WELCOME
Times of Mass and DevotionsHA = Holy Angels Church, Ash GU12 6LU HF = Holy Family Church, Farnham GU9 0LH |
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| Sat 22 Nov | 5.30pm | HA | First Mass – Fr. John Nuttall | Angela & Anna Vella (RIP) |
| Sun 23 Nov | 9.15am | HF | 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time | Special Intentions of the people of the Parish |
| 11.00am | HA | First Holy Communion Children’s Mass | Father Stan Burt (RIP) | |
| Mon 24 Nov | NO MASS | |||
| Tue 25 Nov | 9.30am | HF | NO MASS | |
| Wed 26 Nov | 9.30am | HA | Liturgy of the Word | |
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| Thu 27 Nov | 6.15pm | HF | Adoration | |
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7.30pm |
HF | NO MASS | ||
| Fri 28 Nov | NO MASS | |||
| Sat 29 Nov | 5.30pm | HA | First Mass – Fr. John Nuttall | Frank Leahy (RIP) |
| Sun 30 Nov | 9.15am | HF | First Sunday of Advent | Terry Framp (RIP) |
| 11.00am | HA | |||
Second Collection
There will be a Second Collection next Sunday, 30th November for Christmas Flowers.
Collections for 16th November, 2014
Holy Angels Offertory: £308.66
Cathedral Maintenance Fund: £114.78
Holy Family Offertory: £193.56
Cathedral Maintenance Fund: £135.47
October Standing Orders: £1,017.00
Information
Breaking News: You will be pleased to know that we are to get a ‘new’ priest! Robin Farrow, a married former-Anglican minister, who was ordained deacon this weekend, will be moving with his family to the presbytery at Ash some time around Christmas. This decision has been made so that his family can complete the move, organise schools for the children (4, plus one on the way) and settle in. Robin will be ordained priest some time next year, probably during the Easter season. In the new year most of our Sunday Masses will be covered by Fr. Terry Martin, A&B Vocations Director, who will be mentoring Robin prior to his ordination. Please pray for Robin, Caroline and the family as they plan for, and make, this exciting transition. We now have a great opportunity to prepare the presbytery for their arrival. Please be assured that we will give you more news as soon as it is available.
International Supper:
Next Saturday 29th November at Holy Angels after Mass 7pm – 10pm.
Prayer Requests for the sick
Deacon David Morgan, Newton Abrew, Michael Brandon, Patrick Quinn, Maureen Cosgrove and Sean Flynn.
We pray for all those in our two Parishes who are sick and need our prayers at this time.
Advent Booklets are now available for use in parish groups or for individuals. Advent 2014 is a booklet of scripture, reflections and prayers written by young people and designed for small group discussion. Six young people were brought together to write reflections on the second reading of each week of Advent, and to design prayer activities and challenges to introduce new methods of prayer to people around the Diocese.
To order copies contact the Diocesan Bookshop on 01293 651165 or email bookshop@dabnet.org. For more information contact David Wills, Adult Formation Adviser on 01293 651157 or david.wills@dabnet.org.
Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice: Kick start your Christmas shopping this year at the Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice Christmas Fayre on Saturday 29th November at the Hospice on Waverley Lane in Farnham, from 10am to 3pm.
All proceeds from the Christmas Fayre will go towards funding the care and support that our patients and their families rely on.
Churches Together Christmas Day Lunch for the lonely will take place in the Gostry Centre Farnham.
If you will be alone and would like to attend ring Michael McDonnell 01252 712600 by 12th December.
If you would like to help; prepare, drive or serve ring Jo Rendall on 01252 737162 also by 12/12. More information on posters on the notice boards.
Holy Family
Christmas Art Work: We will be making a large piece of artwork to go on the lawn over the Christmas period. You are invited to come and offer your ideas and begin preparations on Sunday 7th December at 2:00 pm in the hall. ALL AGES WELCOME. The work will continue on Saturday and Sunday 13/14 December to be ready for 20th December. More info from Deacon John.
