1 January 2012

Liturgical

Numbers 6, 22-27; Psalm 66; Galatians 4, 4-7; Luke 2, 16-21

Saturday 6.00 pm: Rowton Methodists: Alan Heggie (Anniversary)
Sunday 9.00 am: St Werburgh's: Jim McCleary (Anniversary)
Sunday 10.45 am: St Werburgh's: Stan Hughes
Sunday 6.00 pm: St Werburgh's: Rachael Andrews

Monday 2nd January: Saints Basil and Gregory: I John 2, 22-28; Psalm 97; John 1, 19-28
10.00 am: St Werburgh's: Freda Tankeu

Tuesday 3rd January: Most Holy Name of Jesus: I John 2,29 - 3,6; Psalm 97; John 1, 29-34
10.00 am: St Werburgh's: John Francis Clyne

Wednesday 4th January: Ferial: I John 3, 7-10; Psalm 97; John 1, 35-42.
10.00 am: St Werburgh's: Tim Davies (L.D.)
11.00 am: Blacon: Funeral Service for John Joseph McCarthy, late of The Willows N.H.

Thursday 5th January: Ferial: I John 3, 11-21; Psalm 99; John 1, 43-51
10.00 am: St Werburgh's: Richard Hunt (L.D.)
2.30 am: Blacon: Funeral Service for Terence Hugh Hunt, late of Woodfield Grove, Hoole

Friday 6th January: Ferial: I John 5, 5-15; Psalm 147; Mark, 1, 6-11
10.00 am: St Werburgh's: Ursula Ratchford
2.00 pm: St Werburgh's: Funeral Service for Pauline Margaret Blanche, late of St Anne's, Newtown

Saturday 7th January: Ferial: I John 5, 14-21; Psalm 149; John 2, 1-11
10.30 - 12.00 noon: St Werburgh's: Confessions
6.00 pm: Rowton Methodists: John Winder (Anniversary)

SUNDAY 8th JANUARY 2012: EPIPHANY OF THE LORD
Isaiah 60, 1-6; Psalm 71; Ephesians 3, 2-6; Matthew 2, 1-12

Saturday 6.00 pm: Rowton Methodists: John Winder (Anniversary)
Sunday 9.00 am: St Werburgh's: Paul Lawton (Birthday Remembrance)
Sunday 10.45 am: St Werburgh's: Patrick Williams (7th Anniversary)
Sunday 6.00 pm: St Werburgh's: The Old Nuisance (Anniversary)

PRAYER INTENTIONS

Your prayers are asked for the following who are sick: Sandra Barrett, Gwyneth Gill, Christine Davies, Bill Borthwick, Ray Astbury, Pat Concannon, Michael Morton, Sylvia Francis, Kath Rich, Bert Davies, Josie Long; and for all the sick and housebound of the Parish. And for those who have died recently, Margaret Brotherston, John McCarthy, Terence Hunt, Pauline Blanche, George Bowyer, John Acari and Rita Duckers, and for all those whose anniversaries occur at this time: Patrick Vallely, Florence Ratchford, Joan Hudson, Harry Graham, Mary Hughes, Pat Lloyd, Lilian Coathupe, Johanna Sheedy, John Winder, Josephine Page, Margaret Domain, Agnes Cartwright, Mary Walsh, May Hogan, William Costello, Evelyn Weston, David Mooney, Michael Murphy, Ann Carruthers, Eileen Witter, Geoffrey Hargreaves, Helen Cadden, Robin Francis, John Moore and George Tomlins. May they all Rest in Peace.

From the Parish Priest

Dear Parishioners of St Werburgh's and all our Visitors,

Happy New Year to you all! It was wonderful to welcome so many regulars and visitors over the Christmas Period, and this year we had record numbers at all five Christmas Masses: knee-deep in assorted Josephs, shepherds and angels at the 6.00 pm Children's Mass, a packed church for the main 8.30 pm Vigil, and a wonderfully full church for Midnight Mass. (Altogether now: what time was that at??) When we reintroduced Midnight Mass a few years ago, the fear was expressed that it might be disrupted by drunken revellers staggering home from the pub… How little they knew city centre Chester! At midnight, dearly beloved, the party is just beginning: the staggering home, barefoot and clutching six inch heels, is nearer 4.00 am, when, I hope, all good Werbies are safely tucked up in bed. Sunday Morning saw another two full congregations, before it was time to lock up, and get round the Hospital Wards and the Hospice, and some of the Nursing Homes of the Parish, to see at first hand what an amazing job our nurses and care staff do at making Christmas real for our patients and elderly residents, who either cannot go home or have no home to go to. I'm sure all these workers would rather have been at home with their families and friends: but working as they do in the caring professions, they know that Christmas Day on duty is part of the deal. What a wonderful example they set of the true Christmas spirit, and how rarely do they receive the praise and credit for what they do. Ditto our police, fire officers, ambulance crews, and all the other emergency services who work at Christmas so that the rest of us can relax and enjoy the holidays in peace and safety.

I caught up with the Pope's Christmas Message the day after, and was struck by how beautifully he encapsulated the real message of this season: Come to save us! This is the cry raised by men and women in every age, who sense that by themselves they cannot prevail over difficulties and dangers ... Jesus is the hand God extends to humanity to draw us out of the mire of sin and to set us firmly on rock, the secure rock of his truth and love. Pope Benedict said that most of the world's problems were caused by human sin, the evil of separation from God, the prideful presumption of being self-sufficient, of trying to compete with God and to take his place, to decide what is good and evil, to be the master of life and death. I was also struck by how beautifully and sincerely Her Majesty the Queen expressed the heart of Christmas in her own broadcast message: Finding hope in adversity is one of the themes of Christmas. Jesus was born into a world full of fear. The angels came to frightened shepherds with hope in their voices: 'Fear not', they urged, 'we bring you tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the City of David a Saviour who is Christ the Lord.' Although we are capable of great acts of kindness, history teaches us that we sometimes need saving from ourselves - from our recklessness or our greed. God sent into the world a unique person - neither a philosopher nor a general (important though they are) - but a Saviour, with the power to forgive. Forgiveness lies at the heart of the Christian faith. It can heal broken families, it can restore friendships and it can reconcile divided communities. It is in forgiveness that we feel the power of God's love.

Today, New Year's Day 2012, I'm reminded of the resonant words of an earlier Christmas Day message, eighty years ago, from King George VI in 1939, quoting the writer Minnie Louise Haskins: I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year, 'Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.' And he replied, 'Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the hand of God. That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way!' So I went forth and finding the Hand of God, trod gladly into the night. Then, our country had been at war for four months, with another five years of conflict ahead. Please God, 2012 will be an infinitely more peaceful year, but it will bring its own share of shadows, of ups and downs, of worries and problems as well as joys and successes. But for all of us, individuals and Parish, to put our hand into the hand of God is surely to find the Light of Christ which will lead us all through the year ahead, whatever it may bring.

May God bless you all, and a very happy New Year!

Fr Paul