T HE P ARISH OF S AINT A UGUSTINE C OATBRIDGE ! S COTLAND 1892 - 2017 F IFTH S UNDAY OF E ASTER 1 4 M AY 2017 – F IRST H OLY C OMMUNIONS th 100 Anniversary of Fatima Apparitions th th Saturday 13 May marks the 100 Anniversary since Our Lady appeared in Fatima, Portugal. Pope Francis will be present to canonise two of the shepherd children who were privileged to see Our Lady and to receive her messages. The famous apparitions of the Virgin Mary took place during the First World War, in the summer of 1917. The inhabitants of this tiny village in the diocese of Leiria (Portugal) were mostly poor people, many of them small farmers who went out by day to tend their fields and animals. Children traditionally were assigned the task of herding the sheep. The three children who received the apparitions had been brought up in an atmosphere of genuine piety: Lucia dos Santos (ten years old) and her two younger cousins, Francisco and Jacinta. Together they tended the sheep and, with Lucy in charge, would often pray the Rosary kneeling in the open. In the summer of 1916 an Angel appeared to them several times and taught them a prayer to the Blessed Trinity. Exactly one hundred years ago, on Sunday, May 13, 1917, toward noon, a flash of lightning drew the attention of the children, and they saw a brilliant figure appearing over the trees of the Cova da Iria. The Lady asked them to pray for the conversion of sinners and an end to the war, and to come back every month, on the 13th. Further apparitions took place on June 13 and July 13. On August 13 the children were prevented by local authorities from going to the Cova da Iria, but they saw the apparition on the 19th. On September 13 the Lady requested recitation of the Rosary for an end to the war. Finally, on October 13, the Lady identified herself as Our Lady of the Rosary and again called for prayer and penitence. On that day a supernatural phenomenon was reported: the sun seemed to tumble from the sky and crash toward earth. The children had been forewarned of it as early as May 13, the first apparition. The large crowd (estimated at 30,000 by reporters) that had gathered around the children saw the phenomenon and came away astounded. Official recognition of the visions which the children had at the Cova da Iria came on October 13, 1930, when the bishop of Leiria - after long inquiry - authorised the devotion of Our Lady of the Rosary at the site. Still today Fatima is a place of profound prayer and devotion as millions of Christians gather there to be closer to Our Mother and to her messages. Please pray for the group of parishioners who will travel to Fatima, Lourdes and Santiago at the end of the month on pilgrimage with Fr. Kane. Pray, too for all our families at St. Augustine’s, that Our Lady’s messages will continue to resonate in our hearts and homes. Our Lady of Fatima…pray for us SISTER EILEEN RETIRAL MASS The Parish will host a Mass of Thanksgiving & Reception to mark Sr. Eileen’s retirement. This will take place on Saturday 27th May at 5.00pm. Bishop Toal will be the Principal Celebrant. A general invitation is extended to all our parishioners to join us at the Mass that evening, and to the Reception in the Parish Centre afterwards where a buffet will be served. Sister Eileen has been a huge part of the life of our parish for a long time, taking on a wide variety of ministries during her time with us. In recognition of her years of service Bishop Toal will present Sister with the Diocesan Bene Merenti Medal at the Retiral Mass. This is a fitting honour to a person who has given the parish so much over the years. I hope all our parishioners will make an extra special effort to attend her Retrial Mass as a sign of our gratitude. Please return your envelope as soon as possible. This gives an opportunity for parishioners to give a monetary gift to Sister. The gift will be presented on behalf of the parishioners at the Retiral Mass. Please return your envelope to the sacristy or in the collection basket next weekend. God bless, Fr. Kane THIS SUNDAY’S MASS READINGS First Reading: Acts 6:1-7 Second Reading: 1 Peter 2:4-9 Psalm 32 (33) Gospel: John 14:1-12 - C ATECHISM C ORNER - THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENT: ‘You shall not steal’. The seventh commandment forbids unjustly taking or keeping the goods of one's neighbour and wronging him in any way with respect to his goods. It commands justice and charity in the care of earthly goods and the fruits of men's labour. For the sake of the common good, it requires respect for the universal destination of goods and respect for the right to private property. Christian life strives to order this world's goods to God and to fraternal charity. In the beginning God entrusted the earth’s resources to the common stewardship of mankind to take care of them, master them by labour, and enjoy their fruits. The goods of creation are destined for the whole human race. However, the earth is divided up among men to assure the security of their lives, endangered by poverty and threatened by violence. In economic matters, respect for human dignity requires the practice of the virtue of temperance, so as to moderate attachment to this world's goods; the practice of the virtue of justice, to preserve our neighbour’s rights and render him what is his due; and the practice of solidarity, in accordance with the golden rule and in keeping with the generosity of the Lord, who "though he was rich, yet for your sake became poor so that by his poverty, you might become rich." The seventh commandment forbids theft, that is, usurping another's property against the reasonable will of the owner. Even if it does not contradict the provisions of civil law, any form of unjustly taking and keeping the property of others is against the seventh commandment: thus, deliberate retention of goods lent or of objects lost; business fraud; paying unjust wages; forcing up prices by taking advantage of the ignorance or hardship of another. -- F IRST H OLY C OMMUNIONS -- Over these next two weekends our parish family at St. Augustine’s will witness and celebrate the First Holy Communion of our young people from Primary Four. This is a joyful occasion for the candidates themselves, as well as for their family and friends, as they approach the altar for the first time to receive the living and true God in the Holy Eucharist. Much prayer and preparation has gone into making sure our young people are ready to make this next big step in their faith journey. Together the home, parish and school have been working in partnership over the past year to ensure our young candidates focus on the true meaning of this celebration and what it signifies for them. It has been our task to remind the children that this sacrament is about deepening a love for Jesus and His Church, much more so than any attachment to formal dress, gifts and parties, noble as these things may be. These weekends our prayer is that our focus will remain solidly on the spiritual benefits that come to our children through this amazing sacrament. With our help and encouragement we can all help our children maintain the correct focus in our celebration. We are reminded, too, of the significance of the name given to this sacrament. ‘First’ Holy Communion signifies only the start, the beginning of a lifelong journey growing ‘in greater communion’ with the Lord. Our prayer is that this ‘first’ communion will not be an incidental, one-off celebration. Our children, from today onwards, will be welcome at the Lord’s altar every Sunday where, with their parents and families, they will be nourished and strengthened for the coming week. Yet, as in so many other areas of life, they need to be led to the altar by the example of others. Parents, families and friends are encouraged to offer every support to our young candidates. This support, when sincere, should be evident as we welcome these children to the celebration of the Eucharist each and every Sunday. Let the joy and happiness of today be true and long- lasting! PARISH JUBILEE BOOK The celebration book, with 85 pages in colour, is packed with the history and photographs of the artefacts of the church since its foundation to present times. Also included is lots of information the groups and societies within the parish. The book will be available from the 11th of June 2017 and to pre-order your copy, as we only a have a limited amount, you can order at the Parish Religious Shop and pay the purchase price of £10 with all funds going to the Parish. Summerlee Museum Parish Jubilee Exhibition The local Summerlee Heritage Museum will host an exhibition celebrating the 125th anniversary of St. Augustine’s Parish from Saturday 6th May until 2nd July 2017. The display appears in the Community Case within the Exhibition Hall. Opening hours for the museum are 10.00am until 5.00pm every day and admission is FREE. Please take time to visit the museum and to see all the exhibits which tell the story of our parish.