THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
21 JANUARY 2024
| Sat 20 Jan | |||
| St. Theresa’s | 5.00pm | Collins’ Family Intentions | |
| St. Columba’s | 6.30pm | Cath Carter RIP | |
| Sun 21 Jan | |||
| St. Theresa’s | 9.30am | Parishioners’ Intentions | |
| St. Columba’s | 11.00am | Anthony Comerford RIP | |
| Mon 22 Jan | |||
| St. Theresa’s | Priests’ Intentions | ||
| St. Columba’s | 10.30am | Priests’ Intentions | |
| Tue 23 Jan | |||
| St. Theresa’s | Anthony Baker RIP | ||
| St. Columba’s | The Parish | ||
| Wed 24 Jan | St Francis de Sales, B, D. Mem | ||
| St. Theresa’s | 12noon | Requiem Mass for Muriel Halligan RIP | |
| St. Columba’s | 9.30am | Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament | |
| 10.15am | Novena Prayers | ||
| 10.30am | Cath Carter RIP | ||
| Thu 25 Jan | The Conversion of St Paul, Ap | ||
| St. Theresa’s | Special Intention | ||
| St. Columba’s | 11.00am | Requiem Mass for Stephen Michael Phillips | |
| Fri 26 Jan | Ss Timothy & Titus, B. Mem | ||
| St. Theresa’s | 10.00am | Catherine McHugh RIP | |
| St. Columba’s | Private Intention | ||
| Sat 27 Jan | |||
| St. Theresa’s | 5.00pm | Alison Corbert RIP | |
| St. Columba’s | 6.30pm | The Parish | |
| Sun 14 Jan | |||
| St. Theresa’s | 9.30am | Kathleen Maguire RIP | |
| St. Columba’s | 11.00am | Carole & Dave Roberts |
Please note if there is no time next to Mass it means there is no Mass for parishioners to attend that day but the Priests will say Mass privately.
LIVE STREAMING OF MASS:
Mass will be streamed from St Theresa’s at 9.30a.m. this Sunday 21st January 2024
www.facebook.com/thecatholicparishofstcolumbaandsttheresa
Pope’s Prayer Intentions for January – For the gift of diversity in the church – Let us pray that the Spirit help us to recognize the gift of different charisms within the Christian community, and to discover the richness of different ritual traditions in the heart of the Catholic Church.
RECENTLY DECEASED:
Please remember in your prayers Brian Haslam, Muriel Halligan, Terence Smith and Stephen Phillips, who died recently. May the Lord console their families and friends.
The Requiem Mass for Muriel Halligan is at St Theresa’s on Wednesday 24th January at 12 noon.
Stephen’s Requiem Mass will be held at St Columba’s on Thursday 25th January at 11.00am.
ANNIVERSARIES:
Anthony Keith Baker, Margaret Parry, Michael Booth, John Francis McNeill, Rev. Francis Gabriel Bligh, Veronica Mary Joyce.
WEDDINGS, BAPTISMS AND FUNERALS:
Please contact one of the Parish Offices to make your arrangements.
CONFESSIONS:
There will be Confessions after each weekday Mass until 11.30am.
St Columba’s: From 6pm before the 6.30pm Saturday evening Mass.
St Theresa’s: From 4.30pm before 5pm Saturday evening Mass.
OFFERTORY:
St Columba’s: Loose plate £472.07; Planned Giving £210.10; Average Weekly SO – £574.00; Candles £36.13
St Theresa’s: Loose plate TBC; Planned Giving TBC; Average weekly SO – £161.00.
THANK YOU for all your generous support.
ST COLUMBA’S COFFEE ROTA
The 2024 coffee rota is now on the noticeboard at St Columba’s Hall, so please enter your name and good cause against your preferred dates. You could make £30-£50 for your chosen cause. Call Margaret Curtis 01244 318424 to book your date(s).
21st Jan – volunteers please
28th Jan – volunteers please
4th Feb – Sue McCarthy, SVP
PRAYING TOGETHER
We pray for:
- The residents of Dunham Way, Chirk Close, Tintern Avenue, Boleyn Close, Tudor Green, Saxon Way and Palatine Close.
- The prayer groups and ecumenical prayer groups.
- Those who have nobody to pray for them.
