Notices for December 22nd 2024
Services for December 22nd 2024, Fourth Sunday of Advent
9.30am Service of Lessons and Carols, Holy Trinity Church Ballisodare
4.00pm Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, Emlaghfad Church, Ballymote
7.00pm Combined Carol Service with Collooney Methodist Church, Collooney Methodist Church
Services for December 29th, First Sunday of Christmas
United Service at:
10.45am St Paul’s Church, Collooney
Collect for Today
God our redeemer,
who prepared the blessed Virgin Mary
to be the mother of your Son:
Grant that, as she looked for his coming as our saviour,
so we may be ready to greet him
when he comes again as our judge;
who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Church Christmas Services
Sunday 22nd, Service of Lessons and Carols in Holy Trinity, Ballisodare at 9.30am. During this service Sunday Club will meet (for part of it) for a craft activity.
Sunday 22nd, Service of Nine Lessons and Carols in Emlaghfad Church, Ballymote at 4.00pm
Sunday 22nd, Combined Carol Service with Collooney Methodist Church at 7.00pm
Christmas Eve, 11.30pm First Holy Communion of Christmas in Ballisodare.
Christmas Day, Holy Communion Services at normal times.
December 29th, United Service in St Paul’s Collooney at 10.45am (with baptism)
Home Communions
I will be taking Christmas Holy Communion to those who are housebound or in care homes on Monday 23rd. If you are aware of anyone not already known to me who would like a visit please let me know. If you would like to accompany me on the visits, or some of them, please get in touch. Andrew
Holy Trinity Church
Could those who have received Income Tax Relief forms in Holy Trinity Church for 2022 and 2023 please place them in a sealed envelope and give them to Andrew asap so we can reclaim the tax and boost our income.
The Scribe
December Scribes are now available for subscribers. Current subscribers will find a renewal slip inside. Please complete and return to the Rector. If you wish to become a subscriber then ask Andrew for a form. Please return by December 31st at the latest.
Envelopes
For those in Ballisodare and Ballymote 2025 giving envelopes are available. Please take your number. If you wish to become a giver via the envelope scheme then please ask the churchwardens for an available number set.
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.