Pentecost Sunday, 28th May, 2023, Cycle A
St John the Evangelist
128 Bebington Road, New Ferry, CH62 5BJ
Diocese of Shrewsbury (reg. charity 234025)
Parish Priest: Fr Mario Ashuikeka and Fr Emmanuel Chukwujekwu
Deacon: Revd Michael Daly Phone: 0151 645 3314
Email stjohntheevangelist@gmail.com Websites http://www.stjohntheevangelistnewferry.com
Pentecost Sunday 28th May, 2023, Cycle A
FAITH IN FOCUS: A SPIRITED PERFORMANCE
An incident that took place in a concert hall some years ago tells us much about the role of the Holy Spirit that came upon the Church on that first Pentecost Day.
A small boy was taking weekly piano lessons. His mother decided that to encourage him in his musical hobby she would take him to a concert. The opportunity presented itself when the great Polish pianist and composer, Ignacy Paderewski, was giving a concert in QA the local auditorium.
The mother bought tickets close to the front. But a couple of minutes before the concert was due to start she spotted a friend a few rows away and went to speak to her, telling the boy to stay in his seat. However, the boy wandered off and went through a door marked "No Admittance".
As the house lights dimmed she rushed back to her seat, and as the curtains were raised she saw her son on the stage sitting at the grand piano. He was playing "Twinkle, twinkle, little star". The audience waited in amazement as Paderewski came up behind him onto the stage.
He whispered in the boy's ear, "Keep playing". As the boy carried on Paderewski started to fill in with his left hand and the piece suddenly came to life. Then he stretched his right hand over the boy's shoulders to the top of the keyboard and began putting in a wonderful series of variations and improvisations that had the audience enthralled. The piece lasted five minutes and was greeted at the end by a standing ovation.
No matter how ordinary our actions and efforts are, the Spirit can transform them. By ourselves we are limited, but with God all things are possible. The Spirit has never left the Church since that first Whitsun outpouring. We possess the Spirit through our baptism and confirmation, and Pentecost is a reminder that if we call in prayer upon God's Spirit then our actions too can be transformed and we can be inspired to a greatness that is beyond our merely human strength. The Spirit can make music with us, but he needs our "Twinkle, twinkle, little star".
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ENTRANCE ANTIPHON: The love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Spirit of God dwelling within us, alleluia.
RESPONSE TO THE PSALM: Send forth your Spirit, O Lord, and renew the face of the earth.
GOSPEL ACCLAIMATION: Alleluia, Alleluia! Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, and kindle in them the fire of your love. Alleluia!
COMMUNION ANTIPHON: They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke of the marvels of God, alleluia.
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Fan the flames: Special Pentecost Service of Anointing: Sunday 28th May @ 3 pm here at St John’s. Spirit of the Living God fall 'afresh' on us.
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Wednesday we celebrate the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Thursday we celebrate our Lord Jesus Christ the Eternal High Priest.
Devotions/Adoration: Saturday Morning Devotions will be prayed in Church (the Rosary, Divine Mercy and Divine Praises) from 10:30am-11:30am. Fr Mario will be available for the Sacrament of Reconciliation between 10.30 and 11.00am. All most welcome.
If you have any queries or ideas, continue to contact Deacon Mike Daly on 07542463319 or Carol Dalziel on 07808975011 on any Parish matters, or if you wish to arrange a Baptism, Wedding or Funeral. Also use the box at the back of church for your suggestions.
Mike Daly’s Homilies are available on the Parish Website. Log in details are www.stjohntheevangelistnewferry.com
Mass Intentions If you would like to have a Mass said for your own or someone else’s intentions please fill in one of the Mass offering envelopes at the back of Church, place a donation in it & put it through the presbytery letterbox. Thank you.
Please continue to keep all of our sick parishioners in your thoughts and prayers.
Children's Liturgy – is during the 9.30am Mass, all are most welcome.
In Memoriam- Please continue to pray for the soul of Annrita (Ann) Gemmell whose Funeral Mass will be held here this Friday at 9.30am followed by cremation at Landican at 11.00am. Please also pray for June Carr who died recently. June’s Funeral Service will be here at St John’s on 8th June at 11.30am followed by cremation at Landican at 12.30pm. It is also with great sadness we hear of the death of Graham Sabino who died on Tuesday. Funeral details to follow. Please keep Cecily and her family in your prayers and also the families of Annrita and June and all the faithful departed. May they rest in the peace of Christ.
Last Weeks’ Offertory Collection amounted to £635.41p. Collections taken at 1st Communion Masses amounted to £587.22p. Special collection for the Holy Family Sisters of the Needy recently raised £468. Thank you for your generosity in these difficult times.
Wirral Foodbank Appeal: Please help support your Foodbank with food and funds. All donations need to be non-perishable, please refer to the list on the notice board of items urgently needed. Please continue to support this as much as you can in these difficult times.
Altar-Servers - Please encourage any child who has made their First Holy Communion to consider becoming an Altar-Server. Please give names to Mike Daly, who will arrange for their training and support.
MASS SCHEDULE FOR THURSDAYS IN MAY & JUNE: Below are the changes to the Thursday evening Mass schedule for May and June.
Thursday 01/06: 7pm Mass at both churches
Thursday 08/06: 7pm Mass at St John’s only
Thursday 15/06: 7pm Mass at both churches
Thursday 22/06: 7pm Mass at St Anne’s only
Thursday 29/06: 7pm Mass at both churches
HEALTH AND SAFETY: It is a requirement for all parish groups, using the presbytery and day chapel for meetings, to sign in upon entry to the presbytery and sign out when leaving. The book is located on the hall stand next to the office door. Thankyou.
