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THE PARISHES OF ST MARTIN AND ST NINIAN'S WHITHORN, (with the Sacred Heart, Wigtown), OUR LADY AND ST NINIAN'S, NEWTON STEWART, ST PETER’S,
DALBEATTIE, and ST ANDREW’S AND ST CUTHBERT’S, KIRKCUDBRIGHT, (incorporating the former parish of St John’s, Castle Douglas, and the now closed
Church of the Resurrection, Gatehouse of Fleet.)Diocese of Galloway Registered Charity No. SC010576
Parish Priest: Fr William R. McFadden,Parish Address: St Andrew’s and St Cuthbert’s, High Street, Kirkcudbright, DG6
4JWTelephone Number: 01557 330687
Priest of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham: Fr Simon Beveridge, 01988 850323.Emeritus Deacons: Rev. Peter Marks (01671 830395) and Rev. Bob Simpson (01671 402770).Parish Pastoral Assistant in Kirkcudbright: David Preston (01557 330650).
Parish Websites: www.catholicchurchgalloway.org.uk; www.rckirkcudbright.org.uk;
Parishes Email Addresses: [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]
Sunday 28 th March 2021 – Palm Sunday Year B
RE-OPENING OF CHURCH BUILDINGS
The church buildings in Whithorn, Newton Stewart, Kirkcudbright and Dalbeattie have now re-opened for public worship. Restrictions remain though to numbers because of social distancing requirements.
Booking is essential for anyone wishing to participate in any celebration.
A digital copy of prayers for Holy week is available on https://uk.magnificat.net/holyweek
Parish Co-Ordinators : Those with the responsibility for overseeing the task for ensuring Covid-19 regulations are met are:Dalbeattie – Terry Craig ([email protected])Kirkcudbright – Celia Dearing ([email protected]); Pauline Logan ([email protected])Newton Stewart/Wigtown – Gerry McCabe ([email protected])Whithorn – Fr Simon ([email protected])If you have any concerns or anxieties about what is happening in our churches during this Covid-19 pandemic, please contact any of the above people who will be able to provide reassurance and advice.
Holy Week Masses and Services
Holy Thursday - Thursday 01 April19.00 - Mass of the Lord’s Supper in Whithorn
19.00 - Mass of the Lord’s Supper in Kirkcudbright19.00 - Service of the Lord’s Supper in Newton Stewart
19.00 – Service of the Lord’s Supper in Dalbeattie
Good Friday – Friday 02 April15.00 - Commemoration of the Lord’s Passion in Whithorn
15.00 - Commemoration of the Lord’s Passion in Newton Stewart15.00 - Commemoration of the Lord’s Passion in Kirkcudbright
15.00 - Commemoration of the Lord’s Passion in Dalbeattie
Holy Saturday – Saturday 03 April20.00 – Easter Vigil in Whithorn20.00 – Easter Vigil in Dalbeattie
Easter Sunday – Sunday 04 April09.30 – Mass of the Resurrection in Kirkcudbright (plus Service in hall)
11.30 – Mass of the Resurrection in Newton Stewart (plus Service in hall)
With reduced seating capacity because of Covid-19 restrictions, a ballot will probably have to take place for the Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter celebrations. To be included in the ballots contact Gerry
McCabe for Newton Stewart, Fr Simon for Whithorn, and for Dalbeattie and Kirkcudbright email or phone the parish house, and indicate the Masses and/or Services in which you wish to be included. For
Newton Stewart and Kirkcudbright on Good Friday and Easter Sunday there may also be the opportunity for an overspill in the hall for a socially distanced limited number where there will be a Liturgy of the
Word and Holy Communion. Confirmation of your place will be given to you by email or by phone.
Booking for Masses and Services
Due to the ongoing social distancing requirements numbers will continue to be restricted, and all places for Masses and Services must be booked in advance. The conditions also demand that we keep a register with contact details of all attending for contact tracing if required. To book a place for Masses and Services please follow the directions below:
St Andrew’s and St Cuthbert’s, Kirkcudbright – For Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday all bookings will be via email on [email protected] or by phoning the parish house on 01557 330687. For Masses from 11th April onwards an online booking system will be in operation. Simply google “Eventbrite St Andrew’s and St Cuthbert’s Kirkcudbright Sunday Mass” and go to the Eventbrite site. The booking system will be open from Monday of each week. Those without access can continue to phone the parish house on 01557 330687.
