Weekend Message July 3

Dear friends,

 

**Important notice concerning car parking**

 

Please park in the Church car parks whenever possible. If that is not possible, for whatever reason, please ensure that you are not causing an obstruction of the roadway or driveways to properties, and please remember that homeowners may wish to park outside their own homes. Please exercise Christian Charity when parking your car.

 

**Important notice concerning stewards and cleaners at Church**

 

As the summer progresses, and the regulations may enable us to open the Church more often for Mass or other public worship, we may still need to continue with our current regime of advanced booking, stewarding at Mass, and cleaning and sanitizing afterwards. If we are to open more often, we will most probably need more volunteers – we cannot expect the same small band of very cheerful helpers to do it all every day.

If you are willing to join the band of stewards/cleaners, please let me know. If we are to restart Saturday evening Mass in Lutterworth, or another weekday Mass at Narborough, we would certainly need more volunteers.

Theological Pancakes?? On Thursday the Vice-Chancellor of the Diocese told us that she has been trying to explain the Blessed Trinity to a six-year old boy, and had hit on the idea of pancakes. She explained to the lad that to make a pancake you needed three things – milk, flour, and eggs – and when you had finished all three were in the pancake, but there was just one pancake, not three, and it was not reducible to any of the ingredients, nor could any of them be separated out from the whole.

The other priests in the office said that this was heretical, but she countered (and I agreed with her) that in trying to explain to a six-year old you have to sacrifice some exactitude in order to find words and ideas which he could understand and appreciate. I went further, saying that because the Blessed Trinity is a great Mystery, whatever explanation we might find will always be inadequate and probably contain some elements which were wrong.

So this is how I look at the Blessed Trinity, and I am sure that I will say something which is incorrect in some way. But this is the best I can do.

God is love – as is clearly and certainly stated in the First Letter of St. John. But in order to love it is necessary to have someone or something to love, and God was God when there was nothing created. So God loved ‘another’ in God. In loving, God expressed Godself – indeed, God cannot express Godself in any way other than by loving. So It is appropriate to think of God’s loving self-expression as God’s Word, and, since there can be no difference between God’s expression and God (there was nothing else but God when there was no creation) it follows that God’s Word was God (as we read at the start of St. John’s Gospel: In the beginning was the Word…and the Word was God).

God created the world so that God will be glorified, and created us in the world to know God, love God, and serve God. All that we do should be for God’s greater glory. But that meant that we need God to communicate to us, and to do that God had to come down to our level or we could not understand – just as the Vice Chancellor had to talk of pancakes to the six-year old boy. So God communicated to us by the Word of God (God’s loving self-expression) becoming one of us so that God could address us in our own language.

God’s self-expression must be permanent – it doesn’t decay or go out of business like our own thoughts and deeds. God’s permanent self-expression to us, giving life to everything, is God’s life-giving Holy Spirit, by and through which God’s Word is ever present among us.

Not as exciting as a theological pancake, but I hope it will do.

Booking Arrangements for next weekend:

At St. Pius X, Narborough:

You may book by email: johnhadley1971@gmail.com  or by phone: (0116) – 2863676

at the following times on the following days:

 

• between 7pm and 8pm on Monday 5^th July;
• between 7pm and 8pm on Tuesday 6^th;
• between 7pm and 8pm on Friday 9^th July.

 

Times of Mass next weekend:

• 10am Saturday 10^th July;
• 10am Sunday 11^th;
• 10am Monday 12^th.

 

At Our Lady of Victories & St. Alphonsus, Lutterworth:

Please ring 079 0113 4564 on the following days, and at these times. It is not possible to leave a message outside these times:

 

• Monday 5^th July between 9.30am and 10.30am or between 6pm and 7pm
• Wednesday 7^th between 9.30am and 10.30am or between 6pm and 7pm

 

Times of Mass next Sunday and Tuesday:

• 11am on Sunday 11^th July;
• 10.30am Tuesday 13^th.

 

Arrangements for attending Church for Mass and other services: Masks or face coverings will be required for those attending Mass (except for those exempted from wearing them); it is necessary for those attending Church to sanitize their hands on entering; and all need to keep social distance from each other (unless they are members of the same household or family). Young persons under the age of sixteen years, and all persons who suffer from physical or mental disability, must be accompanied at all times by a responsible adult. We are not allowed to kneel down while in Church: please stand or sit as appropriate, but please do not kneel. All who attend (except for the cleaners who remain behind to sanitize the building) should leave immediately after Mass has finished, not stopping in Church to talk to other people; and please also maintain a social distance as you follow others out of Church, avoiding any ‘congregating’ in the porch or at the back of Church. I am very grateful to the stewards & cleaners who support the public celebration of Mass.

