Leigh Pastoral Area

Thursday, March 04, 2010

What If We Just Said Wait?

The case for a grassroots review of the new Roman Missal

The “What If We Just Said Wait?” initiative asking the bishops to slow down the implementation of the new Roman Missal has 17,896 signatures and counting! ... 9726 lay people, 3087 lay ministers, 5083 priests, deacons and religious from 74 countries.  If you would like to learn more about the initiative and see some of the proposed texts for the new Missal due to be introduced sometime in 2011, check out the website:
http://www.whatifwejustsaidwait.org

THE EASTER TRIDUUM 2010

St Richard’s & Sacred Heart, Atherton
Maundy Thursday
Mass of the Lord’s Supper at 7.30 pm
Good Friday
Celebration of the Lord’s Passion at 3.00 pm
Holy Saturday
The Easter Vigil at 8.00 pm

St Ambrose Barlow, St Gabriel’s & Holy Family
Maundy Thursday
Mass of the Lord’s Supper at 7.30 pm
St Ambrose Barlow, Astley
Good Friday
Celebration of the Lord’s Passion at 3.00 pm
Holy Family, Boothstown
Holy Saturday
The Easter Vigil at 7.30 pm
St Gabriel’s, Higher Folds

St Edmund Arrowsmith Pastoral Area
Maundy Thursday
Mass of the Lord’s Supper at 7.30 pm
Our Lady of the Rosary
Good Friday
Celebration of the Lord’s Passion at 3.00 pm
Sacred Heart, Leigh
Holy Saturday
The Easter Vigil at 7.30 pm
Twelve Apostles, Leigh

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Annual Romero Mass

Sunday 7th March
St Mary’s, Lowe House, Crab Street, St. Helens WA10 2BE
Starts at 2.30 pm with Mass at 4.30 pm.
An opportunity to reflect on modern day saints and heroes with the Justice & Peace Commission and Animate Youth Ministry. Music with Mike Anderson. Workshops for all ages.

Catholic Training Partnership

One-day Conference at Liverpool Hope University
Saturday 13th March 2010
Conference for Catholic teachers and students interested in teaching or returning to teaching in Catholic schools and colleges.  See noticeboard for full details or ask one of the priests.

Lenten Taize Evenings

During Lent, there will be a number of Taize Prayer Evenings. For those who don’t know, Taize is a place of pilgrimage in France visited by thousands of people every year. The music and liturgy of Taize is very distinctive, yet very prayerful and peaceful. The Taize services, which will last approximately 50 minutes, will hopefully provide us with a time of peace and meditation. Come along and join in this time of prayer together, and allow the music of Taize to bring us peace and help us to focus on God’s Word.

Tuesday 9th March
Holy Family at 7.00 pm
Monday 15th March
St Richard’s at 7.00 pm
Thursday 25th March
St Ambrose Barlow at 7.00 pm

Women’s World Day of Prayer

Friday 5th March at 7.30 pm
Kingsleigh Methodist Church, King Street, Leigh
All men, women, young people and children are most welcome.  Car parking behind the church (enter by Cook Street which is one-way).  Speaker:  Mrs Josie Butterworth (Christ Church, Pennington).  Singers (male and female) are invited for the joint choir.  Choir practice:  Monday 1st March, 7.30 - 8.30 pm, at Kingsleigh Methodist Church.

There will be a special Day of Prayer for Women on Friday March 5th. The day will begin at 2.00 pm and will take place at Atherton Baptist Church.

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Let us pray

Come Lord to me
and fill my emptiness
with your presence.
Come refresh, restore
and renew me.
In my sadness, come as joy.
In my troubles, come as peace.
In my despair, come as hope.
In my darkness, come as light.
In my frailty, come as strength.
In my loneliness, come as love.
Come Lord to me refresh,
restore and renew me.

