Twenty Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, 6th October, 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
Twenty Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, 6th October, 2024. Cycle B
FAITH IN FOCUS: CHRISTIAN POLYGAMY?
The priest was giving out little wooden crosses to the people who had attended a service for married couples. “Put it in the room where you find yourself arguing, and it will remind you of your renewal of vows today.” One woman came up to him and said, “You’d better give me five.”
Marriage is probably the most complex of human relationships and is certainly the one on which civilisation has been founded over the centuries. It is the most natural thing in the world for men and women to leave the safety of the family home and branch out with another partner to restart the whole process of love, companionship and procreation.
But any married couple will tell you that if a marriage is to be successful then you have to get married to several different people! This is not a plea for divorce but for accepting that people change as they mature and that if a marriage is to be successful then both partners have to adapt to the changes in each other. In a certain sense each one has to keep “remarrying” the same person as he or she changes over the years. A Christian polygamy but with only one wife and one husband!
The young love of the courting couple is beautiful but unlikely to stand the test of time if one of them thinks that the other is going to behave in the same way when he or she is forty, sixty or eighty. If we refuse to allow each other to develop and grow then we are guilty of trying to “infantilise” the other person. We are trying to freeze them at a moment of time, the wedding day, and prevent them from ever developing and expanding the embryonic gifts and personality that God has given them.
All of this is just another way of saying that Christian marriage is not simply a state of life but is a sacrament. A wedding takes a day but a marriage takes a lifetime. The love between two Christians is a reflection of the love that God has for each of us and that Christ has for his bride, the Church. Being married means striving at all times to be signs to the world of God’s love through the way we love our partners. And that means “remarrying” them many times before we both grow old.
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ENTRANCE ANTIPHON: Within your will, O Lord, all things are established, and there is none that can resist your will. For you have made things, the heaven and the earth, and all that is held within the circle of heaven; you are the Lord of all.
RESPONSE TO THE PSALM: O blessed are those who fear in the Lord and walk in his ways.(repeat)
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION: Alleluia, alleluia! Your word is truth, O Lord, consecrate us in the truth. Alleluia!
COMMUNION ANTIPHON: The Lord is good to those who hope in him, to the soul that seeks him.
Weekly Evening Masses: will be celebrated at St Anne's and St John’s alternating each week on Wednesday evenings so there will be no Wednesday morning Mass.
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Devotions/Adoration: Saturday Morning Devotions will be prayed in Church (the Rosary, Divine Mercy & Divine Praises) from 10:30am-11:30am. Fr Mario will be available for the Sacrament of Reconciliation between 11.00am- 11.30am.
Last Weeks’ Offertory Collection: amounted to £439.42p. Many thanks for your continued support. A very big thank you to the anonymous donor of £500.
CAFOD Family Fast Day, : envelopes are available on the table at the back of church. (If you are a taxpayer, please complete the Gift Aid section). Envelopes can be returned up to and including 27th October. Poster on the back of the main church door with details.
Aid to the Church in Need: Please welcome Rachel Buckley who will be giving a short talk at both weekend Masses 5/6th October, and will bring along a selection of religious items for sale, which will be displayed on the table at the back of church.
Bookings for the reception & Celebration of Sacraments: Baptism, Holy Communion, Confirmation & Wedding, Please enquire & arrange for these through the parish emails / Secretaries of St. Anne’s & St. John’s. Also contact the Parish Priest/ Administrator through 0151-645-3314 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.
In Memoriam: Please pray for 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. The next date is this Sunday 6th October .
St John's Infant's are looking for a parish representative to join our Governing Body as a foundation governor. If you are interested in taking on this role, can you please speak to Fr Mario or give Miss Sharkey a call at school (645 5291).
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.
Confirmation 2024 for St John’s & St Anne’s will be held at St Anne’s on Wednesday 27th November at 7.00pm. Preparation has now begun each Friday at 6.30pm – 7.30pm in St Anne’s Presbytery.
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
October Month of the Rosary: A pilgrim statue will circulate the parish as usual. If you would like to partake in this Rosary Chain of Prayer, please see Maria Fryer.
October is sometimes called the month of the Rosary and today we remind ourselves of this ancient devotional practice that focuses our minds and hearts on those episodes that are connected with the unfurling of our salvation in Jesus Christ, with particular reference to the role played by his mother, the Virgin Mary.
