Fifth Sunday of Lent

Fifth Sunday of Lent               23 March 2012 Fr Frank Grey, Carrick, Finea, Mullingar, Co Westmeath. 043 6681129 e-mail: ballymachugh@eircom.net

Mass Times And Intentions

Ballynarry Sat 24th Mar 8:00 pm Kathleen Kiernan, Foxfield. Servers: Enya Kiernan. Sean O’Neill. Wed 28th  Mar 8:00 pm The Donohoe and Briody Families. Fri 30th Mar 8:00 pm Hugh & Agnes Cooney, Crover. Sat 31st Mar 8:00 pm Edward Galligan, Ballyheelan Servers: Donna Smith. Jack O’Reilly.

Carrick Sun 25th Mar 12 O’clock Phil & Brigid Clarke, Kilnahard. Servers: Dwayne Mulvey, Roisin Coyle. Mon 26th Mar 9:30 am Mass Tue 27th Mar 9:30 am Mass Sun 1st April 12 O’clock Servers: Darragh Sheridan. Niall Briody.

The Sacrament of Reconciliation

The Sacrament of Penance is sometimes called the sacrament of Reconciliation.

As you prepare to celebrate the sacrament of Reconciliation, begin not by thinking about your own life but about the life and words of Jesus. It is good to have a standard against which to measure your life and the kind of person you are. Jesus provides the standard for us Christians. It is his life and words that give meaning to our own. So, before celebrating the sacrament, spend a little time thinking about Jesus, the kind of person he was, the attitudes and values he had, the way he treated others. Think of what Jesus has to say to us today, and to our world.

Having looked at the life of Jesus, now take time to look at your own life.

A. What kind of Christian am I? Do I pray, go to Sunday mass etc.

B. My home life: what am I like to live with? Do I practice moderation, temperance etc.?

C. My relationship with others: Do I treat them with respect? Am I forgiving etc.?

D. My practice of justice: Do I respect the needs, rights and property of others? Do I respect the environment? Am I honest, Do I pay my debts etc.?

Remember that God isn’t interested in how good a memory you have, or how many failings you discover in yourself. It is impossible to recall every fault and failing. God knows that. All God asks is that you come before him genuinely sorry for those times when you have failed him and failed the community.

“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner”.

Our Burdens lead to life.

‘If the virtuous man is God’s son, God will take his part and rescue him from the clutches of his enemies.’…. They do not know the hidden things of God, they can see no reward for blameless souls.

Wisdom 2:18, 22

Each of us has a burden to carry; if not today’s burden, at lease to recall yesterday’s, or prepare inevitably for some burden tomorrow, for that is the way of life. There is no human life that does not have its burdens. Much of our lives is indeed the way of the cross, or at least it is so at times.

That burden may be a sorrow, or an anxiety; a broken heart; a secret fear; a chronic pain-illness; a disappointment; a frustration; a wound from the past. Burdens take different shapes and are of varying weights but they have this in common: they press hard on us causing us sometimes to falter and stumble. They make our journey through life more difficult and perhaps at times seemingly impossible and lead us to wonder about the meaning and purpose of it all. That is, until we remember that the burdens we carry always lead to life, life hidden with Christ in God.

All those burdens we carry are crosses which he asks us to carry, and we carry our crosses through life as he carried his. We meet him in a marvellous manner when we help him to carry his burden and he helps us to carry ours.

The sharing of his Passion is the most certain way of growing closer to him and a sure way too of discovering the meaning of the resurrection, the knowledge that whatever befalls us, whatever happens, we can never be separated from love of him.

Lord, help me to unite the burden I carry to

your cross, to carry your cross with you, to

allow you to carry my burden with me.

The Garment of Suffering

Each one of us has some amount of suffering or hurt in our life, something dating from our past. The Garment of Suffering symbolises the hurt that is contained in our lives and community. During Lent we ask that you bring to the Church a piece of cloth (any colour) about six inches square and leave it in the basket, anonymously. Your piece of cloth can represent the pain, grief or hurt in your life. It may be associated with:

Grief at death and separation.                 

The Pain of sickness.

The pain of being misunderstood.          

The pain of failure, etc.

Pain of living with a partner, parent or child who has a problem.

During Holy Week the cloths will be collected and sewn together into one complete garment. On Good Friday after the Veneration of the Cross the garment will be draped over the Cross and left there throughout Easter. During Lent and Easter we will pray to be healed.

What is unique in this ritual is that you will be able to recognise your piece of cloth, your own grief and suffering and yet understand that so many others share similar worries. Please feel free at any time during the coming week to place a piece of cloth in the basket. All pieces of cloth to be in basket by Palm Sunday so they can be assembled together for Good Friday.

NOTICES

Palm Sunday Next Sunday is Palm Sunday. Palm will be blessed at the Masses. Stations of The Cross During Lent on alternate Sundays Stations of the Cross in Carrick and Ballynarry. This Sunday evening Stations of the Cross in Carrick at 6:00 pm. Pastoral Council There will be a Pastoral Council meeting in the Parochial House on Wednesday evening at 9:00 pm

New Time Clocks go forward one hour this weekend. Sunday Night Country Starting in Crover House Hotel this Sunday 25th March with Ray Montanna & Hubby Harten. Admission € 10. Dancing 9 to midnight I.C.A. Last night of “Dancing for Pleasure” classes with This Thur 29th Mar at 9:00 pm . All welcome to join the fun while exercising! Get in Shape for 2012 4 week aerobic course from Monday 26th March 2012, until Monday 23rd April 2012 (no class on 9th April 2012 – Easter Monday), at the Réaltóg Centre, Kilnaleck. There is a choice of courses. 7:30pm – 8:30 pm. The total cost of the course is €25.00 for the 4 weeks. To secure your place please call 049 4336070.