Tag Archives: newsletter

Leave it to the experts, Fr Matthew

newsletter, ,

This year the Feast of the Cross falls on a Sunday. Rather than offer here a reflection for the feast, I will leave it to no less than St Paul and Jesus Himself. Here are the first reading and most of the Gospel from today’s Mass, Philippians 2:6-11 and John 3:13-17. The sentence in bold is John 3:16 – a verse which many say is the greatest in the whole Bible. If you want to memorise just one verse – it should be this one.

His state was divine,
yet he did not cling to his equality with God
but emptied himself to assume the condition of a slave,
and became as men are;
and being as all men are, he was humbler yet,
even to accepting death, death on a cross.
But God raised him high
and gave him the name which is above all other names
so that all beings in the heavens, on earth and in the underworld, should bend the knee at the name of Jesus
and that every tongue should acclaim Jesus Christ as Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

The Son of Man must be lifted up
as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.
Yes, God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost but may have eternal life.
For God sent his Son into the world not to condemn the world, but so that through him the world might be saved.

Fr Matthew

Never ending prayer

newsletter,

As you read this, I can guarantee that thousands of people across the world are praying for you, for the Church and for the world. They are following what we call “The Prayer of the Church”, also known as the “Divine Office”, or as the “Breviary”, from the book that contains it. So what is the Prayer of the Church?

God’s people must be a people of prayer, and there has always been a tradition of continuous prayer, going back to the Temple of Jerusalem. Our ancient welsh Celtic monasteries always had someone praying in their churches. The Prayer of the Church finds its roots more particularly in the prayer life of the monks and nuns in their monasteries, joining together at regular intervals during the day to pray as a community. This has always been in addition to the individual’s prayer time. Over the centuries this custom spread to all clergy and religions. When I was ordained it was one of our promises – to pray with and for the whole church according to the Divine Office. Since Vatican II the whole Church has been encouraged to join in this very special form of prayer. It is part of the official worship of the Church, and so, along with the Mass and the Sacraments, we call it part of our Catholic “liturgy”, and not just a devotion like the Way of the Cross or even the Rosary. In fact, yet another official name for it is the “Liturgy of the Hours”

The Prayer of the Church, in a four week cycle, is centred around the sequence of the psalms, plus hymns, readings and intercessions, and is uniform right across the whole Church. It is broken into five or seven parts throughout the day – the “hours” – with Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer being the main “hinges” as it were.

Morning and Evening Prayer has been prayed in Christ the King before the appropriate Masses for many years. From time to time I am asked if some of it could be prayed in St Brigid’s also. Therefore, on Monday 15th September I will give a short talk on the Prayer of the Church after morning Mass at St Brigid’s, i.e. at approximately 10.00am. It will be about 30-40 minutes and enable us to decide a way forward. Whichever of our 3 Churches you attend, you will be very welcome to join us.

Fr Matthew

Back from holidays…?

newsletter

Although many of you are already back from this year’s holidays, I am just planning to go for it. While we all know what the holidays are for, I still find it interesting that we have certain days in the year dedicated to some very positive principles in life: love, caring, reverence, gratitude, family, fellowship and spirituality. What a concept the society has made it acceptable for us to take some time off work to remember what is important in life. Take some time for yourselves, your loved ones and your life.

There is a particular reason for me to choose this time of the year for my holidays in my homeland. That is to take part in the harvest festival of Kerala (my homeland) called “Onam” which is celebrated with joy and enthusiasm all over the state by people of all communities.
Onam is the biggest and the most important festival of the state of Kerala. According to a popular legend, the festival is celebrated to welcome King Mahabali, whose spirit is said to visit Kerala at the time of Onam. It is said that Kerala witnessed its golden era in the reign of King Mahabali.

Carnival of Onam lasts for ten days. Popularity and presentation of rich culture of the state during the carnival made Onam the National Festival of Kerala. Elaborate feasts, folk songs, elegant dances, energetic games, elephants, boats and flowers all are a part of this dynamic festival.

The rich cultural heritage of Kerala comes out in its best form and spirit during the ten day long festival. It is indeed a treat to be a part of the grand carnival. People of Kerala make elaborate preparations to celebrate it in the best possible manner.

The most impressive part of Onam celebration is the grand dinner prepared on the main day. It is a nine course meal consisting of 11 to 13 essential dishes. It is served on banana leaves and people sit on a mat laid on the floor to have the meal. You are cordially invited to take part in Onam together with me this year.

(Partially taken from internet)
Fr.Tomy