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Advent Project - Update - Collection Figures

I would like to thank all who have contributed to our recent

Advent Project to help Br. Antony from Kristo Buase Monastery

in Ghana. We hoped to raise in the region of £2,000.00 to enable him to visit his family and also to help support him in other ways.

Thanks to your tremendous generosity we have raised a grand

total of £1,963.01. I greatly appreciate your kindness and support

and on Br. Antony’s behalf, and with appreciation too from

Ursula Humphrey, can I extend to you all my sincere thanks. The Parish will make up the shortfall in the amount

so that we have that desired figure of £2,000.00. God bless you, Fr. Martin

Healing Service

On Wednesday 13th February, from 7.30-9.00p.m.,

there will be a Healing Service in St. James’, Kin-

ross. The time will include moments of silent Ado-ration of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, prayers

for healing, an opportunity for Confession, and

praise and worship music, healing ministry will

also be available for those who would like it. Please

come along for an uplifting and joyful experience

of the healing presence of the Lord - remember, it’s

not necessary to stay for the whole time, you can come and go as you wish. Jesus our

Healer, touch our lives and transform us!

St. Serfs Singers

St. Serfs Singers have kindly offered to perform a concert again in St. James’

church hall to help raise funds for the Parish. This wonderful musical event will

take place on Friday 8th February at 7.30p.m. Tickets will be on sale at the door that evening for a suggested minimum donation of £5.00 per person. There will

also be a raffle that evening (and donations of raffle prizes would be greatly

appreciated). A talented group of musicians and singers, St. Serfs Singers will

share with us from their varied and entertaining repertoire. Those who have heard

them before will agree that this event is not to be missed, so don’t be shy, come

and join us, and mark Friday 8th of February in your diary for a night of excellent

musical entertainment!

“Let It Be”

From the same people (CaFE) who brought us “The Gift” and

“The Big Picture” comes the five week course on Our Blessed

Lady entitled “Let It Be”. We will be running this course throughout Lent on Monday evenings when the Prayer Group

would normally have its meetings. Beginning and ending

slightly earlier than their normal meetings, “Let It Be” will run

from 7.30-9.00p.m. on Mondays 4th, 11th, 18th and 25th of

March, concluding on Monday 1st April. A donation of £5.00 per

person, to cover the cost of the course book, etc. is suggested,

though this should not be an obstacle to anyone who would like

to attend and for whom this may prove prohibitive. A collection

basket will be left in the hall on the nights of the meetings and

donations can be left in there. Following on from the success of

“The Gift” and “The Big Picture” I would encourage you to come

along for this wonderful look at the importance of Our Blessed

Lady in our Catholic Faith. I will be attending the meetings and

hope to see you there. As with the other courses the atmosphere of the meetings is relaxed, friendly and welcoming. God bless,

Fr. Martin

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St. James’, Kinross &

St. Matthew’s, Auchtermuchty

In the Catholic Diocese of Dunkeld

Scottish Charity Number: SC001810

Parish Priest: Fr. Martin Pletts

Postal Address for both churches: 5 High Street, Kinross, KY13 8AW

St. Matthew’s Address: 4 Back Dykes, Auchtermuchty, KY14 7AB

Parish email address: stjames@dunkelddiocese.org.uk

Landline: 01577 863329 Mobile: 07540534480

Parish Website: https://catholickinross.com

Diocese of Dunkeld Website: www.dunkelddiocese.co.uk

Last Week’s Collections:

St. James’ Collection: (20/01/19) £ 675.20

St. Matthew’s Collection: (20/01/19) £ 102.00

Advent Project (Br. Antony): £ 1,963.01 S.V.D.P. Collection: £ 73.16

Thank you, as always for your generosity. Please consider Gift Aid if you are a taxpayer, for every pound given we can claim back 25p. (The figures above do not include payments made directly into the parish account).

Mass attendance:

St. James’ Vigil Mass: (20/01/19): 51

St. James’ 9.30a.m. Mass: (20/01/19): 62

St. Matthew’s 11.30a.m. Mass: (20/01/19): 20

Sanctuary Lamp Intentions: St. James’ - Parishioners’ Intentions. St. Matthew’s - Parishioners’ Intentions.

A DONATION OF £5.00 IS SUGGESTED FOR ANYONE WHO WOULD LIKE THE SANCTUARY LAMP TO BURN FOR A PARTICULAR INTENTION

Third Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year C.

Sunday 27th January 2019

Divine Office Volume I, Week III

Please remember in your daily prayers vocations to the priesthood & religious life.

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Prayer Intentions: Please remember in your prayers all who are sick or suffering at this time, as well as those who

care for them, may God grant them healing and strength, especially: Jennifer Wells, Lesley Law, Tony Whitehead,

Mark Laughlan, Moyra & Neil Scully, John & Agnes Kenny, Tiziana Hetherington, Regina Irvine, Andrew Kierney,

Joanne McAtear, Dominic Law, Mary Joyce, Eva Clarke, Joan Paterson, Anne McGinley, William Pletts, and all who

are sick and have asked for our prayers. Please pray, too, for those who have died recently and those whose

anniversaries occur around this time, especially: Frank Corrieri, Netta Pawlak, and Jim and Sadie Duffy. Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis. Requiescant in pace.

