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St Swithuns RC Church Southsea

8 hours ago

TODAY TUESDAY, 20th OCTOBER 2020OUR PLAN IS:St Swithun’s CHURCH OPEN from 8.30pm to 12.00noon and from 6.00pm to 8.00pm;only live-streaming:6.00am – The Holy Mass (in Polish) – Intention: 1STGregorian Mass for + Katarzyna Burda RIP followed by The 5TH Day Of Pompeii Novena – Glorious Mysteries of The Holy Rosary (in Polish);for all to attend (and live-streamed as well):9.00am – 9.55am – The Exposition of The Blessed Sacrament followed by Divine Mercy Chaplet (approx. 9.30am) and Benediction (approx. 9.55am). [From 9.00am to 9.30am possibility for the Sacrament of Confession];10.00am – The Holy Mass. Intention: Betty Foster’s intentions;10.30am – The Holy Rosary – Sorrowful Mysteries.7.00pm – The Holy Mass: Intention: For All Parishioners – LIVING AND DEAD;8.00pm – ‘WINE o’CLOCK’ – Q&A of Catholic Faith through our Facebook Profile. All are very welcome!10.00pm – the 5TH Day Of Pompeii Novena – Joyful Mysteries of The Holy Rosary;NOT live-streamed:at 5.30pm – FORMATION MEETING FOR THE PARENTS of THE FIRST COMMUNION CHILDREN 2020-2021 – at St Swithun’s Churchfrom 9.00am to 9.25am & 6.30pm to 6.55pm – Sacrament of Confession;PLEASE, pray today especially for our Dear Kevin, Maria, Jan, First Communion Children & their Parents, and myself – please … See MoreSee Less

St Swithuns RC Church Southsea

8 hours ago

CHRISTIAN MORNING MEDITATION:The Best Is Yet to ComeOctober 20, 2020 Tuesday of the Twenty-Ninth Week in Ordinary TimeLuke 12:35-38Jesus said to his disciples: “Gird your loins and light your lamps and be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding, ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks. Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival. Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself, have them recline at table, and proceed to wait on them. And should he come in the second or third watch and find them prepared in this way, blessed are those servants.” Opening Prayer: Come, Holy Spirit, come! Be with me as I ponder these words of Scripture seeking wisdom for my day. Encountering Christ:1. The Last Things: Maybe you are wondering about–or even growing tired of–the recurring theme of these days’ Gospels: the end of life, the end of time, the end of the world. The reason for this emphasis is that the yearly liturgical cycle is approaching its end, and this final stretch is dedicated precisely to the “last things.” In a few weeks, the liturgical year will culminate in the feast of Christ the King before commencing the new year with Advent. Let’s take these last days of the church year to dive deeply into the themes of death, judgment, heaven, and hell with the assurance that our contemplation of these realities will help us to grow in holiness.2. Ready and Waiting: How ready are we to meet the Master? As the days grow shorter and the light becomes dimmer, we observe that nature has reached the wise and fragile age of an old man. Is one not reminded that all the intense vigor of existence, all the fresh beauty of youth, all the accomplishments of life are fleeting? We can appreciate that this time of year helps to put us in the proper frame of mind to anticipate eternity. We are asked in this Gospel to be ready to meet Jesus face-to-face at any moment. If we’re vigilant, we can expect the Master’s blessing! What will that look like?3. The Master Waits on Us: Our Lord became man—Jesus lived among us, suffered, died and was buried, and rose from the dead, all for our benefit. That’s how much he loves us. But it seems more than incredible to imagine that Jesus would want to wait on us one day at the heavenly banquet. Yet he tells us so in this parable. What love! What humility! Truly, “What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and what has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). Contemplating a love so incomprehensible should inspire us to drop the sparkly baubles we sometimes cling to in this life and run to his waiting arms. Conversing with Christ: Jesus, my heart is yours, and I will prepare for your visit: be it during my next holy Communion, be it at the end of my days, be it by means of your continuous visits throughout each day when you simply look out for my well-being. You are always welcome and expected here!Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will take a moment to meditate on the fact that earthly life is but the prelude before the reality of eternal life.stswithuns.org.uk/event/dr-20102020 … See MoreSee Less

