Saturday, 4 September. Please note the times: 10.30am for the children of Murlog NS and 1.30pm for the children of Cloughfin NS and Lifford NS. Each family will be allocated one full pew. The maximum number will be 8, which includes the child for Confirmation and also the sponsor (if the sponsor is not one of the parents). Please keep the children and their families in your prayers this week.
FIRST HOLY COMMUNION:
FIRST HOLY COMMUNION will be held on Saturday 11 September at: 10.30am for the children of Cloughfin NS and Lifford NS and at 1.30pm for the children of Murlog NS. Please keep the children and their families in your prayers.
MASTERS IN CATHOLIC SCHOOL LEADERSHIP:
The Derry Diocesan Catechetical Centre, working in Partnership with Saint Mary’s University, Twickenham, offers this post-graduate degree dedicated to the professional development and spiritual formation of Catholic school leaders. It is a great opportunity for those currently in leadership roles and those who aspire to, or have an interest in, leadership roles within the Catholic School system. Applications for the Autumn intake close 30th September 2021. Tel 004428 71264087 or email tferry@derrydiocese.org
SEASON OF CREATION: 1 SEPTEMBER – 4 OCTOBER (FEAST OF ST FRANCIS OF ASSISI)
THEME FOR 2021: RESTORING OUR COMMON HOME:
In 2015, Pope Francis established 1 September as annual World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation. The day is inspired by Pope Francis’ landmark encyclical, Laudato Si’, which calls on “every person living on this planet” to care for our shared Earth.
The Season of Creation, 1 September to 4 October (Feast of St. Francis of Assisi) alerts us to our duty to care for all of God’s creation and offers us an opportunity to renew and rethink our responsibility to our vocation as custodians of creation, through prayer, reflection and action. Visit www.catholicbishops.ie for further information and resources.
A PRAYER FOR OUR EARTH:
All-powerful God,
You are present in the whole universe and in the smallest of Your creatures.
You embrace with Your tenderness all that exists.
Pour upon us the power of Your love, that we may protect life and beauty.
Fill us with peace that we may live as brothers and sisters, harming no one.
O God of the poor, help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth,
so precious in Your eyes. Bring healing to our lives that we may protect the world,
that we may sow beauty, not pollution and destruction.
Touch the hearts of those who look only for gain at the expense of the poor and the earth.
Teach us to discover the worth of each thing, to be filled with awe and contemplation,
to recognise that we are profoundly united with every creature
as we journey towards Your infinite light.
We thank You for being with us each day.
Encourage us, we pray, in our struggle for justice, love and peace. Amen.
Back to school!
We pray God’s blessing on all our school children as they prepare to start the new school year this week. We trust that they are refreshed and looking forward to new beginnings, new learning and new friends. Conscious of all the disruption to school life since March 2020, we pray that this academic year will be free of such disruption and that school will be a safe and happy place of learning for all our children.
BACK TO SCHOOL PRAYER:
Lord God, as we begin this new school year,
we pray Your blessing on all who are part of our school community.
Bless and protect our children, their teachers and all the staff. Keep them safe.
Grant that may feel Your loving presence in the opportunities and challenges the year will present.
Guided by Your Holy Spirit, may the children enjoy learning new things.
Surrounded by good friends, may they treat each other with kindness, fairness, and respect.
With our trust in You, we place this school year in Your hands. Amen.
Please pray for one another and for our parish. Please pray the Parish Prayer.
PARISH PRAYER
God our Father,
pour forth Your Holy Spirit on our parish.
Guide us in Your ways, grant us Your vision. Be our wisdom.
Open our hearts and minds to Your Holy Word,
strengthen us with the Holy Eucharist,
our food for the journey.
Help us to be people of prayer,
trusting in Your constant presence
in the challenges that we face.
With Your help,
may our parish always be a place where
Your love is known, Your light shines
and our parish families grow together in faith and mission.
We ask this through Christ our Lord, Amen.
St Patrick, pray for us.
Next Sunday, 5 September, is the Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B). You can access the Readings on our parish website:
https://clonleighparish.com/sundays-mass-readings/
I hope that having the Readings available on our parish website is also helpful to our Scripture readers, for the purpose of checking them out in advance. The Daily Mass Readings are also on our website: https://clonleighparish.com/todays-mass-readings/ . Alternatively, just google Clonleigh Parish readings.
ONLINE CONTRIBUTIONS:
You can donate to the Church via The Parish Envelopes or by Standing Order. Download this easy to fill form: Standing Order Form – & send to or email the Parish Office: clonleighparish@derrydiocese.org
Parish Contact Details:
Parish Priest: Fr Colm O’Doherty Parochial House: 074-9142022
Mobile: 0833665530
Parish Office – Secretary: Lorna Porter @ 074-9142001
Email: clonleighparish@derrydiocese.org
Parish website: www.clonleighparish.com
Follow us on Twitter: @clonleighparish
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Join our free Clonleigh Parish Text Service on WhatsApp. We will text you when we update our website with the Parish Newsletter etc. And you can link in to read the latest updates.