Parish Newsletter 18th January 2009

St Simon Stock Catholic Church Brookfield Road, South Ashford, Kent TN23 4EU Tel: 01233 622399

Parish Priest: Fr John Boyle Saint Simon of England RC Primary School, Noakes Meadow, Ashford, TN23 2RB. Tel: 01233 623199 Head teacher: Mrs Elizabeth Willis MASS TIMES AND INTENTIONS th Sunday 18 Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (B) Day of prayer for peace on earth Commencement of week of prayer for Christian Unity 10.00am Mass (Les Oakley RIP) 6.00pm Mass (For the people of the parish) th Monday 19 St Wulstan, bishop 4.45pm Reception of the body of Janet Dorey 6.45pm Mass (Deceased relatives & friends of Irene Crook) th Tuesday 20 2.00pm Requiem Mass for Janet Dorey RIP st Wednesday 21 St Agnes, virgin and martyr 9.15am Mass (Katy Waldner‟s intentions) St. Simon‟s School Yr. 6 attending nd Thursday 22 Ss Vincent and Anastasius, martyrs 6.45pm Mass (Latin, 1962 Missal) (Marie, Patrick, Annie & Hugh Treacy, Phylis Wood and Sarah Mills RIP) rd Friday 23 6.45pm Votive Mass for Christian Unity (Ted Russell RIP) th Saturday 24 St Francis de Sales, bishop and doctor of the Church 9.00am Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament 10.00am Mass (Paul Waldner) th Sunday 25 Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (B) 10.00am Mass of the Conversion of St Paul (George Gatt RIP) rd 12.00 noon (Latin, 1962 Missal, Mass of 3 Sunday after Epiphany) (Elizabeth Honywood RIP) 4.00pm Mass in Polish 6.00pm Mass (For the people of the parish) CONFESSIONS/CONSULTATIONS Saturday: 10.30am, Sunday 9.30am, 5.30pm. Weekdays: before or after Mass upon request. CHURCH CLEANING rd th th th th 23 Sue; 30 Tara; February 6 Bridie; 13 Sheila; 20 Sue COLLECTIONS LAST SUNDAY Offertory: £515.88, (Gift Aid: £218.42, loose plate: £297.46) + £99 approx by standing order. To contribute by a regular standing order please ask for a form. If you are a tax payer and are not already using the Gift Aid scheme, please ask for a Gift Aid form. Second collection: SPUC White Flower Appeal: £339.84. Thank you. Second collection today and next Sunday: Parish Maintenance & Development Fund. PRAYERS FOR THE SICK Please pray for all our sick parishioners. If you know of anyone who needs our prayers at the present time, please place their names in the box in the Church foyer. CRIB OFFERINGS nd The Crib will remain on display up to 2 February, the feast of the Presentation of the Lord (Candlemas). Your offerings will go to the Good Counsel Network who help women to keep their children rather than opting for abortion. See the notice board for the Good Counsel News and their appeal for funds. Total collected so far since Christmas Day: £124.93

18th JANUARY 2009 SECOND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B

TODAY’S MASS TEXTS Entrance Antiphon: Ps 65:4 May all the earth give you worship and praise, and break into song to your name, O God, Most High.

HYMN INTROIT FOR 10.00AM MASS Let all the earth praise you, O Lord, And worship you with one accord; May we, with song and melody, Praise your great name, O Majesty! All people of the earth, rejoice, Praise God, and raise a joyful voice, Sing psalms and glorify his name, Give joyful praises all the same.