St Peter’s, Dalbeattie – By phoning the parish house on 01557 330687.
Our Lady & St Ninian’s, Newton Stewart – By emailing or phoning Gerry McCabe on [email protected] or 01671 401018
St Martin & St Ninian’s, Whithorn – By phoning Fr Simon on 01988 850323
Please note that in all probability not all people who may wish to participate will be able to attend, but those unsuccessful will be given priority for future liturgies.
Some Important Factors to Consider on Returning to Mass each church has been marked out to indicate socially distanced seating; as you arrive you must be wearing a face covering; you will be asked to sanitise your hands with the sanitiser provided; you will be directed to a seat by a steward; the church will be filled from the front so you may not be directed towards your usual seat; there will be no singing of hymns or singing parts of the mass; the Gloria and the Creed may be omitted; the second reading may be omitted; there will be no offertory procession; there will be no Sign of Peace; in place of the words “The Body of Christ” for each communicant, before the Celebrant receives
Holy Communion, he will say the words “May the Body and Blood of Christ keep us all safe to eternal life”, to which the congregation responds “Amen”;
Holy Communion will be received in the hand; in Kirkcudbright, Dalbeattie, and Newton Stewart, Holy Communion will be distributed after the
Final Prayer with parishioners directed to leave the Church immediately after receiving Holy Communion.
The Bishops' Conference of Scotland has produced a special prayer guide to support us participate in the liturgy of the Triduum (from Holy Thursday until Easter) even if we cannot participate in the annual rites as we might wish. If you wish, you may download the booklet entitled "Liturgy of the Hours - TRIDUUM" at https://www.bcos.org.uk/COVID19/COVIDResources/tabid/133/Default.aspx
Initiatives of Pope Francis
Amoris Laetitia Family Year
Pope Francis has announced that from 19th March 2021, the fifth anniversary of the Apostolic Exhortation Amoris laetitia, on the joy and beauty of familial love, we will celebrate the Year “Amoris Laetitia Family,” which will conclude on 26 June 2022. During this year The Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life is proposing spiritual, pastoral and cultural initiatives to accompany families in the face of contemporary challenges. For information go to www.amorislaetitia.va .
A Year of St Joseph:
In an Apostolic Letter, Pope Francis marks the 150th anniversary of Pope Pius IX’s declaration of St Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church. To celebrate the anniversary, Pope Francis has proclaimed a special “Year of St Joseph,” beginning on the 8th December 2020 and extending to the same date in 2021. Pope Francis encourages us to pray to St Joseph with these words:
Hail, Guardian of the Redeemer,Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary.To you God entrusted his only Son;
in you Mary placed her trust;with you Christ became man.Blessed Joseph, to us too,
show yourself a fatherand guide us in the path of life.
Obtain for us grace, mercy and courage,and defend us from every evil. Amen.
Pope Francis’ Encyclical “Fratelli Tutti”: The Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development has announced a new, intuitive website dedicated to Pope Francis’ encyclical "Fratelli
tutti". To access go to www.fratellitutti.va.
Pope Francis’ Prayer Intention for March: Sacrament of Reconciliation - Let us pray that we may experience the sacrament of reconciliation with renewed depth, to taste the infinite mercy of God.
Safeguarding Training
Looking ahead to when we may be able to return to parish ministries, it will be necessary for all parish volunteers to complete their second Safeguarding Induction Training session, if they require a PVG to carry out their ministries. The diocesan trainers strongly recommend that as many volunteers as possible attend this training session online, from the comfort and safety of their own homes, during this current lockdown. To book a place in an online session at a convenient time for you, please visit www.gallowaydiocese.org.uk/safeguarding-calendar, which will be regularly updated with available dates and times. If you are unsure whether you need to attend, please contact the Parish Safeguarding Coordinators.
Galloway Diocese News Lent Edition
To see the latest edition of the Galloway News go to http://www.gallowaydiocese.org.uk/galloway-diocese-news
A Message from Mary’s Meals on the humanitarian crisis in Tigray, Ethiopia.
