Congratulations to the Boys & Girls who will receive 1^st Holy Communion this weekend 18^th & 19^th May in Blessington and Manor Kilbride.

Every blessing on all the children and their families from St Mary’s JS Blessington, Blessington No 1 School, Blessington Educate Together NS and St. Brigid’s NS Manor Kilbride

►The Rosary will be offered at 7.30pm for the intentions of our families in Blessington Church

►Holy Hour in Crosschapel every Monday after 10am Mass. (ex Bank Holidays)

►Children’s Choir 1^st Rehearsal from 3pm to 3.45pm in Church of Our Lady Blessington

►Neighbourhood Collection Envelopes for May are due, we would appreciate it collectors could drop the envelopes into the Parish Office

►Congratulations to the Boys & Girls who will receive 1^st Holy Communion at 11am Mass in Lacken Church today.

►A message from Archbishop Diarmuid Martin

This weekend of 11^th & 12^th May, we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday an occasion to reflect on the importance of the ministerial priesthood & on prayer for vocations to the priesthood.  This is an urgent call for the future of our diocese. There will no longer be special collection today as with smaller numbers of seminarians, there are now sufficient funds for the near future. In his message for the World day of Prayer for Vocations Pope Francis says that there can be no greater joy than to risk one’s life for the Lord! He encourages us, especially the young, not to be deaf to the Lord’s call.   ‘If he calls you to follow his path, do not pull your oars into the boat, but trust him.  Do not yield to fear, which paralyses us before the great heights to which the Lord points us.

Next weekend, 18^th & 19^th May, we will for the first time hold a new collection which will be called the Ministry Sunday Collection. This new annual collection will replace the Share Collection & will be devoted to support the building up of new forms of lay ministry in our parishes.  The work of spreading the Gospel of Jesus in our changing religious culture will require more lay men and women working in various ways alongside our priests at the heart of parish communities. This collection is about ensuring that we will have the people we need – men & women who will be to the fore in making our parishes vibrant faith communities into the future. While many of those involved will be volunteers, we will have to equip & train leaders & provide facilities for formation. We want to work towards a situation where all parishes in this Archdiocese benefit from their gifts & expertise. The new collection is one-step in that process.

 

► The Parish Book Club will meet at 10am in the Crying Room, Church of Our Lady. The book for discussion is “An Astonishing Secret” by Daniel O’Leary. Published 2017 by Columba Press. New Members welcome.