Dear Brothers and sisters,
The three readings today point to humility being a virtue. But what is humility? You can hear the pride in the Pharisee's tone but some of what he says is legitimate. It is good to pay tithes (or taxes) and it is good to be disciplined however he also then compares himself to others and finds them wanting.
Jesus seems to be saying that a lack of humility allows us to raise ourselves above others whereby we do not recognise that we become judgmental. Thus, we fail to follow Christ's message and instead follow our own interpretation of Christ's message.
We make God in our own image rather than shape ourselves into his image.
Fr Alex
Prayer Resources:
30th Sunday C
Children's Resources:
30th Sunday C
Fr Alex on holiday
As you know Fr Alex is having a much needed holiday. This weekend we welcome Fr Mike back amongst us – he will celebrate the 6pm Mass at St Gregory’s and the 11am Mass at St Catherine’s. We also welcome Fr Ninian Doohan, from St Teresa’s parish in Craigmillar, who will celebrate the 9.30am Mass in St John Vianney’s.
Open parish meeting: St John Vianney’s
There will be an Open Meeting of St John Vianney’s parishioners on Sunday 6 November 2022, immediately following the 09.30 Mass in St John Vianney’s. All parishioners are invited and encouraged to participate, as during this very important meeting we will consider our options for going forward as a faith community.
If you have registered with the parish you will have received an invitation to this meeting either by post or email. If you are a parishioner of St John Vianney’s and have not received an invitation, please let one of the Welcome Team at Mass know. It is possible that you haven’t registered with the parish.
If you have any questions in advance of the meeting, please speak to Fr Alex or any of the Parish Pastoral Council members.
October Novenas
October is the month of the Holy Rosary and there will be two opportunities to make a novena,
SCIAF Lunch for the Horn of Africa
Right now, the Horn of Africa region is facing the driest conditions in more than four decades. 45 million people are facing famine and will struggle to get through the coming months.
As a fundraiser for the SCIAF Hunger Appeal, we are hosting a lunch for the Cluster with one of Fr Alex's special African dishes: a bean stew. This will take place on Sun 30 Oct at St Catherine's after the 11am Mass. Suggested donation: £5.
Open Door (Community Lunch)
Preparations are now well underway for the launch of our Open Door community lunch on Monday 7 November 2022. From that date forward, we will serve lunch every Monday to those in need in our local community. It will be served in St Catherine’s Hall, with doors opening at 1130 and lunches served from 1200 to 1300.
We are very grateful to the 20+ people who have offered their time and talent to enable us to serve our community in this way. If you are interested in helping, or would like to find out more, please phone (07586 275 575) or email Gerry Mulvenna for more information.
World Mission Sunday
Today, 23rd October, is World Mission Day. There will be a special collection in aid of the work of Missio Scotland supporting our brothers and sisters in Ethiopia. There are some magazines available at the back of church.
Happy 40th!
Wishing Frank and Alison Meehan a very happy 40th wedding anniversary! (Haven't aged a bit!)
The winning numbers for August and September for the 200 Club were 71 & 28. The winner of the August draw has re-donated her winnings and the St Gregory 's PC will decide on a worthy cause.
Scottish Medical Aid for Palestinians
There is a fund-raising event on Saturday 29 October from 10 am to 2 pm at Christ Church
Hall, Holy Corner, EH10 4DD.
Speaker at 12 noon is Professor Graham Watt of the Global Health Academy of the
University of Edinburgh.
Palestinian food, embroidery and crafts, MAP stall, bric-a-brac and book stall. Arabic coffee,
coffee/tea, home baking, plants, auction.
Please bring cash (there is a machine available nearby).
Funeral Mass
The funeral Mass for Anne Doig is on Tuesday 25th October at 10 am in St John Vianney’s and will be celebrated by Fr Jock.
Early Christmas bargains
Christmas Cards and much more on sale from this weekend at St Gregory’s and St Catherine’s church stalls.
Saturday 29th October 9.30am - 5pm
Divine Renovation Open House in Paisley
Here is a real opportunity for people to learn how another Scottish faith community is facing the challenge of a declining church.
