Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, 11th August, 2024. Cycle B
St John the Evangelist
128 Bebington Road,
New Ferry, CH62 5BJ
Diocese of Shrewsbury (reg. charity 234025)
Parish Priest: Fr Mario Ashuikeka
Deacon: Revd Michael Daly Phone: 0151 645 3314
Email stjohntheevangelist@gmail.com Websites http://www.stjohntheevangelistnewferry.com
Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, 11th August, 2024. Cycle B
FAITH IN FOCUS: INDIGESTION?
You’d think, wouldn’t you, that after performing the miracle of the loaves and fishes, Jesus would have been fairly confident about getting the crowd to believe what he was teaching? Such a huge-scale miracle would surely have set tongues wagging and he would have been on a shoe-in when it came to street credibility. Yet moments after eating the food, the crowd start questioning Jesus’ status. We know who he is, so how can he claim to have come down with food from heaven? More is to follow in the next few Sundays as they go off and abandon him. They may have had their fill but indigestion has set in.
Jesus has strong words for the crowd. He tells them to stop moaning and he accuses them of missing the whole point of his teaching because they are more concerned about the free meal than about its meaning.
What Jesus told them, and is telling us today, is that the food which he offers is a food that will satisfy at the deepest possible level. His teaching is no passing fad that will be popular for a few years and then pass into history; it is the message of eternal life. It is what we need if we are to stop merely breathing and start the business of living. It’s the difference between mere existence and glorious life. Your fathers ate manna in the desert, he tells the crowd, and they are now dead. But if you eat my flesh then you will live for ever. Yes, you will suffer human death but you will transcend it.
Christians believe that this invitation involves a number of things. Clearly it refers to eating and drinking at the Eucharist. By so doing we unite ourselves to Christ and we form a body of believers sharing communion among each other. We become what we eat: the Body of Christ. We sign on the dotted line to be like Christ to others as members of his Church on earth. But first we have to make sure we have received the message of Jesus that comes from his word. Our sharing communion, our accepting to eat and drink the food of life, means first listening to the scriptures. Only when we are formed by the word of God are we ready to eat and drink. Like the crowd in today’s gospel, if we rush straight in to the meal, we may end up full. And that’s when the indigestion starts.
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ENTRANCE ANTIPHON: Look to your covenant, O Lord, and forget not the life of your poor ones for ever. Arise, O God, and defend your cause, and forget not the cries of those who seek you.
RESPONSE TO THE PSALM: Taste and see that the Lord is good.
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION: Alleluia, alleluia! I am the living bread which has come down from heaven, says the Lord. Anyone who eats this bread will live for ever. Alleluia!
COMMUNION ANTIPHON: O Jerusalem, glorify the Lord, who gives you your fill of finest wheat.
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PLEASE NOTE: Fr Mario will be away throughout August until the first week of September. Some of the priests who help us will also be on holiday. As a result, Weekend Masses will remain the same, but Weekday Masses will be as follows:
St Anne’s: Every Wednesday at 12noon
St John’s: Every Friday at 9:15am.
Assumption Mass will be at St Anne’s Church, 7pm.
Devotions/Adoration: Saturday Morning Devotions will be prayed in Church (the Rosary, Divine Mercy & Divine Praises) from 10:30am-11:30am. There will be no Confessions during August.
Last Weeks’ Offertory Collection: amounted to £745.40p. Many thanks for your continued support.
A Big Thank You for the generous donation received last week which was dropped through the Presbytery letterbox.
If you have any queries regarding parish matters or if you wish to arrange a Baptism, Wedding or Funeral please contact Fr Mario on 0151-645 3996. You can also get in touch with Carol Dalziel on 07808975011 or Ann Murray on 07745490279 regarding general parish queries.
SJE’s Parish Safeguarding Officer is Celia Daly, who can be contacted on 0151-645 9256 on all safeguarding matters.
Mass Intentions If you would like to have a Mass said for your own or someone else’s intentions , fill in one of the Mass offering envelopes at the back of Church, place a donation in it & put it through the Presbytery letterbox. Please give at least three weeks’ notice as we are receiving a large number of requests for particular dates and days.
Due to the reduction in weekly Masses throughout August, it will not be possible to celebrate Mass on a number of dates requested and the intentions will be placed as near as possible to those dates. I hope you will understand. Many thanks. Ann
In Memoriam: Please pray all the faithful departed that they may rest in the peace of Christ.
Children's Liturgy – takes place during the 9.30am Mass. All are most welcome.
Sunday Morning Teas continue on the first Sunday of each month. Come along for tea/coffee & biscuits whilst enjoying a chat. There will be no teas in August. SUNDAY 1st SEPTEMBER is the next date. There will also be a plant and book sale during SEPTEMBER morning teas. All proceeds towards Parish funds.
