Parish of Our Lady & Saint David, Cwmbran

He is God, not of the dead, but of the living

It is fortuitous that this passage of the Gospel is normally read near to the beginning of November, when we have celebrated the feasts of All Saints and All Souls, since it is a strong proclamation of the reality of life after death and the resurrection of the body. This Sunday is not without its difficulties, however, since this message is framed in two very sensitive passages: we have a story of cruelty and martyrdom in the first reading, and a controversial (and possibly upsetting) question about marriage in the Gospel. Remember that the example that the Sadducees bring is ridiculous, legalistic and completely misses the point: Jesus reply does not mean that we are not with our loved ones after death quite the contrary, he proclaims that we will all become one with God and each other as children of God.

Psalm

Lord, hear a cause that is just, pay heed to my cry.
Turn your ear to my prayer: no deceit is on my lips.
I kept my feet firmly in your paths; there was no faltering in my steps.
I am here and I call, you will hear me, O God. Turn your ear to me; hear my words.
Guard me as the apple of your eye. Hide me in the shadow of your wings.
As for me, in your justice I shall see your face and be filled, when I awake, with the sight of your glory

1^st Reading: 2Macc 7:1-2, 9-14

2^nd Reading: 2 Thess 2:16 3:5

Gospel Reading: Luke 20: 27-38

32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time 2016 Newsletter

The Son of Man has come to seek out and save what was lost

There is a subversive humour in today’s Gospel which turns upside down the conventions of everyday life: we see a senior tax official climbing up a tree for a glimpse of Jesus, and the faintly ridiculous scene where Jesus stops, looks into the branches of the sycamore and says, “Zacchaeus, come down!” Did Zacchaeus worry about what people thought? The rest of the story shows that he did not. It would be easy to laugh at little Zacchaeus – and people in the town probably did, in between muttering about his extortionate taxes. And yet he has understood the message of God more clearly than others: he reveals the meaning of the first reading, since he understands that God is gentle, merciful and loving. Jesus corrects him, “little by little so that he may abstain from evil and trust in the Lord.”

PSALM

I will give you glory, O God my King, I will bless your name for ever.
I will bless you day after day and praise your name for ever.
The Lord is kind and full of compassion, slow to anger, abounding in love.
How good is the Lord to all, compassionate to all his creatures.
All your creatures shall thank you, O Lord, and your friends shall repeat their blessing.
They shall speak of the glory of your reign and declare your might, O God.
The Lord is faithful in all his words and loving in all his deeds.
The Lord supports all who fall and raises all who are bowed down.

1^st Reading: Wisdom 11:22-12:2

2^nd Reading: Thess. 1: 11-2:2

Gospel Reading: Luke 19:1-10

31st Sunday of Ordinary Time 2016 Newsletter

World Mission Sunday
The publican went home at rights with God; the Pharisee did not.

A few weeks ago (22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time) we had a Gospel about humility in social life – today we hear the Lord reiterating the message, but this time in reference to our prayer lives. The two Gospels are linked by the last words today, which also appear in the other story: “Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” This phrase is obviously a key part of our Lord’s teaching! The sin of “self-exaltation” consists in putting others in a lower place – as the Pharisee does to the tax collector. Perhaps the most telling phrase in today’s Gospel is where Jesus refers to the Pharisee saying “this prayer to himself, rather than offering it to God! And since the Pharisee wasn’t talking to God, how could he expect to be heard?

PSALM

I will bless the Lord at all times, his praise always on my lips;
in the Lord my soul shall make its boast. The humble shall hear and be glad.
The Lord turns his face against the wicked to destroy their remembrance from the earth.
The just call and the Lord hears and rescues them in all their distress.
The Lord is close to the broken-hearted; those who spirit is crushed he will save.
The Lord ransoms the souls of his servants. Those who hide in him shall not be condemned.

1^st Reading: Eccl. 35:12-14, 16-19

Second Reading: Tim 4:6-8, 16-18    

Gospel Reading: Luke 18: 9-14

30th Sunday of Ordinary Time 2016 Newsletter

God will see justice done to his chosen who cry to him

Perhaps the hardest Olympic event is the marathon: not only does it demand strength and fitness, but it calls for immense perseverance and endurance. Life in general and the Christian life in particular, is a marathon. We will face hills and mountains as well as valleys and gentle slopes in life: we will face obstacles and pressures which will make us want to say, as the prophet Elijah did, “Lord, it is enough!” Especially in our lifetime of prayer, there will be times when we say “Lord, I can go no further.” Jesus himself understands the need for perseverance in prayer, and the temptation to lose heart, which is why he offers us this parable and teaching today. And remember the thought from the first reading: sometimes we may need to hold each other in our praying!