Rosary means a crown of roses, a spiritual bouquet given to the Mother of God. It is sometimes called the Dominican Rosary, to distinguish it from other rosary-like prayers such as the Franciscan or the Servite Rosaries. It is also, in a general sense, a form of chaplet or corona (crown), of which there are many varieties in the Church. In English it has been called “Our Lady’s Psalter” or “the beads”. This last term derives from an Old English word for prayers (bede) coming from the word to request (biddan or bid).
Due to the promotion of a highly respected Headteacher, there is an opportunity for an inspirational, resilient and dedicated Catholic leader to be the next Headteacher of St Werburgh’s Catholic Primary and Nursery School. Visits to our school are warmly welcomed. Please telephone Cheryl Gardner at the school office on 0151 647 8404 to arrange this. Closing date: Monday, 14 October 2024 at 10am. Shortlisting date: Tuesday, 15 October 2024.Interview Dates: Tuesday, 22 October 2024. Completed applications should be sent to Julie English Julie.English@dioceseofshrewsbury.org. Further details can be found via the Diocesan website https://educationshrewsbury.org/latest-vacancies/
Over 55 Group – Fish & Chip Lunch on 8th October at 12.30pm at St Anne’s Church Hall. Contact Sheila McAlister to book your lunch on 07484285954.
Holy Family of Bordeaux: The Holy Family of Bordeaux is a World Wide Family of five different vocations. Lay Members, Apostolic Sisters, Contemplative Sisters Consecrated Secular Women, Priest Associates. Inspired by Jesus Mary and Joseph and the first Christian Communities we live our commitment to God within our families, communities, neighbourhoods and places of work through presence, prayer and service. To find out more – a meeting in the Holy Family convent next to St Anne’s Church 7:00pm 17th October.
November Lists: Please ensure that all names for the November List are handed into the presbytery by Sunday, 20th October. This allows time to compile the lists. Please make the envelopes "For the attention of Ann Murray" and please print all names clearly. Many thanks.
LIVERPOOL WELSH CHORAL present: Fauré: Requiem and Gounod: Saint Cecilia Mass Christ Church Port Sunlight Saturday 9th November. Tickets £20, available from www.lwcu.co.uk
WORDS FOR WORSHIP: May the almighty Father give you his joy and bless you in your family and friends. Amen. May the only Son of God have mercy on you and help you in good times and bad. Amen. May the Holy Spirit of God strengthen you in love and lead you into the fullness of life in the heavenly kingdom. Amen. And may the blessing of almighty God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit come down upon you and those you love and remain with you for ever and ever. Amen
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Saturday 5th 10.00am Cenacle Mass
10.30am Devotions – Rosary, Divine Mercy & Divine Praises
5.00pm Harries Family
Twenty Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time 6th 9.30am Sabra-Ellen Kettle 24th Anniv.
7.30pm Prayer Meeting
Monday 7th 9.15am For the Hungry
Tuesday 8th 9.15am For Mary Our Mother
Wednesday 9th 7.00pm MASS AT ST JOHN’S ONLY
Pat Matthews
Thursday 10th NO MASS
Friday 11th 9.15am For the Sick & Lonely
Saturday 12th 10.30am Devotions – Rosary, Divine Mercy & Divine Praises
5.00pm Thomas Brennan RIP
Twenty Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time 13th 9.30am For Our Parish Family
3.00pm Benediction
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 5th 6.30pm For the Needy & Hungry of the World
Twenty Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time 6th 11.00am For Homeless
Monday 7th 12 Noon Kate Oginuazor (Healing)
Tuesday 8th 12 Noon Joe Whitty RIP
Wednesday 9th 7.00pm MASS AT ST JOHN’S ONLY
Thursday 10th NO MASS
Friday 11th 12 Noon Fr. David Long 40th Anniversary
Saturday 12th 6.30pm Ann Vesey Birthday Rem
Twenty Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time 13th 11.00am Jim McAllister 4th Anniversary
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Pope Francis's Prayer Intentions for October:
We pray that the Church continues to sustain in all ways a Synodal lifestyle, as a sign of co-responsibility, promoting the participation, the communion and the mission shared among priests, religious and lay people.
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