No. 1956 ~ FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT
PARISH CONTACT DETAILS
Fr. Peter Madden PP VF
31 Sixtowns Road
Telephone: 79628376
Fr Dermot McGirr CC
50 Tobermore Road, Desertmartin
Telephone: 79632196
Fr John Downey Priest In Residence Moneyneena
PARISH OFFICE
OPENING HOURS: Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 9.00 am to 3.00 pm.
9 High Street
Phone: (028)79628248
NOTICES FOR THE BULLETIN
Notices for the Bulletin should be received by 1.00 pm on Wednesday, preferably by email.
SAFEGUARDING
The Diocesan Designated Liaison Person (DLP) is Marie Gormley. To contact Marie Tel: 07596500793, or Email: mariegormley@derrydiocese.org
SVP HELPLINE
Helpline telephone number: 07710838050
SPERRIN FOODBANK
Tel: 07543420639
BALLINASCREEN COMMUNITY SUPPORT GROUP
Please click the link https://www.parishofballinascreen.com/ballinascreen-community-support-gro for full details of Ballinascreen Community Support Group.
FEASTS OF THE WEEK
Wednesday 22: Ash Wednesday. This is a day of Fast and Abstinence.
Friday 24: Worldwide Day of Prayer for Survivors and Victims of Sexual Abuse.
SUNDAY VIGIL MASSES
Holy Rosary: 6.00 pm
St Patrick’s, Keenaught: 7.30 pm
SUNDAY MASSES
St Columba’s, Straw: 9.00 am
St Mary’s, Coolcalm: 10.00 am
St Patrick’s, Sixtowns: 11.00 am
St Eugene’s Moneyneena: 12 noon
DAILY MASSES FOR THIS WEEK
Monday 27 February:
St Mary’s, Coolcalm - 11.00 am
Holy Rosary - 7.30 pm
Tuesday 28 February:
Holy Rosary - 7.00 am
St Colm’s High School - 8.40 am
St Eugene’s, Moneyneena -11.00 am
St Mary’s Coolcalm - 7.30 pm
Wednesday 1 March:
Holy Rosary - 7.00 am
St Colm’s High School - 8.40 am
St Eugene’s, Moneyneena -11.00 am
St Mary’s Coolcalm - 7.30 pm
Thursday 2 March:
Holy Rosary - 7.00 am
St Colm’s High School - 8.40 am
St Eugene’s, Moneyneena -11.00 am
St Mary’s Coolcalm - 7.30 pm
Friday 3 March:
St Mary’s, Coolcalm - 11.00 am
Holy Rosary - 7.30 pm
STATIONS OF THE CROSS
Stations of the Cross in Holy Rosary Church on Sundays during Lent at 5.00 pm. All are welcome.
EUCHARISTIC ADORATION
Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament on Mondays during Lent in Holy Rosary Church from 12 noon until the 7.30 pm evening Mass.
SCRIPTURE EVENINGS FOR LENT
Scripture Evenings using the Lectio Divina method continue each Friday evening during Lent at 8.15 pm in Community Hub. Light refreshments served afterwards.
All are welcome.
BAPTISMS
We welcome into God’s family through the Sacrament of Baptism:
Clodagh Nancy Murray, Grange Gardens, Magherafelt;
Ryan Daniel McGlinchey, Sixtowns Road;
Patrick Shay McGlinchey, Sixtowns Road;
James Thomas Limbert, Sixtowns Road;
Seosamh Proinsias Patrick McKenna-McKeown, Doon Road;
Jimmy Tony Coyle, Bancran Road.
MONTH’S MIND MASS
Mary McMullan, Ballinascreen Fold and London, on Friday 3 March at 7.30 pm in Holy Rosary Church.
DEATHS
We extend our prayerful sympathy to the family and relatives of:
Brian McKernan, Rock;
Mary Columba Gilhooley, England.
ANNIVERSARIES
Mary Bradley;
Seamus McGuigan;
Annie McGuigan; Joseph Sargent;
Paul Carlin.
CONFIRMATIONS 2023
The Sacrament of Confirmation will be administered to P7 children attending Gaelscoli na Speiríni on Saturday 4 March at 11.00 am in Holy Rosary Church.
The Sacrament of Confirmation will be administered to P7 children in Desertmartin Parish on Sunday 5 March at 10.00 am in St Patrick’s Church Keenaught. Therefore, there will be NO 10.00 am Mass in St Mary’s, Coolcalm on Sunday 5 March.
The Sacrament of Confirmation will be administered to P7 children in Ballinascreen Parish on Sunday 5 March at 2.00 pm in Holy Rosary Church. Candidates for Confirmation, their sponsors and parents are asked to please be seated in Holy Rosary Church by 1.45 pm at the latest. Thank you.