(Source unknown)

A Night to Remember

Charity Cabaret in aid of Christie’s & MacMillan Nursing on Friday 5th March at 7.30 pm in Denton Cricket Club, Egerton Street, Denton.  Seven acts on stage – ballads, rock & pop, country & western, comedian, raffles & auctions.  Tickets £7.50 inc. buffet from Carol (0161 292 8524) or Steve (07756 562149).

Day of inspiration for Catholics working with Young People

Come and hear some of the finest speakers in the world share their wisdom and knowledge about working with young people. This event will be held at the Friends’ Meeting House, Euston Road, London.  Bob and Maggie McCarty are at the forefront of Youth Ministry in America, and they will be joined by well known Dominican author and speaker Fr Timothy Radcliffe, Abbot Christopher Jamison (from the BBC series, The Monastery), and Archbishop Vincent Nichols. February 27th 2010, London – full details at http://www.cymfed.org/congress 
or John Biggins (01744 740463)

THE SEASON OF LENT 2010

The Gospel for Ash Wednesday suggests three ways to help us keep Lent faithfully:  prayer, fasting and almsgiving.

PRAYER
Lent is a bit like an ‘annual retreat’ for Christians.  We use the season to try and get back into shape as Christians.  For example, if we’ve got out of the habit of going to Sunday Mass and the day has got filled with other things, perhaps our Lenten Penance could be to try and come back to Mass.  If we already come to Sunday Mass, perhaps trying to come to one of the weekday Masses or services would be a good Lenten Penance.  During Lent, there will be some extra Masses and services to help us:

Early Morning Mass
St Ambrose Barlow: To be announced
Holy Family: Friday at 6.30 am

Stations of the Cross
St Ambrose Barlow: To be announced
Holy Family: Fridays at 7.00 pm
St Gabriel’s: Saturdays at 5.30 pm

Services of Reconciliation at 7.30 pm
Friday 19th February: Sacred Heart Leigh
Wed 3rd March: St Richard’s
Tuesday 9th March: XII Apostles, Leigh
Tuesday 23rd March: St Joseph’s, Leigh
Tuesday 30th March: Holy Family

FASTING
There could be two ways to fast.  First, fasting can be eating less, drinking less, smoking less, etc., and giving the money you save in this way to CAFOD.  Another way of fasting might be this:  if you tend to get to Mass at the last minute, why not try and arrive 5 or 10 minutes before Mass is due to begin so that you are there at the beginning of the celebration; you could then use the few minutes beforehand to prepare yourself in prayer.  The ‘fasting’ in this instance is fasting from whatever usually makes you late and giving that to the Lord.  Similarly, for those who regularly leave after communion before the end of Mass, why not try and give a few extra minutes to the Lord and his people by staying to the end of Mass?

ALMSGIVING
Almsgiving is about sharing what we have with those who have little or nothing.  During Lent, you could try to save or raise money for CAFOD – giving money that you need rather than what you have over.  CAFOD’s Lent Fast Day is on Friday 26th February. Also, the Second Collection each week will be the usual Lenten Alms which will go to support the many Asylum Seekers in our region.

“Tuesdays in Lent” at Holy Family
Tuesday 16th February
Soup and Pancakes:  12.00 noon – 2.00 pm in the Parish Hall
Tuesday 23rd February
Looking at the texts of the New Missal:  7.00 - 8.00 pm
Tuesday 2nd March
Workshop & Lunch for Weekday Readers:  11.30 am - 2.00 pm
Tuesday 9th March
Taize Prayer around the Cross:  7.00 - 7.45 pm
Tuesday 16th March
Question Time
Tuesday 23rd March
Lenten Celebration of Evening Prayer at 7.00 pm

Atherton Churches Together
Tuesdays during Lent in the Independent Methodist Church, Mealhouse Lane, Atherton.

Leigh Churches Together
Studies for Lent commence the week beginning 22nd February for 5 weeks:  Wednesdays at 2.00 pm at St Mary’s and repeated on Thursdays at 7.30 pm at the Baptist Church.  All are welcome.