Dear friends, in recent weeks you may have heard something of the grave news from Tigray in northern Ethiopia. An armed conflict between the federal and regional governments has escalated into a shocking humanitarian crisis. We are hearing harrowing reports of tens of thousands of families displaced from their homes and that as many as 4.5 million people are without access to basic food, medical and sanitary supplies across the region! We have been working in Tigray for many years where our trusted partners the Daughters of Charity normally serve over 24,000 children Mary’s Meals. We are now working with the Daughters of Charity to respond to this crisis and provide support to children and families affected by this crisis. As people of faith, we are asking you to partner with us by holding the people of Tigray and the emergency work we are doing there in your prayers. To find out more about this appeal please visit https://www.marysmeals.org.uk. Thank you.
Ecumenical Prayer During Corona Pandemic: Prayer for Sunday 28th March at 19.00
We are invited to join with Christians throughout the country in praying together every Sunday at 19.00. The prayer for this week is as follows:
“As we stand at the threshold of the final journey of Jesus into Jerusalem and on towards the Cross, we find ourselves in the company of those who have gone before us on that journey.“The ‘great crowd’ who enter into Jerusalem are those who gather for the annual marking of the Feast of the Passover. They come to remember and to give thanks for the enduring love of God.“One of the Psalms used in the Feast opens with the call: ‘O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His steadfast love endures forever!’ In turn, the Psalmist cries: ‘Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord.’ (Psalm 118: 1, 19)“In the Gospel of John, we see Jesus entering Jerusalem and welcomed, as one ‘who comes in the name of the Lord!’, with shouts of ‘Hosanna!’ and ‘palm branches’. (John 12: 12-16) The cry ‘Hosanna!’ shall soon be replaced by ‘crucify!’ and the ‘palm branches’ by a Cross, but in faith we believe that ‘the enduring love of God’ shall remain unvanquished.“On this Palm Sunday, we stand on the threshold of a time of renewal within our community and in the life of the Church and we join the company of all God’s people to give thanks for the love that endures and conquers even death.”We pray:God whose love endures,Hear us as we welcome the One who comes in the name of the Lord.Hear us, as we rememberAll that You have done in times pastAnd give thanks that Your enduring love has embraced even us.Lord, in Your mercy, Hear our prayer.
God whose love endures,Hear us as we welcome the One who comes in the name of the Lord.Hear us, as we gather in the company of Your people,Or in company alone with You,And lift up our voices to cry: Hosanna!Lord, in Your mercy, Hear our prayer.
God whose love endures,Hear us as we welcome the One who comes in the name of the Lord.Hear us, as we journeyThrough the week that is to come.May we journey in the presence of the One who goes before us, even to the Cross.Lord, in Your mercy, Hear our prayer.
God whose love endures,Hear us as we welcome the One who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hear us, as we listen to the voicesWho now cry: Crucify!And may we know it was for us He hung and suffered there.Lord, in Your mercy, Hear our prayer.
God whose love endures,Hear us as we welcome the One who comes in the name of the Lord.Hear us, as we waitFor the dawn to breakAnd for Your enduring love to vanquish the darkness.Lord, in Your mercy, Hear our prayer. CHALLENGE THE PROPOSED REDUCTION IN INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT BUDGET: In November 2020, the UK Chancellor announced the Government’s intention to significantly reduce the budget for international development, arguing that the costs of dealing with the coronavirus pandemic meant a temporary cut was necessary. Under the Government’s plans, overseas aid spending will be reduced from 0.7 per cent to 0.5 per cent of Gross National Income (GNI). It would mean the international development budget falling by around a third, from £15.2 billion in 2019 to around £10 billion in 2021. The 0.7 per cent target had been met every year since 2013, and enshrined in law since 2015. The decision to reduce the UK’s international development commitment requires a change in the law. Please contact your Member of Parliament to make the case for opposing the cut and protecting Britain’s international development commitment, calling on him to protect the 0.7% aid target and vote against any legislation that will reduce or revoke the 0.7% aid target. For details on what to write see the Churches Together in Britain and Ireland briefing document at https://ctbi.org.uk/international-development-briefing/ To contact Alister Jack MP write to House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA or email [email protected]
Passion Sunday 2021 - Reflections from Helen-Marie Bradley
John 12: 12-16The next day the crowds who had come up for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. They took branches of palm and went out to meet him, shouting ‘Hosanna, blessings on the King of Israel, who comes in the name of the Lord.’ Jesus found a young donkey and mounted it – as scripture says: Do not be afraid daughter of Zion; see, your king is coming mounted on the colt of a donkey. At the time his disciples did not understand this, but later, after Jesus had been glorified, they remembered
that this had been written about him and that this was in fact how they had received him.
