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Our next special days of spiritual journey for all of us will come on the days from 26th May to 3rd June at 8.00 pm (30 min.) in St Swithun’s church we will have – NOVENA TO THE HOLY SPIRIT before THE PENTECOST SUNDAY. We will ask The Holy Spirit to heal our hearts, wounds, to unite all the divisions in our families and Parish, and to lead us through the next years of the evangelization within our parishes, schools, families…. Pentecost is the Solemnity, which is described as our Birthday as the Children of God, as One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. Please, let us do as much effort as it is possible to open ourselves for the Holy Spirit - the Third Person of The Most Holy Trinity, given to us to help, to protect, to encourage, to sanctify us - as Jesus Christ promised. THE BEACON PROJECT The next meeting will be held on Monday 5th June, at 7.15pm in the
Presbytery of St Swithun’s church. If you want any more information please contact: Paul Vacheron
HEAR GOD’S VOICE’- From 7.40 PM to 9.00 PM in the Presbytery (105 Waverley Rd) a special form
of the Scripture Meeting. You will not hear it in the homilies. Everyone is welcome - no register, no checking the list (the next ones this year 2017: 30TH MAY, 6TH, 13TH, 20TH, 27TH JUNE & 4TH, 11TH, 18TH JULY.)
My Dear Brother and Sister in Christ, my Friends
We come back now to the mysteries of our faith.
Bearing in mind the second truth of faith, which is: 'God is
the just judge, who rewards good, and punishes evil', I
would like first to explain the difficulties that come with its
acceptance. The first of these concerns is the justice of God in
the role of the Master, before whom one must be
responsible for all deeds. It is worth realising that people on earth do not
value a gentle, good and gracious ruler; On the contrary,
they want to have a strong ruler who holds a strong hand
holding all the affairs of his kingdom and from the position
of power justly awards and justly fully punishes. Why?
Well, contrary to appearances, people do not yearn for
freedom, because freedom is connected with responsibility.
Most people want to have a hard ruler to fear. If his law is
endowed with a strong sanction, they must obey the law.
And if they have to, they are exempt from liability; for their
actions are the responsibility of the legislator. The greater
the anxiety that dominates the subordinates with the strict
painted image. The judgment of God is not about giving
judgment to a man but revealing the truth hidden in his
human heart. The man will see in the Last Judgment, who
he was and who he is. It will be like visiting a doctor. If
someone claims to be healthy yet when he is in front of a
doctor turns out to be covered with ulcers, then the doctor
will not give him a verdict saying: “You are sick”, he will
only determine what the actual state of health of the
patient is. God will not issue sentences. God is the very
truth, and therefore at this moment, when we approach
Him, we will give judgment on ourselves, because then we
will discover the truth about ourselves. I recommend
that this picture of God in the courtroom should be
dismissed from our field of vision. This is just one of the
images, nothing more. In the encounter with God, man will
see the truth about himself and will deliver the sentence on
himself. If one could ever refer to an image of a judge, then
I think God would remind us of the judge of the marathon
run. This judge does not punish a runner who has fallen
behind. His task is to reward the one who won. That is his
OUR LADY OF LOURDES & St SWITHUN’s CHURCH
in SOUTHSEA
Vi Sunday of Easter - 21ST May 2017
judge and his law, the lesser the responsibility. This
arrangement determines that throughout the ages man
constantly tends to create an image of God in the manner
of a harsh judge to be afraid of, because he only rewards
the great heroes and utterly punishes any misconduct. Such tendencies are observed in many religions,
especially in the Old Testament religion. Jews still see in
God a judge who punishes them. With such an approach,
those who perceive God's harm in the earth, accuse Him of
injustice, and because of that they often come to atheism. It
is at the base of the atheistic attitude of modern man,
because he misunderstands the justice of God. The second explanation concerns the word 'judge'. What is
the meaning of the word? It points to responsibility. God is
the supreme court of righteousness, and therefore,
standing before Him, one has to take responsibility for
every word, thought and deed. Those who long for freedom
reject God the Judge because they believe that if they have
to answer to someone, they are already restricted, and
therefore they are not free. Here is the second point. Some
people, running away from responsibility, do everything
with fear, because they fear God, and others reject God the
Judge, because they do not want to answer to anyone. In
the name of misunderstood freedom, they reject all
responsibility. They want to answer only to themselves.
These people want to reward themselves by themselves and
possibly they want to punish themselves by themselves.
They become judges and lawmakers, so they occupy God's
place. This is the temptation that accompanies every sin.
Already in paradise Eve heard the mysterious call of the
Evil "You will be as gods," you will decide for yourself
what is good and what is evil; Take responsibility for this
decision in your own hands. This is one of the most striking
human dramas.