Confirmation 2023 for St John’s and St Anne’s will be held at St John’s on Wednesday the 22nd November at 7.00pm. Will all candidates in Years 9 and above (or their parents) please contact Mike Daly as soon as possible to record their interest.
Divine Mercy Pilgrimage to Krakow, Poland 11th to 15th September & led by Fr Mario. Guided tour to Divine Mercy Chapel, John Paul II Centre, Marian shrine Czestochowa, Wawel Cathedral & Bishop’s Palace. Flying from Manchester. 5 days and includes bed, breakfast & evening meal. £585 per person sharing or £685 for single room. If interested please see Fr Mario or telephone Maria on 07576243343
Message from Barbara Davies about a podcast on Lumen Gentium-The relevant podcast and handout are now available on the diocesan website at dioceseofshrewsbury.org in the section on 'News and Events'. A leaflet outlining the content of all of the podcasts is available in the parish. If you have difficulty accessing this material or have questions and reflections, please don’t hesitate to contact Barbara via E: barbara.davies@dioceseofshrewsbury.org or T: 07730 526821.
World Communications Day. This collection will take place at St John’s on the weekend of 3/4th June.
Stella Maris - Sea Sunday 9th July Supporters are crucial tour work. Have you considered helping us by volunteering in your Parish for Sea Sunday? It is also a day once a year when we ask for donations from church organisations to ensure that we can continue our work. If you, or a friend or family member would like to find out more about how you can help on Sea Sunday, Contact roland.hayes@stellamarismail.org or call me on 07887893763. With every blessing, Roland Hayes.
Love the Stranger: In light of the challenges we face in the UK, advocating for the dignity of refugees and migrants amidst a hostile environment, the Caritas Social Action Network (CSAN) which Caritas Shrewsbury is a member of, welcomes the teaching document Love the Stranger from the Department of International Affairs at the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales (CBCEW). The document speaks into this contested space and reinforces Catholic social teaching, offering guidance on a Catholic response to refugees and migrants. ‘Love the Stranger’ places the human being at the heart of our pastoral outreach, looking beyond statistics and policies to the person – each with a name, a face and a story. The document offers 24 guiding principles and has been endorsed by the Holy See, COMECE, CAFOD, CSAN and Caritas Social Action Network members. You can download Love the Stranger at
https://www.cbcew.org.uk/love-the-stranger/
Caritas Shrewsbury as part of CSAN want to encourage all Catholics to reflect upon Love the Stranger and have been part of compiling an accompanying call-to-action as a toolkit to inform and assist the community as we aim to fulfil our obligation to love the stranger in the way that God intends. You can download the call to action at www.csan.org.uk/love-the-stranger-call-to-action/ and we are keen to support the use of call to action use in parishes. Please email ben.gilchrist@caritasshrewsbury.org.uk with your ideas and for more information.
Thank you to everyone who supported the parish social on 9th May to celebrate the Kings coronation. This was the first of many joint social events for the 3 parishes. The afternoon was a resounding success and everyone thoroughly enjoyed it! We are pleased to announce that we raised £598 at this event. We are going to donate this to a charity called Laughter Africa who are an organisation working with street children in Sierra Leone.
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Saturday 27th 10.30am Devotions – Rosary, Divine Mercy & Divine Praises
5.00pm In honour of St John
Pentecost Sunday 28th 9.30am Stephen Nolan RIP
11.00am Golden Wedding Anniversary of the parents of Helen Mosley (St Luke’s)
7.30pm Prayer Meeting
Monday 29th 9.15am For all Mothers
Tuesday 30th 9.15am Peggy McAllister RIP
Wednesday 31st 9.15am For families who are apart
Thursday 1st 7.00pm For the lonely and vulnerable
Friday 2nd 9.30am For World Peace
Saturday 3rd 10.30am Devotions – Rosary, Divine Mercy & Divine Praises
5.00pm Rev Gerry Heaney
The Most Holy Trinity 4th 9.30am Mary Whitty RIP
11.00am Catherine Moscrop RIP (St Luke’s)
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 and quiet devotion.
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ST ANNE’S WEEKLY MASS INTENTIONS
Saturday 27th 6.30pm All parishioners of our 3 parishes and young people
Pentecost Sunday 28th 11.15am Love Pervova RIP
Monday 29th 12 Noon Mary Whitty
Tuesday 30th 12 Noon Harry Lund RIP
Wednesday 31st 12 Noon Ints Margaret Ramsey
Thursday 1st 7.00pm People suffering from Mental Illness.
Friday 2nd 12 Noon Paul Healy RIP
Saturday 3rd 6.30pm Sr. Teresa Quinn RIP
The Most Holy Trinity 4th 11.15am Mary Petris RIP
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Sunday Special Day of Prayer for the Church
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VISITATION (May 31st) The Church commemorates Mary's Visitation to St Elizabeth on the last day of May. Our gaze pauses on the Blessed Virgin, wondrous Ark of the Covenant, who brought into the world Jesus Christ, the new and eternal Covenant between God and humanity. She is presented to the eyes of believers as a wonderful monstrance of the Body of Christ, conceived in her by the power of the Holy Spirit. Our thoughts turn to the moment of the Incarnation when the Word, on coming into the world, offers the Father his own humanity taken from Mary: "Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body have you prepared for me.... Then I said: 'Lo, I have come to do your will, O God'" (Heb 10:5-7). Christ's oblation in the Incarnation was to be crowned in the paschal mystery, of which the Eucharist is the everlasting memorial.
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