Times of Holy Mass & Confessions, etc.

St. James’, Kinross (KY13 8AW)

Monday 28th January Memorial of St. Thomas Aquinas Confessions 6.30-6.50p.m.

Holy Mass at 7.00p.m.

Prayer Group 8.00-10.00p.m.

Tuesday 29th January Votive Mass of the Holy Spirit Confessions 9.30-9.50a.m.

Holy Mass at 10.00a.m.

Wednesday 30th January Votive Mass of St. Joseph Adoration 8.30-9.30a.m.

Confessions 9.30-9.50a.m.

Holy Mass at 10.00a.m.

Tea/Coffee in hall after Mass

Thursday 31st January Memorial of St. John Bosco Adoration 8.30-9.30a.m.

Confessions 9.30-9.50a.m.

Holy Mass at 10.00a.m.

Friday 1st February Votive Mass of the Sacred Heart Adoration 8.30-9.30a.m.

1st Friday of the month Confessions 9.30-9.50a.m.

Holy Mass at 10.00a.m.

Saturday 2nd February Feast of the Presentation of the Lord Confessions 9.00-9.30a.m.

Candlemas - procession at the beginning of Mass Holy Mass at 10.00a.m.

with the blessing of candles. Confessions 5.30-5.50p.m.

Vigil Mass at 6.00p.m.

Sunday 3rd February Fourth Sunday of the Year - C. Holy Mass at 9.30a.m.

As this would have been the feast of St. Blase, had it not been a Sunday, I will offer the blessing of the throats for those who wish it, immediately after Holy Mass, and will not go to the church door.

St. Matthew’s, Auchtermuchty (KY14 7AB)

Sunday 3rd February Fourth Sunday of the Year - C. Holy Mass at 11.30a.m.

Confessions after Holy Mass

As this would have been the feast of St. Blase, had it not been a Sunday, I will offer the blessing of the throats for those who wish it, immediately after Holy Mass, and will not go to the church door.

Kilgraston School, Bridge of Earn (PH2 9BQ)

Sunday 3rd February Fourth Sunday of the Year - C. Holy Mass at 5.15p.m.

My sincere apologies, but there was a mistake in the last newsletter, and actually there is no Mass at Kilgraston on Sunday 27th January as this is an Exeat weekend. Sorry for the incorrect

information given and for any inconvenience caused.

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A reading from the book of Nehemiah 8:2-6.8-10

Ezra read from the law of God and the people understood what was read.

Psalm 18:8-10.15. R/.Jn.6:63

Response: Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life.

A reading from the first letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians 12:12-30

You together are Christ’s Body; but each of you is a different part of it.

Alleluia, alleluia!

The Lord has sent me

to bring the Good News to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives..

Alleluia!

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 1:1-4;4:14-21

This text is being fulfilled today.

This Sunday’s readings from the Sacred Scriptures:

Thank you for your ongoing support of the work of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. Anyone interested in joining the society should speak either to Fr. Martin or one of the members of the Society. The more active members we have, the more good we can do, and the more practical charity we can show to those in our area. Thank you for your generous financial contributions every week to the charitable works of the Society. God bless you!

Reverence in church - what’s it all about???

Reverence is not about being stiff, stuffy, or unfriendly to others, reverence is about love - love of God and love of neighbour. When we conduct ourselves reverently in church we recognise God’s awesome presence and we value it, we also allow our neighbour to cherish it as well, and we edify them. Not sitting chatting to each other, and just speaking quietly (when absolutely necessary) means that our focus is on God, as it should be, and it also creates an atmosphere of stillness and silence in which we and all others can pray, opening our hearts to God and listen-ing to Him speak to us in the innermost part of our being.

Noise before and after Holy Mass sadly stops this happening. The church should be an oasis, where we can come to drink from the graces and bless-ings that God gives us, where we can sit with Him and enjoy His company, taking ourselves out of the hustle and bustle of the rat race of life and enjoy-ing peace and stillness. We all have a part to play in this, we all contribute to the maintaining of this prayerfulness by the considerate and reverent way we are when we come to church. Reflecting on our own behaviour in church is a good thing, does it need to improve, can we do more to be reverent and respectful of God and our neighbour?

Children will talk, sing, and chatter, and that’s good - in their own way they are praising God, and we, as Catholics, as a pro-life community, should welcome with joy the noises and singing of these little ones who are so close to the Lord, we should also be ready to help and encourage those parents who sometimes feel self-conscience about their children, and rather than being disapproving of the noise of children (which I’m sure none of us is) we should be thanking God for the presence and blessing of these little ones in our midst - we are a real FAMILY after all, and children are very much at the heart of our family.

As a family we worship together in love, love of God—who is our true Father - and love of each other - our sisters and brothers in Christ. Let us encourage and support each other in all that we do together, let us give God time and give each other time, let us welcome the stranger, support those who struggle, encourage the doubtful, and be there for the sick, the lonely, and those who feel unloved. By putting God at the centre of our lives, by showing our love and respect, our reverence for and our faith in Him, all these good things we will live-out in regard to those around us too, inspired as we are by His love and His care for us. Our church is a holy temple, the House of God, in which our holy family of faith meets to worship the Lord, may it be a place of peace, blessing and grace for each one of us!