ALTAR SERVERS – GUILD OF ST STEPHEN ENROLMENT MASS:
St Stephen is the patron saint of altar servers. The altar servers of our parish are enrolled into the Guild of St Stephen and receive a bronze medal. The enrolment mass will be this Sunday 21st January (today) 11.00a.m. at St Columbas’s. The enrolment ceremony will only take a few minutes and will begin after the homily.
ST COLUMBA’S CAR PARK:
The resurfacing began on Monday 8th January and, weather permitting, will be completed by Friday 26th January. This week the car park alongside the church, accessed from Plas Newton Lane, is closed and access to the church is from the rear entrance. For the week beginning 15th January the whole car park will be closed and pedestrian access to the church will be from the front entrance. Whether the whole car park will be closed this weekend will depend on progress in the first week so please be prepared to park on the road if necessary. Pauline Rourke
SPECIAL YEAR OF PRAYER:
2024 has been named by Pope Francis as a special year of prayer and as part of our response to that, following 11a.m. Mass (and tea and coffee) on Sunday 28th January, we invite you back into church at 1pm for a short period of adoration before the Blessed Sacrament. Adoration will be introduced and led in a child accessible way but we would love for you all to be present. If you are new to this way of praying with the Lord it will provide a good introduction and if you are a regular attendee at adoration it would be wonderful if you could help us share this way of praying with our younger members of the parish. We look forward to joining together with you in prayer on that day.
RETREAT DAY ON PRAYER:
The year 2025 is the next Jubilee Year in the Church. Pope Francis has asked the Church to prepare well. In order to help us do so, (beginning from advent 2023), Pope Francis has called 2023/2024 “A Year of Prayer.” In response, the Shrewsbury Diocese Team for Evangelisation and Mission will be running a Retreat Day on Prayer for parishes in the Chester area in February 2024: Date: Saturday the 3rd of February 2024 Time: 10.00am-3.00pm. Place: St Columbas Parish Hall Plas Newton Lane Chester CH2 1SA. See posters in our porches and website. All are welcome. Please bring a packed lunch.
FIRST FORGIVENESS CELEBRATION:
On Saturday 27th January, 13 children from St Columba’s and St Theresa’s parish will receive the Sacrament of First Forgiveness in a special service of celebration at 10.00a.m. Please pray for the children and their families at this special time in their faith journeys.
FOUNDATION GOVERNOR VACANCY:
St Werburgh’s & St Columba’s Primary School is currently recruiting a Catholic Church Foundation Governor to join our Governing Body. The vacancy must be filled by community member affiliated with the Catholic Church, who are not related to any children within our school. The role would suit someone with an interest in serving our community and supporting the needs of our school children and who has a financial background. The role of a School Governing Body is:
- Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos, and direction of the school.
- Holding the headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils.
- Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent.
If you are interested in finding out more about the role, please contact the school in the first instance to arrange an informal chat. Telephone Sarah on 01244 478954 or email admin@lovelearnlaugh.org.uk. Please note that for the protection of children, all governor appointments are subject to an identity check. Information of this vacancy can be found on the notice board at the back and front porch of the Church.
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: “The earth has music for those who listen.” William Shakespear
NEEDLES AND PINS – WEDNESDAY 24TH JANUARY:
Everyone is welcome to come along to this friendly needlecraft group in the Newman Room between 2p.m – 4p.m. every fourth Wednesday of the month. We’d love to see some new faces!
ADVENT JOURNEY 2023:
Thank you again to all those who offered accommodation to Mary, Joseph and the donkey during Advent. A map of the route taken plus some short stories on their travels can be seen at the front of St Theresa’s and in the back porch at St Columba’s
LOURDES BY JUMBULANCE 2024:
Wirral and Chester Across Groups are taking sick and disabled pilgrims to Lourdes on Thursday 30th May – Saturday 9th June and Thursday 15th – 24th August. A Jumbulance has seven beds on board, spacious seating, an accessible toilet and kitchen. We stay in a four star hotel with excellent facilities to care for them and recruit a team of nurses and helpers to do so. The experience for younger helpers is good for the CV, especially those considering a career in health or social care. We all do a DBS. Everyone must be COVID vaccinated. The cost is £1,095. Half price for nurses and young people under 25 in FTE. We do fund raising to help support those who cannot afford the full amount. Travel Insurance for the sick is available at just £65. Visit our website and read Bev’s story. www.across.org.uk/?s=AJ. For further information, contact Tony Murphy on 07881-656-974 or tonymurphy2002@yahoo.co.uk.
