Services:
Sunday 5th October (27th In Ordinary Time). First Reading Isaiah 5:1-7. Responsorial Psalm was 79 "The vineyard of the Lord is the House of Israel." Second Reading was Philippians 4:6-9, and the reading from the Holy Gospel was Matthew 21:33-43. The Service next Sunday - the 28th in Ordinary Time is at 9.30am and will feature the Harvest Celebration. The mid-week said service (Feria), again at 9.30am, is on Thursday 9th October.
Parish Hall:
The coffee morning will be held as usual on Tuesday 6th October from 10.00am. This will be the last opportunity to book for the Harvest Supper taking place on 13th October, tickets £3.50 available from Sheila.
Bookings are still being taken for the Christmas Dinner to be held at the Milton Arms on Monday 8th December - last day for bookings is 4th November (£5.00 deposit required).
Last weeks Tote winner was number 48.
Thoughts of Father Richard:
When we hear the word "vocation" we often just think of just a very small number of jobs or walks of life. But everyone who is a Christian can be sure that God is calling them to use their own special gifts in his service. This is certainly what could be termed "vocation".
We don’t have to be called to be a priest, monk or nun to experience the presence of God or a call from God. Every Christian is called by God in a particular way to live out their Christian life in a way which is unique and deeply personal. When we say “yes” to the will of God we begin a journey. Along that way, God’s will for us is gradually revealed. The “yes” we speak at the beginning is not the end of our response to God. At various times and in fact every single day it is a question of responding to the will of God.
Jesus addressed his short parable to people who had said “yes” to God at some point but who had not in every case continued to do God’s will. Their feet might have been standing in the right place, but that was no guarantee that their hearts were there also. Those who once said yes can find that through habit they have begun to follow their own way. Sometimes that way might coincide with the will of God, but where there is a conflict of interest it can so easily be our way and not God’s way that wins out.
Everyone who looks at their life of faith in some way becomes aware of points along the journey where in effect their “yes” to God has turned into a “no”. It might not happen with full awareness but precisely because our awareness of where God is in our lives has grown dull. Like the son in the parable we can be saying “I will go” and then staying put. But the other side of that coin is that when we do find that we have not responded to God with willing hearts, we always find acceptance when we return to him.
That doesn’t mean that it is good to turn away just so that we can experience a fresh outpouring of God's grace. That can be ours anyway! It is better by far to be where God wants us to be at every stage. We see our example of loving response in Jesus who did his Father’s will from the very outset and through a life of prayer continued to respond every single day. As the words of St Paul remind us, Jesus poured out his own will in sacrifice and found deep comfort in relying on the strength that came from above and not his own human will. In Mary, his Mother, we also witness this same willing and faithful response to God.
Our relationship with God is in a sense like every human relationship. It doesn’t just remain frozen in time. As we go through life, we can find that what is right for us at one time is not right for all time. Only through prayer and by living out our calling can we be sure that we are being who God wants us to be and doing what we are really meant to do. Today and every day, let us pray that God will make his will known to us and give us the will to respond.
Sunday 5th October (27th In Ordinary Time). First Reading Isaiah 5:1-7. Responsorial Psalm was 79 "The vineyard of the Lord is the House of Israel." Second Reading was Philippians 4:6-9, and the reading from the Holy Gospel was Matthew 21:33-43. The Service next Sunday - the 28th in Ordinary Time is at 9.30am and will feature the Harvest Celebration. The mid-week said service (Feria), again at 9.30am, is on Thursday 9th October.
Parish Hall:
The coffee morning will be held as usual on Tuesday 6th October from 10.00am. This will be the last opportunity to book for the Harvest Supper taking place on 13th October, tickets £3.50 available from Sheila.
Bookings are still being taken for the Christmas Dinner to be held at the Milton Arms on Monday 8th December - last day for bookings is 4th November (£5.00 deposit required).
Last weeks Tote winner was number 48.
Thoughts of Father Richard:
When we hear the word "vocation" we often just think of just a very small number of jobs or walks of life. But everyone who is a Christian can be sure that God is calling them to use their own special gifts in his service. This is certainly what could be termed "vocation".
We don’t have to be called to be a priest, monk or nun to experience the presence of God or a call from God. Every Christian is called by God in a particular way to live out their Christian life in a way which is unique and deeply personal. When we say “yes” to the will of God we begin a journey. Along that way, God’s will for us is gradually revealed. The “yes” we speak at the beginning is not the end of our response to God. At various times and in fact every single day it is a question of responding to the will of God.
Jesus addressed his short parable to people who had said “yes” to God at some point but who had not in every case continued to do God’s will. Their feet might have been standing in the right place, but that was no guarantee that their hearts were there also. Those who once said yes can find that through habit they have begun to follow their own way. Sometimes that way might coincide with the will of God, but where there is a conflict of interest it can so easily be our way and not God’s way that wins out.
Everyone who looks at their life of faith in some way becomes aware of points along the journey where in effect their “yes” to God has turned into a “no”. It might not happen with full awareness but precisely because our awareness of where God is in our lives has grown dull. Like the son in the parable we can be saying “I will go” and then staying put. But the other side of that coin is that when we do find that we have not responded to God with willing hearts, we always find acceptance when we return to him.
That doesn’t mean that it is good to turn away just so that we can experience a fresh outpouring of God's grace. That can be ours anyway! It is better by far to be where God wants us to be at every stage. We see our example of loving response in Jesus who did his Father’s will from the very outset and through a life of prayer continued to respond every single day. As the words of St Paul remind us, Jesus poured out his own will in sacrifice and found deep comfort in relying on the strength that came from above and not his own human will. In Mary, his Mother, we also witness this same willing and faithful response to God.
Our relationship with God is in a sense like every human relationship. It doesn’t just remain frozen in time. As we go through life, we can find that what is right for us at one time is not right for all time. Only through prayer and by living out our calling can we be sure that we are being who God wants us to be and doing what we are really meant to do. Today and every day, let us pray that God will make his will known to us and give us the will to respond.
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