23rd Sunday of the Year (B)

This Week's Feast Days

Most weeks there may well be a number of feast days. We don’t necessarily celebrate them all. Some saints are more important in certain parts of the country than others and will be celebrated more on a local level, whilst other saints will be celebrated everywhere. So each week we will comment on the feast-days that we should celebrate in our regional Church.

Sunday, September 8th - 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Monday September 9th - Weekday of Ordinary Time

Tuesday, September 10th - Weekday in Ordinary Time 

Wednesday, September 11th -  Weekday in Ordinary Time 

Thursday, September 12th - Weekday of Ordinary Time

Friday, September 13th - St John Chrysostom, Bishop, Doctor of the Church

Saturday, September 14th - Exaltation of the Cross

Sunday, September 15th - 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Please click this link to view live streamed masses from St Margaret Clitherow Churches

Sunday Readings

23rd Sunday of the Year (B)

First Reading – Is 35:4-7
The ears of the deaf shall be unsealed and the tongues of the dumb shall be loosed.

Second Reading – Jas 2:1-5
God chose the poor to be the heirs to the kingdom.

Gospel Reading – Mark 7:31-37
He makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak.

Psalter: Week 3

Weekdays: Ordinary Time Week 23

Mass Times In The Area

Below are the normal mass times for the churches in the area, but please check the newsletters for any changes which may occur during certain periods, e.g. funerals, holidays, feast days.

Newsletters

There are four newsletters published weekly in the Leigh area, you can access current and past editions here:

St Edmund Arrowsmith Newsletters (St Joseph's and Sacred Heart, Leigh)

St Margaret Clitherow Newsletters (Holy Family, Boothstown; St Ambrose Barlow, Astley)

St John Rigby Newsletter (Sacred Heart, Hindley Green; St Richard's, Atherton)

St Lewis, St Catherine's & All Saints Newsletters (Croft, Lowton & Golborne) (opens in new window)

( Newsletters download as pdf files in a new window.)

Season of Creation

World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation
'The times we live in show that we are not relating to the Earth as a gift from our Creator, but rather as a resource to be used. 
Only when we work together with Creation can the first fruits of hope be born. '

Today marks the beginning of the Season of Creation where we are called into an awareness of our planet’s growing ecological crisis. Humans have impacted the natural world most negatively in the past 200 years. Yet the crisis also conveys a deeper message of humanity’s fractured relationship with God’s creation. At the heart of the ecological crisis is a spiritual crisis. We have become disconnected from the earth, our relationship with God’s creation has become fractured. Pope Francis reminds us, ‘We are part of nature, included in it and thus in constant interaction with it’ (LS, §139). We cannot separate our relationship with God from our relationship with God’s creation. A radical change of heart, is essential if we are to begin to repair our relationship with the natural world. In today’s Gospel Jesus challenges us to examine our relationships with ourselves and others:
What human traditions or worldly things do we ‘cling’ to?
Do we recognise our inherent connectedness with the world around us, not separate from it but a part of it?
Our interior awareness, the love we cultivate in our hearts for creation and humanity, will be evident in our relationship to other creatures and to the world around us. May we use this time to rekindle a sense of awe and wonder for God’s creation and discern where we are being called to in order to protect it.
Jane Mellett
Adapted from “The Deep End – A Journey through the Sunday Gospels in the Year of Matthew”
(Messenger Publications, Dublin, 2002).

Join others in preparing for the season by reading the Season of Creation Prayer Card

Read the Message from Pope Francis fot today's Day of Prayer for Creation

Ukraine

Pope Francis
Pope Francis gave us this invitation.... ‘let us persevere in our closeness and in prayer for the dear Ukrainian people who are experiencing immense cruelty’

A Prayer for Ukraine
Loving God,
We pray for the people of Ukraine,
for all those suffering or afraid,
that you will be close to them and protect them.

We pray for world leaders,
for compassion, strength and wisdom to guide their choices.

We pray for the world
that in this moment of crisis,
we may reach out in solidarity
to our brothers and sisters in need.

May we walk in your ways
so that peace and justice
become a reality for the people of Ukraine
and for all the world.

Amen.

(From the CAFOD website. Link opens in new tab.)

