St Teresa & St John Southworth Churches, Cleveleys
Fr Chris Cousens—Phone: 853340
Rev Bernard Ward (Deacon) (Tel: 858346)
Enquiries for St John Southworth: Phone: 853340
25 September 2022
http://www.st-teresas-church.co.uk
Email: st.teresas.cleveleys@gmail.com
Lancaster Roman Catholic Diocesan Trustees Registered Charity Number 23433
| Attendance last Sunday: St T’s: 294 StJS: 58Collection: StT’s £691.06 StJS: £118.60received with thanks received with thanks |
Sunday : The Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Contents: Gospel
Notices
Reflections for the coming week
Gospel: Luke 16:19-31
“Jesus said to the Pharisees: ‘There was a rich man who used to dress in purple and fine linen and feast magnificently every day. And at his gate there lay a poor man called Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to fill himself with the scraps that fell from the rich man’s table. Dogs even came and licked his sores. Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried.
‘In his torment in Hades he looked up and saw Abraham a long way off with Lazarus in his bosom. So he cried out, “Father Abraham, pity me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in agony in these flames.” “My son,” Abraham replied “remember that during your life 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. But that is not all: between us and you a great gulf has been fixed, to stop anyone, if he wanted to, crossing from our side to yours, and to stop any crossing from your side to ours.”
‘The rich man replied, “Father, I beg you then to send Lazarus to my father’s house, since I have five brothers, to give them warning so that they do not come to this place of torment too.” “They have Moses and the prophets,” said Abraham “let them listen to them.” “Ah no, father Abraham,” said the rich man “but if someone comes to them from the dead, they will repent.” Then Abraham said to him, “If they will not listen either to Moses or to the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone should rise from the dead.”
Gospel Reflection : The Words We Hear Today Are Not Just A Story
In one of the world’s poorest cities I saw a young boy trying to sell firewood at the side of the road. He would make a few pence a day, enough maybe to stay alive, and God knows where he would sleep. Oh the inequality of opportunities in the world shown in the Gospel passage this Sunday about “Dives and Lazarus”. And yet this is not just a story but real life. We don’t all start life on a level playing field. Some walk uphill from the very beginning, and Jesus was among the poorest of us.
Our heart must wince – at children who are hungry and homeless from birth, at people who want a job and cannot get one, at homelessness, addiction, and any form of abuse; for parents who cannot give to their children the best of life and the love they wish for them; for the elderly who are poor and neglected. And we wonder what we can do. For we are not the problem. Neither you or I have caused the poverty of so many – but we can be part of the solution.
We can join our hearts with the heart of God and urgently wish to make things better. We can join our hands to the hands of God and urgently work to make things better, and create within our own community and world places where a more just and caring society is created.
Can we hear the cry of people who feel neglected, so that our hearts are moved to give time, love and care to those who need help and support, for they are brothers and sisters of Jesus too?
We Remember In Our Prayers young Isobel Grundy whose Funeral was last week, and Adam Bajkowski whose Funeral has yet to be arranged. We are also asked to remember Paul McKenna, formerly of St. Teresa’s Parish, whose father was Dr. McKenna who used to have his surgery on Victoria Road, as some may remember. Paul’s Funeral is being arranged to take place at Sacred Heart Church in Blackpool. We remember them and their families, and all those whose anniversaries are at this time. May they be in God’s peace.
There Is Another Special Annual Collection This Weekend At All Masses. This is for our own Bishop’s Administration Fund, which finances all he does for us.
The Church Shop In The Outer Porch At St. Teresa’s is open before and after each weekend Mass. Please feel free to go in and have a look around.
Interested In The Catholic Faith? Have you ever asked yourself if you would like to know more about the Catholic Church, so that you can at least consider becoming a full member of our Church? In October we are going to begin meetings to help you, without any pressure, meetings where you will be made very welcome. The meetings take place in St. Teresa’s church sacristy, but are for anyone from St. John Southworth parish too, or any other local area. There is an introductory meeting to the whole programme, which we call ‘The Journey of Faith Programme’, on Wednesday 26th October at 7pm. If you are at all interested, or know of someone who is, please phone Fr. Chris – 01253 853340
The Sacrament of Confirmation for both St. Teresa’s and St. John Southworth parishes will take place on 11th November, at St. Teresa’s. This is for young people who will be in Year 8 in High School this September, and for anyone in the years above. There is an introductory meeting for the young people who wish to be Confirmed, and their parents, on Thursday, 6th October, at 6.30 pm in St. Teresa’s Church. Although contact is being made through Cardinal Allen R.C. High School, there may be other young people at other secondary schools who would like to be Confirmed. Would anyone wishing to be Confirmed please contact Fr. Chris (01253 853340).
Hiring St. Teresa’s Parish Hall : It is now possible to hire St. Teresa’s Parish Hall for some event of your own. For availability and advice please contact the Hall manager, Mike Holderness, on 01253 827230 or 07872 680645.