Living Faith
‘Living Faith’ is a course offered by the Archdiocesan Pastoral Formation Department for those who have had little opportunity to reflect on their faith.  There will be three sessions:  Monday 22nd February & Monday 1st March (7.00 - 9.00 pm), and Saturday 20th March (10.00 am - 2.00 pm).  The course will take place at Holy Family Parish Hall and will be led by Maureen Knight and John Biggins.  There are only 30 places available.  For further information and to book a place, please contact Fr Dave (0161 790 2390 or DPatHFB@aol.com). 

Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday
Day of Fasting and Abstinence
The Season of Lent begins on Wednesday.  Ashes will be blessed and distributed during four Masses/Services in St Margaret Clitherow’s Pastoral Area – one at each church – which we hope will cater for everyone’s needs.

9.15 am Morning Prayer & Mass at Holy Family
12.00 noon Mass at St Richard’s
2.30 pm Service of Ashes at St Gabriel’s
7.00 pm Mass at St Ambrose Barlow

For those who are unable to come to church on Wednesday, Mass will be broadcast from the Cathedral at 4.00 pm on BBC Radio 3.  It will also be available on the ‘Listen Again’ feature on the BBC website.

In St Edmund Arrowsmith’s Pastoral Area:
Details to follow

Friday, January 29, 2010

HOSPITAL STAY

Many of you will know that with fewer priests it is difficult for us to visit you while you are in hospital.  However, each hospital now has a Roman Catholic Chaplain as part of a Chaplaincy Team.  If you are admitted to hospital as a patient, you should make sure that the hospital staff record your religion and note your explicit request that the Roman Catholic Chaplain is informed.  Those responsible for children, or for those who are unconscious when admitted to hospital, should do likewise.  If you don’t do this, the Chaplain is unlikely to know that you are in hospital.

Leigh Infirmary
The priests of Leigh Pastoral Area provide on-call cover for Leigh Infirmary.  So, if you are admitted to Leigh Infirmary and want to see a priest, simply ask the staff to page us.  In an effort to provide better support at the Infirmary, we are conducting an audit of those presently involved at Leigh Infirmary, i.e. taking communion or visiting.  So, if you currently undertake any ministry at the Infirmary, or would be willing to help in the future, please contact Fr John or Fr Dave.  Many thanks.

SUNDAY & WEEKDAY SCRIPTURES

If you want to make the Word of God part of your daily prayer, then a good way can be to read the parts of the bible that are read at Mass each day all over the world.  You can find these readings in a Sunday and/or Weekday Missal.  You can also find them online at the following addresses:

Sunday & Weekday Readings
http://www.catholicireland.net
Guided Prayer using the Daily Gospel
http://sacredspace.ie
Daily Prayer for your MP3 Player
http://www.pray-as-you-go.org

BOYCE & STANLEY

Popular singing/songwriting duo Joanne Boyce and Mike Stanley will perform a concert of contemporary Christian music incorporating dynamic praise and soulful worship on Sunday 28th February at 6.00 pm at St Anthony’s RC Church, Manchester M22 0WR.  Tickets:  £7.50 (discounts available) from 0161 436 5622 or 01675 466 254 or book online at: http://www.cjmmusic.com/boxoffice

LIVING FAITH

A course offered by the Archdiocesan Pastoral Formation Department for those who have had little opportunity to reflect on their faith.  There will be three sessions:

Monday 22nd February
7.00 – 9.00 pm
“Knowing Who I Am”

Monday 1st March
7.00 – 9.00 pm
“Believing In God – How God Calls Us”

Saturday 20th March
10.00 am – 2.00 pm
“Believing In Jesus & Believing In Others”

The course will take place in the Parish Hall at Holy Family, Boothstown, and will be led by Maureen Knight and John Biggins.  There are only 20 places available.  For further information and to book a place, please contact Fr Dave (0161 790 2390 or DPatHFB@aol.com).