St. Joseph’s Newsletter – 3rd December 2017
Bonus Ball Winner: 8 – Louisa, J. Gulliver
Offertory - £1641.62 (inc. standing orders)
CAFOD Service Collection raised £226.33. Thank you.
Sanctuary Lamp
Tommy Barnes
(In loving memory)
Marian Candle
Maureen Peterson
(27th Anniversary Remembrance)
Lately Dead
John Peter Charnley, Paul Hilditch (52), Fr. Francis Mehan, Jack Dinan (19)
Advent Service of Reconciliation at St. Joseph’s on Tuesday, 19th December at 7.30pm.
St Oswalds Prayer Group have organised a Healing Mass at St Bridget's, Cinnamon Brow on Monday 4th December at 7.30pm led by Fr John McLoughlin.`
"Come and pray for others and let others pray for you".
All Welcome.
Bambinelli Sunday – 17th December
For the past several decades, each year on Gaudete Sunday, the Third Sunday of Advent, children (and adults) bring their Baby Jesus figures from the crib at their homes to St. Peter’s Square where the Pope will bless both the people and the figurines during the Angelus. This year we will celebrate “Bambinelli Sunday” at all our Masses on Sunday, 17th Decemberat St. Joseph’s. All are invited to bring the Baby Jesus figure from their homes to Mass that morning to be blessed. Families can even make their own “bambinelli” if they want.
St. Joseph’s Readers
If you would like to read at one of the Christmas Masses, please sign the sheet at the back of Church by 17th December. Thank you.
The annual CAFOD Liverpool Memorial Mass for the relatives and friends of deceased supporters of CAFOD will take place as the normal Saturday Vigil Mass on Saturday 25 November at 5.30pm at Sacred Heart, Liverpool Road, Ainsdale, Southport, Merseyside, PR8 3BP and you are most welcome to attend. There will be tea, coffee and biscuits available afterwards.
Prayer in preparation for the Eucharistic Congress 2018 and for Synod 2020
We thank you Father
For the love you have shown us
In the gift of Jesus, your Son.
Keep us grateful each day
For the blessings that surround us.
As we are fed by you,
So now send us out
To share what we have received
With our hungry brothers and sisters.
We humbly ask your help to become the Church
That you are calling us to be:
A community that listens, that trusts,
That lives with courage
And puts out its nets into new waters.
May the gentle presence of Christ in our hearts
Be a source of healing, of new life
And of a deeper trust in you.
We ask this in faith
Through Jesus Christ, Our Lord.
Amen.
St. Joseph’s Family Centre
As you are aware, SJFC runs a welfare service in which they take donations of good quality furniture and deliver direct to the people who are in need of these items. Currently they have a large list of requests and not many donations! They are therefore, urgently requesting the following;-
- Wardrobes – not massive ones as the properties they usually deliver to are apartments or small houses.
- Chests of drawers.
- Double beds – with mattresses in good condition and fire label.
- Single beds – as above.
- Small dining tables and 4 chairs.
- Bunk beds – with mattresses as above if possible.
If anyone has any of the above cluttering up space in your house, please get in touch with Lorraine or Debbie at SJFC on 01925 635448. Thank you,
Penketh Chess Club now meets at St. Joseph’s Parish Centre, Meeting Lane every TUESDAY at 8pm. We are now a purely SOCIAL chess club – for friendly rather than competitive games. A worm invitation is extended to anyone who would like a game, including less experience and novice players – even those who would like to learn how to play. All enquiries: Chris Haggett 01925 724008.
St. Joseph’s Christingle Service - Tuesday 12th December
This year’s Christingle Service will be held on Tuesday 12thDecember at 6.30pm at St. Joseph’s Church. So can all Angels, Kings and Shepherd’s dust down their wings, polish their crowns and wash their tea-towels ready to take part in one of the most popular services of the year! Donkey’s, sheep and any other animals are also very welcome to come along. Christingle Kits are available from St. Joseph’s and St. Vincent’s Primary Schools and also the church Piety shop priced 50p.
Around the World in 80 Days
I have provisionally booked 45 tickets to see Around the World in 80 Days at The Lowry, in Manchester on Wednesday, 3rd January 2018 at 7pm. All seats are in the stalls, rows E to H. Sixteen people have signed up so far, I have had an extension for payment until Monday, 4th December, so if you are interested please let Christine know asap. I will let you know the cost of the coach nearer the time.
Christmas Flowers for St. Joseph’s Church
If you would like to make a donation towards a plant for church in memory of a loved one during the Christmas period, please put your money in an envelope (available at the back of Church) and hand it to Fr. Malcolm or put it through the Presbytery door. Thank you.
