Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Dear brothers and
sisters,
You all know the story about one of
my first experiences bringing Holy Communion to the sick before I was ordained.
The elderly lady I regularly brought the Blessed Sacrament to was very kind and
patient. Out of nerves I would ‘rabbit on’ pointlessly because taking Holy
Communion to those who were housebound was a completely new experience for me
and God Bless that lady she would just smile and nod. However, on one particular
occasion when I was in full verbal flow and she obviously had had enough, she
raised her hand and said, ‘Lad, the good Lord gave you two ears and one
gob – take the hint!’ It was and still is one of the best lessons that
I have been taught in life- the importance of listening.
‘Listen, Israel: the Lord our God is
the One Lord.’ (Deuteronomy 6:4)
‘Lord, listen to my prayer: turn your
ear to my appeal.’ (Psalm 142:1)
‘Jesus called the people to him and
said, ‘Listen, and understand.’’ (Matthew 15:10)
‘And Jesus said, ‘Listen anyone who has
ears to hear!’ (Mark 4:9)
‘Look, I am standing at the door,
knocking. If one of you hears me calling and opens the door, I will come in to
share his meal, side by side with him.’ (Revelation 4:20)
Sacred Scripture is
full of wisdom that calls us to just listen. Listen to who? The Lord our God.
To listen for what purpose? To know how to serve and love Him better. To listen
when? Each and everyday, at home, work, school or college and at church. To
listen for what ends? To hear the particular path of holiness in life He is
calling us to follow. This is the path which will ultimately lead us to Heaven
where we will not only hear God but see Him face to face.
In the Gospel of John
there is a very simple sentence that helps us tune in more clearly to listening
to Christ our Lord. ‘The disciple Jesus loved was reclining next to
Jesus...’ (John 13:23)
The image above
illustrates the actions of St. John. Look at his posture. See how he bends low
in humility and places his ear on the chest of Christ. Look particularly to
where his ear is resting. By reclining next to Jesus, St. John is listening to
the very heart beat of God! He is hearing every beat of the Sacred Heart that
is inflamed for love of us. God’s loving and merciful heart is not a
theoretical concept for St. John but a reality that he was blessed to have
experienced. If he had not listened he would not have heard Love Himself.
The volume of phone
calls to the presbytery has increased during this third lockdown. The majority
have been people with no obvious links to the Church asking can they talk. Talk
to break the silence of the day, talk to reach out to another human being, talk
to ask about the Big questions such as life and death, talk so that they can be
heard. They all initially ring up to talk but fundamentally what they are all
seeking and yearning is to listen. To listen to God. To listen where God is at
this moment in the world and in their lives. The conversations normally have
ended up inviting these people, some of faith some of non, to come to church
and spend time in front of the Tabernacle. The surprise in peoples voices when
they hear the statement, ‘Jesus Christ our Lord and God is truly and
substantially present here at St. Mary’s!’ One man remarked that if he
had faith he would never leave church if it was that easy to be close to Jesus.
My response was ‘It is that easy, just come and listen.’ ‘That’s the hard bit
Father, the listening because I might hear something I don’t like about
myself!’
Brothers and sisters
never be scared of spending time listening to Our Lord. He will challenge, He
will disturb but all for our good and all for our salvation. St. Peter Julian
Eymard, one of the saints who seems to be teaching me a great deal about the
Eucharist recently, demonstrated listening to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.
At the age of 5 he ran away from home but was soon discovered by his older
sister praying in the village church. St. Peter Julian was not praying in a pew
or by a statue but sat on top of a small ladder with his ear pressed against
the Tabernacle.
‘What are you
doing?’, asked his astonished sister.
‘I’m praying’, came
the small boys reply.
‘Why are you praying
there?’
‘So I can hear him
better.’
The church is always
open at least half an hour before the Sacrifice of the Mass begins. When you
book to come to Holy Mass please feel free to arrive sometime before, so that
in quiet contemplation you can not only look but listen to Him in the
Tabernacle. He has so much love for you and wants to tell you all about it. All
I ask as your parish priest is that you don’t copy a young St. Peter Julian
Eyamrd with the ladders!
‘Jesus said,
‘Therefore, everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will
be like a sensible man who built his house on rock.’’ (Matthew 7:24)
Online Parish
Events
Parishioners from
different parishes have been organising online rosaries, online sing-a-longs
and virtual coffee mornings for their churches. I think this is a wonderful
idea as many children and grandchildren have been stepping up to help older
family members link up and use computers, mobile phones, i-pads etc. Any
parishioner here at St. Mary’s who would like to facilitate this has my
complete support and I am happy to put them in touch with diocesan safeguarding
department so that all correct procedures and online safety protocol can be
followed.
Day of Prayer
for Grandparents and the Elderly
Pope Francis has
designated the fourth Sunday of July as a day for prayer for grandparents and
the elderly. This is the Sunday closest to the feast of Saints Joachim and Anne
(the parents of Our Lady) and falls, this year, on July 25th. Please visit the
link below for more information:
Many people who
return to the Church often attribute it to their grandparents. The witness that
these valuable family members give through their prayers and devotions, holy
images in their homes and most importantly attendance of Mass does have an
impact on their grandchildren. Make sure you give your grandparents a ring, an
email or an online call today because the good ones are a gift from God.
