The CHURCH of THE s8

THE CHURCH OF THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS & SAINT JOSEPH, WARE

e.mail: [email protected] Parish Priest: Fr. John Gray website: www.sacredheartware.com Parish Deacon: Rev. Adrian Cullen telephone: 01920 462140 Pastoral Assistant: Mary Hallett Parish Secretary: Tracy Moloney

st 1 September 2013 2012-2013

22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time YEAR OF FAITH

TIMES OF SERVICES & GROUP MEETINGS THIS WEEK

MONDAY 8.00 a.m. MASS at Carmel 2nd

TUESDAY 7.15 p.m. Evening Prayer 3rd 7.30 p.m. MASS

St Gregory the Great WEDNESDAY 8.00 a.m. MASS at Carmel 4th 2.00 p.m. UCM in the Hall

St Cuthbert THURSDAY 9.45 a.m. Morning Prayer 5th 10.00 a.m. MASS

FRIDAY 11.30 a.m. Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament 6th 12 noon MASS 2.30 p.m. Wedding: Anthony Dore & Leanne Ramirez

SATURDAY 11.00 a.m.-11.30 a.m. Confessions 7th 1.00 p.m. Wedding: Stephen Leadbitter & Chloe Warrington 5.30 p.m.-6.00 p.m. Confessions 6.30 p.m. FIRST MASS OF SUNDAY SUNDAY 8.30 a.m. MASS 8th 10.30 a.m. MASS 1.00 p.m. Baptism: Evie Durkan 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Mass Book Page 130 Response to today’s Psalm “In your goodness, O God, you prepared a home for the poor.”

READINGS NEXT WEEK Wisdom 9:13-18, Psalm 89, Philemon 9-10, 12-17, Gospel Luke 14:25-33 MONEY COUNTING TEAM NO 3 THIS WEEK

CHURCH CLEANING

This week Tina & Angelo Cipolla, thank you.

NEW EUCHARISTIC MINISTERS ROTA FROM 31st August

The new rota is now available. If you have provided an email address a copy will have already been emailed to you. All other Ministers will find a copy in the church porch. Can you please take your copy. If you are prepared to receive your copy via email and have not provided your email address please email it to [email protected] Thank you.

Sponsored Bike ‘n Hike – Saturday 14 th September Have fun cycling or walking to churches and chapels in the area and at the same time raise funds for our church. You can visit as many or as few churches as you like any time between 10.00 a.m. and 6.00 p.m. Plan your own route. There are 14 churches on the list in Hertford and Ware alone and many more in the surrounding area; Jo and Nigel Beynon managed more than 40 one year. The Bike ‘n Hike raises money through sponsorship. Half the money raised goes to the Beds and Herts Historic Churches Trust to offer grants for church repair projects the other half goes to our church. Details including a list of the 600 churches open for visit and sponsorship forms from Judy King 01920 467223 or collect a Sponsorship pack from the back of the church. If you would like to sponsor our participants rather than take part yourself please enter details on the form at the back of the church. ______‘ PARISH PILGRIMAGE TO WALSINGHAM – NEXT SATURDAY 7 TH SEPTEMBER

Please meet outside the Church Hall at 7.15a.m. Please do NOT use the Church car park as there is a wedding and it will be needed for the 6.30p.m. Mass. Bring a packed lunch. ______

NEW TESCO & SAINSBURY ROTA FROM 7 TH SEPTEMBER

The new rota is now available. If you have provided an email address a copy will have already been emailed to you. All helpers will find a copy in the church porch. Can you please take your copy. If you are prepared to receive your copy via email and didn’t receive it last week please send your email address to [email protected]

If you do not know anything about our special project (where we sell Tesco gift cards and Sainsbury’s vouchers and make 40 pence profit for every £10 sold for our church extension fund) please talk to Mary Hallett. Thank you to those of you who sell the cards and vouchers for us and to those who support this fund raising initiative

HOW DO I BECOME A CATHOLIC?

If you would like to know more about the Catholic faith then you may be interested in joining the RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults), ‘Journey of Faith’ programme, which starts on Wednesday 18th September at 8.00 p.m.

If any of the following applies to you will be very welcome:

1. Adults who wish to be baptised 2. Adults who are already baptised in another Christian denomination and who now wish to become members of the Roman Catholic Church 3. Adults who were baptised in the Catholic Church, and who might not yet have either been confirmed or made their First Holy Communion 4. Any adult who wishes to learn about the Catholic Faith 5. Any Catholic who wants to find out more or deepen their Catholic Faith

Information leaflets are available at the back of the Church. If you would like to come along or are interested in knowing more please speak to Fr. John, Deacon Adrian or Mary Hallett. ______FIRST HOLY COMMUNION 2014

Forms for parents to register children who are in year 3 and above for First Holy Communion have been out for 8 weeks. The deadline for returning the forms is Sunday the 15th September 2013 and no new applications will be accepted after that date. ______

RETROUVAILLE

Retrouvaille offers a lifeline to troubled marriages. Backed by prayer, this programme has healed & turned around thousands of marriages on the brink of collapse & even brought divorced couples back together again. The next programme starts on the 27th -29th September 2013. Don’t miss this lifeline if your marriage is painful – visit www.retrouvaille.org.uk or email [email protected] or call 0797 338 0443 in complete confidence. ______

Y YEAREAR OFOF FFAITHAITH

I BELIEVE IN GOD THE FATHER 32. Q. What does it mean to say that God is truth? A. “God is light and in him is no darkness” (1 Jn 1:5). His word is truth, and his Law is truth. Jesus himself vouches for God’s truth by declaring before Pilate, “For this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth” The truth of God cannot be “proved” or subjected to empirical tests, since science cannot make him an object of investigation. And yet God subjects himself to a special sort of proof. We know that God is truth on the basis of the absolute credibility of Jesus. He is “the way, and the truth, and the life”. Anyone who enters into a relationship with him can find this out by putting it to the test. If God were not “true”, then faith and reason could not have a dialogue with each other. An agreement is possible, however, because God is truth, and the truth is divine. Prayer for the Year of Faith Lord, let me see your face, know your heart and experience your love in my life. Strengthen in me the precious gift of faith. I believe Lord, help my unbelief. Amen.