SPERRIN FOODBANK
If you require a food parcel, Sperrin Foodbank will be open on Fridays from 11.00 am – 1.00 pm for drop-ins. No appointment required. If you require assistance outside this time, please call 07543 420639 to arrange collection. No questions asked or criteria to meet. Other contact details are Facebook page Sperrinfoodbank or email
PARISH COLLECTIONS
Weekly Collection: £1716
Renovation Collection: £760
Thank you for your generous support which is greatly appreciated.
TRÓCAIRE 2023
Trócaire boxes are now available in all Church porches. We encourage each family to please take one home.
This year, their focus is on Somalia in East Africa and highlights how climate change, drought and conflict are severely affecting families and communities there. Ambiyo, her husband Mahat, and their eight children who were forced to flee their home after a fourth year of drought in Somalia feature on this year’s box. An unprecedented humanitarian crisis is unfolding, and almost 8.3 million people are facing unbearable hunger there. Trócaire has been working with their partners in Somalia for 30 years and so is in a unique position to offer support to those affected.
To learn more about Trócaire’s ongoing work in Somalia and in other areas please visit their website www.trocaire.org
PIONEER ASSOCIATION
Masses will be offered in each of the four deaneries, during the Lenten season. They will highlight the virtue of Temperance, focusing on the Pioneer promises of moderation in all things, particularly in the use of alcohol. Mass for the County Derry Deanery will be celebrated on Saturday 11 March at 12 noon in Church of St John the Baptist Swatragh. All welcome
DO THIS IN MEMORY (DTIM)
Penultimate Mass as part of our Parish D.T.I.M. Programme will be celebrated in Holy Rosary Church at 6.00 pm on 1 April.
The final Mass will be on the Feast of Corpus Christi, Sunday June 11, and will be celebrated in St Eugene's Church, Moneyneena.
SMA DROMANTINE RETREAT CENTRE, NEWRY
Lenten Reflection Day: Saturday 4 March from 9.30 am to 5 pm. Kindfulness… a gifted way of living my life. An opportunity for time aside to reflect on the Season of Lent and to open our minds and hearts afresh to celebrate Holy Week and Easter. Led by Fr. Damian Bresnahan SMA. Cost (including lunch) £35.
Dance of Life Retreat: From 5.00pm on Friday 17 March to 2.00 pm on Sunday 19 March. In this retreat the opportunity to dance may bring a renewed awareness in your sense of self, connection with others and connection with God. Led by Sr. Mary Taylor OLA and Fr. Damian Bresnahan SMA. Cost £220.
To book or for more details phone 028 30821964 or email: admin@dromantineconference.com
SMOKING CESSATION SERVICE
Call into O'Kane's Chemist and speak to a member of staff about joining their FREE 12 week programme.
BALLINASCREEN MEN’S SHED
A.G.M. will take place on Thursday 2 March at 11.00 am in Workspace Boardroom, Draperstown.
New members very welcome
GLENSHANE HOUSE, DUNGIVEN
Names are now being taken for BTEC Level 3 Dementia course.
To register for this course please phone 028 777 42494.
DRAPERSTOWN LIBRARY
The library provides free IT sessions for anyone needing help with their phone, I-Pad or other device. Next session will be on Friday 24 March. This is on an individual hourly basis, but booking a slot is essential. To book phone79628249 or email: draperstown.library@librariesni.org.uk
LOURDES DIOCESAN PILGRIMAGE 2023
Pilgrimage from 3 to 7 July 2023. The Pilgrimage Office at 164 Bishop Street, Derry, BT48 6UJ will be open to the public on Saturdays only from 11.00am until 1.00 pm commencing on Saturday 11 February. Intending pilgrims can also leave a message on 028 7126 0293 with their full postal address and the number of booking forms required, or email these details to derrypilgrim@outlook.com or write to the above address to request booking forms.
The organizing committee very much much regret that once more they are not in a position to provide medical, nursing and personal care as was customary in the past. It is their earnest hope and prayer that these services will be restored in 2024.
WARM WELCOME WEDNESDAYS
In Community Hub every Wednesday from 11.00 am – 1.00 pm during these colder months, to provide a warm space, free tea / coffee and some chat. Arrange to meet friends, call in to read the newspapers or if you just fancy a change of scenery. Free of charge and open to everyone.
No need to book, just drop-in.
STRESS CONTROL ONLINE
Stress Control is a six-session cognitive-behavioural therapy class used extensively in community-settings by the NHS and across the world. Their next free 6 week online course Take Control with Stress Control begins on Monday 6 March and continues until Thursday 23 March. You can find out more details about this course by visiting: https://ni.stresscontrol.org/
PARISH ANNIVERSARY AND MONTH’S MIND MASSES
If parishioners wish to have their loved one prayed for at any Anniversary Friday Mass, you MUST please email their name to Ballinascreen Parish Office by 12 noon on Thursday of the relevant week. Email address is: ballinascreenparish@gmail.com
PLEASE NOTE: First Anniversary and Month's Mind notices should be received before the Wednesday of the previous week in order for them to be placed in the Bulletin the weekend before the Anniversary Mass.