In order to understand the multi-layered symbolism in this short extract from John’s Gospel we have first to try and put ourselves in the position of the Jewish people at that time. There are times when we forget that during Jesus’ life his people were conquered, oppressed by the might of Rome and were yearning for liberation, freedom from this huge tyrannical force. The reaction of the crowd is understandable: they want Jesus to be their new King: the Liberator, the Warrior. The crowd want freedom from the oppression of Rome. The crowd, if they do not comply, will forfeit their lives and possibly the lives of the ones they love.They make their desire clear through the symbolism of the waving of the palms. These branches were symbolic of Jewish nationalism and victory over their enemies. Jesus would have recognised the symbolism in the waving of the branches, perhaps for a moment or two he may have been tempted concede to the cult of popularity and become the Davidic-messianic leader the crowds wanted and needed so much. However, Jesus chose a symbol of his own – which again would be apparent to the crowd. He very carefully and deliberately chose to mount a young donkey. This act recalls the passages in Zech 9:9 and Zeph 3:16 calling the people of God to seek a universal king, who will call the poor in heart and ask them to place their trust in God …. who is in their midst. He refers to the ‘daughters of Zion’ which is traditionally the feminine
personification of Israel. Israel is to ‘fear no more’ as their new messiah has come. The crowd cry out in petition “Hosanna’ – give us salvation, save us!! But the new messiah is the one who comes to build a new Kingdom for the Chosen People. In the past the victorious king would lead his people to war mounted on a horse or a war chariot… but in victory would ride a donkey which was a symbol of peace. He was indeed going to encounter a type of war but importantly and very deliberately he was declaring himself the Universal Prince of Peace who would be victorious over the powers of evil.Jesus is enacting the Drama of the old kingdom and the Dream of a new Kingdom. The Dream of the new Kingdom is the destiny of all God’s people. He will bring salvation but in a wholly unexpected way. The entry into Jerusalem and the unfolding events will reveal the true nature of the new ‘King.’In scripture there is the call of and to the Spirit. Our sisters and brothers of Jewish faith in John’s community (who were probably based the great city of Ephesus) were open to and prayed that the Spirit would fill their hearts, soul and body – imbue them so that they could fulfil their mission of Baptism:
That they, like the encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well, would give water , spiritual as well as wet, to the thirsty
That they, like their Lord, would heal the sick and give sight to the blind That they, like their Lord, would bring hope over death, as he did with his beloved Lazarus That they, like their Lord, would build a world firmly established on God’s rule of Justice and
PeaceThis early community believed that Love, Liberation and Life was brought to the world on a……donkey.
Fi nancial Support for the Parish and the Diocese
Parish Finances: We recognise that for some families these days can be very difficult financially. We do not expect those struggling to feel obliged to contribute to the parish. However, if you feel able to do so, you can give by using the 'Online Parish Offertory' link. Simply type in the address below and follow the instructions. For St Peter’s - https://tinyurl.com/rcdalbeattieFor St Andrew’s and St Cuthbert’s - https://tinyurl.com/rckirkcudbrightFor Our Lady and St Ninian’s - https://tinyurl.com/rcnewtonstewartFor St Martin and St Ninian’s - https://tinyurl.com/rcwhithornFor Sacred Heart - https://tinyurl.com/rcwigtownStanding Order forms are also available from the parish house. Thanks to those who are already using this method of payment and it is hoped that more people will contribute in this way post-lockdown.
Amazon Smile: The Diocese has registered with Amazon Smile. The prices on amazon smile are the same as on the regular Amazon site. However, Amazon donates 0.5% of spending to the nominated charity. This is a good way for those who use Amazon to support diocesan finances at no extra cost to themselves. The link is: https://smile.amazon.co.uk/ch/SC010576
Give as you Live: This is the link to the join up page: https://www.giveasyoulive.com/join/rc-diocese-of-galloway-scotland. When you shop at over 4,000 top stores including John Lewis & Partners, Expedia and Marks & Spencer via Give as you Live Online, they'll turn a percentage of your spend into free funds for the diocese. Simply sign up, search for the retailer and start shopping.
Pastoral Support during Lockdown: Fr William is available for phone, email, and video link communication for anyone wishing to engage with him during these days of lockdown. To arrange a meeting simply get in touch via phone or email and a suitable time can be arranged for a private conversation.
