CLONMACNOIS PARISH BULLETIN MARCH 22nd 2020
Clonmacnois Parish
Fr. Tom Cox (Adm) Tel. 090 9674125/ 0868319500
Email: clonmacnoiseparish@gmail.com
WEB shannonbridge.blogspot.ie
FOURTH SUNDAY OF LENT
‘I CAN SEE’
The Lenten gospels have common threads running through them. We heard about the disciples on Mount Tabor; the woman at the well; the blind man on the road. In all these cases Jesus takes the initiative; the encounter occurs in the solitude; people are changed. Today the blind man is healed but Jesus does much more than heal the man’s blindness. He takes him on a journey from darkness through sight to insight. He enables him to see with the ‘eyes of the heart’. As the story unfolds the blind man moves from referring to Jesus as a man to recognising him as a prophet to finally worshipping Him as Lord. In the end he comes to understand who Jesus is. The best vision is insight. In these strange and challenging days could our God be leading us from sight to insight? Is He asking us to think again; to listen again; to see with the eyes of the heart? Might He be calling on our world to make different choices; to walk different paths? Perhaps He is reminding us that life is very fragile, that we are indeed our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers, that we are not masters of time, and, above all, that He alone is the Way the Truth&the Life.‘We are stewards, not masters of the earth’. (Pope Francis).
U All Mass intentions which have been booked over the next weeks have been deferred and may be re booked at a later date, if and when the situation changes.
UReaders and Ministers of Holy Communion will be alerted also when the situation changes.
USHANNONBRIDGE GAA Club 23 members have kindly volunteered to assist any member of our community, especially Seniors to collect shopping, prescriptions etc. Contact me 086 8319500 for a local Club contact.Keep Safe&warm– you’re not alone. We will get through. I pray Mass daily for you.
U The Parish Newsletter will continue to be published with copies available in both Churches and online. FREE ONLINE RELIGIOUS EDUC Classes on www.growinlove.ie password growinlove
UCOVID-19 Support Line for Older People: ALONE has launched a national support line and additional supports for older people who have concerns or are facing difficulties relating to the outbreak of COVID-19 (Coronavirus). staff are available to answer queries and give advice and reassurance where necessary.The support line is open Monday to Friday, 8am-8pm, by calling 0818 222 024. Hours may be extended to meet the demand.
UMASS will be available by webcam at St. Mel’s Cathedral www.longfordparish.com each day— 8am, 10am, 1.05pm weekday 7.30pm Saturday; 8am, 10am, 11.30am and 1.00 pm Sundays.www.cloghanbanagherparish.ie 6.30Sat 106.6FM
URTE Television will air Masses every weekday at 10.30am from St. Eunan’s and St. Columba’s Cathedral, Letterkenny on RTE News Now which can be accessed on Saorview (channel 21), Sky (521), Virgin Media (200), Eir (517).
MOORE CHURCH 104.1fm Saturday’s @ 7pm and Sunday’s @ 11.30am on 104.1fm radio.
FERBANE CHURCH Mon-Sat 10a.m Sun 11:00a.m. on 106.5FM ATHLONE 88.4FM Mon-Fri 9:30am , Sunday 11am
URADIO MARIA IRELAND is an Irish-run Catholic Talk-Radio Station. Prayer, Catechesis, Uplifting music, Talks, Interviews and Testimonies – all commercial free – Listen via TV on Saorview - Channel 210 and Freeview - Channel 826; Download our FREE APP - “RADIO MARIA IRELAND”, streaming on www.radiomaria.ie
UBoth Clonfanlough & Shannonbridge Church remains open every day for those who wish to drop in to offer a prayer. The heating will be on from 10.30 to 12.30 each day. You can pray the Rosary, Stations of the Cross, or just sit in silence and let the Lord Jesus speak quietly into your heart; you are encouraged to continue to pray at home with your family and especially for those who are sick and those who care for them
Because of the requirements that indoor gatherings of more than 100 people be avoided, and the difficulties that may arise in achieving this, and always mindful of public safety and those with underlying medical conditions, the following arrangements are to be followed in all parishes:
UBecause of the emergency situation, all parishioners are dispensed from the obligation to physically attend Sunday Mass. UBe assured that priests will continue to celebrate Mass privately and pray for the needs of their parishioners.
UAll non-essential pastoral gatherings and meetings, such as formation gatherings, retreats and seminars are cancelled.
UAll Confirmations are postponed until further notice.
UEvery Catholic is entitled to a dignified Christian burial. Attendance at Funeral services and Masses should be limited to close relatives and must not exceed 100 attendees within the Church building.
USimilarly, Church weddings and baptisms may be celebrated on condition that the attendance in Church does not exceed 100 people.
UIn these difficult and uncertain times, people find strength, consolation and hope in prayer. Churches should remain open for prayer each day.
LOCKDOWN
Yes there is fear.
Yes there is isolation.
Yes there is panic buying.
Yes there is sickness.
Yes there is even death…...But,
They say that in Wuhan after so
many years of noise You can hear the birds again. They say that after just a few weeks of quiet The sky is no longer thick with fumes
But blue and grey and clear. They say that in the streets of Assisi People are singing to each other
across the empty squares, keeping their windows open so that those who are alone may hear
the sounds of family around the
They say that a hotel in the West of Ireland
is offering free meals and delivery to the
housebound. Today a young woman I know
is busy spreading fliers with her number
through the neighbourhood
so that the elders may have
someone to call on. Today Churches, Synagogues, Mosques and Temples are preparing to welcome and
shelter the homeless, the sick, the weary.
All over the world people are slowing
down and reflecting.
All over the world people are looking at
their neighbours in a new way
All over the world people are waking up
to a new reality. /To how big we really are.
To how little control we really have. /To what really matters. To Love./ So we pray and we remember that / Yes there is fear. But there does not have to be hate. Yes there is isolation.
But there does not have to be loneliness. Yes there is panic buying. But there does not have to be meanness. Yes there is sickness.
But there does not have to be disease of the soul.
Yes there is even death. But there can always be a rebirth of love. Wake to the choices you make
as to how to live now. Today, breathe.
Listen, behind the factory noises
of your panic. The birds are singing again,
The sky is clearing, Spring is coming,
And we are always encompassed by Love.
Open the windows of your soul
And though you may not be able
to touch across the empty square,. Sing
Brother Richard Hendrick, 13 March 2020
Spiritual Communion
The tradition of Spiritual Communion, whereby those who cannot directly receive the Eucharist, can by their desire to receive it, also gain its benefits. Although unable to receive the Eucharist in person we are not separated from it, but drawn into a deeper appreciation and desire for its grace, which continue to poured out to each of us.
Act of Spiritual Communion “My Jesus, I believe that You are present in the Most Blessed Sacrament. I love You above all things and I desire to receive You into my soul. Since I cannot now receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You have already come , and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You. Amen”
...Without mothers, not only would there be no new faithful, but the Faith itself would lose a good part of its simple
and profound warmth.. Dear mothers: thank you! Thank you for what you are in your family and for what you give to the
Church and the world". Amoris Laetitia
Prayers
Bless mothers for their unfailing dedication and tenderness through which they reflect your unconditional love for us even when we have made ourselves unlovable Keep them joyful and fulfilled in their motherhood.
Help them in their task of communicating your presence in the life of the family.
Be with those mothers whose lives are made difficult by lack of resources or support as they seek to provide the best care for their families and the future of their children. Through Christ our Lord.
Amen
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