The Eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C)
Fr Frank writes:
This week marks the beginning of Lent. There will be Masses in our two parishes on Ash Wednesday, both with the imposition of Ashes. The Frinton Mass will be at 9.00am and the Dovercourt Mass at 11.30am. I’m sure you do not need me to remind you of the significance of Lent for all members of our communities. Please make every effort to be at church on Ash Wednesday and fix your resolution to be more prayerful and attentive during this holy season.
As part of our Lenten preparation, Sacred Heart and St Francis of Assisi, Frinton will be hosting “The Journey” with Michael Wigley – a reflection on the life of Jesus in reading and song. “The Journey” will begin next Sunday at 2.30pm. Mike will be visiting Our Lady Queen of Heaven, Dovercourt later in the year with an Easter themed “Journey”. This will be on 19th May and will begin at 3.00pm.
Sadly there have been cases recently where parishioners have been hospitalised and have not received a visit from the Catholic Chaplain………..could I please draw your attention to the note on the back page headed “Hospital Admissions”. If we make our spiritual needs known to the ward staff, a visit will follow.
May Christ, the joy of our lives, bless you now and always.
Frank ofs
Sunday Smile:
Why did the invisible man turn down the job offer? Because he couldn’t see himself doing it.
I gave my friend an elephant to put in his room. He said “Thanks.” I said: “Don’t mention it.”
I can’t stand Russian nesting dolls. They’re so full of themselves.
The Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C) Racial Justice Day 17 February 2019
Fr Frank writes:
Today’s readings remind us of the importance of Trust in our life of Faith.
There is a problem in that life teaches us to be suspicious of others. We avoid letting our vulnerability show, and we do not like others to see how weak we really are. But should we be like this in our relationship with God? Should we foolishly try to hide our weakness from Him, or should we confess it and ask for His help? Should we place our complete Trust in Him?
We hear a lot about Faith and perhaps feel comfortable about it. But what about Trust? How does Trust differ from Faith, and how does it complement Faith?
Imagine a rickety bridge across a deep ravine. We may look at it and see others using it and feel able to express our faith in its construction. But to step out onto the bridge, that is a matter of trust. Trust is, if you like, one step on from Faith. It is personal commitment.
We may say we trust in God, but we take out ‘insurance’: we may, for example, believe that we are able to fall back on our intellect or physical strength. It’s tempting to believe that we can go it alone, that we can be self-reliant. But a time may come, with age or illness, for example, when we realise how worthless these things are.
Today and every day we are called to acknowledge our dependence on God, to confess our own weakness and learn to step out in compete Faith and Trust.
May our loving Father bless you today and always.
Frank ofs
Sunday Smile:
What do colour blind people do when they are told to eat their greens?
I’ve got a new job collecting all the jumpers left in the park at the weekends, but it’s not easy. They keep moving the goal posts.
The Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time 10 February 2019
Fr Frank writes:
Today’s readings point us to the Sacrament of Reconciliation – a real gift to the Church.
In our first reading the prophet Isaiah has a vision of God, and with this he experiences a profound sense of his own unworthiness. This is something with which we can all identify, for who among us is sinless enough to meet God face-to-face? God’s response to Isaiah’s admission of his sinfulness is to forgive him as his ‘unclean lips’ are touched with the coal taken from the altar.
In our second reading Paul, too, admits to his sinfulness as a former persecutor of the Church, and in our Gospel Simon Peter, when faced with the majesty of Christ, falls to his knees and says ‘Leave me, Lord; I am a sinful man.’
Isaiah, Paul and Peter are all great men, but they are made even greater by being able to admit their weaknesses. No bluster, no cover-up. They admit their sinfulness and they are forgiven and honoured by God.
The gift of God’s forgiveness is a living reality still in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, celebrated in our two parishes on alternate Saturdays. This Sacrament is a real blessing for us – a preparation for our ultimate encounter with the Eternal Father. It is not something to be taken lightly.
May our loving and merciful God bless you now and always.
Frank ofs
Sunday Smile:
Working at the Jobcentre has to be a tense job – knowing that if you get fired, you still have to come in the next day.
I took out a loan for an exorcism. If I don’t pay it back, I’m going to get repossessed.
The Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C) 3 February 2019
Fr Frank writes:
On Thursday of this week, the Frinton & Walton Parish hosts a meeting of our ‘Parish Partnership’. This meeting will involve both parishes, Fr Frank will be present as will Sheila Wright, representing Frinton & Walton, and Maree Noons, representing Harwich & Dovercourt.
The Partnership concept is a new initiative on the part of the diocese. The diocese has been divided into Partnership areas, and the number of priests available to each, in the long term, has been allocated by the diocesan planning body. It is for each Partnership to decide on the number and location of Masses and where priests will reside.
