Dear Friends,
Today is the Fifth Sunday of Lent
Lenten Reflection Time
We had our second ‘Lenten Morning Reflection’ with some music, scripture, poetry and prayer in the John Sullivan Room from 11.30 – 12.00 last Friday. Our next sessions will be on Thursday,10th April and Spy Wednesday 16th April. Please note that the third session will be on a Thursday. These sessions are being very well attended. Thanks to all who come along. All are welcome!
F. Brendan
Saint of the Week – St. John Baptist de la Salle (1651-1719) – April 7th
John Baptist was born in Reims, France into a noble family. He was named a canon of Reims Cathedral when he was only sixteen! In 1669, he took a Master of Arts degree and went to the famous seminary of Saint-Sulpice in Paris. He was ordained priest in 1678. He knew that the teachers in Reims were struggling so he brought some of them into his own home. He had inherited a considerable fortune and gave much of it to the poor who were suffering from famine. He began a new religious institute, the first one with no priests among its members: the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, also known as the De La Salle Brothers in Europe, Australia, and Asia and the Christian Brothers in the United States.
In 1685, John Baptist founded a teacher-training school in Reims. He died on Good Friday, 1719. Pope Leo XIII canonised John Baptist on 24 may 1900. Pope Pius XII proclaimed him patron saint of all teachers of youth on 15th May 1950. In 2021, the De La Salle Brothers numbered around 3,000 worldwide, running 1,100 education centres in 80countries with more than a million students, together with 90,000 teachers and lay associates.
REFLECTION FOR THE WEEK
Listening is very hard because it asks of us so much inner stability that we no longer need to prove ourselves by speeches, arguments, statements or declarations. True listeners no longer have an inner need to make their presence known. They are free to receive, to welcome, to accept. Listening is much more than allowing another to talk while waiting for a chance to respond. Listening is paying attention to others and welcoming them into our very beings. The beauty of listening is that those who are listened to start feeling accepted, begin discovering their own true selves. Listening is a form of spiritual hospitality by which you invite strangers to become friends and even to dare to be silent with you.
Henri Nouwen
Holy Week Schedule
Passion Sunday – 13th April
Mass at 6 pm (Vigil) 9.15, 11 am& 7.30 pm.
Blessing of the palms at Vigil& 11 am Masses. Palms will be distributed at each Mass.
Spy Wednesday – 16th April
11.30 am -Lenten reflection
John Sullivan Room
Holy Thursday – 17th April
11.30 am-12.30pm- Sacrament ofReconciliation (confessions)
7.30 pm Mass of the Lord's Supperfollowed by Holy Hour at the Sacred Heart Chapel
NO 11 am or 1 pm MASS
Good Friday – 18th April
12 pm Stations of the Cross in thechurch
3 pm Liturgy of the Passion
Easter Sunday – 20th April
Mass at 9.15 & 11 am
NO 7.30 pm MASS
GARDINER STREET CHURCH READING CLUB
Our Reading Club is progressing well. The next reading session will feature "The Afternoon of Christianity" by Thomas Halik. This is a book about faith as a journey in search of God in the midst of a changing world.
Join us every second Monday, from10 am-12 pm.
Begins on Monday 7th April.
ANNUAL APOLOGETICS CONFERENCE
Evangelium Ireland invites Young Catholics (18-40 yrs) to its at St. Patrick’s College, Maynooth, on Saturday,26 April 2025. The event features talks and workshops on topics such as discipleship in the Gospel of St. John, doctrinal development, and the making of modern culture. Holy Mass will be celebrated. Cost: €45, which includes lunch, refreshments, and an evening social. For the full programme and registration, visit www.evangelium.ie or search 'Evangelium Ireland' on Eventbrite.
LAST WEEK COLLECTION
Church: € 686
Share collection: € 121
Card reader: € 301