Author: John

are available in all the porches, please take one home with you. This annual Lenten Collection is vital for the work that Trocaire does.

The latest Safeguarding Newsletter from the Dublin diocese may be found here

• Pope Francis invites us to ‘journey together in hope’ for Lent 2025 

Lent 2025 began on Ash Wednesday, 5 March.  For Christians, Lent is the time of preparation for Easter and it commemorates Jesus’ forty days of fasting in the desert before He began His public ministry.  During Lent – through prayer, sacrifice and charity – we are called to renew our Christian life in preparation for Easter:

Prayer
The Stations of the Cross, a devotional commemoration of Christ’s carrying the Cross and of His execution, are often observed.  As well as giving something up it is becoming more common to take something up as well and this may include taking time to volunteer, or spending more time in prayer.
Sacrifice
Sacrifice (penance) is an essential part of the lives of all Christ’s faithful.  It arises from the Lord’s call to conversion and repentance.  Christians undertake penance: in memory of the Passion and death of Jesus; as a sharing in Christ’s suffering; as an expression of inner conversion; as a form of reparation for sin. 
Charity
Traditionally during Lent many of the faithful commit to fasting or giving up certain types of luxuries as a form of penitence, the money saved from this can be donated to charity, for example, contributing to their Trócaire box.  

The Meaning of Lent
The English word ‘Lent’ comes from the Anglo-Saxon word Lencten, meaning ‘Spring’.  In other languages the word comes from the Latin, Quadragesima – a period of 40 days.  In the Christian tradition the forty days is understood to refer to a time of intense prayer and preparation; we remember the biblical stories of Noah and the flood of 40 days, the forty years the Israelites spent wandering in the wilderness and Christ’s forty day fast in the desert in preparation for his earthly ministry.

Glasnevin Grouping Pilgrimage to Lourdes takes place from August 19th to 23rd. Check out the posters & more details in the Church Porches, phone Our Lady of Dolours Church Office, 01 797 9153 or contact Marian Pilgrimages, www.marian.ie

Emmanuel is a project of the Dublin Diocesan Liturgical Resource Centre and promotes the use of Sacred Music in Secondary Schools. A unique collaboration of deaf and hearing students will raise their voices and hands on the stage of the Helix on 11th/13th March as part of the Emmanuel concert series. 

Book now from the Helix 01 700 7000 or www.thehelix.ie Bring your family, your friends, your music group

We would like to say a huge “thank you” to John O’Dea, who has recently retired from our Family Offering Team of Counters. John has been an integral part of this team for many years and has been a huge support, as a volunteer, to our parish. We wish both, John & Angela, continued good health and happiness.

Belated Birthday greetings to our parishioner and former longstanding volunteer, Ena Condell, who celebrated her 100th Birthday on Christmas Day.  A marvellous occasion to celebrate!

Due to the red level weather warning, there will be no 7.25am Mass or 10.00am Mass on Friday 24th January.

The Church will remain closed.

Due to CODE RED Weather Warning

The Parish Team would like to wish you all a happy and peaceful Christmas.
Thank you to all who support our work in the Parish of Ballygall and
May the kindness of God be your strength in the year ahead.
Christmas times here

Fr. Kevin, Fr. Harry & Fr Paul. 

Greetings to the following families and friends away from home this special occasion as we bring to a close our 60th Jubilee of Our Mother of Divine Grace parish.

To Geraldine and family in Jordan, love from Sarah, & Charlie

To Jackie & John Heron, Long Lake New York

Greetings to the Tevlin family and the Whelan Family

Paddy & Monica Carr and Anne-Marie Gregory and family in Scotland.

Sadie Farrelly in England

Triona Lonergan, Denver, Colorado late Ferndale Ave

Greetings to the Nestor “Quilty” family in London, New York, Salmon Arm and Vancouver in Canada and various family members throughout Ireland.

Saoirse O’Shaughnessy and Aidan Giles in Sydney.

Glenn & Elise Cunninghan & family in Boston

Dorothy & Francis Vollmer & family in France

Audrey & Colm Corcoran & family in Australia

Mary Killalee-Schubert, Virgin Islands.

Sean Mulhall & Aoife O’Grady, Sydney.

– Archbishop Dermot Farrell

 (Also available at https://dublindiocese.ie/general-election-2024/)

 It has been said that politicians campaign in poetry and govern in prose. It is certainly true that extravagant promises and self-promoting claims are the order of the day. That said, there are two slogans you will hear in these days, whose cynical falsehood is not only dis-energising, but more importantly risks degrading our democracy and political health: they are: ‘voting doesn’t make any difference’, and ‘they are all the same’.

 First of all, voting does make a difference. Every vote counts. Your vote counts. Imagine living in a society with no elections, no democratic accountability, no contest of ideas, programmes, or vision. History shows that such societies are run by the powerful for their own benefit, while freedom of belief and expression are restricted, or even suppressed. Voting matters because it is how we hold our leaders to account and mandate what we believe to be important.

 Voting also matters because all politicians are not the same: individual politicians, and political parties, differ in their values and beliefs, their ideas and priorities, their capabilities and judgement. It is true that powerful forces may constrain some policy choices. But governments exercise influence and control over vast areas of community life, and of the land we share. Their judgements and priorities do make a difference, through the legislation and policies they choose to pursue. They are those on whom we rely, not only to act wisely when crises occur and the unexpected happens—as it always does, but to plan prudently and with vision for a shared future in our common home.

 The democratic system aligns with the Christian vision of the dignity of each person and our duty to serve the common good. To be effective, democracy needs people who are willing to put themselves forward, outline their policies, and accept the judgement of the people in the ballot box. Recent months have seen efforts to intimidate and threaten public representatives. We have seen many politicians choose to step back from politics as a result. We should be grateful that there are many women and men who, despite this frightening and dangerous turn in public life, are willing to offer themselves in public service at these elections.

 Christians legitimately differ in their political views: there is no Christian party that can lay claim to the Christian community as a bloc. There is no obligation on Christians to support any particular party. But there is a duty on every Christian to support the common good to the best of our ability. Voting in the General Election on November 29th is a feasible and responsible act of citizenship to support the common good. Taking the trouble to consider who offers the best prospect of advancing the common good rather than personal interest or advantage is an important exercise in solidarity with our sisters and brothers who are most affected by public policies. Identifying candidates who have the personal qualities and experience to be effective public representatives is an important judgement. The Irish electoral system ensures that personal qualities and characteristics do matter, since multi-seat constituencies and the PR system mean we can judge personal qualities, as well as party policies.

 Like every aspect of life, voting is open to the work of the Holy Spirit to guide our judgement. To vote is an exercise in hope, and hope is a mark of authentic Christian faith—the great gift of the Holy Spirit. To express our hope by voting is to overcome the negativity and cynicism that result in political propaganda, and the devaluing of those who are different. It is to take a stance against the fear and lack of courage which generate resentment, hatred, anger, even violence.

 

Let us pray for all those who have offered themselves for election, that they will engage with the public and with each other with respect, and will in turn receive the respect of those they canvas. Let us pray too that our society will vote into office leaders who will govern the people with integrity and wisdom and serve the common good with dedication and commitment.

 

+Dermot Farrell, Archbishop of Dublin

 20th November 2024