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These past few days have been as hectic as normal years. I thought with the church being closed to the public I could go to ‘Virtual Bahamas’ but that thankfully was not the case. As a priest, I got to experience the grouping of parishes in a new way. Ballygall church was used for broadcasting all ceremonies. Priests arrived with their teams from other churches to lead us in prayer. On Thursday for the Mass of the Lord’s Supper we began the Triduum with the assistance of Nuala, Gina and Sheila. On Good Friday Fr Paul Coyle with Matthew, Joan and Emily came up from Our Lady of Dolours church, Glasnevin. For the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday Fr. Frank Reburn based in Our Lady of Victories led us through a very unusual vigil with the help of Linda, Ger, Tien and Giovanna. Aideen (12 o’c) and Linda (7.30pm) shared the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday. Fr. Richard Sheehy led us in Morning Prayer on Saturday. He and Fr. Paul were also leading the Liturgies in St. Alphonsus Monastery, Iona Road. Throughout the weekend our musicians were Linda, Eoin & Ciara. Those were some of the faces that you may have seen. There were others who worked behind the scenes. The church still needed to be cleaned, Sacred Space needed to be prepared, Camera needed to be adjusted, Palms newsletters and letters delivered or posted, Cross & Palm to be got and put into place. Well done to all who stepped in and ensured that things went as well as could under the circumstances. 

As today, Easter Sunday, draws the Triduum to a close I am reminded that life goes on. Priests from the other parishes in our Grouping and our team of readers will be back in action on Tuesday at 10 o’c. Monday is a Bank Holiday. Not that makes much difference to us this year! But we won’t be broadcasting mass from Ballygall. Instead you are invited to join the sisters on www.rednuns.com for Mass at 11 o’c.

Thanks, too, to those who have been leaving in Easter Dues and Family Offering envelopes. Your support is as always greatly appreciated. 

Definitely a week with a difference

Here in Ballygall we will be broadcasting all ceremonies online.

Holy Thursday, 7.30pm: Mass of the Lord’s Supper. For this Mass we suggest that you have a bowl or basin of water half filled with water. At home you might like to take part with the washing of feet (or hands).

Good Friday, 3pm: Passion Gospel & Veneration of the Cross. We suggest that you might have a cross or crucifix with you as a focus during this ceremony.

Holy Saturday, 7.30pm: Mass of the Resurrection. An unlit candle that can be lit as the candles for the 5 parishes of our grouping are lit.

There are other events that you might like to join in as well during the week. The Holy Hour on Wednesday 7.30 – 8.30pm. Morning prayer on Thursday, Friday & Saturday. Watch & Pray after mass on Holy Thursday. Stations of the cross on Good Friday at 12 noon and 7.30pm.

Easter Sunday Mass for the grouping will be celebrated from St Alphonsus Monastery (www.rednuns.com) at 9.30am and from St. Columba’s parish church (www.ionaroadparish.ie) at 11am. We will also have 12 noon Mass from Ballygall church. Each of these Masses will be offered up for your intentions this Easter Morning.

Our parish webcam is certainly being used at the moment with the outbreak of COVID – 19. Our thanks to you for your patience when sometimes the sound plays up or the video does its own twirly thing. One of the drawbacks of a lot of usage!

For our Palm Sunday vigil Mass we are suggesting that you might have some branches from your own garden or someone else’s garden within 2km of home and their permission and either display it in your window or use it for viewing the mass on Saturday evening at 6.30pm. Remember, it doesn’t have to be palm. In the gospel the people cut branches and placed their cloaks on the road where Jesus was passing. Perhaps a poster in the front window drawn by the children would be a way of including them in the preparation for Holy Week. It certainly will be a week to remember in days and years to come.

Let’s make this Palm Sunday a day to sing Hosanna in the Highest. 

Due to measures introduced by the HSE and guidelines from Dublin Diocese all Masses in Ballygall parish are suspended until further notice. One Mass will be celebrated behind closed doors in Ballygall church each weekday (Mon-Sat) at 10.00am and accessible to parishioners via webcam at this link.

We have also had to make the decision to close our church for the foreseeable future.

It has been difficult to keep all points of contact in the church clean. We have been cleaning during the week and thank you to those who helped out. However, as we have carpet and with the footfall in our church and the difficulties in cleaning this to sanitary level in light of recent events and the instructions from Government we feel it is safer for the people of our parish and grouping to have the church closed.

