Anderton St Joseph's       
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Anderton St Joseph’s Catholic Church

SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT
9 DECEMBER 2018

In the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar’s reign, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judaea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of the lands of Ituraea and Trachonitis, Lysanias tetrach of Abilene, during the pontificate of Annas and Caiaphas the word of God came to John son of Zechariah, in the wilderness. He went through the whole Jordan district proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the sayings of the prophet Isaiah:
A voice cries in the wilderness:
Prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight.
Every valley will be filled in, every mountain and hill be laid low,
winding ways will be straightened and rough roads made smooth.
And all mankind shall see the salvation of God. [Luke 3:1-6]

Sat 8th
16.00-16.35Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament
16.15Confessions

Sun 9th SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT (p.84)
Sat 16.45Mass – Parishioners
09.00Mass – Barry Smith (A)
12.15Baptism (Lees)

Mon 10th   Ss Edmund Gennings, Polydore Plasden, Eustace White, priests, & Swithin Wells, St John Roberts OSB, all martyrs.
09.10 Liturgy of the Word and Holy Communion
14.00First Confessions for Year 4 children  

Tues 11th St Damasus I, Pope
09.10Mass – Betty Finch & Margaret Jackson (Anniversaries)
Novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Succour

Wed 12th Our Lady of Guadalupe
10.00Liturgy of the Word and Holy Communion

Thurs 13th  St Lucy
09.10 Mass – Louis O’Neill (A)

Fri 14th St John of the Cross
09.10 Liturgy of the Word and Holy Communion
18.30 Scouts’ and Uniform Groups Carol Service

Sat 15th   
16.00-16.35Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament
16.15Confessions

Sun 16th DecTHIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT (p.87)
Sat 16.45Mass – Parishioners
09.00Mass – Michael Maher (L.D.)

LITTLE CHURCH during 9.00 am Sunday Mass, for the benefit of the little children.
PLEASE NOTE: No Friday Mass this week.
Thursday instead at 09.10.

Please pray for Pope Benedict, all the sick and the housebound.
“Heal Thy servants, O Lord, who are sick and who put their trust in Thee.
Send them help, O Lord, and comfort from thy Holy Place.”

COLLECTIONS: Offertory last week £397; Church Restoration Fund £187. Many thanks for your support and generosity. Please make any cheques payable to St Joseph’s Anderton (068) Parish A/c. The retiring collection this week is for the annual Parish donation to the SVP. Next weekend we collect for the Altar & Flowers at Christmas.

SCHOOL CHRISTINGLE SERVICE: Mon. 17th December,18.30 in church.

CHRISTMAS SERVICE TIMES:  Christmas Eve: Carols at 17.00, Mass at 17.30
Christmas Morning Mass 09.00 as usual.

ST JOSEPH’S 100 CLUB- winners in the December draw were: £25 – M. Monaghan;
£15 – J. Turner; £10 – H.Turner.

MANY THANKS for a donation of £50 received in memory of the late Jay Gilliver.

ST JOSEPH’S MUSIC GROUP: Members please note the dates for meetings to prepare for Christmas Liturgies are: - Tuesdays 11th & 18th December (changed from 19th). All meetings at 19.00 in church.
Lord, our God, we praise You for Your Son, Jesus Christ, for He is Emmanuel, the Hope of all people. He is the Wisdom that teaches and guides us. He is the Saviour of us all.
O Lord, let your blessing come upon us as we light the first and second (purple) candles of this wreath.
May the wreath and its light be a sign of Christ’s promise of salvation. May He come quickly and not delay. We ask this in His holy name. Amen.

FR MAYNE will be in the Royal Stoke University Hospital for a heart valve transplant this Friday 14th. Please keep him in your prayers. He is a very special person and we wish him a speedy recovery and a return home to St Oswald’s. I will keep you posted. Fr Mayne thanks everyone for their prayers and kindness.

BAMBINELLI SUNDAY: All are invited to bring their Baby Jesus figures from home to be blessed at the 09.00 Mass next Sunday, the 16th December.