The CAFOD Fun Run is the perfect opportunity to burn off the Christmas calories and help others at Christmas! Please encourage your friends and family to come to run or walk or toddle (from 2 – 8 kms) to raise lots of money for those who need it most! It is Wednesday 27th December at Wavertree Park & Athletics Centre, Wellington Road, L15 4LE at 1pm registration opens at noon Signing up costs £7 per person, £15 for a family or £70 for a group of 10 or more people, sponsorship forms are available. Prizes for the best fancy dress costumes! For further details, please contact 0151 228 4028, .
St. Joseph’s Uniformed Fundraisers will be selling Christmas arrangements, Poinsettias and Cyclamen etc. after all Masses on Sunday, 17th December. These will make beautiful additions to every home and also wonderful Christmas presents.
NEW YEAR’S EVE AT ST. JOSEPH’S PARISH CENTRE
New Year’s Eve Family Disco. Starts at 8.00pm until 12.45am. Doors open at 7pm. Bring your own food. Tickets £2.50 for kids and £5 for adults. Tickets on sale from 1st December.
Marriage Preparation Facilitators
The Marriage Preparation team is recruiting new Facilitators who lead and present our marriage preparation courses. If you would like to become a Facilitator, please contact Frank for more information and to discuss the role. Contact: E-mail: ; Tel: 0151 522 1046.
Any couples wishing to get married in 2018/19 at St. Joseph’s Church, could they please get in touch with Fr. Malcolm on 01925 722105, in order to arrange a date to attend the Marriage Preparation Course.
One of our young parishioners, Thomas Houghton (age 14) is swimming the channel (22 miles or 1770 lengths) in 12 weeks at Penketh Pool to raise money for Aspire, a charity which helps people with spinal cord injury. A sponsorship form is at the back of Church if you would like to sponsor him. Thank you.
St Joseph’s Scout Group has been successful in an application for the next round of “Co-Op Local Community Funding” running for the next 11 months from 12thNovember. Every time a member shops at the Co-Op, 1% of what they spend on Co-Op products goes into a local community fund along with every penny from bag purchases. Members can choose on-line which of the three local causes to help. We would therefore be very grateful if people could consider becoming a member of the Co-Op, if they are not already a member, and support our parish Scout group during the next 11 months by choosing the “15th Warrington West Scout Group” as your chosen local cause. Help us to help young people from Penketh and Great Sankey. Thank you.
ACT IN SUPPORT OF CATHOLIC EDUCATION
Do you support Catholic schools and the right of Catholics to send their children to them?
Then we need you to make your voice heard. The Government is making a critical decision on whether to overturn the admissions cap which prevents new Catholic schools from allowing all Catholic pupils to attend.
The Prime Minister has acknowledged that this policy discriminates against Catholics and had promised previously to abandon it. Now the Government may decide to keep this discriminatory policy in place instead of removing it. We need you to tell the Government not to discriminate against Catholics and to remove the admissions cap on new faith-based schools.
Visit to write to the Government and urge them to drop their policy which bans new Catholic schools.
Interested in mental wellbeing and a good listener?PeerTalk, a charity underpinned by the Methodist Church, is looking for volunteers to help run a peer support group for people living with depression and related mental health conditions in Warrington. Training Day is on Saturday 9 December at The Village Hotel, 110 Centre Park Square, Warrington, WA1 1QA, 9.45am – 4pm. More details at or contact
Gospel Reflection for the First Sunday of Advent
Wake Up Call
A man goes on a journey leaving his slaves in charge, each with a job to do. A doorkeeper keeps watch to alert the slaves as to his master’s return. The story illustrates the time of waiting between Jesus’ first coming as a little baby at Christmas to his second coming on Judgement Day. Did the slaves really need a doorkeeper to alert them to the master’s return? After all, waiting for the second coming shouldn’t be a big cosmic game of ‘Dixie’. The point is not to wait for the master’s return before hurling ourselves into great busy-ness. We’re not waiting for Jesus’ return in the same way we would wait for a bus, we have to spend our waiting time in preparation and constant readiness.
“Keep alert,” we are told “keep awake.” We are asked to keep alert and awake not for fear of being caught out like naughty school children, but in a spirit of ‘keeping our eye on the ball.’ We all know how we would like to contribute. Each of us is aware of our unique place on the planet and how we would like to be remembered. Sadly, all too often it is easy for us to ‘take our eye off the ball’ and get caught up in other concerns.