First Reading: Proclaim to God, “Your deeds are great, 1 Samuel 3:3-10.19 Speak, Lord, your Your enemies are soon dismayed.” All earth reveres and worships you, servant is listening. Adores, and sings your praises, too. Responsorial Psalm: Ps 39:2.4.7-10 Come, witness all the Lord has done, R: Here I am Lord! I come to do your will. He is the awesome Holy One; He turned the sea into dry land, I waited, I waited for They passed through it at his command. the Lord and he stooped down To God, the Triune One, we raise to me; Eternal songs of joyful praise. he heard my cry. O Father, Son, and Paraclete, He put a new song We praise your name in word and deed. into my mouth, praise of our God. (R) You do not ask for sacrifice and offerings, but an open ear. You do not ask for holocaust and victim. Instead, here am I (R) In the scroll of the book it stands written that I should do your will. My God, I delight in your law in the depth of my heart. (R) Your justice I have proclaimed in the great assembly. My lips I have not sealed; you know it, O Lord. (R) Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 6:13-15.17-20 Your bodies are members making up the body of Christ. Gospel Acclamation: 1 Samuel 3:9; John 6:68 Alleluia, alleluia! Speak, Lord, your servant is listening: you have the message of eternal life. Alleluia! Gospel: John 1:35-42 They saw where he lived, and stayed with him. Eucharistic Prayer 4 with its proper Preface Communion Antiphon: Ps 22:5 The Lord has prepared a feast for me: given wine in plenty for me to drink. SPUC WHITE FLOWER APPEAL Thanks to parishioners for your great generosity in response to last Sunday‟s appeal by Professor Tom Healy. Professor Healy dealt with issues which touch all of us in one way or another yet his talk received many favourable comments. If you have been affected by the issues raised in his talk and need help/counselling, please see the notice board behind the crib or see Fr John. Perhaps you have some ideas for further action in the parish? If you have any helpful comments, positive or negative, following last week‟s talk they would be appreciated.

Email: [email protected]; Web: www.stsimon.org.uk; Parish blog: http://st-simon-parish.blogspot.com/; diocesan website: www.rcsouthwark.co.uk

FROM FATHER JOHN’S DESKTOP World Day of Prayer for Peace is kept by the Church on New Year‟s Day, but Episcopal conferences can decide on an alternative day for local Churches. In this country we observe this Day of Prayer today. Pope Benedict‟s Message for this year‟s Day of Prayer is entitled Fighting Poverty to Build Peace and deals with a wide range of issues that affect the fight against poverty, particularly „the complex phenomenon of globalization.‟ He says that „in our dealings with the poor (we should) set out from the clear recognition that we all share in a single divine plan: we are called to form one family in which all – individuals, peoples, nations – model their behaviour according to the principles of fraternity and responsibility.‟ „Every form of externally imposed poverty has at its root a lack of respect for the transcendent dignity of the human person. When man is not considered within the total context of his vocation, and when the demands of a true “human ecology” are not respected, the cruel forces of poverty are unleashed.‟ And the Holy Father goes on to deal with specific areas where this is evident: population control, pandemic diseases, child poverty, the arms race, the current food crisis. Globalization can be a force for good only if there exists „a strong sense of global solidarity between rich and poor countries‟ governed by norms which are „rooted in the natural law inscribed by the Creator on the conscience of every human being.‟ Pope Benedict exclaims: „Effective means to redress the marginalization of the world‟s poor through globalization will only be found if people everywhere feel personally outraged by the injustices in the world and by the concomitant violations of human rights.‟ Referring to the current financial crisis affecting all countries of the world, he says that it „demonstrates how financial activity can at times be completely turned in on itself, lacking any long-term consideration of the common good. This lowering of the objectives of global finance to the very short term reduces its capacity to function as a bridge between the present and the future, and as a stimulus to the creation of new opportunities for production and for work in the long term. Finance limited in this way to the short and very short term becomes dangerous for everyone.‟ Pope Benedict concludes with an appeal: „At the start of the New Year, then, I extend to every disciple of Christ and to every person of good will a warm invitation to expand their hearts to meet the needs of the poor and to take whatever practical steps are possible in order to help them. The truth of the axiom cannot be refuted: “to fight poverty is to build peace.”‟ The Holy Father‟s message is available in full via the parish blog or from the Vatican website. Fr John REGULAR EVENTS DIVINE MERCY PRAYER GROUP after the 9.00am Mass on Tuesdays. (Not this week due to the funeral.) Prayers of intercession for various needs and silent adoration of the Blessed Sacrament till 10am. MUSIC PRACTICE TUESDAYS 7.30PM Newcomers always welcome. BIBLE STUDY THURSDAYS 7.30PM Studying St Paul‟s letters to the Corinthians and Pope Benedict‟s Wednesday audiences on St Paul. EVANGELIUM – CATHOLIC FAITH ENQUIRY For all, Catholic or not, who would like to deepen their knowledge of the Catholic faith. Next meeting: 7.15pm this Friday; Topic: The Lord’s Prayer PRO-LIFE PRAYER VIGIL MAIDSTONE THIS WEDNESDAY With last Sunday‟s appeal in mind, can you come to this vigil which Fr John will lead on behalf of The Helpers of God‟s Precious Infants? Commences 10.30am after the morning Mass at St. Francis‟ Church, Maidstone, with a prayerful and peaceful procession to the Marie Stopes abortion facility in Brewer Street. Ends 12 noon. For fuller details see poster on notice board. See Fr John if you need a lift. YEAR OF ST PAUL – SPECIAL MASS NEXT SUNDAY On 28th June 2007, Pope Benedict announced a special Year of St Paul: As in early times, today too Christ needs apostles ready to sacrifice themselves. He needs witnesses and martyrs like St Paul. Paul, a former violent persecutor of Christians, when he fell to the ground dazzled by the divine light on the road to Damascus, did not hesitate to change sides to the Crucified One and followed him without second thoughts. He lived and worked for Christ, for him he suffered and died. How timely his example is today! And for this very reason I am pleased to announce officially that we shall be dedicating a special Jubilee Year to the Apostle Paul from 28 June 2008 to 29 June 2009, on the occasion of the bimillennium of his birth, which historians have placed between the years 7 and 10 A.D.' The 10.00am Mass next Sunday will be the Mass of the Conversion of St Paul. All are encouraged to attend and to gain the Plenary Indulgence for the year of St Paul that may be gained by all who attend this Mass. (To find out more about indulgences, look up the Catechism of the Catholic Church or see last week‟s newsletter on the parish website – link at bottom of this page – or the parish blog.)