Misunderstanding comes from the fact that people
often treat God as the Judge, presenting the Supreme
Court tribunal. So by setting the situation they think that a
man is sitting on the bench of the accused, and God
gives judgment. This is a very inept and improperly
justice. Penalty for those who have been left behind is the
fact that they lost; this is their problem. The judge does not
sentence them. If we are to operate a judge's concept, let
us not think of the judge from the courtroom, but rather
from the Olympic stadium. This fair judge awards and is
ready to give a consolation prize even to an athlete who
has not won. This is what St Paul wrote to Timothy - ‘I have fought the good fight to the end; I have run the race
to the finish; I have kept the faith’ (2 Timothy 4, 7);
Penalty is already contained in the bitterness of the loser:
I failed, I made a mistake, I lied to myself. Such an
admission is made by every athlete. 'God is the Judge'. Revelation tells us about the
triple encounter with God the Judge, who rewards and
punishes. First, meeting at the present moment. God
speaks to me through my conscience here and now, at this
moment. God ‘is’ the Judge, He will not be the Judge, but
‘is’ the Judge. He is the One who speaks the truth. He says
what are my thoughts, words, deeds. Even at this point is
judged every word I addressed to You, and your attitude
is being judged while reading these words. At this point
God is our Judge. The second meeting with God the Just Judge will
take place when each of us crosses the threshold of eternity
and looks at the whole of our lives. Lastly, the third
meeting that Revelation speaks of will take place at the end
of history, when God will help us to look at the whole
history of mankind. He will allow us to discover the truth
about the history of the world and show us our
participation in this great work. These three meetings are
given to us. This is an introduction to the second truth of faith,
which says that "God is the just judge, who rewards good,
and punishes evil." Next week, I would like us to ponder
over the meaning of the conscience, which is the voice of
the Judge.
With love, friendship and prayers – Fr Marcin
ST SWITHUN’S CHURCH - (105 Waverley Road, Southsea PO5 2PL)
DAY OF THE WEEK TIME INTENTION OF THE HOLY MASS
FEASTS & MEMORIALS of the Holy Liturgy
Readings of a day
SIXTH SUNDAY OF EASTER
21-05-2017
8.30 am
10.15 am
6.00 pm
Dec relatives of Wills Family For Jevin Furtado anniversary of his Baprism
NO MASS IN POLISH!!!
Liturgy of the Lord’s Day
Acts 6: 1-7; Psalm 32
1 Peter 2: 4-9; John 14: 1-12
MONDAY 22-05-2017
10.00 am
Liturgy of the Word following with the Rosary prayers
NO MASS!!! Of the 6TH Week of Easter
Acts 14: 5-18; Psalm 113
John 14: 21-26;
TUESDAY 23-05-2017
10.00 am
7.00 pm
Liturgy of the Word following with the Rosary prayers Slovakian decesed
Of the 6TH Week of Easter
Acts 14: 19-28; Psalm 144
John 14: 27-31a;
WEDNESDAY 24-05-2017
9.30 am 10.00 am 10.30 am
Exposition of The Blessed Sacrament
+ Stanley Arthur Groom RIP We pray the Rosary
Of the 6TH Week of Easter
Acts 15: 1-6; Psalm 121
John 15: 1-8;
THURSDAY 25-05-2017
9.30 am 10.00 am 10.30 am
Exposition of The Blessed Sacrament
+ Ron McDonald RIP
We pray the Rosary
St Bede the Venerable, Religious, Doctor of the
Church
Acts 15: 7-21; Psalm 95
John 15: 9-11;
FRIDAY 26-05-2017
9.30 am 10.00 am
Exposition of The Blessed Sacrament
+ Monica & Jack Mason St Philip Neri, Priest
Founder
Readings from the Feast;
10.30 am
7.00 pm
RIP
We pray the Rosary Holy Souls
SATURDAY 27-05-2017
9.30 am 10.00 am 10.30 am
Exposition of The Blessed Sacrament
+ Rita Vella RIP
We pray the Rosary
Feast of St Auigustine of Canterbury, Bishop
Isaiah 16: 1-10; Psalm 99
Luke 15: 18-21;
THE ASCENSION of THE LORD 28-05-2017
8.30 am
10.15 am
6.00 pm
Kathleen Cheeseman RIP For Parishioners
NO MASS IN POLISH!!!
