Newsletter- 6th Week of Lent- HOLY WEEK
Dear Parishioners
Canon Anthony Dolan RIP: You will have heard from me last weekend at Mass or maybe seen on the notice board as you come into church the very sad news that Canon Anthony Dolan our much-loved former parish priest of St Mary’s died peacefully in the early hours of Saturday 16th March. I have included his Obituary in this week’s Bulletin and his Funeral details are as follows:
Monday 8th April – Reception of Canon Anthony into the Cathedral of St Barnabas at 6 pm and Vigil Mass of the Annunciation.
*In St. Mary’s Grantham I shall offer at 11 am on Monday 8th April a Mass for the Solemnity of the Annunciation – Mass Intention Canon Anthony Dolan RIP.
Tuesday 9th April – Requiem Funeral Mass at 11am in the Cathedral of St Barnabas (Principal Celebrant the Bishop and Homilist: Monsignor Tom McGovern).
*A coach has been booked to take parishioners from St Marys Grantham to the Cathedral and to enjoy refreshments in Cathedral Hall after Mass (see list for signing up, itinerary of timings and payment required, in the entrance to church) I will accompany the parish on the coach and concelebrate Mass in the Cathedral with the Bishop and other Clergy today.
Wednesday 10th April – 12.30pm – Grantham Cemetery – Burial
I have placed a candle of Remembrance before the statue of Our Lady in church, and this will remain lit until the end of the Liturgy on Maundy Thursday. You may wish to pause and offer a prayer for Fr Anthony there.
May Fr. Anthony, such a good and loyal servant of the Lord, rest now in the love and peace of the Lord whom he served so generously and so faithfully all his life here on earth.
Holy Week: Today on Palm Sunday we begin our journey through Holy Week towards Easter. In Holy Week we think about the passion, death, and resurrection of Our Lord. We are not merely recalling historical events. We are not just enacting a pageant with no meaning. We are remembering and reflecting on these events in order that we may ourselves participate more fully in the saving work of Christ and reveal His love to the world in which we live and in all the many different situations of our daily lives. Our Lord was offering himself to God his Father, offering his love which He expressed through – an obedience which included the acceptance of death. At the same time, He was passing through death to life so that you and I might share in His risen life. Our call as Christs modern day disciples in the world is to be fully involved in the offering of the love which Christ made upon the cross. In the sacrifice of the Mass, we are provided with that opportunity. Through all the sacraments of the Church, especially the Eucharist, we receive the risen life of Christ; indeed, in Holy Communion we receive the very author of that life.
As we journey together through Holy Week this year, we will come towards the end of the week ahead to what we call The Paschal Triduum, three very special days, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday. Our chief thought on Maundy Thursday will be the institution of the Mass. On Good Friday we shall think of the offering Our Lord made of himself to his heavenly Father. On Holy Saturday we shall with great joy celebrate the risen life in which we all share as Christians.
A thought maybe to reflect upon as we make this journey together over the next few days and come to share again this year in the Churches ancient liturgies is the sense that every time, we gather for the celebration of the Mass Holy Week is continued in its entirety. Do try this year to join as fully as possible with our parish at St Mary’s in all the special liturgies of this coming Holy Week, each one has its own special gift and grace to offer to us in helping us all to live out more fully and more authentically our Christian witness and discipleship in the world in which we live.
Today on Palm Sunday, we remember it is not some other Jesus, but the same Jesus who entered Jerusalem today amidst the waving of palm branches and cries of Hosanna! But who was also nailed to the cross and died between two criminals. We are reminded as we approach the week ahead that we have no other Lord and Saviour but him: Jesus, the humble King of Justice, Jesus the King of Mercy, Jesus the King of Peace, and Love. As we follow Christ on the journey of his passion and to the cross, may we do so with an openness of heart and mind, so that our journey this week will lead to new life in Christ, and to a new and deeper understanding of the great love that God has for each one of us.
PLEASE CHECK THE BULLETIN FOR ALL THE SERVICE TIMES DURING HOLY WEEK AND EASTER
With prayer and best wishes for you and for your families as we approach this coming week,
Your parish priest and friend,
Fr Jonathan
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2024 24th March – Newsletter – Download