THE GREAT AND HOLY WEEK
PALM SUNDAY OF THE PASSION OF THE LORD
24 th March 2024
Sun 24th PALM SUNDAY (p.177)
10.00 Mass at St Mary’s Chorley
11.30 Mass – Winifred Collinson
Mon 25th
Tues 26th
10.00 Mass – Denis Bentham
Wed 27th
19.30 Chrism Mass - Metropolitan Cathedral
Live streaming of Chrism Mass
http s://y outube.com/liv e/YTD 06cRtV6Q
Thurs 28th HOLY THURSDAY
19.00 Mass of the Lord’s Supper - St Mary’s
Fri 29th GOOD FRIDAY
10.30 Stations of the Cross - here at Anderton
Confessions afterwards as required
15.00 Liturgy of the Lord’s Passion - Anderton (Mass book p.197)
Sat 30th HOLY SATURDAY
19.00 Easter Vigil and Mass at St Mary’s
Sun 31st EASTER SUNDAY (Mass book p. 251)
11.30 Mass - Parishioners
PLEASE PRAY FOR THE SICK AND THE HOUSEBOUND: Fr Barry McAllister,Joan Bailey, Francis Brennan, Anne Byrne, Mary Patricia Case, Gerard Clarke, Leo Duffy, Clare Edwards, John Fearnhead, Pat Font, Tom Fraser, William Freeman, Jane Gilbertson, Bob Goulding, Rosemary Hough, Cathy Hull, Mary Johnston, Archbishop Emeritus Patrick Kelly, John Kerfoot, Bill King, Emma King, Val McGlade, Janet McGowan, Fintan McPeake, Fr Laurence Mayne, Fr Roman Mirchuk, Ellen Morris,
Irene O'Neil, Heidi O’Neill, Barrie Swift, Sylvia Walsh, Jean White, Betty Wignall, all at Grove House & Marley Court.
Congratulations to Tom and Beryl Fraser who celebrate their Diamond Wedding Anniversary on Saturday 30th March. Holy Mass will be offered for them on Sunday 7th April,. Divine Mercy Sunday.
RETIRING COLLECTIONS: this Sunday, for Flowers for Easter. Good Friday: Holy Places; Easter Sunday: Easter Offerings for refugees and Bishop Hryhoriy’s work in Ukraine.
BAPTISM DATES: 28 April, 26 May, 30 June, 28 July
WELCOME ONCE AGAIN TO BISHOP HRYHORIY KOMAR, who could not come at Christmas, but is here for twelve days over Holy Week and Easter, returning to Drohobych, Ukraine on Friday 5th April. The Eastern-rite Easter is not until 5th May. A welcome rest from air-raid sirens for him!
FOR PARISHIONERS WHO HOLD A RED APF MISSION BOX:
Over the next few weeks, we will be distributing the Spring magazines to you, and at the same time emptying your red boxes. You can either empty your red box into a bag or envelope along with your name on it, or you can bring your red box to church for us to empty. If you need us to call at your home please contact Kath Heald on 07584 575025 or Jen Turner 07527 356356 and we will visit you at a time convenient for you.
Thank you so much in advance ~ we are so very grateful for your generosity, Kath & Jen.
REFLECTION: Palm Sunday can be thought of as a day of contradiction. The Mass begins with the reading of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem and His joyous reception by the crowds who strewed palm branches before Him, crying out, “Hosanna to the Son of David; blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest.” Today, this inspiring scene is commemorated by processions of the faithful
carrying palm branches into their churches. The contradiction, however, is experienced as the full narrative of the Passion of Christ is read, culminating with Jesus’ death on the Cross.
But is it a contradiction? Is His glorious entrance into Jerusalem at the
beginning of the week in any way opposed to His crucifixion? Certainly not. From a worldly perspective, for someone who lacks the ability to penetrate this mystery with the eyes of faith, the week ends in tragedy. But from the perspective of the Eternal Father, the welcome Jesus receives as He enters Jerusalem is the welcome given to the Saviour of the World. His Cross would become the culmination of that act of salvation.
For that reason, His entrance into that holy city was rightly celebrated with great joy, even though the people did not yet understand that the throne their new King would mount was the Cross.
As early as the fourth century, the diary of one traveller to Jerusalem records how the faithful reenacted Jesus’ triumphal entry:
And as the eleventh hour approaches, the passage from the Gospel is read, where the children, carrying branches and palms, met the Lord, saying; Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord, and the bishop immediately rises, and all the people with him, and they all go on foot from the top of the Mount of Olives, all the people going before him with hymns and antiphons, answering one to another: Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord. And all the children in the neighborhood,
even those who are too young to walk, are carried by their parents on their shoulders, all of them bearing branches, some of palms and some of olives, and thus the bishop is escorted in the same manner as the Lord was of old (The Pilgrimage of Etheria).
Though very few Christians can celebrate Passion Sunday in Jerusalem,
walking from the Mount of Olives to the city gate, we are all invited to do so spiritually, meditatively, and interiorly. Our participation is not just the recalling of a historic event; it’s a real participation in that event. Our hearts must begin outside of Jerusalem’s gate today, and we must courageously and joyfully accompany our Lord into that holy city.
During that first Holy Week, the people’s joy arose from their expectation that Jesus would be an earthly ruler who would free them from Roman oppression. Today, we are privileged to express our joyous acclamations as we spiritually accompany our Lord to the city of His crucifixion, because we know that Jesus’ Kingship is so much more than an earthly triumph. His triumph is an eternal one that invites us to share in His Eternity.
His triumph is a sacrificial one that invites us to share in His Sacrificial Love. His triumph is a glorious one that invites us to share in the Glory of His Resurrection.
Walk with our Lord today into that holy city of Jerusalem. As you do, know that the earthly city of Jerusalem is also now a spiritual one. The events that took place there two millennia ago transcend and permeate all time. As a result, the events of Holy Week today are just as significant as they were long ago. Through the Mass, we are there. We walk with our Lord, witness all He accomplished, receive His Body and Blood sacrificed on the Cross and memorialized in the Eucharist, and are resurrected with Him
on the third day. Commit yourself to this journey today, an eternal pilgrimage with our Lord to the Eternal City of Heaven.
Prayer: Most glorious King, blessed are You Who continuously come to us, leading the way to Heaven. Hosanna in the highest! As I begin this most Holy Week, commemorating Your gift of salvation, I pray that this commemoration will also be a real and transforming participation in Your life, death, and resurrection. Thank You for redeeming us, dear Lord. Please open my heart to receive Your grace fully. Jesus, I
trust in You. From mycatholic.life
Parish Priest: Fr Francis Marsden
Secretary: Mr Frank Webster
Parish Office: St Joseph’s Presbytery, 28 Bolton Road, Adlington, Chorley PR6 9NA
Wednesdays 10.00-13.00
Tel: 01257- 480237 or 01257- 262537 (St Mary’s Chorley)
E-mail: stjosephs.anderton@tiscali.co.uk
Parish Website: www.stjosephsanderton.com
ARCHDIOCESE OF LIVERPOOL Registered Charity No. 1199714
