Sunday,
19th December 2010
Fourth
Sunday of Advent
First Reading:
Isaiah 7: 10-14
The Lord will give a sign: the child with the
child who will be
‘God with us’.
Second Reading:
Romans 1: 1-7
The good news is about Jesus, the Son of God,
descended from King David.
Gospel: Matthew
1: 18-25
Joseph learns that the power of God is at work
in the
coming to birth of Mary’s child.
Chapel
- Mary Mother of God
Weekday Masses
Mon ,Tues, Wed &
Thurs 10.00am
Tues Penitential
Service 7.30pm
No Vigil Mass on Sat
25th. Christmas Night
Sunday 26th December
St. Mary’s 10.30am
Our Prayers are requested for the Souls
of
Jim McNulty & Eddie
Doran
whose anniversaries
occur at this time
Mary and Joseph had difficult decisions to make.
Mary was taking terrible risks by saying
‘yes’ to God’s plan. Joseph’s
agreement to God’s plan was of equal importance.
Without Joseph, Mary would have had no one to
support her. Without Joseph, Mary wouldn’t
even have been accepted. Without Joseph, Jesus
would have had no family in which to grow up.
It is a tribute to Mary and Joseph’s faith
and their love for each other that they were
prepared to accept what was being asked of them.
We too are part of God’s plan. We too
have a part to play in leaving the world a better
place. We learn today from Mary and Joseph that
if we remember to make our decisions out of
love, we can’t go far wrong.
Hens make a lot of noise when they lay
an egg, but often they are simply happy and
proud of what they have done. Ours
too is a noisy world and we have grown used
to more and more noise around us. Such noise
is seen as normal. Unfortunately it destroys
any sense of silence, peace and quietness which
the human soul craves for. Noise is part of
our daily lives but we also need to check in
on the noise levels of our own lives. Now with
the peace of the quiet snow just sit quietly
even for a few minutes and thank the Lord for
quiet time. It is one of the best gifts we can
give ourselves any day.
Father
help us to live as the Holy Family did, united
in respect and love.
Christmas Mass
times
Vigil Mass
6.30pm - St. Mary’s.
Midnight Mass
- St. Eugene’s
Morning Mass
- 10.am St. Mary’s.
No Vigil
Mass on Christmas evening.
Santa
Walk
In support
of Cancer Research.
From St. Eugene’s
Parochial Hall today Sunday @ 12 noon.
Tea & Mince pies
with Santa @ 3pm. £5.00 or £10 Family
minimum donation.
Mass Cards & Offerings
“The
Eucharist, the source and summit of the Christian
life”, is at the heart of our belief.
For it preserves the great mystery of our redemption
in Jesus Christ. Anything that might weaken
or undermine our respect for the Eucharist must
be avoided.
Having
signed or stamped Mass Cards for Sale in to
the public in shops is not approved by the Irish
Bishops or Religious Communities It undermines
the Eucharist and is unacceptable. We ask that
this practice be discontinued.
Our Parish
Mass Cards & Mass Bouquets state that the
donor has made a contribution to the apostolic
work of the Church They say when & where
the Mass will be offered collectively for all
the recipients. The donor, where possible, is
asked to participate in the Mass for which their
intention is being Offered. These cards do not
say that a specific Mass will be offered. Separate
Mass cards are available from the Priest only
and are recorded in his Mass intention book.
The Current
recommended Mass Stipend for the dioceses in
the Armagh province is £7.50
(Abridged from the
Irish Bishops statement).
Church Finances
Sunday Offertory
Env £1,070.00
St.
Eugene’s Parochial Hall
Wed:- Bingo
9.00pm
Thurs:- Whist
Drive 8.30 pm.
Thurs:- Irish
Dancing
St Eugene’s
G.A.C.
Grand Draw
winners were
£5000
- Rose Bradley (197),
£2000 - McGinley
children (389),
£1000 - Sadie McNamee
(051)
Five* £100 Dylan
Nicholas (183), Eoghain Maguire (160), Tony
Conway (012),
Dara and Piaras McNamee
(440) and Dylan Nicholas (183).
Youth Presentation night
on Friday 7th January 2011 @ 8.00pm
St Mary’s
Oratory Clean—up
All willing to help
in general clean up after the snow, ice,
and salt is welcome to
come at 5 pm on Wed 22 Dec.
Bulletin Notices
Note. All
notices, including Anniversaries should be delivered
in writing,
(or email ardstrawparochial@btinternet.com)
before
1pm on Tuesday
21st December. Please Note Earlier
time for inclusion in the Christmas Bulletin.
USEFUL
TELEPHONE NUMBERS
Accord
- 8224 2439
Al-Anon Fmly Groups - 9086
2368
Alcoholic's Anonymous - 9043
4848
AWARE - 7126 6602
Care for Cancer - 8224 6599
CRUISE - 8224 4414
Drugs Anonymous - 8224 6177
Gamblers Anonymous - 7135 1329
The Samaritans - 8224 4944
Women's Aid - 8224 5998
Parkinson's Disease - 8224
2889
