DUNEDIN SOUTH PASTORAL AREA BULLETIN www.dspa.org.nz Priests of the Dunedin South Pastoral Area Fr Gerard Aynsley 24 Forbury Road, Dunedin 9012 Fr Mervyn Hanifin 24 Forbury Road, Dunedin 9012 Pastoral Area Office Manager: Lynlea Forbes Office Hours: Wed to Fri, 9.00a.m. - 3.00p.m. Phone: 455 8933 Fax: 455 8935 email: [email protected] ph. 021580610 ph. 455 8933 St Patrick’s Parish Office Manager: Jude Lowe Office Hours: Mon., Tues., Fri., 10 - 1 Phone: 455 8933 Fax 455 8935 email: [email protected] Fourth Sunday of Advent: 21 December 2014 Nothing is impossible to God This week McDonalds reopened in George Street and as part of the refurbishment have inscribed inspirational quotes on the walls: “The choices you make in life make you”; “Hard work beats talent…”; “The difference between a successful person and others is…” They are quotes that remind us that as human beings we are capable of great things and can accomplish great things with the right attitude. They all emphasize the wonderful potential we have as human beings. Today’s Gospel takes things further. Oftentimes our human powers are limited and if we rely solely on what we are capable off, we can fall short. With God, however nothing is impossible, and God can be at work in us. In this sense I was pleased to see that our parliamentarians have agreed to retain a prayer as part of their proceedings. It suggests a humbling admission that more than their human competence and ability is required. There are all sorts of situations that can seem impossible and, as such, there is always the danger that we simply become resigned to the way that things are. An end to the conflicts between nations and peoples can seem a pipe dream and so we pour our energies into simply protecting ourselves. It may seem wishful thinking that our parishes should bustle with the life of young people and families and so the present danger is—to quote Monsignor Vincent Hunt—that we may accept their wholesale departure as inescapable if not normal, and try and carry on more or less as before. There are also, like with Elizabeth, our own experiences of barrenness in terms of our future seeming bleak, or our relationships failing to heal, or an inability to reach the potential we believe we have. These can seem impossible obstacles in life. Into the midst of this reality God is born. Will we allow this God of ours to seek and strive for the impossible by working with us and within us? Weekday Masses following Christmas Fr Gerard Advent Reconciliations Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays: 9.00am at St Patrick’s Monday, December 22, 7.00pm —Holy Name Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays: 9.30am at St Bernadette’s Tuesday, December 23, 7.00pm —St Francis Xavier Christmas Mass Times 5.30pm Christmas Eve at St Patrick’s (Children’s Mass) 9.00pm Christmas Eve at St Alphonsus (Carols from 8.30pm) 9.00am Christmas Morning at St Bernadette’s 10.00am Christmas Morning at St Patrick’s December 28 and Sundays during January 6.00pm Vigil, 9.30am and 11.00am all celebrated at St Patrick’s Basilica PASTORAL AREA MASSES 6.00 pm Waverley (Shona LaHood) Sunday, December 21 (Advent 4) 9.30am Forbury (Jim Jack) 9.30am Tainui (Neale Alexander) 11.00am St Patrick’s (Peter Haenraets) 11.00am Broad Bay Monday: Tuesday: 9.00am, St Patrick's (Jim Tyler) 1.00pm, St Pat’s (Funeral Mass for Gerald Enright) 9.30am, Forbury Wednesday: 11.30am, St Bernadette’s (Funeral Mass for Kathleen Hall) Thursday: CHRISTMAS—see above City-Wide Weekday Masses 6.45a.m. Resumes February 12.10p.m. Mon-Fri Moran Chapel Friday: 9.00am, St Patrick's (Com. Service) Saturday: 9.30am, Forbury Reconciliation 11.30-12 noon Saturday, St Patrick’s 6.00 pm St Patrick’s Sunday, December 28 (Holy Family) 9.30am St Patrick’s 11.00am St Patrick’s Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament 11.00am—12.00pm First Saturday of the Month Coming together Easter 2016: Thank you for all who took part in the discussions regarding our coming together at Easter 2016 and for all who have sent in reflections. We have received some really important feedback that will assist us in the process of coming together as one worshiping community. As well as naming many of the positive features we presently enjoy as parish communities which we wish to retain there are also some worries regarding what impact the change will have on our faith communities. There is a great deal for us to reflect on over the next sixteen months. In the New Year we will collate all the feedback and include within a special Bulletin. Prayers and Congratulations to Mrs Chris Woollard who is 100 today— 21 December 2014! Chris was a Special Minister for St Patrick’s and St Peter Chanel parishes. The Catholic Institute of Aotearoa New Zealand Dunedin Campus Courses 2015 Holy Cross Centre 89 Church St. Mosgiel The four courses being offered this year are: Introduction to Catholicism: Lecturer: Colin MacLeod— May/June 2015 Understanding Church: Lecturer: Rev Gerard Aynsley—May/June 2015 Understanding Sacraments: Lecturer: Sr Jan Ogilvy op—August 2015 Introduction to the Old Testament: Lecturer: Rev Damian Wynn-Williams—July/August 2015 Courses are open to all and may be taken towards a qualification or simply for personal interest. For further information or enrolment forms please contact the Dunedin Coordinator - Susan CHRISTMAS CAROL SERVICE St Joseph’s Cathedral, will hold its annual Christmas Carol Service, tonight, December 21st at 7:00pm For all those involved in Special Ministries at St Patrick’s: Please note that there will be No Formal Roster over the January holiday period. We would be grateful if Greeters, Collectors, those for the Offertory Procession, Readers and Special Ministers of Communion, would offer their Services at the Masses they attend. Thank you. New seating layout @ St Patrick’s The present seating at St Patrick’s will remain in place until after Christmas when we will trial another option. We invite you to offer a brief two to three sentence reflection on what your experience of Mass has been with the present layout. Please place in the collection basket next Sunday or email: [email protected] Welcome, Lord, into your Kingdom Kath Hall, Peter Haenraets and Gerald Enright who died recently, and Joan Smith, Lorraine Leyden, Jim Jack, Sonya LaHood, Neale Alexander, Jim Tyler and Duffy & Rogers families (UK), whose anniversaries occur at this time. C2391 Dunedin Community Christmas Dinner @ Dunedin Town Hall— December 25. More information on the noticeboard.
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