Farnham Foodbank are looking for volunteers to collect food items at Waitrose Farnham on Saturday 6 December 2014 for 2 hour slots starting 9am and finishing 5pm
Please respond to Rose Williamson at Farnham Foodbank 01252 737586 or 07901581539 or email rose@farnham.foodbank.org.uk
A Certificate from the Farnham Foodbank is displayed at the back of the Church thanking Holy Family for the 53.7kg of food that was provided following the Harvest Festival.
Holy Angels
Children’s Liturgy Update: Please note that during Advent Children’s Liturgy will take place as follows:
1st Sunday of Advent – 30th November
3rd Sunday of Advent – 14th December
Since September, you will note that CL at Holy Angels has been held only on 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month. This format is set to continue for the foreseeable future, due to our small team. We are still in need of catechists who would be happy to lead a session. If you can help us, please contact Bec Newey on 07854 231469 or johnandbec@ntlworld.com
Prayer Group: takes place once a month on a Tuesday at Holy Angels Church in the Parish Office: 7.30pm for 7.45pm start. Next dates are: 2nd Dec, 2014, 13th Jan, 2015 and 10th Feb, 2015.
Today’s Gospel
Today we celebrate the feast of Christ our King. When we think of a king we think of someone who is very remote from his people and who lords it over them. But Christ is not like that. He lives among us, and came not to rule but to serve. The best way to show our loyalty to him is by serving one another.
The fact that in Jesus God became human, and lived among us, meant he ran the risk of not being recognised for what he really was. We have no problem recognising Christ in church. But when we meet him out on the streets, where he is sometimes sunk in poverty and sorrow, we are reluctant even to bid him the time of day.
Nelson Mandela was still a young man when he became leader of the banned African National Congress (ANC). At a certain stage in the struggle he was forced to go underground. During that time he used many different disguises. In general he remained as unkempt as possible. He knew that by being so disguised he ran the risk of not being recognised even by his own. And this often happened.
Once he was to attend a meeting in a distant part of Johannesburg. A priest had arranged with friends of his to put him up for the night. However, when Mandela arrived at the house, the elderly lady who answered the doorbell took one look at him and exclaimed, ‘We don’t want your kind here!’ And she shut the door in his face. Later when she found out who it was that she had turned away she was horrified and said to him, ‘If only I had known it was you, I’d have given you the best room in the house.’ Mandela didn’t allow incidents like this to deter him.
We could say that Jesus too goes about in many different disguises, how then are his friends to recognise him? It is comparatively easy. He always poses as a person in need – in need either of food, or drink, or lodgings, or welcome, or a visit…
‘If only I had know it was you,’ said the woman to Mandela. We hear the same words in today’s Gospel: ‘Lord, if only we had known it was you, we’d never have treated you like that. But we thought it was only some common person who was not worthy of our help.’ But Jesus said that his disciples would be judged precisely by their response to such people – the poor, the lowly, the unimportant.
It’s easy to be kind to the important – there is or will be a return in some shape or form, But it’s quite another matter to be kind to those from whom we can expect nothing in return, perhaps not even thanks.
The uncaring are full of excuses. The genuinely caring on the other hand are almost apologetic about their goodness. ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you…’ They are embarrassed if you praise them. They don’t want any big deal made of it. Charity is never so lovely as when one has lost consciousness that one is practising charity.
In the judgement scene, people are condemned, not for sins of commission but for sins of omission. We may think we are good simply because we don’t do any harm to anyone. But what about the good we fail to do? The sin of omission is one of the worst sins in the world.
From a Christian point of view, there is only one real failure in life – failure to love. We have to concentrate on doing good, rather than on merely avoiding evil. Let us not wait for big opportunities. Let us avail of the little opportunities that come our way every day – opportunities to be friendly, to be helpful, to be considerate, to be obliging …
Thus we may be spared the ache of loneliness and sadness which good people often experience late in life at the realisation of having left undone what they ought to have done. (Taken from a book written by Flor McCarthy, SDB)