New Saints Feast Days
Pope Francis has made
the following changes to the General Roman Calendar for Mass and the Divine
Office. July 29th is to be the Memorial of Saints Martha, Mary and Lazarus. https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2021/02/02/0066/00135.html#in
The following
Optional Memorials are now added:
Saint Gregory of
Narek, Abbot and Doctor of the Church, February 27th
Saint John of Avila,
Priest and Doctor of the Church, May 10th
Saint Hildegard of
Bingen, Virgin and Doctor of the Church, September 17th
https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2021/02/02/0065/00136.html#EN
Lent and Easter
Lent begins this year
with Ash Wednesday on the 17th February 2021 and the Great Easter
Vigil falling on Saturday 3rd April 2021. What prayers, devotions or
spiritual reading do you intend to take up this Lent to deepen your
relationship with the Lord?
Seven Sundays Devotions for the Year of St. Joseph
15 minutes before each Sunday Mass (Vigil 6:30pm/Sun 10am)
we are continuing our prayer and meditation on the seven sorrows and seven joys
of St. Joseph asking for his intercession. For those who want to participate in
this devotion but are not presently able to attend the Holy Mass you will find
prayers to St. Joseph on the parish website at www.saintmarysoswaldtwistle.co.uk
Catholic Voices Survey
Catholic Voices, the
University of Birmingham and the Mater Dei Institute in Dublin are running a
major online survey of Catholic experience in UK and Eire under lockdown. The
first phase last year indicated that people had developed much stronger
attachments to liturgy and sacraments. Catholics seemed to value their clergy
more than the members of other denominations. The hope, in this next phase, is
that members of every parish will take part, especially clergy. The clergy in
England were less well represented last time despite reports of new pastoral
efforts, needs and challenges. All
responses, ordained and lay, are anonymous and confidential but will provide
insights for pastoral planning, giving and support in the future.
The survey is here
and should take 15-20 minutes https://www.catholicvoices.org.uk/survey
The Global Catholic
Movement invites you to “Global Healing.” In 2015, Pope Francis published his
ground-breaking letter on the
environment Laudato Si’. Since then, millions of people worldwide have
joined the global movement to address the environmental crisis our world is
facing. This Lent, we are inviting YOU to join us for a series of reflective
evenings with inspiring speakers, prayer and discussion, using the film-based
resource “Global Healing”. These engaging documentaries will inform and
challenge people to respond to Pope Francis’ call to Care for Our Common Home.
Suitable for all who are concerned about what is happening to our world and who
want to take action.
When? Six Thursdays
from 18th February – 25th March 2021, 7.30pm – 8.30pm
How to join? Email
jane@catholicclimatemovement.global
Hosted by GCCM
Laudato Si’ Animators in the UK.
“Living our vocation to be protectors
of God's handiwork is essential to a life of virtue; it is not an optional or
secondary aspect of our Christian experience…Truly, much can be done!”
(Laudato Si’, 217, 180)
Stefan Kaminski,
Director of The Christian Heritage Centre at Stonyhurst, has emailed me the
following events that are taking place to help people in their faith and
formation.
We area pleased to be
offering an online series of sessions for young adults (18-30 years old), on
human sexuality and relationships. The “Set Free Summit” is being offered by
ICPE Mission, in partnership with the CHC, and is led by a number of exciting
speakers from around the world, building on St John Paul II’s beautiful
writings. It takes place (online) on the six Sundays from 7th February to 14th
March, from 4 – 5:30pm. Each session involves a talk, sharing in small groups
and a general Q&A. For info and registration:
https://christianheritagecentre.com/events/set-free/
The Drama Displayed
series continues with the next talk, ‘The Naked Truth’ by Dr David Torevell, on
Thursday 28th January at 7:30pm. The series offers theological reflections on
the key moments of salvation, supported by a study of various great works of
art. For info and registration: https://christianheritagecentre.com/events/the-drama-displayed/
Recordings of the
previous talks are available here: https://christianheritagecentre.com/media/video/
The government has
allowed places of worship to remain open during this third national lockdown
but we must not become complacent. The diocese have asked us to remind people
of the following procedures:
•
Please make sure you are wearing a face mask
before you enter the church building. Nobody should be putting a mask on once
they are sat down at a pew or in the entrance/foyer near the stewards.
•
Please do not remove you mask to speak to a
steward or another parishioner in church. This shows a lack of safe respect for
others. We all need to care and look out for each other.
•
Please wear your mask when you are coming
forward to receive Holy Communion. Once, and only once, you are stood before
the priest then you can remove your mask. Communion is not a race so please
take your time and do not rush. Once you have received the Blessed Sacrament
then replace your mask and leave the church building.
•
Please do sanitise your hands at the stations
provided at both entrances and exits of church.
•
Please keep the Two Meter Rule. This new strain
of Covid-19 is more easily transmitted therefore it’s important that we all
keep to this practice.
•
Please do not congregate to socialise on church
property before or after Mass/Liturgy.
•
Please do not come to church if you have
Covid-19 symptoms, have tested positive for Covid-19 or are in isolation.
To book a place at
Mass via our telephone service then please ring (01254) 232 433 on Wednesdays
between 5pm – 6pm. To book a place at Mass online please visit the parish
website www.saintmarysoswaldtwistle.co.uk 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).
Our Lady of
Oswaldtwistle, pray for us.
Saint Joseph, pray
for us.
St. John the Apostle,
pray for us.
St. Peter Julian
Eymard, pray for us.
Fr. O’Brien