Psalm

I lift up my eyes to the mountains: from where shall come my help?
My help shall come from the Lord who made heaven and earth.
May he never allow you to stumble! Let him sleep not, your guard.
No, he sleeps not nor slumbers, Israel’s guard.
The Lord is your guard and your shade; at your right side he stands.
By day the sun shall not smite you nor the moon in the night.
The Lord will guard you from evil, he will guard your soul.
The Lord will guard your going and coming both now and for ever.

1^St Reading: Exodus 17: 8-13

2^nd Reading: Timothy 3: 14-4:2

Gospel Reading: Luke 18: 1-8

29th Sunday of Ordinary Time 2016 Newsletter

Requiescat in Pace

Please pray for the soul of Patrick Devlin who died recently.
Our deepest sympathy to his family and friends.
Funeral Friday 21^st October at 1.00pm.

No one has come back to give praise to God, except this foreigner.

There are many messages in today’s Gospel: the power of God to heal, the compassion of Jesus for those in need, the fact that a despised foreigner (the Samaritan) is the only one who recognises what has been done, the role of faith and the importance of thanking God for gifts received. But because this Gospel is twinned with part of the story of Naaman the leper, the idea that the Church brings out most clearly is that of thanksgiving, or acknowledging what has been given to us. From an early age we are taught to say Thank You to recognise that someone has gone out of their way to give us something or do something for us. Our thanks strengthens the relationship that binds us together, and it is the same with God. As we recognise the good things that come from God, so our faith is deepened and the bond of the Covenant in Christ Jesus is strengthened.

PSALM

Sing a new song to the Lord for he has worked wonders.
His right hand and his holy arm have brought salvation.
The Lord has made known his salvation; has shown his justice to the nations.
He has remembered his truth and love for the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
Shout to the Lord all the earth, ring out your joy.

First Reading: 2 Kings 5: 14-17

Second Reading: Tim 2: 8-13

Gospel Reading: Luke 17:11-19

Requiescat in Pace

Please pray for the soul of Patrick Devlin who died recently. Our deepest sympathy to his family and friends. Funeral arrangements to follow.

Please pray for the soul of Mark Bradley and Eileen Vanderberg. Our deepest sympathy to their families and friends.

If only you had faith!

Faithfulness, faith and trust. These most invisible and difficult things are what God asks of us just as we, in our own way, ask them of those who love us. Trust me, we say, all will be well.” And if someone does trust us, the reward is simply that trust was well-placed. We have done our duty. Sometimes when we talk about faith we put the emphasis on believe and accept. Today’s readings (especially the passage from Habakkuk) invite us to think in terms of trust. The request of the Apostles is interesting: Increase our faith could also mean Make it easier for us,” or Prove that you are who you say you are.” Jesus replies that he can’t do that you can’t make someone trust you. It has to be a gift, freely given.

PSALM

Come, ring out our joy to the Lord; hail the rock who saves us.
Let us come before him, giving thanks, with songs let us hail the Lord.
Come in; let us bow and bend low; let us kneel before the God who made us for he is our God who made us for he is our God and we the people who belong to his pasture, the flock that is led by his hand.
O that today you would listen to his voice!
“Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
as on that day at Massah in the desert when your fathers put to the test;
when they tried me, though they saw my work.”

First Reading: Hab 1:2-3; 2:2-4

Second Reading: Tim 1:6-8; 13-14

Gospel Reading: Luke 17:5-10

27th Sunday of Ordinary Time 2016 Newsletter

Requiescat in Pace

Please pray for the soul of Patrick Devlin who died recently. Our deepest sympathy to his family and friends. Funeral arrangements to follow.

Please pray for the soul of Mark Bradley who died recently. Our deepest sympathy to his family and friends. Funeral Service at Our Lady’s on 12^th October at 12.15.

Please pray for the soul of Eileen Vanderberg who died recently. Our deepest sympathy to her family and friends. Funeral Service at Our Lady’s on 13^th October at 10.15am.

Good things came your way, just as bad things came the way of Lazarus. Now he is being comforted here while you are in agony.

Following on from last week, “You cannot be the slave of both God and money”, we see a practical illustration of what this means. The division between rich and poor was very striking at the time of Jesus: popular understanding, however, said that to be rich was a blessing from God. Jesus reminds people that riches carry their own responsibility – the duty to notice the poor man, especially when he lies at your own gate. In this parable, Jesus is subtly attacking the people’s lack of acceptance of the teaching of the prophets. –They have Moses and the prophets, but they obviously haven’t listened to them. The twist in the last line is powerful: “…they will not be convinced even if someone should rise from the dead.” Since our world still sees a division between rich and poor, how true those words have become!

PSALM

It is the Lord who keeps faith for ever, who is just to those who are oppressed.
It is he who gives bread to the hungry, the Lord, who sets prisoners free.
It is the Lord who gives sight to the blind, who raises up those who are bowed down.
It is the Lord who loves the just, the Lord, who protects the stranger.
He upholds the widow and orphan but thwarts the path of the wicked.
The Lord will reign for ever, Zion’s God, from age to age.

