Sunday 29th
November 2020
First Sunday of Advent
Dear brothers and sisters,
You’ve
probably already glimpsed the picture below and are thinking that doesn’t look
very seasonal. What an odd image to use at the start of Advent!
Christmas trees are decorated, Turkey and trimmings have been
ordered, lights are flashing, cards are being signed and sent, families are
facing diplomatic quandaries about where, when and who can they meet over the
festive period and online shopping is reaching new highs of demand. All this is
understandable as 2020 has been a bleak time with the Covid-19 pandemic and
Christmas brings a glimmer of hope, something to look forward to. After a
second national lockdown who isn’t longing to meet up with friends and loved
ones again. However, let’s look to that unusual Advent sign again – STOP! It
doesn’t mean stop all the Christmas fun and excitement. It means stop and catch
your breath; it means stop and gather your thoughts; it means stop and allow
yourselves time to think and refocus.
Stop and embrace the season Advent. A time of hopeful
expectancy. A time of joyful preparation. A time of excited waiting. The world
seems in such a rush to devour the main course of Christmas that it’s missing
out on the sweet appetisers and tantalising starters of Advent. The build up
and preparation of Advent allows us to fully experience the Christmas mystery
of the Incarnation in a profound and joyful way.
Pope Benedict XVI gave a beautiful quote a few years ago, to
help us Catholics fully appreciate and understand the meaning of Advent, a
meaning that as you will see is two-fold.
‘In Advent,
Christians re-live a dual impulse of the spirit:
on the one hand, they raise their eyes towards
the final destination of their pilgrimage through history, which is the
glorious return of the Lord Jesus; on the other, remembering with emotion his
birth in Bethlehem, they kneel before the crib.’ (Pope Benedict XVI)
The season of Advent is not just a countdown until Christmas
day but a time for us to remember that the Second Coming will be a real event
in the future. Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour will come again. We profess
this regularly in our prayers and at the Holy Mass.
‘...He will come again in glory to judge the living and
the dead...’ (The Creed)
‘...and as we look forward to his second coming...’
(Eucharistic Prayer III)
‘We proclaim your Death, O Lord,
and profess your Resurrection until you come again.’
(The mystery of faith)
‘Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil, graciously
grant peace in our days,
that, be the help of your mercy, we may be always free
from sin and safe from all distress,
as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our
Saviour, Jesus Christ.’ (Embolism)
Advent asks us to Stop and think about the Second Coming.
When the Lord returns again am I ready to go out and meet him? When he judges
me have I striven throughout life for holiness or just trying to be a ‘nice’
person? (Remember ‘nice’ does not appear in the Bible!) It’s a sobering thought
isn’t it! The Second Coming sounds almost like a Hollywood apocalyptic
blockbuster but it’s a very real truth of our faith. Hence Advent asks us to
Stop and take time to reflect and pray about our lives and strivings for
holiness.
The second part of Advent then begins to prepare and direct
us towards the birth of Our Lord. The prayers, symbols, liturgies and Masses
all combined draw us deeper into fully understanding what the long promised
birth of Jesus Christ truly means.
So brothers and sisters do have a wonderful and blessed
Christmas once the 25th December arrives. Until then Stop and give
yourself time to fully embrace and enjoy this liturgical season of Advent. I
promise it will make Christmas, despite Covid-19, that spiritually more
enriching. On the parish website, you will find on the homepage a link that
will give a number of Advent resources you can use at home.
Resumption of Public Worship
As the national lockdown comes to an end this coming week and
we enter the government’s designated Tier 3 for Lancashire, public worship will
be allowed to resume. Mgr. Daly as you know has been appointed by the Bishop to
help facilitate the safe re-opening of our diocesan churches. He emailed a
summary of the continued restrictions that are in place for the safety and
protection of all parishioners throughout the diocese.
