PRIESTS OF THE PARISH
Rev John Doherty PP Tel: 028 7188 2274
Rev Paul Farren Tel: 028 7188 3247

Sunday, 1st November 2009

All Saints.

Jesus said to his disciples and to the crowd: "How happy are the poor in spirit; theirs is the kingdom of heaven." The Beatitudes are given to us as the way of life for all Christians and for anyone who wants to live life to the full. To be poor in spirit does not mean that we think that we are no good. At times this is how it is passed on to us. It does mean to be in touch with the wonders of who we are, how good we are, but to know that all of that is gift, not possession. We have so much and yet we either take it for granted or we are only aware of what we don't have. This week is a call to be in touch with our richness and be filled with gratitude and gladness. How important this is for every married couple if they are to live their marriage fully. It is also very important for families to rejoice in each other. And our faith community is so full of the goodness of people and richness of Christ. To be a saint is to be a person of gratitude.

Fr. Johnny Doherty, C.Ss.R.

Sunday, 1st November 2009

All Saints

First Reading Apocalypse 7: 2-4, 9-14
I saw a huge Number, impossible to count, of people from every nation, race, tribe and language.

Second Reading 1 John 3: 1-3
Think of the love that the Father has lavished on us, by letting us be called God’s children.

Gospel Matthew 5: 1-12
Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.

Feast of All Saints

The Saints, Our Deceased and Us

‘She has her mother’s eyes.’ ‘He is the spitting image of his father.’ From birth until death, we talk endlessly about family resemblances. We carry within us the traits of our ancestors.

There are other characteristics. We’ll say; ‘He has the patience of Job’, ‘I wish I had my grandmother’s faith’, ‘She is a saint for doing that’, ‘He’s a prayerful person’. These qualities and traits come from our spiritual ancestors, our deceased and the saints. They share with us the common bond of God’s image.
We also share the common bond of our baptism. In our Christian Catholic Tradition, we believe that on the day of our baptism the very life of God came to dwell within us, not just for one or ten or one hundred years, but forever. We also believe that at that very moment we became members of God’s family. So, in baptism, like the first creation, we are linked together, living and dead.

Our baptism calls us to model our lives on the life and message of Jesus left to us in the gospels. Each of us too leaves a story for others to tell. We look back for inspiration to the stories of the saints and apostles from the early Church.
As we celebrate the feasts of All Saints and All Souls, we might ask ourselves what we will leave behind? What will people remember of our lives? How will we mirror the very life, image, and likeness of God that we see reflected in our deceased and saints of the Church?

Last week’s Collection amounted to £2,257.00.

Many thanks.

Commemoration of all the Faithful Departed

Monday 2nd November is the Feast of All Souls.

Masses as follows:

Sacred Heart Church: 10.00am and 7.30pm

St. Mary’s, Cloughcor: 7.00pm

St. Joseph’s, Glenmornan: 8.00pm

Services for the Dead

Services for the Dead will take place as follows:

Sunday 1st November:
St. Joseph’s Church, Glenmornan at 3.00pm

Sunday 1st November:
St. Mary’s Church, Cloughcor at 4.00pm

Sunday 1st November:
Sacred Heart Church at 5.00pm

NI Blood Transfusion Service

A team from the NI Blood Transfusion Service will be collecting blood donations in St. Patrick’s Hall, Strabane on Wednesday 4th November from 1.30pm until 4.00pm and again from 5.15pm until 8.00pm. In order to maintain the vital supply of blood to our hospitals, we need the support not only of existing donors, but also of new donors. Please come along – you could save a life!

The next Pioneer Meeting

will take place tomorrow [Monday] at 8.00pm, followed

directly by a meeting of the St. Vincent de Paul Society.

Padre Pio Devotions

Padre Pio devotions will take place in the Immaculate Conception Church, Strabane on Wednesday 4th November with the Rosary at 6.45pm followed by Mass at 7.00pm.

IOSAS

Island of Saints & Scholars Centre

Located at Lenamore Road, Derryvane, Muff, Co. Donegal it contains a Celtic Garden, Café, Retail Outlet, Garden Centre and Workspace for groups [including schools]. Telephone [00 35374] 938 4866 or log on at www.columbacommunity.com

A Truly Generous Gift to the Sick

Last weekend the sick and housebound people of our parish had for the first time the opportunity of listening to one of our parish Masses on their special radios. As was to be expected, there were a few problems, but we hope to have these ironed out very soon. All the equipment, including the radios, have been donated to the parish by the CK 23 – the local council of the Knights of St. Columbanus. On behalf of all our sick and housebound people, we would like to express our deep gratitude to the Knights for this most generous gift. We hope that it will provide many spiritual benefits to those who find it difficult to be physically present at Mass.

A Prayer for the Dead
We seem to give them back to you,
O God, who gave them to us.
Yet you did not lose them in giving,
so we do not lose them by their return.
Not as the world gives, do we give, lover of souls.
And life is eternal and love is immortal,
and death is only the horizon,
and the horizon is nothing,
but the limits of our sight.