DIOCESAN CHOIR FESTIVAL – ‘SING A NEW SONG’:
You are invited to come along and sing as part of a diocesan choir. Learn music throughout the day and lead the singing for Mass at 5pm. We will learn Schutz: Praise to you Lord Jesus, Schubert: Mass in G and more, on Saturday 24th February, 10.30a.m.-4.30p.m. with Mass beginning at 5p.m. At St Anthony’s, Dunkery Road, Woodhouse Park, Wythenshawe, M22 0WR. Refreshments and registration from 10.30am, rehearsals begin at 11am. Tea and coffee will be provided, please being a packed lunch. The cost is £5 per person, payable on the day. Book by completing the form at HTTP://TINYURL.COM/DIOCESANCHOIRFESTIVAL The deadline for bookings is Friday 16th February. For more information contact reception@dioceseofshrewsbury.org.
LOURDES HOSPITALITY NEXT MEETING:
A meeting of the Shrewsbury Lourdes Hospitality will take place at St Columba’s Church (meeting room) on Saturday 20th January at 2pm. All members of the Hospitality are welcome to attend.
WE’RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER:
The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is traditionally observed from Thursday 18th to Thursday 25th January. The Theme for the week is “You shall love the Lord your God … and your neighbour as yourself” (Lk 10:27). Churches and organisations within Burkina Faso have collaborated in drafting the prayers and reflections for this week. Burkina Faso is currently experiencing a serious security crisis & Christian churches have been expressly targeted by armed attacks. They have invited us to join them in reflection as they consider what it truly means to love thy neighbour in the midst of a security crisis. “Communities in the British-Irish context may be less vulnerable to acts of mass violence than in Burkina Faso, but there are still many living with the memory and/or the threat of serious violence, centred on issues of identity and belonging. There are also groups within communities, including people from ethnic minority backgrounds and people seeking asylum, who feel particularly vulnerable to violence or being displaced by the threat of violence” .(CTBI) the Christians of Burkina Faso commit themselves to walking the path of love of God and love of neighbour. They are confident that God’s love will overcome the violence that currently afflicts their country. May we help them with our prayers and reflections. ctbi.org.uk and https://www.cbcew.org.uk/ for further information.
RESOURCES:
The Cheshire Libraries are holding a Health and Wellbeing week 22nd– 28th January. As part of this week, a number of wellbeing walks will be taking place, book a place by contacting healthranger@cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk or phone 07872464989. Walks include from Upton Library Monday 22nd, 10a.m. 40 mins; Storyhouse Monday 22nd, 2pm, 30 min; Saturday 27th, 10a.m, 40mins; Blacon Library, Tuesday 23rd at 10a.m, 45 mins. Plenty of others, check out the website on http://cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/walks
CAFOD:
“The Church relies on people getting involved. Our parish, our community, our world needs you. Could your New Year’s resolution be getting more involved in the life of our church? Could you give a bit of time to help our parish flourish? CAFOD, the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, is looking for people to give just a little time and join them in their mission. Could you help in our parish, to build a better world. They also need people to visit our local schools: Training & support provided. See cafod.org.uk/Volunteer for more information or contact shrewsbury@cafod.org.uk Or could you take part in The Big Lent Walk? cafod.org.uk/walk “
APPEAL FOR KNITTERS: St Theresa’s Catholic Primary School Council would like to sell knitted Easter chicks, which will be filled with a chocolate egg. We are appealing for knitters who would be able to produce the little chicks. We can supply the wool and a knitting pattern if you can provide the talent! Please contact Anne Ellis aellis@st-theresas.cheshire.sch.uk if you would be willing to help.
ST COLUMBA’S CHURCH & HALL BOOKINGS
To arrange meetings etc. in either the Church, Newman Room or the Iona Chapel, please book through Carol Galvin, St. Columba’s Church Office, phone: 01244 624019, email: stcolumbaschurch2016@outlook.com. Office hours Monday to Friday 9.00am to 1.00pm
Hall availability can be checked by looking at St Columba’s Church website – section for Church Hall gives a calendar of events in the Hall. Then contact Sue Carr on 07553 114531 or email columbashallbookings@gmail.com to arrange booking.
NEXT WEEK’S NEWSLETTER:
28th January edition will be compiled by Harry Sweeney, phone: 01244 327462 or email: harrysweeney45@gmail.com. Please include a phone number in case of queries, and please ensure that items are emailed or phoned to the compiler by 9.00a.m. on WEDNESDAY 24TH JANUARY 2024