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

Sunday, 23rd May 2010

Pentecost Sunday

Jesus said to his disciples: “I shall ask the Father and he will give you another Advocate to be with you forever.” As we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Church it is good to ask the questions: How do we let the Spirit be actively present? and, How do we exclude the Spirit? We should ask these questions in the two contexts of our homes and our faith community. The Spirit is present when we are at peace with one another; the Spirit is absent when we are divided. The Spirit is present when we are living in joy; the Spirit is absent when we are settling for dullness. The Spirit is present when we are being creative and changing; the Spirit is absent when we are trying to keep things the way they always were. The Spirit is present especially when we are building relationships of love in our homes and parish.

Fr. Johnny Doherty, C.Ss.R.

Sunday, 23rd May 2010

Pentecost Sunday

First Reading : Acts of the Apostles 2: 1-11
The Holy Spirit descends upon the apostles.

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 12: 3-7
There is a variety of gifts but always the same Spirit.

Gospel: John 20: 19-23
As the Father sent me, so am I sending you: receive the Holy Spirit.

Pentecost Sunday

A New Language

On Pentecost day the apostles spoke a new language.
What was this language?
It was the language of peace rather than of war;
the language of co-operation rather than of competition;
the language of forgiveness rather than of vengeance;
the language of hope rather than of despair;
the language of tolerance rather than of bigotry;
the language of friendship rather than of hostility;
The language of unity rather than of division;
the language of love rather than of hate.
Through the gift of the Spirit,
people of different languages learned to profess one faith,
to the praise and glory of God.
That is the real miracle of Pentecost,
and it is a miracle which, thankfully, still happens.

Last week’s Collection was £1,453.00.

Many thanks.

The Pledge

Today, Pentecost Sunday, recalls the occasion when the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles and gave them courage to preach the gospel to the ends of the earth. On Thursday 13th May the Holy Spirit came upon fifty children as they received the sacrament of Confirmation in the Sacred Heart Church and offered them his guidance and strength to live as committed followers of Jesus.
This weekend we are offering these young people an opportunity to make a promise to God that they will avoid alcohol until at least eighteen years of age, and also to abstain from illegal drugs for the rest of their lives. If other young people wish to renew their pledge they too are being given the opportunity to do so.

We pray that the Holy Spirit will guide our children as they make one of the most important decisions in their young lives.

The Sick and Housebound

The sick and housebound will be attended on Tuesday morning and afternoon.

Fostering Information Session
A fostering information session will take place in Drummond Hotel, Ballykelly on Tuesday 25th May from 7.30pm until 9.30pm.

Hearing Aid Clinic
A Hearing Aid Clinic will take place in Ballycolman Community Hall on the last Thursday of every month from 10.00am until 12noon. Battery replacements and hearing aid repairs will be carried out. Everyone is welcome. Telephone [028] 71320132 for further information.

First Holy Communion

Congratulations to the children from
St. Mary’s, Cloughcor and St. Joseph’s, Glenmornan who are receiving Holy Communion for the first time this weekend. First Holy Communion for the children of Strabane Primary School will take place in the Sacred Heart Church next Saturday 29th May at 11.00am.

Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes
July 16th – 21st 2010
The Pilgrimage welcomes general pilgrims but also provides particular support to those who might need care/assistance while in Lourdes. For further details please contact the Pilgrimage Office [028] 71260293.

The Lourdes Hospitalité Collection
The Lourdes Hospitalité Fund is very dependent on the monies raised from this one collection on 29th/30th May, to support people who are sick and in need of medical care. Thank you for having generously supported us in the past. We hope that we can rely on your support this year again.

Pastoral Youth Ministry Leader

The parishes of St Eugene’s Cathedral, St Mary’s Creggan, and Holy Family in Derry City are embarking on an exciting new project. Investing in our young people, we are looking to employ an enthusiastic person to lead and direct youth in the three parishes in the ways of faith. The Pastoral Youth Ministry Leader will be employed for a one year contract. The successful candidate must fulfil the following criteria:

- Be an active member of a Catholic Parish Faith Community

- Have experience of skilled leadership in a Youth Setting

- Have a third level qualification in a relevant discipline e.g. education, theology, youth work, community work OR One Year’s experience of Youth Project Management

- Be competent in the use of ICT

The Pastoral Youth Ministry Leader will be based within the parishes of St. Eugene’s Cathedral, St. Mary’s Creggan and Holy Family in Derry City.

The above criteria may be enhanced to facilitate short listing of candidates.

Application Form, Job Description and Personnel Specification may be obtained by telephoning [028] 71264087 during normal office hours and completed applications must be returned to: Derry Diocesan Youth Commission, Derry Diocesan Catechetical Centre, The Gate Lodge, 2 Francis Street, Derry, BT48 7DS not later than 5.00pm on 3rd June 2010.

The following are asked to assist as collectors and church cleaners during the month of May:

SACRED HEART CHURCH:

Collectors:
Saturday 7.00pm:-
Manus McLaughlin, Liam Ward,
Lawrence Doherty and Tony McDaid.
Sunday 11.30am:-
Denis Hegarty

Cleaners: Team F

ST. MARY’S CHURCH, CLOUGHCOR:

Collectors:

Noel McDaid and Brian Farrell.

Altar Society & Cleaners:
Mary Devine, Ita Devine and Alicia Devine.

ST. JOSEPH’S CHURCH, GLENMORNAN

Collectors: –

Altar Society: Nellie Doherty, Margaret Harte and Kathleen Kelly.

Our thanks are due to all who served the parish in any way during the month of April.

Reflection

It can happen that we lose interest in people,
and even become blind to their strengths,
when we discover their limitations.
During his passion Jesus discovered the limitations of Peter.
Yet he didn’t write him off.
He continued to believe in him,
and in time he came good.
Like Peter, we are weak human beings,
who are inconstant in our beliefs.
We need someone who understands our weaknesses,
who realises that it may take time for us to overcome them,
and who doesn’t write us off because
we don’t produce the goods at once.