Funding will be available for six parishioners from the Cluster. If you would like to take part, please email southedclust@btinternet.com or phone Carol (Thurs/Fri) on 563 8391.
Society for the Protection of Unborn Children
Conference: Abortion and Coercion
Sat 29 Oct, 9.30am - 4.30pm. A one-day conference at Glasgow Central Hotel, 99 Gordon St, Glasgow G1 3SF. Cost £30/£20 concessions (includes lunch).
Details here. To book email katherinehampton@spuc.org.uk or phone 01892 542616.
Justice Matters: the Cost of Living – a gospel crisis
See How can the obvious inequalities in our society be tackled in the light of the gospel imperative to care for the poorest and most vulnerable among us? Having normalised foodbanks, the UK is now planning warmbanks for people who can’t adequately heat their homes. Meanwhile, schools are increasingly the source of a decent meal and suitable school clothing for some children as we descend into a fractured society of financial apartheid. Callous snapshots of our society emerge: the pensioner who stays on the bus most of the day in order to keep warm ; school children with empty lunchboxes pretending to eat from them; families re-using nappies and watering down baby formula.
Reflect Given the extraordinary silence of our religious leaders to this crisis, a follower of Jesus could do worse than turn to Catholic Social Teaching. The principle of the Common Good means that we have rights with (and responsibilities for) each other for our mutual benefit. So how does that work between well-off Christians on the one hand and other Christians who are struggling to survive – sometimes sitting in the same pew on a Sunday?
In 2015, Pope Francis gave an interview to an Italian newspaper in which he said, “Poverty takes us away from idolatry and from feeling self-sufficient. Zacchaeus, after he met Jesus’ merciful gaze, gave half of his fortune away to the poor. The Gospel’s message is for everyone, the Gospel does not condemn the wealthy, but the idolatry of wealth, the idolatry that makes people indifferent to the call of the poor.”
Act This might seem quite obvious: read the gospel. Read the gospel before you hear it at the weekend. Each week you can read the upcoming gospel here; you can read a short commentary about all the upcoming readings here; and, if you’d like to discuss it with others, you can do that by emailing here.
From 7th November, the cluster is starting an Open Door Community Lunch every Monday in St Catherine’s hall. If demand increases and we need to offer lunch on other days, that would mean more people needing to get involved. That could be you.
Finally, pray. Prayer is just being aware of God in our lives and God never tires of telling us that help is available to those who have faith. Being aware of God in our lives, being conscious that Jesus walks with us every step we take, will give us the “courage to be missionary disciples” in these challenging times.
Stuart Holden
Please remember in your prayers
Those who are unwell
Those in need of prayer
Chris (Kat Smith's son in law) Christine (Amy’s mum), Grace Kay, Joy Ellison, Michael Martin, Baby Fin,
Bridie Addison, Megan OHara, Tracey, Rebecca,
Valerie Anderson, Maria Lucaci (Fr Eugen's mum),
Zoila Melgarejo, Kate, Susie Hay, Anne McKain,
Joe MacDonald, Rose Ross, Camilo Rodriguez,
Edison Villabona, Gloria Camargo, Anne-Marie Davie,
Joe McConnell, Carolyn Larter, Christine Knox,
Patrick Phelan, Ellen Salvona, Nilsa de Rodriguez,
Belén Rodriguez, Rudy Deras, Dawn Adams,
Bill and Marlene Bonnar, Stevie Donald, Kathy Duffy, Mary, Verdiana and Donati Kweka (Tanzania),
Mary Thomson, Eammon McKelvey, Nancy Barta,
Alex McGinnity, Patricia Simmons, Elizabeth Napier, George Pringle, Sr. Veronica, John, Jennifer,
Maureen Lawson, Bailey Bruce McCann,
Betty Dickinson, Annette, Catherine Hart, Karen Devlin, Scott Fraser, John Skinner, Fr Eugen, James Duffy,
Ronan Boyle, Hazel Martin, Mary Boyle, Mary Dias, Catriona McAuley, Marie, Roney Fernandes,
Christopher Browne, Xaverina Rodrigues,
Anne and Helen, Sacred Heart sisters in Uganda.