First Reading: Amos 6:1,4-7

Second Reading: Tim 6:11-16

Gospel Reading: Luke 16:19-31

26th Sunday of Ordinary Time 2016 Newsletter

Requiescat in Pace

Please pray for the soul of David Fitzgerald who died recently. Our deepest sympathy to his family. Funeral Service at St David’s on Tuesday 27^th September at 10.30am

Please pray for the soul of Patrick Devlin who died recently. Our deepest sympathy to his family and friends. Funeral arrangements to follow.

You cannot be the slave both of God and money

How easy to take the words of Jesus out of context: “Use money to win you friends, is one of those lines that sounds strange to us outside the context of the parable and the teaching in today’s Gospel. Even the parable itself can seem a little strange is Jesus really recommending that we act like dishonest stewards? No, of course not! The point that reveals this is hidden half way down: “The children of this world are more astute in dealing with their own kind…” Jesus in a way praises the effort of the dishonest steward, but wishes that it was directed less to worldly things, but to the things of heaven. And this is the message that we are to take: where do we direct our energies – to making money, fame, fortune and success, or to finding friends in heaven?

PSALM

Praise, O servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord!
May the name of the Lord be blessed both now and for evermore!
High above all nations is the Lord, above the heavens his glory.
Who is like the Lord, our God, who has risen on high to his throne
yet stoops from the heights to look down, to look down upon the earth?
From dust he lifts up the lowly, from the dung heap he raises the poor
to set him in the company of princes, yes, with the princes of his people.

First Reading: Amos 8:4-7

Second Reading: Tim 2:1-8

Gospel Reading: Luke 16:1-13

25th Sunday of Ordinary Time 2016 Newsletter

World Day of Prayer for Peace

Pope Francis has invited Catholics throughout the world to join him in a day of prayer for peace, Tuesday 20^th September. He has composed this prayer especially for this day:

God of all grace, call the nations of the earth to cease from strife, that all may join to fight not one another but their common foes of ignorance and want, disease and sin.

Lead humanity back from the way of death and into the way of life; from destruction to the building up of a world of righteousness and peace, liberty and joy.

End the dark night of lies and cruelty. Bring in the dawn of mercy and truth. Amen.

HOME MISSION SUNDAY – PROCLAIM THE JOY OF LOVE

There will be rejoicing in heaven over one repentant sinner.

The message of God’s forgiveness is one that we are familiar with, but which the Lord still wishes to emphasise. Our human approach to forgiveness is so often flawed – we hold grudges, erect barriers, make demands and establish conditions. Jesus wants to remind his listeners and us that God’s forgiveness is overflowing and bountiful. Saint Paul was well aware of this: he had persecuted the Church, calling himself “the greatest of sinners; and yet, thanks to the inexhaustible patience of God, he can count himself a believer. We must be open to the gift of forgiveness for ourselves, and also (as the Parable of the Elder Brother shows) open to that forgiveness offered to other whom we would condemn.

PSALM

Have mercy on me, God, in your kindness.
In your compassion blot out my offence.
O wash me more and more from my guilt and cleanse me from my sin.
A pure heart create for me, O God, put a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from your presence, nor deprive me of your holy spirit.
O Lord, open my lips and my mouth shall declare your praise.
My sacrifice is a contrite spirit; a humbled, contrite heart you will not spurn.

First Reading: Ex 32:7-11,13-14

Second Reading: Tim 1:12-17

Gospel Reading: Luke 15:1-32

24th Sunday of Ordinary Time 2016 Newsletter

None of you can be my disciple unless he gives up all his possessions.

This is a very difficult set of readings. The Gospel itself starts with a saying which many find hard to understand: must we really “hate” our family to be the Lord’s disciples? The point is that it is relative: what are we prepared to give up for the Gospel? Are we going to try and make our own cross, or accept whatever we are given? Jesus is probably trying to discourage the crowd of sensation seekers and hangers-on who are crowing round him. He wants real disciples, who are aware of the possible cost: not like the incompetent builder, or the useless king. To be a disciple, one must be prepared to follow Jesus anywhere, whatever it might cost in possessions, family or friends. We may never understand why, but then, “who can know the intentions of God?”

PSALM

You turn men back into dust and say “Go back, sons of men.” To your eyes a thousand years are like yesterday, come and gone, no more than a watch in the night. You sweep men away like a dream, like grass which springs up in the morning. In the morning it springs up and flowers: by evening it withers and fades. Make us know the shortness of our life that we may gain wisdom of heart. Lord, relent! Is your anger for ever? Show pity to your servants. In the morning, fill us with your love; we shall exult and rejoice all our days. Let the favour of the Lord be upon us: give success to the work of our hands.

First Reading: Wis 9:13-18

Second Reading: Phil 9-10,12-1

Gospel Reading: Luke 14:25-33

23rd Sunday of Ordinary Time 2016 Newsletter