Liturgy of the Lord’s Day
Acts 8: 5-8, 14-17; Psalm 65
1 Peter 3: 15-18; John 14: 15-21;
OUR LADY OF LOURDES CHURCH (Bransbury Road, Portsmouth PO4 9JY)
THURSDAY 25-05-2017 12.00noon + Louis Benny of the 5TH Week of Easter
Saturday 27-05-2017 VIGIL MASS of SUNDAY
6.00 pm
Margaret Gregg & John Melder RIP
Liturgy of the Lord’s Day
Acts 8: 5-8, 14-17; Psalm 65
1 Peter 3: 15-18; John 14: 15-21;
OFFERTORY: Thank you for last Sunday’s Collection. The total amount was: £1199.33 (58.1% Gift Aid). As always, your generosity is much appreciated. Your donations make the life and work of the Parish possible. THANK YOU Next weeken the second collection for Catholic Communication Network
1917 - 2017: 100th Anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady in Fatima - apparition on 13th October 2017 (part II): As the Lady of the Rosary rises toward the east she turns the palms of her hands toward
the dark sky. While the rain had stopped, dark clouds continued to obscure the sun, which suddenly
bursts through them and is seen to be a soft spinning disk of silver.
"Look at the sun!"
From this point two distinct apparitions were seen, that of the phenomenon of the sun seen
by the 70,000 or so spectators and that beheld by the children alone. Lucia describes the latter in
her memoirs.
After our Lady had disappeared into the immense distance of the firmament, we beheld St.
Joseph with the Child Jesus and Our Lady robed in white with a blue mantle, beside the sun. St.
Joseph and the Child Jesus seemed to bless the world, for they traced the Sign of the Cross with
their hands. When, a little later, this apparition disappeared, I saw Our Lord and Our lady; it seemed
to me to that it was Our Lady of Sorrows (Dolors). Our Lord appeared to bless the world in the same
manner as St. Joseph had done. This apparition also vanished, and I saw Our Lady once more, this time resembling Our Lady of Carmel. [Only Lucia would see the later,
presaging her entrance into Carmel some years later.]
This would be the last of the apparitions of Fátima for Jacinta and Francisco. However, for Lucia Our Lady would return a seventh time, in 1920, as she had
promised the previous May. At that time Lucia would be praying in the Cova before leaving Fátima for a girls boarding school. The Lady would come to urge her to dedicate
herself wholly to God.
As the children viewed the various apparitions of Jesus, Mary and Joseph the crowd witnessed a different prodigy, the now famous miracle of the sun.
DIOCESE IN YOUR POCKET! On Easter Sunday the Diocese launched its own App! The Portsmouth Catholic
Diocese App is available on Apple and Android and is free to download for your smartphone or tablet. Here you can find
maps and information for your nearest Church, including Mass times, Eucharistic Adoration and the Sacrament of
Reconciliation. You will also find a regularly updated calendar of events and many other features relating to Catholic life.
YOUTH PILGRIMAGE TO LOURDES - This year's Lourdes Youth Pilgrimage will be running alongside the main diocesan Lourdes Pilgrimage from 18-25 August and is for teenagers aged from 14 to 17 years. Bookings are now being taken and places may be secured with a £100 deposit. Total cost of pilgrimage is £625. For further information please contact Tom Sellars on 01329318869 (ext 222) or [email protected] SIGNIFICANT WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES 2017 Are you celebrating a 25th, 30th, 40th, 50th, 60th or Anniversary over 60 years? If so Bishop Philip would like to invite you to a Mass of Celebration. This will take place at St Bede’s Church in Basingstoke on Saturday 24 June 2017 at 1100. It is a wonderful occasion to celebrate and witness to Marriage. If you would like to come, please visit the
Significant Anniversaries page on the Diocesan website and complete the on-line form, or send an email: [email protected] (Please note this address is not monitored daily and you may have to wait for a reply, so please be
patient). For further information, please contact Liz Murphy at St Bede’s Parish office on 01256 465214. To help celebrate the occasion please could you provide a COPY of your Wedding photograph, you can upload it when you complete the form. Alternatively send via email
to above email address or by post to the following address: St Bede’s Parish Office, Popley Way, Basingstoke, RG24 9DX. Please mark
envelope Significant Wedding Mass. SAFEGUARDING - REFRESHER TRAINING - Refresher Training is required every three years for volunteers involved in Children’s liturgy, Holy Communion Programme and Extra-Ordinary Ministers of the Holy Communion visiting parishioners in their homes. The next available session is at St Patricks, Manor Road, Hayling Island PO11 0QU on SATURDAY 1 JULY @ 1000-1230 To
book a place please call or email Soraya Ciccarone, PA to Diocesan Safeguarding Coordinator & Diocesan Financial Secretary /02392 816396/ 023 92 836511/ [email protected] Or Parish Safeguarding Rep Elaine Lindsay 07749200592/ [email protected]