Saturday Vigil Mass 6.30pm will be broadcast from Ballygall. On Sunday the 9.30am Mass will be broadcast from St. Alphonsus Monastery, and 11.00am from Iona Road church. RTE has agreed to broadcast daily mass on RTE News Now at 10.30am from St Eunan Cathedral, Letterkenny.

See the full text of the Glasnevin Grouping of parishes response to Covid-19 here

See latest (28th March) advice from Archbishop’s house here

Here  in  our  Parish  of  Ballygall   we  no  longer  have  a  10.00 a.m.  mass  on  Mondays.    This  does  not  mean  that  we  as  a  Parish and  Faith  Community  cannot  gather  together  to  pray  and  reflect  on  the  day’s  Readings  at  that  time.

Some  parishioners  have  been  trained   in  leading  prayer,  so  for  the  six  Mondays  of  Lent,  starting  on  Monday  March  2nd  at  10.00  a.m.   you  are  cordially  invited  to  participate  in  a  Liturgy  of  the  Word.

During  Lent  we  are  all  encouraged  to  take  time  to  pray  and  to reflect   on  God’s  Word, so  this  offers  an  opportunity  for  our  community  to  do  this  together.  We  hope  that  many  of  you  will  join  us  and  be  enriched  by  the  experience.

During Catholic Schools week the pupils made St Brigid’s crosses and donated them to the grandparents that visited their school on Grandparents Day. Some were left over and they offered them to Our Mother of Divine Grace church for the feast of St Brigid. On Saturday, 1st February these crosses were left in the church and people were invited to make a donation to their African charity fund. Thanks to the generosity of “the 10 o’clockers”, 150 euro was raised and given to the school during the week.

A powerpoint presentation that the pupils did for the school is included as a link to this note. Thank you to the people of Ballygall for your support in their venture to Zambia last Summer and to the generous gift last weekend. Hopefully you can click on the file and see a sample of their pictures.  ZAMBIA 4 a

Dublin diocese celebrates World Day of the Sick this year over the weekend of 8th & 9th February.

The annual diocesan mass with anointing takes place on Sunday 9th at 3pm in the “Church of the Guardian Angels”, Newtownpark Avenue, Blackrock. Archbishop Diarmaid Martin will be chief celebrant of this beautiful ceremony. (You may remember this was celebrated in our sister parish in Corpus Christi last year). Some booklets will be available in our church this coming weekend.

Full details can be seen on the diocesan website. www.dublindiocese.ie and on a previous post here in Ballygall.

Locally, Our Lady of Dolours church, Glasnevin will host mass with anointing on Sunday 23rd February at 11am. This may be easier to get to and we encourage parishioners to invite elderly and infirm neighbours to this mass.

The Dublin Diocese Spring Liturgy Seminar 2020 will take place on Saturday 15th February from 9.30 to 1.30 in Holy Cross College, Clonliffe. Detailed programme and booking form here

In his Apostolic Letter of 30 September 2019, Aperuit illis Pope Francis established that the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time is to be the Sunday of the Word of God.  It is a day to be devoted to the celebration, study, and spreading of the Word of God.

 

Pope Francis is passionate about the Word of God. He has declared this Sunday 26 January 2020 dedicated to the Bible. Here in Dublin, some resources have been prepared https://www.dublindiocese.ie/sunday-the-word-of-god/

These may be of use to many of our readers.

February 11th, feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, is World Day of the Sick, an observation started by Pope John Paul II as a way for believers to offer prayers for those suffering from illnesses.People take time to pray for the sick and for those who work very hard to alleviate the sufferings of the sick on this day. Faith organisations mark this day especially to provide the sick with medicines, food, and spiritual guidance.

“Come to me, all you who labour and are burdened” is the theme of the World Day of the Sick 2020, to be marked on 11 February. In caring for the sick, Pope Francis is encouraging in healthcare workers the human warmth and personalized approach of Christ, the Good Samaritan.

Here in Dublin to mark World Day of the Sick there will be a seminar in Newtown Parish Pastoral Centre, Newtownpark Avenue,  Blackrock, Co Dublin on Saturday, February 8^th  from 9.30am to 1.00pm and

this year’s theme is on Hope in the Face of Suicide. 

The World Day of the Sick Mass will take place  on Sunday 9^th February at 3.00pm in Church of the Guardian Angels, Newtontownpark Avenue, Blackrock.

For more details see www.dublindiocese.ie