Education Mass at St. Peter’s Cathedral, Lancaster LA1 3BT on Friday, 7th October at 6.30 pm : All parishioners are invited to join Bishop Paul at the annual Diocese of Lancaster Education Mass. This invitation extends in a special way to all those involved in education and faith information – teachers, including those who teach outside the Catholic sector, catechists, youth workers, deacons and priests. The celebration gives us the opportunity to express our thanks and acknowledge the contribution made by all those in the Diocese involved in the work of education and formation in the faith. Together we also ask God’s blessing on the mission of education and formation in our Diocese. Please put the date in your diaries.
Daily Reflections for this week
Monday (John V. Taylor)
The Holy Spirit is that power which opens eyes that are closed, hearts that are unaware and minds that shrink from too much reality. If one is closed up against being hurt, or blind to one’s fellow men one is inevitably shut off against God also. One cannot choose to be open in one direction or closed in another. Vision and vulnerability go together. Insensitivity is also an all-rounder.
Scripture (Luke 16:19-22,25-31)
There was a rich man who used to dress in purple and fine linen and feast magnificently every day. And at his gate there used to lie a poor man called Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to fill himself with what fell from the rich man’s table. Now it happened that the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s embrace. The rich man also died and was buried. Abraham said to the rich man, ‘Remember that during your life you had your fill of good things, just as Lazarus had his fill of bad. Now he is being comforted here while you are in agony.’ So he said, “Father, I beg you, to send Lazarus to warn my brothers so that they do not come to this place.’ Abraham replied, “They have Moses and the prophets. If they will not listen to them, they will not be convinced, even if someone should rise from the dead.”
Tuesday (William Wilberforce)
Take the instances of loving kindness and meekness towards others and observe the solid foundation which is laid for them in self-denial, in moderation as to the good things of this life and in humility. The religious system of the bulk of nominal Christians is satisfied with some tolerable appearances of virtue and accordingly, while it recommends love and benefice, it tolerates pride and vanity in many cases; though these qualities may have a soft exterior and courtly demeanour, they cannot so well accord with the genuine internal principle of love.
Scripture (Deuteronomy 8:11-14,17,19)
Be careful not to neglect Yahweh your God by neglecting his commandments, customs and laws which I am laying down for you today. When you have eaten all you want, when you have built fine houses to live in, your silver and gold abound and all your possessions grow great, do not become proud of heart. Do not then forget Yahweh your God. Beware of thinking to yourself, “My own strength and the might of my own hand have given me the power to act like this.” Be sure: if you forget Yahweh your God, you will perish.
Wednesday (Thomas Merton)
There is a stage in our prayer that is a place of darkness and anguish and of conversion: for here a great change takes place in our spirit. All our love for God appears to us to have been full of imperfection. With shame and sorrow we find that our love was full of complacency. Instead of complacently calling ourselves sinners (and secretly believing ourselves just) we begin to find that the sins of our past life were really sins – and we have not regretted them! We have still sinned without realising it, because we were too sure we were friends with God, and we have taken his graces lightly, or taken them to ourselves and turned them to our own selfish profit and used them for our own vanity. We have revelled in his gifts without thanking him or using them for his glory.
Scripture (Amos 6:1,4-7)
Disaster for those so comfortable in Zion and for those so confident on the hill of Samaria. Lying on ivory beds and sprawling on their divans, they dine on lambs from the flock, and on stall-fattened veal; they bawl to the sound of the lyre and they invent new instruments of music like David, they drink wine by the bowlful, and use the finest oil for anointing themselves, but about the ruin of Joseph they care nothing. That is why they will be the first to be exiled; the sprawlers’ revelry is over.
Thursday (Jean Vanier)
Is not one of the problems today that we have separated ourselves from the poor and the wounded and the suffering? We have too much time to discuss and theorize and have lost the yearning for God which comes when we are faced with the sufferings of people.
Scripture (Tobit 4:7-11)
Set aside part of your goods for almsgiving. Never turn your face from the poor and God will never turn his from you. Measure your alms from what you have; if you have much, give more; if you have little, do not be afraid to give less in alms. So doing, you will lay up a great treasure for the day of necessity. For almsgiving will deliver from death and saves people from passing down to darkness.
Friday (Oscar Romero)
The present form of this world passes away, and there remains only the joy of having used this world to establish God’s rule here. All pomp, all triumphs, all selfish capitalism will pass with the world’s form. All of that passes away. What does not pass away is love. When one has turned money, property, work in one’s calling into service of others, then the joy of sharing and the feeling that all are one’s family does not pass away. In the evening of life you will be judged on love.
Scripture (Romans 1:18-21)
The retribution of God from heaven is being revealed against the ungodliness and injustice of human beings who in their injustice hold back from the truth. For what can be known about God is perfectly plain to them, since God has made it plain to them: ever since the creation of the world, the invisible existence of God and his everlasting power have been clearly seen by the mind’s understanding of created things. And so these people have no excuse: they knew God and yet they did not honour him.
Martin Bennett