 

Please remember that it will be essential to book a place at Mass on every occasion that you wish to attend. It is not permitted to book for every Sunday, or even for a number of weeks. Please also remember to bring a mask to wear when coming to Mass. 

 

At Narborough the intentions for Mass this week will be: Saturday (3^rd July) Doreen Sullivan RIP; Sunday (4^th) John Scattergood RIP; Monday (5^th) Welfare of Monica Teeling. Wednesday People of the Parishes. Next weekend Saturday (10^th July) Father Simon Nolan RIP; Sunday (11^th) Sydney Smith; Monday (12^th) Kitty Corr RIP.

 

At Lutterworth the intentions for Mass will be: Sunday (3^rd July) People of the Parish; Tuesday (5^th July) Holy Souls. Next Sunday (10^th July) People of the Parish; Next Tuesday (12^th July) Holy Souls.

 

Prayers for the living and the dead:

 

Please pray for Father Andrew Smith, Doreen Sullivan, and for all who have died recently.

 

Please also pray for Monica Teeling, Peggy Merrell, Jane Bolsover, Suzanne Foxon, Jim Oxley, Beulah Blomfield, Tom McDermott, Freda Williams, Joseph Armeni, Dave Knapper, Teresa Maugham, Elizabeth Fullerton, Mary Dunne, and Juanita Zaman and for all who are ill.

 

Please let me know of any others who have died, or anyone who is ill and asks for prayers.

 

Banns of Marriage: please pray for Cathy Mears and Ben Hebborn who intend to marry at St. Pius X on 10^th July. We pray that they will be blessed with a long and happy marriage. If anyone knows of any reason why they should not marry, please tell Father John without delay.

 

Please pray for Etike Joy Chidima and Okoye Maduako Dilichukwu who intend to marry at St. Pius X on 1^st August. We pray that they will be blessed with a long and happy marriage. If anyone knows of any reason why they should not marry, please tell Father John without delay.

 

Please pray for Demi-Leigh Nicol and Francis John Latham, members of this parish, who intend to marry in Ravello, Italy, on 16^th August. We pray that they will be blessed with a long and happy marriage. If anyone knows of any reason why they should not marry, please tell Father John without delay.

 

First Holy Communion: We hope to begin preparation for First Confession and First Holy Communion in September. I am very grateful to those who have already indicated that they wish to be included. Candidates should be in Year 3 at school from September (or older). Please let me have any names and contact details so that a group can be organized.

 

Confirmation: Bishop Patrick is willing to start administering the sacrament of Confirmation. I am grateful to those who have already said they wish to be confirmed. Are there any others who would like to join the group? Please let me have any names and contact details. Candidates for Confirmation should be in secondary education (or older) in September this year. Because of the continued restrictions, preparation for Confirmation will be delayed until the autumn.

 

Financial matters:

 

Next weekend there will be a second collection for the Apostleship of the Sea. I am very grateful to all of you who have contributed to the two recent second collections, for the Day for Life, and for Peter’s Pence. At this time of year our Bishops require that Second Collections come round thick and fast!

 

Reminders from previous weeks:

 

Planned Giving Envelopes (Our Lady of Victories & St. Alphonsus, Lutterworth): The new boxes of envelopes started in April If you require your box, please ring June (01455 – 553730) or Ashley (01455 – 553493) or email Father John.

 

Planned Giving Envelopes (St. Pius X, Narborough): The new boxes of envelopes started in April. They are available from the sacristy in Church, or email Father John.

 

Standing Orders: I will provide the parish Bank details to anyone who would like to donate by Standing Order or similar electronic means – many of you already do so (and I am very grateful indeed). I can provide standing order mandates for anyone who wishes – please just ask.

 

Gift Aid: I have copies of the form to complete, so if you are a taxpayer and would like the tax paid on your contributions to be given to the parish, please ask me for a form.

 

Recycling Textiles: At the moment the firm are no longer collecting in the Leicester area and has no plans to restart collections here. If anyone knows of any other organization willing to collect clothes and other textiles in our area, please let me know.

 

With my prayers for your wellbeing and salvation, Father John