PRAYING TOGETHER FOR THE CHURCH, THE WORLD, THE PARISH & ONE ANOTHER

THE HOLY FATHER’S PRAYER INTENTION FOR JANUARY – Intention for Evangelization: – Human Fraternity May the Lord give us the grace to live in full fellowship with our brothers and sisters of other religions, praying for one another, open to all.

SUN 3 JAN 6.00pm Vigil 8.00am

9.30am 11.00am 12.30pm 2.15pm

True and fair elections in Togo Stephen St. John Maule RIP Special Intention Sally Baker People of the parish. Polish Mass

2nd Sunday of Christmas

MON 4 JAN

8.30am LIVE STREAM ONLY

Harry McHugh RIP

Christmas Feria

TUES 5 JAN 8.30am 12 noon 7.00pm

Paul Downey Anniv Ascent Group intentions

Christmas Feria VIGIL EPIPHANY

WED 6 JAN 8.30am 12 noon 7.00pm

Mary O’Dea RIP Maria Grimaldi RIP POLISH MASS

THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD

THUR 7 JAN 8.30am 12 noon

Christopher D’Souza RIP Thanksgiving for family and friends of Hugh and Clare

Christmas Feria

FRI 8 JAN 6.00pm Azucena Garcia Anniv Christmas Feria

SAT 9JAN

SUN 10 Jan

11.00am 6.00pm Vigil 8.00am 9.30am 11.00am 12.30pm

Holy Souls Pro Populo Ned and Theresa Ryall Anniv Stephen St. John Maule RIP Carmel Dunphy Intentions Rocco Marrese RIP

Christmas Feria THE BAPTISM OF OUR LORD

HOLY MASS INTENTIONS

MAKING CONTACT AT HOLY ROOD Parish Priest: Fr. Gerard O’Brien gerardobrien@rcdow.org.uk Opt 3) Assistant Priest:: Fr Joseph Okoro josephokoro@rcdow.org.uk (Opt 4) Deacon: Rev. Neville Dyckhoff nevilledyckhoff@rcdow.org.uk ( Opt 5) Parish Secretary: Martha Stuart-Berrisford watford@rcdow.org.uk ( Opt 2) Address: Holy Rood House, Exchange Road, Watford. WD18 0PJ. (01923) 224085

Website: https://parish.rcdow.org.uk/watford/ Facebook.com/HolyRoodWatford Charity No: 233699 Other Parish Contacts: Safeguarding Representative: Andrew Danquah Important new app:

https://www.hestia.org/brightsk

Hospital Chaplain: Deacon Anthony 07876 526935 or emailing: anthonycurran@rcdow.org.uk

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Sunday cycle Readings Year B

Weekday readings

Divine Office Psalms week

Sunday 3rd January 2021

2nd Sunday after the Nativity

We await the great feast of the EPIPHANY

Which will take place on Wednesday.

Masses will be VIGIL (Tues 7pm) Wed 8.30am and

12Noon. Polish Mass in the evening 7pm

“God is revealed to all peoples”

Wise men from the east guided by a star came to worship Christ. In them

we see the homage of all the nations to Christ who is for ever the light of

the world. We too can become an epiphany - a revealing - of God if we

lead full Christian lives.

First Reading: Isaiah 60:1-6

Returning from exile the deported Jews have set out on a journey to Jerusalem, a city lit up by the multiple candles of the rebuilt temple. The prophet sees far beyond this: to a city not of this earth, lit by the glory of the Lord, to which all nations will come.

Gospel: Matthew 2:1-12

At the heart of this gospel account is the quotation from the proph-et Micah. Those who knew the text so well did not hasten to Beth-lehem. But the ‘foreigners’ putting their learning beside that of the scribes without any trace of pride, knew where to find the Messiah. Through them it is we ourselves and many others through the ages who bring our offerings to the feet of the King of the Universe.

CHRISTMAS WOULDN’T HAVE BEEN THE SAME AT HOLY ROOD WITHOUT YOU. Many, many thanks to all who helped in any way to prepare our church for Christmas. Especially to our cleaners, flower arranger and readers. May the joy of the Christ child be with you all as we enter a new year. THE PARISH CLERGY: Fr Derek, Fr Joseph and Deacon Neville thank you for your Christmas cards and gifts received over the past month. Your kindness is much appreciated.