Wirral Foodbank Appeal: Please help to support our local Foodbank as much as you can with both food & funds. All items urgently needed are listed on the notice board at the back of church. Thank you.
Other Social Activities: We would like some volunteers to join our group to help to arrange various social activities this year. Please ring/text Diane Baylis on 07946916338.
Confirmation 2024 for St John’s & St Anne’s will be held at St Anne’s on Wednesday 27th November at 7.00pm. We would like to invite all young people in Year 7 and above for the Sacrament of Confirmation. Preparation will begin in September. Please speak to Fr Mario and/or contact St John's by email stjohntheevangelist@gmail.com if you would like to receive this special Sacrament.
Face book: St John’s now has a new Face book page which will advertise Mass times & information on various church events. Please ‘like,’ follow & share to make this page more widely known & relevant. To find our page, search on Facebook for St John the Evangelist New Ferry
St John's Altar Servers: We are looking for some more altar servers for our Masses & special occasions. Any boy or girl who has made their First Holy Communion is eligible to become an altar server. If interested, please have a word with Fr Mario or make contact through the parish email stjohntheevangelist@gmail.com Parents, grandparents & parishioners -please encourage our young people to become involved in this important ministry.
Walking Shrewsbury Diocese - Fundraising for SVP Holiday Homes and Youth Camps. Kate Birkenhead (SVP Officer for the Shrewsbury Diocese) and her partner Colin will be walking the whole of the Shrewsbury Diocese: 200 plus miles from New Brighton on The Wirral to Ludlow in South Shropshire, via South Manchester, raising money for our local St Vincent De Paul Society Children’s Camps and Holiday homes. They will take 2 weeks in July/August to complete the walk. All money raised will go towards funding these vital initiatives. https://giving.give-star.com/online/saint-vincent-de-paul-society-england-and-wales/kate-and-colin-are-walking-the-length-and-breadth-of-shrewsbury-diocese
Pilgrim’s Progress to Rome, an eight-day trek in Autumn 2025, is a charity fundraising challenge organised by the charity Life. Life supports women in unexpected and crisis pregnancies and those women experiencing pregnancy loss. Life are calling all those with “an adventurous spirit and a compassionate heart”, to email emilytraynor@lifecharity.org.uk to receive more information.
Caritas Shrewsbury, as a part of Citizens UK, want to share this volunteering opportunity. As well as contacting Citizens about the below please do let Caritas know if they can support you in considering this work. Please consider sharing this in your newsletters and online. Join Us in Welcoming Afghan Families to Safety This Year. Imagine the joy of helping Afghan families find safety and hope. We need your help to make it happen. Right now, 100 Afghan families eligible for resettlement are stuck in limbo but with your help, we can bring them to safety by the end of this year. The UK Government has tasked Citizens UK to find 20 more community sponsorship volunteer groups, supported with funding and Citizens staff, to lead the way in welcoming refugee families into their communities. We’re not asking for money or donations, but rather volunteers who are willing to help these families when they arrive. visit: https://www.sponsorrefugees.org/get-involved/communities-for-afghans/
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Saturday 10th 10.30am Devotions – Rosary, Divine Mercy & Divine Praises
5.00pm St John’s & St Luke’s Parishioners
Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time 11th 9.30am Jim & Nora McCaffery Rem RIP
3.00pm Benediction
7.30pm Prayer Meeting
Monday 12th NO MASS TODAY
Tuesday 13th NO MASS TODAY
Wednesday 14th NO MASS TODAY
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary 15th 7.00pm MASS AT ST ANNE’S ONLY
Friday 16th 9.15am MASS AT ST JOHN’S ONLY
Vera Brockway Annv. RIP
Saturday 17th 10.30am Devotions – Rosary, Divine Mercy & Divine Praises
5.00pm John Shaw B.day Rem RIP
Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time 18th 9.30am Pray for the Sick, Health Workers and Carers
7.30pm Prayer Meeting
Weekend Masses - Please note that the Blessed Sacrament will be exposed immediately before each Mass. Please use this as a time for prayer & quiet devotion. Please enter the church quietly & remain so. Thank you.
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ST ANNE’S WEEKLY MASS INTENTIONS
Saturday 10th 6.30pm Wilfred White Annv.
Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time 11th 11.00am Deceased Members Petris Family
Monday 12th No Mass today
Tuesday 13th No Mass today
Wednesday 14th No Mass today
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary 15th 7.00pm MASS AT ST ANNE’S ONLY
Peace in our Country
Friday 16th No Mass today
Saturday 17th 6.30pm The Sick, health workers and carers.
Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time 18th 11.00am John & Rosan Walker Bday
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Pope Francis's Intentions for August
We pray that political leaders be at the service of their own people, working for integral human development and for the common good, especially caring for the poor and those who have lost their jobs.