Our Partnership, which consists of the three Colchester parishes and the four on the Tendring Peninsula, met for the first time towards the end of last year, and the meeting at Frinton is the second time we have come together. We have a long way to go. Our allocation of priests is 4(+1), i.e. between 4 and 5, and it has been suggested that we plan on the basis of 4 priests overall. The Bishop has made it clear that no priest can celebrate more than three ‘Sunday Masses’ (which includes Vigil Masses) meaning that there will be 12 Sunday Masses in our Partnership Area (there are currently 17 places of worship). We need to do a lot of work to arrive at a satisfactory solution. We need your prayers.
There are further meetings for the Stewards of the Gospel at diocesan level, and some for the priests of the diocese (who have many concerns about their future), following the next such meeting, parish meetings will be organised which will give us an opportunity of sharing information and concerns. There will be parish meetings at Frinton on 21st February, meetings at Dovercourt will be fixed soon.
May the God who holds each one of us in the palm of his hand bless you now and always.
Frank ofs
Sunday Smile:
Walter Sickert to an annoying guest: “You must come again when you have less time.”
A former vicar receives a visit from an angel to enquire what the Rev. would most miss from this mortal life. He unhesitatingly answers “golf”. He asks, “Will there be courses up there?” The Angel asks if he would like the good news or the bad news. He answers, “The good news”. “Yes, there are golf courses”, the Angel replies. “And the bad news?” “You tee-off first thing in the morning.”
The Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C) 3 February 2019
Fr Frank writes:
On Thursday of this week, the Frinton & Walton Parish hosts a meeting of our ‘Parish Partnership’. This meeting will involve both parishes, Fr Frank will be present as will Sheila Wright, representing Frinton & Walton, and Maree Noons, representing Harwich & Dovercourt.
The Partnership concept is a new initiative on the part of the diocese. The diocese has been divided into Partnership areas, and the number of priests available to each, in the long term, has been allocated by the diocesan planning body. It is for each Partnership to decide on the number and location of Masses and where priests will reside.
Our Partnership, which consists of the three Colchester parishes and the four on the Tendring Peninsula, met for the first time towards the end of last year, and the meeting at Frinton is the second time we have come together. We have a long way to go. Our allocation of priests is 4(+1), i.e. between 4 and 5, and it has been suggested that we plan on the basis of 4 priests overall. The Bishop has made it clear that no priest can celebrate more than three ‘Sunday Masses’ (which includes Vigil Masses) meaning that there will be 12 Sunday Masses in our Partnership Area (there are currently 17 places of worship). We need to do a lot of work to arrive at a satisfactory solution. We need your prayers.
There are further meetings for the Stewards of the Gospel at diocesan level, and some for the priests of the diocese (who have many concerns about their future), following the next such meeting, parish meetings will be organised which will give us an opportunity of sharing information and concerns. There will be parish meetings at Frinton on 21st February, meetings at Dovercourt will be fixed soon.
May the God who holds each one of us in the palm of his hand bless you now and always.
Frank ofs
Sunday Smile:
Walter Sickert to an annoying guest: “You must come again when you have less time.”
A former vicar receives a visit from an angel to enquire what the Rev. would most miss from this mortal life. He unhesitatingly answers “golf”. He asks, “Will there be courses up there?” The Angel asks if he would like the good news or the bad news. He answers, “The good news”. “Yes, there are golf courses”, the Angel replies. “And the bad news?” “You tee-off first thing in the morning.”
The Third Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C) Holocaust Memorial Day 27 January 2019
Fr Frank writes:
Today is Holocaust Memorial Day. In cities and towns across the United Kingdom, events are being held to mark the liberation of Auschwitz and to remember the evil and injustice which has characterised genocide wherever it has appeared. Holocaust Memorial Day puts us on our guard against what happens when prejudice and racism are allowed to go unchallenged.
In the synagogue at Nazareth, Jesus proclaimed “The Spirit of the Lord has been given to me, for he has anointed me. He has sent me to bring the good news to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives, and to the blind new sight, to set the downtrodden free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour”. This marks the beginning of Jesus’ mission. Today he calls on us to make it our mission. We are to make a difference in our world by following in his footsteps and fulfilling those words of Isaiah.
This afternoon at 4.00pm we are privileged to host a Service of Christian Unity at our church in Frinton (how appropriate on a day when we remember the extreme effects of disunity). This service will follow the pattern of Vespers and we be attended by members of other churches in Frinton and Walton. The service will be followed by refreshments in St Cedd’s Hall. Why not come along and welcome our sisters and brothers from the other churches?
Christmas comes to an end on Saturday with the wonderful Feast of The Presentation of the Lord (Candlemas). The cribs will be removed from our churches on this day.
May the God of peace bless you today and always.
Frank ofs
Sunday Smile:
More Christmas crackers:
My dog used to chase people on a bike a lot. It got so bad, finally I had to take his bike away.
My friend says to me: “What rhymes with orange?” I said: “No it doesn’t.”
I ate a clock yesterday. It was very time consuming.