‘Finally, please remember the importance of adhering to
these guidelines for the health and well-being of everyone (ourselves
included). Please look after each other in this respect. So to summarise:
Whilst we remain in tier 3 for the sake of safety the
restrictions in place in church continue, attendance at Mass will be limited,
there will be no singing, Holy Communion will be distributed at the end of Mass
(the practice of all parishes in Hyndburn) ... and people are advised not to
gather in groups either before or after Mass. We know this is difficult
particularly for funerals and with the Christmas season approaching however
such care will ensure that, especially given the relaxation on socialising at
Christmas, our churches remain amongst the safest places and the celebration of
Holy Mass will not be interrupted over Christmas.’
Both telephone and online bookings for Mass will resume again
here at St. Mary’s. Ursula Heyes will be available on Wednesdays and Fridays,
from 5pm – 6pm on (01254) 232 433 to take telephone bookings. The parish
website will have a link for online bookings which hopefully will go live at
some point next week. Sadly, some volunteers have had to return to work and
therefore you will only be able to book online during the week (Monday to
Friday). On behalf of the parish I would like to say thank you to all those
involved with our parish booking system.
Confessions
Advent is a time of preparing to meet Our Lord and an
important part of this is Confession. This sacrament was instituted by Christ
so that we could tangibly feel and truly receive his mercy and forgiveness.
Dependant on the availability of volunteer stewards I’m hoping to offer
Confession on Saturday 12th December 9am – 10am and Saturday 19th
December 9am – 10am. The practicalities in regards to Covid-19 health &
safety conditions are still to be formalised but the Sacrament of Confession
will be in the church building. Please do check the parish website for news and
information later this week.
Stewards & Cleaners
We have been blessed to have such good parishioners who have
sacrificed both their time and services to make sure St. Mary’s has been open
for both private prayer and the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass as well as being
clean and safe. THANK YOU from all the parishioners and the parish priest. If
you would like to serve Our Lord as a volunteer steward then please email
Jennifer Pickles (St. Mary’s Steward Co-ordinator) at: jennifer.pickles@virginmedia.com
or to volunteer as a cleaner please contact Karen Beard (Parish Housekeeper) at
jakey9998@aol.com
Sacramental Programme: Confession and Holy Communion
The Covid-19 pandemic has changed a lot of our usual routine
events and this includes the sacramental programme. I feel very strongly that
those young people who are actively engaged with the parish should be able to
receive Our Lord and therefore, adapting to new circumstances, I’m beginning
the new programme. If you live in the parish of St. Mary’s and
have a baptised Roman Catholic child who is seven years old + and you believe
that they are ready to begin preparation for the Sacraments of Confession and
Holy Communion then please do contact me before the end of December. The
sacramental programme at St. Mary’s is through the parish and not the schools.
Mass attendance and full active participation in the life of the parish is just
automatically assumed because Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament is both the ‘object
and means of our faith’ (St. Peter Julian Eymard). Without an active
relationship with Our Lord, with out regularly being in His Presence before the
Blessed Sacrament, our faith can never grow nor can we truly know Him and Jesus
wants us to know Him. Why? Because he has Good News for us!
Parish Online Advent Calendar
The Parish Online Advent Calendar can be accessed via the
‘Advent’ box on the parish website homepage. It’s still not too late to send
through submissions. Everybody in our parish family has words and stories of
hope to share that could help others during these difficult winter months. Do
not worry about spelling or punctuation – you have all put up with my poor
grammar for the last eight months most graciously! You may want to write a
poem, retell a story, compose a prayer or recall times past at St. Mary’s etc.
There is no exact word limit and if you wish you can remain anonymous. If a
theme is needed then I would simply say look to the baby born in the manger who
brought the world hope and love. Have a think and do email me at sean.obrien@dioceseofsalford.org.uk Thank you to those people who have already
submitted various memories and poems so far. More are always welcomed.
God Bless, keep praying and do remember to Stop and enjoy
this season.
Our Lady of Oswaldtwistle, pray for us.
Saint Joseph, pray for us.
Fr. O’Brien