PARISH OF ST. THERESE, DENISTONE

Presbytery and Office 8 Inkerman Rd, Denistone 2114 Tel: 9809 2925

Website: www.sttherese.org.au Parish Priest: Fr Roberto Castillo

Deacon: Rev Mr Aruna Perera Parish Secretary: Gayle White admin@sttherese.org.au

Office hours Tues-Fri 9am-3pm St Therese’s School

448 Blaxland Rd, Denistone 2114 (02) 9874 0412 School Principal: Mr Adam Nolan

MASS TIMES:

SATURDAY VIGIL: 6:00 pm. SUNDAY: 8:00 am and 9.30am (changed to 10 am till further notice) MONDAY: No Mass. TUESDAY through to SATURDAY: 9.00 am Mass. FRIDAY: 9.00 am Mass. Exposition & Benediction every Friday after Mass. RECONCILIATION: Saturday 5pm – 5.45pm or by appointment. Baptism: Every Sunday at 11am or 11.30am. Please contact Parish Office. Marriage: By appointment. Anointing of the sick: Please give names to Father Roberto Castillo.

EIGHTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME (Year A)

1st / 2nd August 2020 ENTRANCE ANTIPHON: O God, come to my assistance; O Lord, make haste to help me! You are my rescuer, my help; O Lord, do not delay.

FIRST READING: Isaiah 55:1-3

A reading from the prophet Isaiah

Hasten and eat.

Thus says the Lord:

Oh, come to the water all you who are thirsty; though you have no money, come! Buy corn without money, and eat, and, at no cost, wine and milk. Why spend money on what is not bread, your wages on what fails to satisfy? Listen, listen to me and you will have good things

to eat and rich food to enjoy. Pay attention, come to me; listen, and your soul will live. With you I will make an everlasting covenant out of the favours promised to David.

The Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM: Ps 144:8-9. 15-18

RESPONSE: The hand of the Lord feeds us: he answers all our needs.

The Lord is kind and full of compassion, slow to anger, abounding in love. How good is the Lord to all, compassionate to all his creatures. Response.

The eyes of all creatures look to you and you give them their food in due time. You open wide your hand, grant the desires of all who live. Response.

The Lord is just in all his ways and loving in all his deeds. He is close to all who call him, call on him from their hearts. Response.

SECOND READING: Romans 8:35. 37-39

A reading from the letter of St Paul to the Romans

No creature can separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ.

Nothing can come between us and the love of Christ, even if we are troubled or worried, or being persecuted, or lacking food or clothes, or being threatened or even attacked. These are the trials through which we triumph, by the power of him who loved us.

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For I am certain of this: neither death nor life, no angel, no prince, nothing that exists, nothing still to come, not any power, or height or depth, nor any created thing, can ever come between us and the love of God made visible in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

GOSPEL ACCLAMATION: Matthew 4:4

Alleluia, alleluia! No one lives on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of

God. Alleluia! GOSPEL: Matthew 14:13-21 A reading from the holy Gospel according to

Matthew

They all ate and were satisfied.

When Jesus received the news of John the Baptist's death he withdrew by boat to a lonely place where they could be by themselves. But the people heard of this and, leaving the towns, went after him on foot. So as he stepped ashore he saw a large crowd; and he took pity on them and healed their sick.

When evening came, the disciples went to him and said, 'This is a lonely place, and the time has slipped by; so send the people away, and they can go to the villages to buy themselves some food.' Jesus replied, 'There is no need for them to go: give them something to eat yourselves.' But they answered, 'All we have with us is five loaves and two fish.' 'Bring them here to me,' he said. He gave orders that the people were to sit down on the grass; then he took the five loaves and the two fish, raised his eyes to heaven and said the blessing. And breaking the loaves he handed them to his disciples who gave them to the crowds. They all ate as much as they wanted, and they collected the scraps remaining, twelve baskets full, Those who ate numbered about five thousand men, to say nothing of women and children.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

COMMUNION ANTIPHON: You have given us, O Lord, bread from heaven, endowed with all delights and sweetness in every taste.

READINGS FOR NEXT WEEK:

1 Kg 19: 9, 11-13; Rom 9: 1-5; Mt 14: 22-33

Prayer to Our Lady during the pandemic:

Mary, Help of Christians, we fly to you today as your

beloved children. We ask you to intercede for us

with your Son, as you did at the wedding in

Cana.

Pray for us, loving Mother, and gain for our nation and

world, and for all our families and

loved ones, the protection of God’s holy angels,

that we may be spared the worst of this illness.

For those already afflicted, we ask you to obtain the grace of

healing and deliverance. Hear the cries of those who are

vulnerable and fearful, wipe away their tears and help them to trust.

In this time of trial and testing, teach all of us in the Church

to love one another and to be patient and kind. Help us to bring the peace of Jesus

to our land and to our hearts.

We come to you with confidence, Knowing that you truly are our compassionate mother,

health of the sick and cause of our joy. Shelter us under the mantle of your protection,

keep us in the embrace of your arms, help us always to know the love of your Son, Jesus,

Amen.

