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Ballygall Parish Office hours are

The Return of the Prodigal Son by Rembrandt Van Rijn, c. 1668

(The image In the Lenten Sacred Space)

You are invited to spend time reflecting on the telling of the story.

Having quiet time with God each day.

Opening our hearts to receive his love.

Placing our total trust in God.

Ending our day in thanks for his presence among us.

Every Lent is a new beginning;
Lent gives us the opportunity to refresh our faith.
Lenten Penance Service
With the Franciscan Fathers at Ballygall Church
Wednesday 16th April at 7.30pm

Next weekend – 29/30th March – a WELCOME DAY will be held in the Parish. It is an opportunity to learn more about the Ministries and activities that take place in our Parish – which help to make it a welcoming, faith-filled community.

We encourage everyone to find out more by chatting to some of the current volunteers who will be available in the church after the weekend Masses.

We have a great parish community and are always looking for new volunteers to help support and maintain it into the future. No offer of help is too little and we will be very grateful for any support that your available time and circumstances allow.

Masses will be celebrated on St. Patrick’s Day at 10.00am and 11.30am. 

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