St Swithuns RC Church Southsea

1 day ago

TODAY – MONDAY – 19th October 2020. Memorial of Ss John de Brébeuf, Isaac Jogues & Companions, Religious, Martyrs OR St Paul of the Cross, Founder.OUR PLAN IS:only live-streamed:6.00am – The Holy Mass (in Polish): Intention: 30th Gregorian Mass for + Ludwig Burda RIP, followed by The 4TH Day Of Pompeii Novena – Glourious Mysteries of The Holy Rosary (in Polish);St Swithun’s CHURCH OPEN from 8.30pm to 12.00noon ;9.00am – 9.55am – The Exposition of The Blessed Sacrament followed by Divine Mercy Chaplet (approx. 9.30am) and Benediction (approx. 9.55am). [From 9.00am to 9.30am possibility for the Sacrament of Confession];10.00am – The Holy Mass. Intention: + Diana Clark RIP;10.30 – Joyful Mysteries of The Holy Rosary;11.15am – CATHOLIC WOMEN League Zoom Meetingfrom 2.00pm to 6.00pm – office work followed by the zoom individual meetings to prepare for the Sacraments10.00pm – the 4TH Day Of Pompeii Novena – Joyful Mysteries of The Holy Rosary;PLEASE, pray today especially for our Dear Kevin, Maria, Nicole, Bartek, First Communion Children and Parents (and myself, please) … See MoreSee Less

St Swithuns RC Church Southsea

1 day ago

CHRISTIAN MORNING MEDITATION:Planning The Future?October 19, 2020 Memorial of Saints John de Brébeuf and Isaac Jogues, Priests, and Companions, MartyrsLuke 12:13-21Someone in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.” He replied to him, “Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?” Then he said to the crowd, “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.” Then he told them a parable. “There was a rich man whose land produced a bountiful harvest. He asked himself, ‘What shall I do, for I do not have space to store my harvest?’ And he said, ‘This is what I shall do: I shall tear down my barns and build larger ones. There I shall store all my grain and other goods and I shall say to myself, “Now as for you, you have so many good things stored up for many years, rest, eat, drink, be merry!”’ But God said to him, ‘You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you; and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?’ Thus will it be for the one who stores up treasure for himself but is not rich in what matters to God.”Opening Prayer: Holy Spirit, take away from me now everything that distracts me from praying. I am here, and I am yours.Encountering Christ:1. The Desire to Possess Things: When a person faces a good of any kind–an object, a value, another person–he or she not only experiences the desire to enjoy it, but to possess it. It seems that this is related to the human capacity for reaching out beyond the present moment into the future. I call that projection. We understand ourselves not simply in the light of what is, but, at least as much, in the light of what will be. That is why people build barns: to guarantee that they will be able to rejoice in their goods in the future. The Gospel prompts us to reflect about our tendency to look ahead. Quite compellingly, Jesus points out that our future is really not as much in our control as we like to believe it is. I don’t think he wants us to be indifferent about the future. On the contrary, the capacity to project is crucial when it comes to living our lives and becoming who we are called to be. But, on the other hand, we have to check our urge to indiscriminately grab and store up the goods put before us. What barns have I built for the future and what kinds of things am I storing there?2. The Temptation to Greed: God often presents us with goods that he wants us to share, invest, or even give up. Putting everything into a dark barn may feel safe for the moment, but it’s only appropriate if that’s what God has intended for us to do with it. We have to be discerning regarding our drive for possession. What feels “right” can be deceiving, and can turn into greed, compromising the goods that we were hoping to protect. We’re called to recognize that everything we have comes from God, and that we are merely stewards of these gifts. “As each one has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God’s varied grace” (1 Peter 4:10).3. Life Does Not Consist of Possessions: We can all sometimes fall prey to the desire to measure our self-worth by our possessions. In the culture, we often idolize those with great wealth. Wealthy people seem to have it all. But Christ warns us in the Gospel to reject this assumption. Life does not consist of possessions. What matters is how well we love. As Mother Teresa told us, “There are many in the world who are dying for a piece of bread but there are many more dying for a little love” (A Simple Path). Our ultimate success will be measured by the love we share with others. “If I give away everything I own, and if I hand my body over so that I may boast but do not have love, I gain nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:3).Conversing with Christ: Jesus, my life is filled with goods. Above all, I want to thank you for this “bountiful harvest.” I realize that many of these gifts are fundamental for my life, and I also acknowledge that none of them are guaranteed to last. In fact, what of it will last for eternity, Lord? My heart relishes the goods that make me happy. My nature urges me to continue to provide for that happiness. And yet I know nothing can guarantee it but you. I beg you, yes, I beg you, Lord: Fill me with the theological virtue of hope, so that I really rely completely on you when it comes to the future. I hope in you and that means you alone are what I want to hold on to. I want to fill the barns of my heart with your goods alone. Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will look over my possessions and ask: “Among everything that I have received, what is the most precious in the light of eternity?”stswithuns.org.uk/event/dr-19102020 … See MoreSee Less