'I was sick and you visited me . . .

'And he sent them out to proclaim the Kingdom of God and to heal.'

In today's Gospel, Jesus sent out His disciples to preach the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

The Church has always recommended that the faithful undertake corporal works of mercy, especially that of visiting the sick. The Church also encourages us to follow and imitate Our Lord who showed so much concern and compassion for the sick during His life on earth.

Jesus taught the disciples to see the sick in a new way: 'I was sick and you visited me.' Each time we take care of a sick person we take care of Christ,Himself; each time we visit a sick person, we visit Christ, Himself. 'As long as you did it to one of these, the least of my brothers, you did it to me.'

Let us try to be more attentive to the sick in our midst, for it is Christ Himself we minister to in every sick person.

Don't hide your light . . .

'No one lights a lamp to cover it with a towel or to put it under a bed.'

This is a sentence from today's Gospel and are the words from the lips of Our Lord.

He is speaking to us of our responsibility as His followers. As followers of Christ we are expected to light up the place where we work and live; we should give off light; if we do not we are like a lamp concealed under a vessel.

Our responsibility as followers of Christ begins in the Sacrament of Baptism and is reaffirmed in the Sacrament of Confirmation.

Let us ask ourselves today about our example to those with whom we live, in the place where we work, and in our social activities.

Do these people see in us the light which illumes the path that takes us to God?

Do these same people feel encouraged to lead better lives?

Why am I Catholic?

Take one minute to ask yourself this question,

'Why am I Catholic'

The Eucharist

The Church
The Sacraments
Mary
Marriage
The Communion of Saints

Are these not 6 excellent reasons for being a Catholic?

The 'CC' Factor!

We had a fantastic evening in the parish last night when the internationally renowned organist, Carlo Curley, came to give a concert for us in aid of St Anne's School Building Fund.

Thank you for giving us such an entertaining evening, not just marvellous music but amusing anecdotes and interesting comments about the pieces selected for the programme too.

A lot of people were involved in making the evening such a success, both 'front of house' and behind the scenes and I'm very grateful to everyone for all the help given so enthusiastically. It is always very encouraging to see how a parish can 'pull together' on occasions such as this.

The Most Holy Name of Mary . . .

I will shortly be celebrating the Mass of the Most Holy Name of Mary.

In this video one of the priests from the community of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal in The United States talks about the origin and devotion to the Most Holy Name of Mary. I'm sure you will enjoy it.

Don't forget some of the Friars will be returning to the parish for the series of talks planned for the Autumn.

Tuesday 6th October: 'The Holy Mass'

Tuesday 3rd November: 'Reconciliation'

Tuesday 1st December: 'Prayer'

All talks begin with coffee at 7.45 pm for a prompt start at 8 pm.

Everyone is welcome.

Year for Priests . . .

Fr Trigilio has written a summary of his homily which he gave during 40 Hours Eucharistic Devotions in a friend's parish. You can read all about it on his blog The Black Biretta.

I won't attempt to describe the content but do encourage you to drop by and have a look for yourself.

Ave Maria, gratia plena . . .

This beautiful Feast of the Mother of God, and our mother, is an occasion of great joy because Our Lady's arrival is a sign that Redemption is at hand.

The liturgy of today's Mass calls Mary the fulfilment of God's design in calling all of us to everlasting life.

In the Prayer After Communion from The Roman Missal we pray,

'Lord,

may your Church renewed in this Holy Eucharist,

be filled with joy at the birth of the Virgin Mary,

who brought the dawn of hope and salvation to the world.'

Let us today renew our devotion to Our Blessed Lady, the Refuge of Sinners.

Hail, Mary, full of grace,

the Lord is with thee;

blessed art thou among women,

and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus,

Holy Mary, mother of God,

pray for us sinners,

now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament . . .

Another quote from that marvellous little book, 'A Curé of Ars Prayer Book':

When we are before the Blessed Sacrament, instead of looking about, let us shut our eyes and our mouth; let us open our heart: our good God will open His; we shall go to Him, He will come to us, the one to ask, the other to receive; it will be like a breath from one to the other. What sweetness do we not find in forgetting ourselves in order to seek God! The saints lost sight of themselves that they might see nothing but God, and labour for Him alone; they forgot all created objects in order to find Him alone. This is the way to reach Heaven.

We are privileged here at St Ann's to be able to have Eucharistic Adoration on three days of the week. Now that the school holidays are over we have returned to our regular pattern of 3-day Adoration:

Tuesday: 10 am - 8 pm

Wednesday: 10 am - 7 pm

Thursday: 7 am - 8 pm

If you are passing by; out shopping or on your way home after dropping children off at school, do please pop in and 'say hello' to Our Blessed Lord.

My Dear Jesus,

I adore you in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist.

I adore and praise your Most Holy Name.

I adore and worship your Body hidden in the Sacrament.

I adore your humility in veiling your Godhead.

I adore your Most Sacred Heart masked by these shadows.

I adore for ever the Most Holy Sacrament.

Amen.

A lovely day for a wedding . . .

Congratulations to Julian and Natalie who were married at St Ann's today. We wish them every happiness and success for the future.

It is lovely when couples decide to get married in church.

If any of you are considering getting married soon, please remember that as well as all the preparations that you will be making such as that 'all-important dress' and where to hold the reception; there are also preparations to be made with the church.

Our diocese requires at least 6 months' notice in order to complete all the necessary paperwork. You will also be asked to attend a Marriage Preparation Course, usually held on a Saturday.

Please have a word with me after Mass or contact the parish office for further information.

Back to school . . .

I hope you all had a good summer holiday whether you went away or just took things a little easier at home.

Now that we are in September, things are beginning anew for many of us in many different ways. I expect a lot of families have children moving on to a new school, beginning school for the first time or just going back to school to get to know a new teacher.

I would just like to remind everyone that I shall be offering Mass on the first and third Fridays of each month at 8am in our parish school. Everyone is welcome, of course. The first of these Masses will be tomorrow, 4th September. I look forward to seeing you there.

What better way to begin a new term than in prayer, placing the care of our children in the hands of Our Lord in a special way at Mass.