Notices
Please see the Church Bulletin and Porch notice boards
for further notices of events and dedications in our parish.
SEA SUNDAY: is celebrated today. We remember seafarers,
pray for them, their families and those who support them. There will be
a special collection at all Masses for the Apostleship of the Sea.
SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION: (Confession) is available
after Mass on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and at other times
by appointment.
EXPOSITION & ADORATION OF THE BLESSED SACRAMENT: this
Friday, in the
meeting room between the end of Mass and 6pm. Please add your name to the
list
in the Church porch to ensure there is always someone in attendance. Our
intentions
include World Peace, Persecuted Christians, Asylum Seekers and Refugees,
the Renewal
of our Parishes of St Michael’s and St Mary’s within the partnership of
St Benedict's and
Personal intentions.
SCRIPTURE SHARING: continues on Wednesday evening in the
Parish Centre at 7.00pm.
ST BENEDICT PARTNERSHIP: the group of parishes to which
we belong is named the Partnership of St Benedict in recognition of the
Benedictine priests who served Birtley and the surrounding parishes after
the Reformation. A Mass for all the parishes in our partnership will be
celebrated on the Feast of St. Benedict, Wednesday 11th July 2018, at 7pm
here in St Michael’s, Houghton–le-Spring. Refreshments will be served in
the
Parish Centre after Mass. All are welcome!
MUSIC FOR THE PARTNERSHIP MASS: Singers and musicians from
all parishes in the partnership are invited to participate. There will be
a practice before Mass in St. Michael’s on Wednesday 11thJuly at 5.30pm.
You are welcome to join in even if you can’t make the practice. It would
be really helpful if you could let Bernadette Davison (bernadettemdavison@gmail.com)
know if you intend joining the music group.
St. Michael’s Cleaning — Group 2 M Gardiner, M McGowan, C Rennie & M
Keniry
BREATHE: is the true story of inspirational courage of
a young family and how they coped with insurmountable situations in their
lives. Excerpts of the video were used in the day of recollection for readers
and Eucharistic ministers who were really moved by the story. The video
will be shown on Tuesday, 10th July after evening Mass in the Parish Centre.
All are welcome.
Daily Prayer This Week
By reflecting on the images of Jesus beginning his ministry we grow in admiration
and
attraction to him. This week we watch Jesus call and send his Apostles.
Each day this week, in the background of our consciousness, we can make
an ongoing reflection on our call and mission. For a few days, we can pray
each morning, for just 30 seconds or so, when we first get out of bed or
in the shower or while dressing “Dear Jesus, I sometimes forget that I am
called by you to be your disciple. I forget that you call me each day to
live the mission you give me. Help me be more aware of your call and more
faithful in living it today.” For a few days, we might begin the day talking
to Jesus, with our own words: “Lord, I have some challenges to face today.
Help me enter those challenges with faith and trust in you. Calm my fears
and heal my resistance to placing my trust in you. Then, let me bring your
healing to the conflicts and wounds I encounter today.” And, for a few days,
I can be more focused on what Jesus said about sending us like sheep among
wolves. “Lord, there are so many ways that I have become a part of the values
of the world around me. Give me the freedom to hear your call today and
to live it counter culturally. With your grace, I resolve to live more simply
and to try to hear the cry of the poor. With your grace, I desire to be
freed from the attachments that blind me, so that I might be guided by your
Spirit in dismantling unjust social structures. Today, Jesus, I place my
trust in you.”
In these simple prayers we have a new focus each day. While continuing to
be busy and doing what we are committed to doing, our days are transformed.
In brief conversations with Jesus, our hearts and desires become more closely
aligned with his. Practicing this kind of prayer is very fulfilling and
soon becomes a habit. We become more reflective as we grow in intimacy with
our Lord, in the midst of our daily lives.
Prayer for Seafarers
Lord God, we depend on you for life itself.
We depend on seafarers for many of our daily needs.
Watch over them, keep them from danger, befriend them in loneliness
and bring them safely home to those they love.
Amen