Dear Friends - the last few days in our parish were very special. The Vigil of 100th Anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady in Fatima was absolutely unforgettable. I’m so grateful for all of You, who came to rejoice, pray, meditate. Thank you for all the roses for Our Lady, and all the written intentions, which I will take this Monday and offer to God through the intercessions of Queen of the Holy Rosary in Fatima. It was so wonderful to see many children who prayed with us also on Saturday morning. As the fruit of our devotion to the message given by Our Lady in Fatima 100 years ago, but so actual - in our churches will be promoted the Rosary’s prayer. You will find always here the rosary beads, which all the people, who would like to pray on the ways requested by Mary in so many different places of the world, in so many Her apparitions to us - can take, can offer for others to pray. In our both churches You will find a special notebook, to write your intentions, which will be offered in the Rosary prayer led at St Swithun’s church every day after morning Mass. Thank You for that. Finally, I would like to thank You for the help offered by someone in costs of the surgery of my knee, which will take place on 8th August this year, and because this help I’m able to dedicate the Easter offering - your kind gift to organize a trip to Poland to our altar servers: Megan, Bethany, Emmanuel, Jevin, Euan and Milly - in thanksgiving for their dedication to the Liturgy at the church. I’ll take them to show Krakow and the places around my family’s town. I will cover all the costs of the trip in Poland from 24th to 28th July 2017, but we are struggling to cover the costs of the flights - if You think You can help - we will be very grateful. We would like to go from Bournemouth to Krakow and return with Ryanair. You can check the price of the tickets. If You think, that You would like to and can ‘adopt spiritually and financially’ one of the altar server to sponsor his/her flights, we promise You to pray every day in your intention there, to offer the Holy Mass for You there, and to send You every day a postcard from the places we will visit, and to bring a nice gift from
‘adopt to’. With all the blessings – Poland for You. Please, think about it and let me know, who would like to
MARCH FOR LIFE UK: Fr Marcin This year’s March for Life UK takes place in Birmingham on Saturday 20th May. The day includes Holy Mass, pro-life speakers, live music and much more. If you would like to come, there are two options: 1) Join the coach, which will leave Gosport at 6.30am on the Saturday; or, 2) Take the minibus to Birmingham on Friday and stay overnight in one of the rooms we have reserved (NB: Rooms are limited. £40 donation requested). To register your Interest, speak to the friars or email Owen Dugan ([email protected] ). Christian Aid Week 14-20 May: Christian Aid Week started 60 years ago to help those without homes after the Second World War. They have continued helping refugees since then and also provide support to the poorest people around the world to help them become more self-sufficient. Our parish has a long tradition of working with other churches in Portsmouth to do house-to-house collections during Christian Aid Week. This year there is also the option of spending some time with other volunteers collecting in the Cascades shopping centre. If you can help collect in the streets around St. Swithun's or in the Cascades, please contact Anne Worden, tel: 9281 7586, or email [email protected]
Please pray for those who are ill, especially: Joan Smith, John Williams, Margaret Bager, Monika Madigan, Fred Vuksani, Tom & Lily,
Greta Kemp, Magda K, Mary Wallis, Micheline Thompson, Pat Needham, Margaret Badger, Rosemary Ashton, Anne Sullivan, Catherine Morgan,
Arthur Tobin, Jo Wheeler and Josephine Butler. And all whose anniversaries occur at this time: 21ST May: Christopher Smith, William Foulkes, George
Hurley, George Wood, Cecilia Raven, Marshall Callender, Mary (May) Nelson, Mary Bryant, John O'Reilly, Herbert Arthur, William Holt, Ronald Cecil Read, Jennie Coombes, Norah Blake, Violet Demmen, Samuel Orme, Frank Wills, Edward (Ted) Docker, Mary Newell, Eleanor Mary Edwards, May Lilian Eileen Mary Ann Myall,
Dorothy Cull, Margaret Perrin, Susan Aston, James Holland, David Link, Margaret Evelyn Weldon, Yvonne Theodora Questel, Dora Moss, Teresa Hughes, Dorothy
Lewis, Angela Morgan, Stanley Arthur Groom, Anne Summerfield, Anne Bamberger, Margarita Alt, 'Ron' MacDonald, Emily May Whittaker, Kathleen Donnelly, Thomas Maher, Richard Stanick, Winnifred Bartlett, George Green, Patrick "Mick" O'Leary, Violet Caudrey, Theresa Mundy, Marianne Busuttil, Leslie Herbert
Wheeler .
. May their souls and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the Mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
PARISH PRIEST: Father Marcin Drabik, tel: 02392 828305; e-mail: [email protected]; 105 Waverley Road, Southsea, PO5 2PL; Pastoral Assistant: Sr Marie Elise Tel: 07747 728734; Safeguarding Representative: Val Croughan - 023 9234 1682; (Parish Office: Monday, Tuesday,
Thursday, Friday 8.00am –12.30pm) Tel: 02392828305 e-mail: [email protected]