KNOCKNAGIN HALL
Chair exercises: Tuesdays at 10.00 am followed by a short walk. Adm £4.
Knit & Natter: Tuesdays at 7.30 pm.
Line dancing: Wednesdays at 7. 30 pm. Admission £4.
If interested in any of the above activities please contact Olive 07887614094, Kathleen 07764277809 or Anne 79642711.
Band practice: Thursday at 7.30 pm.
PARKRUN AND PARKWALK
Parkrun and Parkwalk at Derrynoid Forest every Saturday at 9.30 am.
Come along and walk, jog or run on Saturday mornings at Parkrun Derrynoyd Forest, Derrynoyd Road.
Suited to walkers and runners of all abilities, to boost fitness for free. Children and dogs on leads welcome. Parkrun is a free community event and is a timed 5km walk or run. Walkers, runners and new volunteers all welcome. To join register online: https://www.parkrun.org.uk/register/
For more details see: www.parkrun.org.uk/derrynoidforest/
Follow on Facebook: Derrynoid Forest Parkrun
NATIONAL SYNTHESIS OF THE SYNODAL PROCESS
The Irish Bishops' Conference has published the National Synthesis of the Synodal Process conducted across the Church in Ireland from Autumn 2021. The National Synthesis is the fruit of a wide-ranging process of listening and consultation and is based on the syntheses produced by the 26 dioceses in Ireland, as well as those submitted by religious congregations and other interested groups. The National Synthesis will be forwarded to Rome as part of the worldwide synodal process of listening and discernment launched by Pope Francis in October 2021 and which will culminate in the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops in Rome in 2023.
To view this document click HERE
SYNODALITY
Synodality is about seeking together to discover God’s way forward in a new time and place.
This is not just a time of change but a change of time.
It is about learning to journey in hope from the great figures of the Advent liturgy: Isaiah, John the Baptist, Mary and Joseph.
We are a pilgrim people, following the voice of God who calls us one step at a time.
We are moving beyond a Church where everything depends on ‘Father’.
Pope Francis has asked us to rediscover the Advent spirit of leaving our secure base and trusting that the Lord will guide our feet into the way of peace.
We aim to have a time of local listening to one another in January/February, building towards a diocesan submission to an Irish national response.
All national responses will be considered by the Vatican and a Working Document sent back for local reflection and comment in late 2022 – building towards the Synod of Bishops’ meeting in October 2023, and beyond.
This is the beginning of a new way of being Church. It is not just a passing initiative. It is facing the future together, open to the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Advent is not just a season of the year. It is a permanent part of our identity as Church.
PRAYER FOR THE SYNOD
We stand before You, Holy Spirit, as we gather together in Your name.
With You alone to guide us, make Yourself at home in our hearts; Teach us the way we must go and how we are to pursue it.
We are weak and sinful; do not let us promote disorder. Do not let ignorance lead us down the wrong path nor partiality influence our actions.
Let us find in You our unity so that we may journey together to eternal life and not stray from the way of truth and what is right.
All this we ask of You, who are at work in every place and time, in the communion of the Father and the Son, forever and ever. Amen.
THE SYNOD PRAYER ~ IRISH TRANSLATION (Paidir an tSionaid)
Seasaimid i Do láthairse, a Spioraid Naoimh,
agus muid ag teacht le chéile i D’ainm
Agus Tusa amháin mar threoraí againn
socraigh Tú féin síos inár gcroíthe;
Múin dúinn an tslí a chaithfimid dul
agus conas is féidir linn leanúint di.
Táimid lag agus claonta chun peaca;
ná lig dúinn ainriail a chur chun cinn.
Ná lig don aineolas sinn a chur amú,
ná don chlaonpháirtíocht ár ngníomhartha a mhúnlú.
Lig dúinn teacht Ort inár n-aontacht
chun go dtriallfaimid le chéile chun na beatha síoraí
gan dul ar strae ó bhealach na fírinne ná ón cheart.
Iarraimid é seo uile Ort,
Tusa a bhíonn ag obair de shíor agus i ngach uile áit,
i gcomaoin an Athar agus an Mhic,
trí shaol na saol.
Amen.
To learn more about the Synodal Pathway for the Catholic Church in Ireland please visit:
To learn more about the worldwide Synod please visit: https://www.synod.va/en.html
Please say each day in your prayers the following prayer for the success of the Synodal Process which is both old and new.
PRAYERS FOR OUR PROTECTION
The Irish Catholic Bishops have asked for prayers for those affected by the Coronavirus. Placing all our trust in the Lord, and asking Our Lady to intercede for us, the bishops invite everyone to pray these prayers:
EXTRACT FROM SAINT PATRICK’S BREASTPLATE
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me,
Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise, Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me, Christ in every eye that sees me, Christ in every ear that hears me.
MEMORARE
Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to your protection, implored your help, or sought your intercession was left unaided. Inspired with this confidence, I fly to you,
O Virgin of virgins, my Mother. To you I come, before you I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in your mercy, hear and answer. Amen