Prayer for Peace

Loving Father,
May hatred be turned into love,
fear to trust,
despair to hope,
oppression to freedom,
occupation to liberation,
that violent encounters
may be replaced
by loving embraces,
and peace and justice
could be experienced by all.

News Bites

• THE POPE’S PRAYER INTENTIONS FOR SEPTEMBER 2024:
  For the cry of the earth
  That each of us might listen with our hearts to the cry of the earth and of the victims of environmental disasters and climate change, making a personal commitment to care for the world we inhabit.
• Today is Education Sunday. The retiring collection is to raise funds for the Catholic Education Service which works with the Catholic Bishops Conference sharing the aims of high academic standards for all and increased parental choice.
• Alzheimers Society Memory Walk:
  Anna Davidson will be taking part on Sunday 13th October at Heaton Park. If you would like to sponsor her please go to www.justgiving.com/AnnaDavidson2024 or you can sign the sponsorship form at the back of Holy Family Church.
• St Vincent de Paul
  The weekly meeting of the older men in the parish for lunch and a chat will be at the Boundary Stone at 1.00pm on Wednesdays whilst the Applewood is refurbished.
• The SVP may be able to assist you or someone you know who needs help. We could help by providing people in our parish with supermarket food vouchers, essential furniture and home items and energy top ups where these are needed. For more information contact our dedicated SVP number 07566725590.
• Food Bank:
  Please give generously if you are able. Food donated at church is taken to support our local food bank.

Live Simply / Laudato Si

LIVING LAUDATO SI’ RETREAT: Boarbank Hall, Grange Over Sands: 
5th – 12th October - A week to explore how to Care for Creation fully in our personal lives and within the Church. Follow themes from Laudato Si’: The Gospel; The Roots of the Crisis; Integral Ecology; Dialogue; Spirituality. Visit https://boarbankhall.org.uk/whats-on/

Reflect:

Jesus heals a deaf and mute man. The reading shows Jesus using spittle and touch. The Church celebrates the Sacraments using physical signs. These outward signs help to illustrate our faith.

Pray

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful.
And kindle in them the fire of your love.
Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created.
And you will renew the face of the earth.

Act

How do we respond to the needs of those who are sick in our community? Do we care for them or do we ignore them and let others take on the 'burden'? Consider a time when you were sick. In what ways did you feel the love and care of others? How could such care have been improved?

Challenge

As we begin the Season of Creation let us renew our efforts to protect the Earth which is our home. We can start by doing some really easy things:

• Check for gaps where draughts can get in. Block them using draught excluders. Don't forget the letter box!
• Check to see if your water pipes are sufficiently insulated. This will help to retain heat.

Children's Liturgy

St Richard's  - Children's Liturgy takes place every Sunday at the 9.30am Mass.

Sacred Heart - Children's Liturgy takes place every Sunday at the 11.00am Mass.

St Ambrose Barlow – Is held once a month with a planned celebration on the first Sunday of every month. Next celebration is on August 4th during the 11:00am mass.

Holy Family – We have a few volunteers but need several more to be able to run a rota in a similar way to St Ambrose. If you would like to volunteer, please speak to either Fr Paul or to Liz in the parish office as soon as possible.

Please note that all volunteers must complete a DBS form with the Archdiocese to comply with safeguarding which is paramount in all parish activities.

Celebrating the Sacraments

Baptism

Please contact your Parish Office to make an appointment to meet with the Priest or Deacon. Baptisms usually take place on Sundays.

Holy Communion

Children in Year 4 at Primary Schools are invited to make their First Communion during that year. Preparation for the Sacrament may take place in school or by attending a series of meetings with parents or guardians.

Reconciliation

Children in Year 5 or 6 will be invited to make their First Act of Reconciliation (Confession). For continuing celebration of the sacrament, please refer to your local church. Quite often Reconciliation is available before Mass or by contacting the priest to make an appointment.

Confirmation

Preparation for this sacrament is usually arranged through the Archdiocesan Youth Ministry Team ' Animate' for young people in Year 8 or older who attend Catholic Secondary Schools.

Marriage

If you would like to celebrate the Sacrament of Marriage, please contact your  Parish Priest either directly or through the Parish Office to discuss. He will provide you with the necessary paperwork. Please remember to make arrangements well in advance.

Anointing the Sick

If you would like your Parish Priest to visit a family member who is sick and housebound, please speak to him or contact the Parish Office and a visit will be arranged.