I am the Resurrection and the Life
We remember in love
Those who have died recently:
Mary Gilhooley,
Anne Doig,
Christopher Mackinnon,
Luis Alfonso Torres Llano,
Alonso Llano Tobón,
Patrick Devine (Pat).
Anniversaries
Margaret McCann, Frankie Smith, Joseph Ferry, Dominica McCabe, Bedelia Agnello,
George Walker, Ernest Lambert,
Dennis Patrick Gormley, Harold Bull, Owen Prior, Maria O’Neill.
May they rest in peace.
Our Remembrance Gallery is in memory of the loved ones we have lost during the pandemic. If you wish a loved one to be included, go here to find out how. You will also find information on what help our Cluster Bereavement Group offer for anyone who has been bereaved.
Please join us in Contemplative prayer
on Tuesday afternoons 2.40 to 3.45 at Liberton Northfield 280 Gilmerton Road EH16 5TT
If you prefer you can join us on Zoom or just pray with us while you are at home. Contact
Clare Roller
Boxes for our local foodbank
Please bring items listed below to any of our church buildings or either of our Catholic Primary Schools for the foodbank - or take them to:
Items needed this week:
Thanks for the cash donation.
New opening hours for the Food Bank are Monday, Tuesday, Thursday 10am until 1.30pm
Are you struggling? We are here to help
If you, or anyone you know, is in need of financial support or a friendly telephone chat, call our SSVP in the Cluster:
St John Vianney's 07922 675196,
St Gregory's 07455 306607
St Catherine's 07539 266411.
If you would like to make a donation go here
Cost of living crisis:
Scottish Government Information website
As part of its response to this situation, the Scottish Government has launched a campaign promoting a new website that brings together in one place information on support, grants, benefits and advice, in order to help people find what support they may be entitled to. The link to the website is here.
Please check also our
entitlements page.
Free benefits and money advice sessions
Starting in August, every last Friday of the month, 9.30 - 11.30am, hosted by St Catherine's Primary. Please note these sessions are open to all the community. Half hour appointments available to book through our school office on 664 4257 or by email.
You can get help and advice on money matters as well as help with applying for benefits, housing costs, council tax reduction, free school meals, clothing grants, Scottish Welfare Fund and Scottish Child Payments.
Dates are Fridays 28 Oct, 25 Nov, 27 Jan, 24 Feb, 31 Mar, 28 Apr, 26 May.
Sun 23 Oct – Sun 20 Nov
Retreat in Daily Life
A four-week retreat in daily life led by Fr David Stewart sj. Each participant is asked to set aside some time each day (maybe 20/30 minutes) for prayer and to meet once a week with your individual prayer guide for about half an hour. There are also optional workshops on methods of prayer.
Download
Retreat in Daily Life flyer (pdf)
Booking is now open -
ejcretreats@jesuit.org.uk
Bethany Welcome Centre
The Welcome Centre for homeless guests opened in the Haymarket Hub Hotel on Wednesday 5th October and the Cluster team was catering on the first night. Throughout the evening, people were walking in to register for a bed and a meal. We were able to feed the small number of Bethany guests and the staff team. However, there was absolutely no food wasted, as those people who were being housed in the hotel by the City of Edinburgh Council were given all the food which was leftover, as they don’t receive any meals.
Our cluster team are catering on these dates and volunteers are very welcome. While 18 is the minimum age for helpers at Bethany, there is no upper age limit!
Sunday 6th November, Wednesday 7th December, Thursday 29th December, Sunday 8th January
Once again, sincere thanks for your generous donations to Bethany, very much appreciated.
Jane Watson, Volunteer contact number: 07787184524
All Souls’ Day: 2nd November at 10am
Archbishop Cushley will offer Holy Mass in the Mount Vernon Cemetery Chapel.for the repose of all the faithful departed who have died in the Archdiocese in the last year.
Special talk on family life
Professor Stephan Kampowski is a world renowned expert on marriage and the family in a Catholic context. He is visiting the Archdiocese from Rome next month to give a series of talks. He will speak at the Gillis Centre, 100 Strathearn Road, Edinburgh, at 11am on Saturday 5 November. Register here.