The news is full of people who have reached the end of their life unexpectedly. None of us has been afforded an exact time and date for our final preparations. Instead we are asked to live in a permanent state of readiness seizing every opportunity on a daily basis to prepare for God’s Kingdom. Our Advent goal needs to be about waiting in readiness from this day until our last.
Happy New Liturgical Year!
Today, the First Sunday of Advent is the first day of the new liturgical year of the Church. Every liturgical year is devoted to a particular set of Gospel readings for each Sunday and they run in a three year cycle, corresponding to Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Last year was devoted to Matthew, while this year’s readings will be primarily from Mark. Today’s reading is just the beginning of many passages from Mark that you will be hearing throughout the whole year. It might be a good spiritual exercise for all of us this Advent, to sit down one evening, turn off the T.V., and read the Gospel of Mark all the way through. It’s the shortest of the four gospels so try to do it in one sitting so you don’t lose any of the flavour of it. Then, when we come to Mass on Sunday and hear various passages of the Word of God proclaimed, we’ll know where they fit in with the whole scheme of things.
Peace Actions for December
•Pray for those who suffer abuse of their human rights. (Human Rights Day is 10th December)
•Support projects for the homeless that could do with some help over the Christmas period.
•Support a children’s charity over Christmas. Think particularly of children who have been displaced because of war or persecution
•Reflect on the meaning of Christ’s coming to the world. What does the ‘peace of Christ’ mean to you?
Pope Francis Prayer Intention for December 2017
As we get older we can begin to feel invisible. Younger generations begin to be dismissive of us or even patronise us. It might be true that our brain function slows down a little as we get older, but we still have a wealth of experience that the younger generations have not got. This month Pope Francis invites us to join in his prayer intention for December “…That the elderly, sustained by families and Christian communities, may apply their wisdom and experience to spreading the faith and forming the new generations.”
World Migration Day - ‘Sign of the Times’
3rd December 2017
On December 3rd the Church commemorates St Francis Xavier. This is the day chosen by the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People to mark World Migration Day. Each year there is a message from the Holy Father reflecting on the 'signs of the times'.
“Every stranger who knocks at our door is an opportunity for an encounter with Jesus Christ, who identifies with the welcomed and rejected strangers of every age (Matthew 25:35-43). The Lord entrusts to the Church’s motherly love every person forced to leave their homeland in search of a better future. This solidarity must be concretely expressed at every stage of the migratory experience – from departure through journey to arrival and return. This is a great responsibility, which the Church intends to share with all believers and men and women of good will, who are called to respond to the many challenges of contemporary migration with generosity, promptness, wisdom and foresight, each according to their own abilities. In this regard, I wish to reaffirm that “our shared response may be articulated by four verbs: to welcome, to protect, to promote and to integrate”.
Pope Francis
Nicholas, An Advent Saint
6th December
Advent is a time for quiet contemplation, though because of the culture we live in, it’s hard to observe Advent without being pulled prematurely into Christmas.
Saint Nicholas shows us how to contemplate Advent. We are all familiar with his heroic deeds to improve the lives of others, particularly children. His life clearly reflected the way each one of us is called to show God's love to others, especially those in need.
Ethical Christmas Shopping
Most charities now run a 'virtual Christmas present' scheme. You buy a goat, or food for a family, a mosquito net or a survival kit.... your loved one gets a card to say that their present has been shared with someone who really needs it. Ideal for the person who has everything! Do your ethical shopping at CAFOD, SCIAF, Trocaire or Christian Aid.
Bitesize
Too often too late comes too soon.
Dr. SunWolf, 2015
Mass Intentions for week commencing 4th December 2017Monday 4th / 9.00am / Paul Madders
St. Vincent’s School
Tuesday 5th / 7.30pm / Fr. Fred Callon
Wednesday 6th / 9.30am / Brian Chandler
Thursday 7th / 9.30am / Annie Houghton
(1st Anniversary)
Friday 8th / 12 noon / Pastoral Area Mass
2nd Intention – Len Bate
Saturday 9th / 4.30-5pm / Confessions
Sunday 10th / 8.30am
10.30am
4.00pm / Michael McNamara
Brian Moss (14th Ann. Remembrance)
Harrison Family
Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament at St. Joseph’s will take place this week on Wednesday from 10.30am until 12 Noon and onFriday from 8.30am until 12 noon
Funerals
There will be a Funeral Service at Widnes Crematorium on Tuesday 5th December at 1pm for Reg Lewis.
Frances has asked that anyone who can’t attend at the Crem, please make their way to St. Joseph’s Social Centre from 2pm onwards.
There will be a Funeral Service for Paul Hilditch on Monday 11th December at 12 noon at St. Alban’s Church.