Notices for March 30th 2025
Services for April 6th 2025, Fifth Sunday of Lent
Morning Worship at:
9.30am Holy Trinity Church, Ballisodare
10.45am Emlaghfad Church, Ballymote
12.00pm St Paul’s Church, Collooney
Collect for Today
God of compassion,
whose Son Jesus Christ, the child of Mary,
shared the life of a home in Nazareth,
and on the cross drew the whole human family to himself:
Strengthen us in our daily living
that in joy and in sorrow
we may know the power of your presence
to bind together and to heal;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Marthas
The Marthas will mee at Mary Bourke’s house on Tuesday April 1st at 8.00pm. The are continuing to look at the book of James.
All ladies are welcome.
Holy Trinity, Ballisodare
Would parishioners please make their usual payment towards the graveyard maintenance of €50. Please place in an envelope and mark it ‘Graveyard Maintenance’.
Holy Week Services
Wednesday of Holy Week, Evening Prayer, Holy Trinity Church, Ballisodare at 8.00pm
Maundy Thursday, Holy Communion, Emlaghfad Church, Ballymote at 8.00pm
Good Friday Reflection, St Paul’s Church at 8.00pm
Easter General Vestries
The Easter General Vestries will take place as follows:
Monday April 28th at 8.00pm in Emlaghfad Church, Ballymote.
Tuesday April 29th at 8.00pm in Holy Trinity Church, Ballisodare.
Thursday May 1st at 8.00pm in St Paul’s Church, Collooney.
All meetings will be preceded by a short Vestry Meeting to approve the 2024 accounts and followed by a meeting of the new Select Vestry to elect officers.
Easter Egg-citement Event
There will be a children’s Easter event on Saturday 19th April from 3.00pm until 4.30pm for all National School children. Registration forms will be available shortly. There will be crafts, food, songs, Bible story and an Easter egg hunt.
Mothers’ Union
The Mothers’ Union festival service for this part of the diocese will be on Wednesday 7th May at 8.00pm in Saint Columba’s Church, Drumcliffe, Co. Sligo.
Mission Event
On Saturday April 5th from 10.00am to 12.30pm at Calry Church there will be an opportunity to hear from Tear Fund, CMS Ireland, Youth for Christ, YWAM and others about the work they are doing around the world. It is also a chance to pick up lots of resources to help with mission in the local church. Refreshments available.
The Knitted Bible
St John’s Church, Newtownhamilton are hosting The Knitted Bible Exhibition from Friday 30th May to Sunday 8th June. This is a display of over thirty different scenes from the Bible using knitted figures. There will be an opening service on the evening of Friday 30th May and a celebration service on the evening of Sunday 8th June. The exhibition will be open to the public both weekends.
A Prayer for Peace
Lord Jesus Christ,
You are the true King of peace.
In You alone is found freedom.
Please free our world from conflict.
Bring unity to troubled nations.
Let your glorious peace reign in every heart.
Dispel all darkness and evil.
Protect the dignity of every human life.
Replace hatred with your love.
Give wisdom to world leaders.
Free them from selfish ambition.
Eliminate all violence and war.
Jesus, Son of the Living God, have mercy on us.
Jesus, hear our prayers.
Amen.
Reflection on Humility
“The greatest among you will be your servant. All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Matthew 23:11–12
The Gospel passage above is very clear. Greatness is found in servanthood. Exaltation is enjoyed only through humility. Is the ideal lifestyle one that is filled with indulgence, entertainment, luxury, and the like? Certainly not. The ideal life, the greatest life, the most exalted life is the life of the most humble service of others as possible.
Jesus was, without question, the humblest person to ever live. Humility enables a person to break out of every selfish tendency and turn their love to the good of the other. The Son of God did not become human because it somehow benefitted him in a self-centred way. He did it because he loved us and his Incarnation benefitted us. Everything Jesus did was done for others and never done out of a selfish desire. Jesus did everything he did out of his love for others and with humility so as to bring salvation and transformation to their eternal souls.
In our lives, we need to make a fundamental choice. Am I going to live for myself? Or am I going to live for others? If we realize that living for others is also the path to our own greatness and ultimate exaltation, then it becomes much easier. Serving others, especially in a spiritual way by which you do all you can to help them grow closer to God, is what will make you great. Nothing else can do so. Believe that and live it.
What does the Bible say about immigration?
The issue of immigration seems to be the political topic of our time but what does the Bible, our ultimate guide and rule book, tells us about what we should do. It is a topic that crops up in both the Old and New Testament and in both, it is consistent. Here are just two verses from each Testament.
Leviticus 19: 33-34
“When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not ill-treat them. The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the Lord your God.”
Deuteronomy 10: 17-19
For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing. And you are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt.
Matthew 25: 35-36
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was ill and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.”
Hebrews 13: 1-2
Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters. Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.
Leviticus tells us to treat the foreigner as we would our own. Deuteronomy shows us that in God’s sight we are all equal and that again, we are called to love them as we do our own and, in this case, it reminds the nation of Israel that they too were once in that predicament.
Move to the New Testament and little changes. We are to welcome the stranger and take care of their needs. And here we have a reminder of the story of Abraham who welcomes three strangers not knowing that they are angels of God.
The Middle East is known, though it may come as a surprise, is exceedingly well known for its hospitality to strangers and travellers, even to this day.
We, as we are commanded to do, as Christians should welcome and love the one in need wherever thy are from for we too may be entertaining an angel.
A Short Reflection on Human Nature
The Bible’s first two chapters paint a picture of God’s creation in harmony: people, living creatures and the natural world all fit perfectly together. The creation myths of the time these stories were written described a world born out of violence and hatred, battles in the heavenly realms. However, Genesis 1 says: ‘God saw all that he had made, and it was very good’.
Genesis 3 is where things start to go wrong for humanity. It shows the truths about human nature. We’re drawn to the bad stuff. There appears to be something darkly attractive about stepping over the boundaries and doing what we know we shouldn’t do. When Adam and Eve disobey God, they become ashamed of who they are. They try to avoid responsibility – Adam blames Eve, and Eve blames the snake. The harmony between them is broken, and so is the harmony of nature. As a result death enters the natural world as God makes clothing for them out of animal skins. Life becomes much harder and much more painful.
The French mystic, political activist, theologian and philosopher Simone Weil once wrote: ‘Imaginary evil is romantic and varied; real evil is gloomy, monotonous, barren, boring. Imaginary good is boring; real good is always new, marvellous, intoxicating.’
Adam and Eve weren’t abandoned, and the rich tapestry of the Bible is threaded through with grace. But Genesis 3 is a warning: sin has consequences, and when we do wrong we will regret it.
Irish Hospice Foundation
Bereavement Support Line available Mon-Fri, 10.00am-1.00pm 1800 80 70 77
Bank Transfers and Standing Orders
If you would like to make donations via bank transfer or by standing order please contact the Rector or the local treasurer who will provide appropriate details.