PARISH DIARIES 2021 A small number are still available from the Repository priced just 50p

ADMITTED TO HOSPITAL? In case you are admitted to hospital, please tell the staff to register you as Roman Catholic on your patient records and you would like the Roman Catholic Chaplain to visit you.

FOODBANK Thank you to all who have left food in the box at the back of the church. The total for the year will be given soon. Fr. Derek and Fr. Joseph continue to hand in the food donated during this time of pandemic.

John Houlihan—son of Kathleen Houlihan asked us to let parishioners know that his dear mother and a beloved parishioner here has died. Let us remember to pray for the happy repose of her soul.

CRIB COLLECTION—Catholic Children’s Society

Since March the Catholic Children’s Society has provided emergency food and essentials, as well as mental health services, for over five and half thousand children and their parents/carers. These families have faced desperate situations due to the Coronavirus pandemic. There are many families in need of support and our parish will be donating our Crib Offering to support this important and vital work. Due to Covid, a special page has been set up at:

www.cathchild.org.uk/crib where you

can make your donation from home.

FOR THOSE WHO HAVE RECENTLY DIED Warren Edward Styles, Stephen St. John Maule

ANNIVERSARIES OF THE DEPARTED

Paul Downey, Azucena Garcia, Ned and Therese Ryall,

Eternal rest grant to them O Lord

SPONSORING THE BLESSED SACRAMENT LAMP: If you would like to sponsor the lamp for a particular intention, the recommended donation is £10 for the week. You can book it with the clergy. Your sponsorship helps towards the costs of sanctuary candles. Thank you.

WEEKLY COLLECTIONS

THE BLESSED SACRAMENT LAMP is sponsored this week

In THANKSGIVING from Therese

SWITCH OFF your phone and SWITCH

ON your heart and mind to the Lord

Fr. Derek writes:

Very soon the Christmas decorations will come down, the lights that have brightened our homes and our streets will be turned off and put away for anoth-er year. The Christmas tree will be placed back in its box or disposed of and if it is possible we will return to our own routines. This is all part of the Christmas event because the star stopped shining, the shepherds went back to their work and Mary and Joseph returned to Nazareth to carry on their daily chores—albeit with a baby in hand.

At this time of the year we can feel a certain emptiness, weariness and even a little depressed or disillusioned with the “anti-climax” of post Christmas period. But the emptiness that we feel can be a channel of God’s grace—if we allow it to take root in our hearts. A sense of emptiness is the opportunity to be filled with God’s presence anew.

The externals which surround our Christmas event are not what Christmas is all about. Jesus the GIFT from God is what will always remain. The challenge to us is to allow God’s Gift to touch our lives each day and enhance our way of living.

This is the message that I have tried to convey for the last two and a bit years. Lots of you have expressed your deep gratitude for what I have been and what I have done in the past few years. Priests are called to point people towards that which changes our lives—THE MYSTERY OF GOD. We all try to help the parish move forward and sometimes we are called to be prophets. One defini-tion of a prophet is a person who “afflicts the comfortable and comforts the af-flicted.” I am not sure if I have done this but I know deep in my heart that I have tried to help the parish move forward and to become a better place. If I have upset parishioners, I am sorry but if I have challenged you to think, reflect and move forward then my own judgement before God might be better than it would have been, if I had not tried to do God’s will.

My thanks to Fr. Joseph who has been a wonderful companion on the road here in Watford. Thanks also to Deacon Neville and his wife Veronica who have been such a source of encouragement and wisdom. Thank you to ALL the pa-rishioners here in the parish who have shown me care, love and respect and for the many cards, emails and letters full of thanks and words of encouragement at this time. Also my deepest thanks to all of you who sent me a “Leaving gift” - I have been humbled by your generosity—especially as I have been with you for such a short time. They say that Watford is a very generous place—and I have experienced this in my own life amongst you in so many ways. Moving is never easy. So pray for me that the emptiness we feel can be filled by God in a man-ner unimaginable to us. Please also be assured of my prayers and affection.