Times of Christmas Masses at St Ann's . . .

Just in case you were wondering, here are the details of our Christmas Masses . . . 

Please note that I will be available for Confession at the usual times on Saturdays but have also added a few other 'slots' when I shall be on call in the Confessional for any who wish to celebrate the Sacrament.

As usual, I am of course also available 'at call' for anyone who can't make any of the scheduled times.

Celebrating the Sacrament of Confession really is the best preparation for Christmas!

All is ready . . .

Wishing everyone a very Happy and Blessed Christmas!

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The Word became flesh . . .

‘The Word became flesh.’

God became man; He came to live among us. God is never far away, He is ‘Emmanuel’, God-with-us. God is not a stranger, He has a face and this is the face of Jesus.

God is faithful, He does not change. The event of the Incarnation occurred in history but at the same time transcends history. Belief in the God who desired to share our human history continually encourages us in our own commitment to the history, in spite of its contradictions.

May the light of Christmas shine forth afresh this year and may the Infant of Bethlehem bless each of you.

A Blessed Christmas to all . . .

Wishing you all a very Happy, Holy and Blessed Christmas.

And another version here for all Irish-speaking readers of this blog:

Go mbeannaithe Dia dhiobh uile.

Venite adoremus . . .

The church was a hive of activity yesterday. As soon as the morning Mass was over, there was an influx of an army of volunteers; cleaners wielding dusters, up ladders and on hands and knees, searching into every nook and cranny to make sure St Ann's is looking at her best for the Feast of Christmas.

They were accompanied by a bevy of florists and here you can see some of the results of their labour:

It's a marvellous feeling to be in church as I was yesterday morning to hear Confessions, and to see the great spirit of community in the parish. So many people help in so many different ways and without them, I don't know how we would manage.

Our crib in in place and there is an air of expectancy. Our eyes are drawn towards the empty manger.

In just a few hours time, we will celebrate the Vigil Mass of Christmas and the church will be full with lively children barely able to contain their excitement; tired but contented parents; grandparents, aunts, uncles and family friends; parishioners and visitors; all joining together to welcome the birth of our Saviour.

In the wonder of the incarnation

your eternal Word has brought to the eyes of faith

a new and radiant vision of your glory.

In him we see our God made visible

and so are caught up in love of the God we cannot see.

(Taken from the first Preface of Christmas)

Away in a Manger . . .

As has been the custom for many years and certainly before I came to St Ann's, on the Fourth Sunday of Advent, the children from our Children's Liturgy group perform a Nativity Play at the end of the 10am Mass.

I am always moved by the innocence of the children as they enact the Christmas story. For those of you who were not able to attend the 10am Mass today, and also for those who'd like to be reminded of this joyful event, please 'click' on the title slide below and it should take you to a slide show of the photos taken by our parish secretary this morning.

A big thank you to our dedicated team of mothers who help with Children's Liturgy throughout the year and especially to Mary and her helpers this morning.

I'm afraid we don't have a recording of the lovely singing of the children themselves. This soundtrack is by Aled Jones.

From Videos

It always makes me smile . . .

This is a bit of an 'in joke' for any possible clerical readers of this blog. I wonder how many times you've heard something like this in the last few days.

I certainly have had similar comments several times when I've been out and about in the parish recently. I wonder what people imagine we do for the rest of the year!

It still makes me smile . . .

Great Preparation ....

Our church is looking magnificent - beautifully decorated and spotlessly clean thanks to an army of volunteers who turned up this morning. There was a great response to the appeal for extra 'hands' to make 'light work' of the cleaning, polishing etc.

Great preparations have been made for the great event of

Our salvation, when heaven came down to earth.

A very Happy Christmas to all who follow our parish blog.

Choir and Musicians ...

We are very blessed at St Ann's to have a super choir and some super musicians too.

I'm always very impressed by their dedication and commitment. They spend many hours practising throughout the year and in the run-up to Christmas they have been in church perfecting their art all hours of the day and night.

We look forward to hearing the results of all their labours during the Christmas Masses. They do make a big difference to the liturgy and certainly add a great deal to it.

Well done to all concerned!

Another new book for your Christmas list ...

This morning's post brought with it a review copy of another delightful book from Family Publications.

Entitled, 'Nativity, A visual meditation', the book is very well presented with beautiful illustrations accompanying the meditations and prayers. The book is based on the fifteenth-century painting The Nativity by Robert Campin.

An ideal book for Advent and Christmas for anyone looking for a focus for their spiritual preparation for Christmas, and very reasonably priced at £8.95. You can order the book from Family Publications