CHORLEY FOODBANK:  Please remember the less fortunate people in Chorley who for whatever reason, have little or no food. Tins, cereals, UHT milk, tea, coffee, sugar, chocolate will be all very much gratefully received. Please leave gifts in the box in the church porch for onward transmission to Chorley food bank.

MAKE A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE THIS ADVENT WITH CAFOD
Through World Gifts you can experience the joy of giving this Advent and help transform the lives of the poorest communities in the world.
From as little as £4, there is a wide range of life-changing gifts to choose from, to help make a lasting difference this Advent e.g. Sami lives in Aleppo in Syria. His sister, Maysara was killed when a bomb hit their school. Sami was devastated and was scared to go to school. With support from Cafod-funded tutors, Sami is being helped to overcome his fears and return to school.
This much-needed emotional and educational support to children who have lived through the violence of war is multiplied thousands of times amongst refugees. This is one of the gifts in the catalogue; it enables the child to come to terms with what they have experienced, to make friends and build a brighter future.
Catalogues in the back of church - really simple to send off for a gift!

A THOUGHT FROM POPE FRANCIS AS YOU TURN ON THE CHRISTMAS LIGHTS

“When we turn on the lights of the tree we want Christ to be in us.
A Christmas without light isn't Christmas.
So let there be light in our souls, in our hearts; Let there be our forgiveness of others;
And let there be no hatred, for this is darkness. Let there be the light of Jesus, which is so beautiful.       
This is my wish for all of you...
If you have something dark in your soul, ask the Lord's forgiveness.
This is a beautiful chance Christmas gives us to clean up our souls.
Don't be afraid - the priest is merciful, he forgives everything in the name of God,
Because God forgives everything.
May the light be in your hearts, in your families, in your cities.
And now, with this wish, let's turn on the lights. “

CHORLEY HOSPITAL: Please contact St Joseph’s, Harper’s Lane (262713) if any member of your family is admitted into the Hospital and needs the priest to visit.  In an emergency, the ward staff will call in the duty priest chaplain via the switchboard.  For the chaplaincy service at Royal Preston Hospital please ring 01772 522435.

REPOSITORY: Cards for all occasions, Bibles, missals, medals, crucifixes, silver crosses & much more. Advent calendars £1.50. Small cribs from £2.50 suitable to hang on the tree or for children’s bedrooms. Christmas cards.

BAPTISMS: In order to arrange a baptism, please see Fr Marsden after one of the weekend Masses.
‘CAROLS BY CANDLELIGHT’ Wednesday 19th December at 7.30 pm.

SYNOD REPRESENTATIVE: Mr Mike Gannon has agreed to be our Parish Representative for the Synod 2020. As the Dean in Chorley, I need to oversee the choice of 8 Deanery Representatives also by this Friday 14th December.

SCOUTS’ & UNIFORM GROUPS CAROL SERVICE: Friday 14th December, 18.30.

FIRST CONFESSIONS for Year 4 children will be held on Monday 10th December at 14.00 in Church. Please keep the children in your prayers as they make this important step in their spiritual lives. Thanks to Fr Crowther for agreeing to come and help.

Jerome Critchley and Family would like to thank relatives, friends, neighbours and parishioners for their kind expressions of sympathy and support, prayers, cards, Mass offerings and donations following the sad loss of Mary, a dear wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. 
Special thanks to Fr Francis Marsden, Rev Dcn Norman Arrowsmith, altar servers, readers, choir, organist and everyone who attended for making Mary’s Requiem Mass such a memorable and uplifting service.

Parish Priest: Fr Francis Marsden (01257) 480237
(Also 01257 262537 - St Mary's Chorley)
Parish Office: St Joseph’s Presbytery, 28, Bolton Road, Adlington,
Chorley PR6 9NA
(Open Wednesdays 10 am – 3.30 pm)
E-mail: stjosephs.anderton@tiscali.co.uk       
Parish Website:www.stjosephsanderton.com
LIVERPOOL ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHDIOCESAN TRUSTEES INC
Registered Charity No.232709