CHILD-LOSS BEREAVEMENT The loss of a loved one can be very hard for many people, in spite of their firm hope in the Resurrection. It is particularly difficult for those who have lost a child, whether the child has died before birth through miscarriage or abortion or stillbirth, or days/weeks/months/years after birth. Other forms of bereavement can occur through giving a child up for adoption, or the disappearance or murder of a child. This can affect the mother, father, and other siblings. If anyone thinks it would be a good idea to have a meeting of people so affected (parents or siblings) to talk through their experiences and to help themselves and others come to terms with their grief, or if they would like to organise such a group, please let Fr John know. ALTAR SERVERS DAY There will be an afternoon for altar servers from different th parishes here at St Simon‟s on Sunday 15 February commencing 2.00pm and ending with Mass at 6.00pm. Information and consent forms are available for all servers in the sacristy. We will need help with welcoming, refreshments, supervision, etc. If any parishioners would like to volunteer, please could they let Fr John know. Thank you. th

th

ALTAR SERVERS ROME TRIP 27 – 29 OCTOBER This annual trip to Rome is immensely popular and successful with servers aged 11-16 from different parishes attending. Cost: th £209. Early flight out from Gatwick on 27 , late flight back on th 29 . Places are limited to 20 servers so book soon. Bookings are already coming in, including from two servers from this parish. Further details available from the sacristy. Not a server but aged 11-16 and would like to come? An adult/parent and would like to come as a helper? See Fr John. POSSIBLE PARISH PILGRIMAGE TO KRAKOW, POLAND TH RD 19 – 23 OCTOBER I am making initial investigations concerning this possibility. Krakow is where Pope John Paul II was Archbishop and there are many places to see connected with his life. There are also the famous sights of Krakow (Wawel Castle, the Market Square), the shrine to the Divine Mercy where Sister Faustina was a nun and received her revelations, the salt mines, the national shrine to Our Lady at Jasna Gora, Auschwitz... Four nights is really not enough! It would be helpful to have some idea of numbers of people who might be interested. Please sign up on the notice board to express interest without obligation at this stage. I will then be able to get a price together. At present this is only a possibility, not a definite event.

To catch up on previous newsletters visit http://www.stsimon.org.uk/Newsletters/. Parish blog: http://st-simon-parish.blogspot.com/