A message from the Archdiocese of Sydney. Abuse is a crime. The appropriate people to deal

The Feast of the Transfiguration Of The Lord The year 2020 has probably been one of the darkest in our lives. And we all have felt uncertainty, fear, anxiety, constant disruptions to our way of life, scarcity of goods, worries, isolation and loneliness etc. Thanks be to God who has given us this faith, which helps us to carry our burdens, because Jesus’ burden is light. And this faith helps us to say with the psalmist that even though we are crossing through the darkest valleys of our human history, we fear not evil, do not fear because the Good Shepherd who looks after his sheep is with us. The Feast of the Transfiguration comes also to strengthen our faith in this arduous journey, as it did to the apostles Peter, James and John on Mount Tabor. Saint John Paul II wrote that ‘in the event of the Transfiguration we contemplate the mysterious encounter between history, which is being built every day, and the blessed inheritance that awaits us in heaven in full union with Christ, the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.” So, the children of the Church we rejoice in this feast with our transfigured Christ, because it allows us to immerse ourselves in the wonderful things of heaven, which are to come. This contemplation of the bright face of the Lord and his divinity will help us in our everyday chores and works as we have to continue battling through this world full of problems. Remembering the transfigured countenance of the Lord in prayer will lift up our spirits when we feel down. Saint Paul VI who died on the feast of the Transfiguration prepared some words for that day. He said: “The Transfiguration of the Lord recalled by the Liturgy of today’s solemnity throws a dazzling light on our daily life, and makes us turn our minds to the immortal destiny which that fact foreshadows.”

Hope these thoughts help you this week. Blessings from Fr Roberto

Helpful Information In Regard To Covid19 We hope this information will help everybody to prepare just in case we have an emergency here in regard to the pandemic. PROTECT yourself and OTHERS by practising good hygiene. Practise physical distancing and stay at home if you can, especially if you are a high risk person. CALL TRIPLE ZERO Call (000) for emergencies such as difficulty breathing or shortness of breath at rest. INTERPRETER SERVICE for free help in your language call 13 14 50 CALL 1800 020 080 for health questions or to check symptoms CALL 1800 512 348 for mental wellbeing support. IF YOU HAVE SYMPTOMS: Fever, cough, sore throat and/or shortness of breath

a. Self-isolate first. Call your GP or visit a public Covid19 clinic: www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19 b. Travel in your own car or a private car driven by a family member or an existing close contact. Do not

travel by public transport, taxi or ride-share service. c. Wear a surgical mask. If unavailable, ask for one immediately when you arrive.

Solemnity of St Mary of the Cross. Next Saturday on the 8TH OF AUGUST we will celebrate this solemnity here at our usual Saturday morning Mass at 9am. Everybody is invited. Come and thank God for our first great Australian Saint, and pray to her for Australia. Mary’s trust in God’s will and providence helped her throughout her life and in this way she was able to carry out God’s work for the disadvantaged and those in need. She founded the congregation of the Sisters of Saint Joseph who continue to work in the mission she started. She was born Mary Mackillop, but she took her vows and she changed her name for a religious one: “Mary of the Cross”. In just 5 years she established over 30 schools for the poor and more than 100 women joined her congregation. She was declared a Saint by Pope Benedict XVI on the 17th of October 2010. Some of the things she said encourage us all to persevere in our faith in Jesus Christ. She said:

“Remember we are but travellers here.” (1866) “We must teach more by example than by word.” (1867) “Do all you can with the means at your disposal and calmly leave the rest to God.” (1891) “Courage, courage, trust in God who

helps you in all things.”

PARISH NEWS & NOTICES: Request for Mass and Prayers.

We pray for those who have recently died especially Ines Dorothy Lye (mother of Sherry Jayammane), Elizabetta Gambino.

Also pray for those who celebrate anniversaries at this time especially John Duffy (2nd anniversary).

Planned Giving Envelopes.

RECEIPTS and ENVELOPES are available from the front foyer. Please take care not to touch all the envelopes as you are taking yours. Also please take a copy of a letter near the envelopes as it also shows that you can make your donations via credit cards. For all those parishioners, who opted not to claim a tax refund, you have a letter and that advises you how much you have donated over the past financial year. Thanks so much for your generous contributions.

Sacraments at St Therese Denistone. We are scheduling Reconciliation and FIRST HOLY COMMUNION for Term 3 and Term 4 respectively. Please spread the word.

SACRAMENT OF FIRST RECONCILIATION:

Formation Sessions: Session no 1 - Wed 12th August 7pm Session no 2 - Wed 19th August 7pm Session no 3 - Wed 26th August 7pm

Sacrament of First Reconciliation: Friday 4th September at 5pm in the Church.

SACRAMENT OF FIRST HOLY COMMUNION:

Formation Sessions: Session no 1 - Wed 14th October 7pm Session no 2 - Wed 21st October 7pm Session no 3 - Wed 28th October 7pm

Sacrament of First Holy Communion Mass: Sunday 15th November at 11:30am in the Church.

Parish Safeguarding Support Officer needed for our parish.

As part of the Archdiocese of Sydney Safeguarding and Ministerial Integrity Office’s safeguarding strategy, we are currently seeking people who will support the Parish Priest in providing our volunteers and parishioners a greater understanding of what safeguarding means and how it can be implemented with our parish. Please speak with Fr Roberto after Mass to discuss this further if you think you could help us with this.

Restrictions update. We have a COVID-19 Safety Plan and are

committed to keeping you safe. At the moment the following rules apply in the church:

People should sit at least 1½m apart and stand

1½m from each other. This rule applies not only to Mass but to private prayer,

Confessions, Baptisms, Weddings, Eucharistic

Adoration, The Divine Office, Rosary in

common, Bible study etc.

Our church can safely sit 65 parishioners.

Hand sanitiser is available and should be used

when you enter the church.

Parishioners who are unwell or in high risk categories must stay home.

Dispensation to attend Sunday Mass still

applies.

The faithful who cannot attend Mass should

keep Sunday holy by setting aside some time

for prayer at home and they might attend

Mass on a weekday where possible. Our church is being disinfected after each use. Congregational singing is suspended.

Receiving Holy Communion by “making a

throne for the king with our hands” (St Cyril of

Jerusalem) remains normative in Australia. Contact details of all those entering the church

(name & phone number or email address) must be recorded.

The Catholic Weekly is now available.

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