Welcome to the Catholic Parish Communities of Ashby & Measham ololstcharles.blogspot.co.uk Our Lady of Lourdes Station Road Ashby-de-la-Zouch LE65 2GL

Father Colin Patey St Charles Borromeo Bosworth Road 01530 412237 Measham [email protected] DE12 7LQ @FatherColin1 Rev Deacon Andrew Martin Secondary School Blessed Robert Sutton, Burton on Trent Mr M Cain 01283 749450

Primary School St Charles Borromeo Measham Mrs R Elmore 01530 270572

Advent 4(C) — 19/20 December 2015 Ashby Sat 19 *4.15pm*Exposition & Confessions (until 5.15pm) 5.30pm Mass for the People of the Parishes Sun 20 10.00am Mass for Molly Larkin RIP followed by Sacrament of Reconciliation Mon 21 9.30am Mass for John & Margaret Reddin RIP followed by Sacrament of Reconciliation Tue 22 9.30am Mass for Kathleen Barry RIP followed by Sacrament of Reconciliation Wed 23 9.30am Mass for Maureen Farrell (sick) followed by Sacrament of Reconciliation Thu 24 10.00am Sacrament of Reconciliation (until 10.30am) 4.30pm Sacrament of Reconciliation (until 5.00pm) 6.00pm Mass for John Doyle RIP 9.00pm Carols 9.30pm Mass for the People of the Parishes Fri 25 10.00am Mass for Priest's own intentions Sat 26 4.45pm Exposition & Confessions (until 5.15pm) 5.30pm Mass for Peter Macdonald RIP Sun 27 10.00am Mass for the People of the Parishes. Measham Sat 19 6.45pm Mass for Barrie Beard RIP Thu 24 9.30pm Mass for Fanny Diepenbrock RIP Sat 26 6.45pm Mass for Holy Souls (November list) This week: Fri: Nativity of the Lord — Holy Day of Obligation; No Friday Abstinence this week; Sat: St Stephen; Next Sun: Holy Family

These very familiar lines provide a good reflection for Christmas during the Jubilee of Mercy:

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%&'! )*+ *+&%,- %./+,0 01./, “Glory to the newborn King! Peace on earth, and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled.”

Rotas Readers

Sat

Don

Angela

Sun Francesca Collectors Sat

Sandra & Tom

Dennis & Dan

Sun Rob+

Dennis & Dan John & David

Coffee

Sun Catherine/Jeanette Estelle & Gregoire

Children

Sun Jude

Rita

Cleaners

All hands on deck — Monday after Mass!

Flowers

C Cotton/D Worthington Ashby 180

Measham 19

Loose Plate

£244.80

£28.00

Envelopes

£265.50

£61.00

Total

£510.30

£89.00

Poor and needy parishes

£133.71

£37.50

Attendance Offerings

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6&- J+080 C*&10), you have taught us to be merciful like the heavenly Father, and have told us that whoever sees you sees Him. Show us your face and we will be saved. You are the visible face of the invisible Father, let the Church be your visible face of forgiveness and mercy in the world. You willed that your ministers would feel compassion for those in ignorance and error: let everyone who approaches them feel loved, and forgiven by God. Send your Spirit and consecrate every one of us with its anointing, so that the Jubilee of Mercy may be a year of grace from the Lord, and your Church, with renewed enthusiasm, may bring good news to the poor, proclaim liberty to captives and the oppressed, and restore sight to the blind. We ask this of you, Lord Jesus, through the intercession of Mary, Mother of Mercy; you who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen. Prayer (abbreviated) of Pope Francis for Jubilee of Mercy A) H6,; C6<<8.16. Misericordes sicut Pater, misericordes sicut Pater. (Merciful like the Father) Official Hymn for the Year of Mercy

Christmas Mass: It is our custom at the 6pm Mass for the children to prepare cards and gifts to present to Jesus on his birthday. The gifts are later passed on to children who will have few or no gifts of their own through ‘Faith in Families.’ Gifts should be marked with suitability for boy or girl and approximate age. Nothing perishable, please. Second Collection: Christmas flowers, this weekend. Vacancies for Foundation Gov ernors exist throughout the Diocese including at Blessed Robert Sutton. If you are interested, please see Fr Colin. New Yearbook: The 2016 Diocesan Yearbook is now av ailable at the back of both Churches, price £3. It’s a useful source of information about our diocese — strongly recommended. The Jubilee of Mercy started on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, Tuesday, December 8th. Please take a look at the material on the piety stall to help us enter into this celebration. Christmas cleaning/decoration: Please can you spare a litt le time after Mass this Monday to help make OLOL clean and beautiful for Christmas. This isn’t simply a “chore”. It’s an opportunity to work alongside our brothers and sisters, and so build up our community. St Charles Carol Service: Sunday, January 3rd at 4.00pm. Everyone from both parishes welcome. Parish Christmas Cards are available at the back of both Churches. Please take some and pop them through the letterbox of anyone you might think would appreciate one. You might like to think particularly of people who no longer come to Mass. Christmas Offering: The collections at the Christmas Masses are, by longstanding tradition, an important part of providing for the maintenance of the priest. Next Sunday is the lov ely feast of the Holy Family. Don’t forget that our faith tells us that we should be at Mass then as every other weekend. Don’t throw away the graces of the Christmas Sacraments by missing Mass next weekend. New Year Visitor: We are priv ileged to welcome Limnyuy Gamsi who is studying for the priesthood for our diocese for a month starting on January 2nd. He will be with us as part of his pastoral training to experience as much as he can of parish life. I shall be inviting various people to talk to him, and to involve him in the different activities that make up our community life. He will be staying in the presbytery and looking after himself for most meals. This is part of the experience. However, I know that our hospitable parishioners will want to invite him to their homes for some meals. Please have a word with me about this. It is a compliment to our parishes that we have been chosen to be part of a student’s formation. I know you will make him very welcome.

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.- 10 1) )&8+? For if it is, No loving fingers tying strings Around those tissued fripperies, The sweet and silly Christmas things, Bath salts and inexpensive scent And hideous tie so kindly meant,

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6 ,6N+ )*%) 1. % O%<1,; -P+,,0, No carolling in frosty air, Nor all the steeple-shaking bells Can with this single Truth compare — That God was man in Palestine And lives today in Bread and Wine.

Emmanuel — God with us Refreshments: Coffee and tea are available in the crypt after the 10am Sunday Mass and the 9.30am Mass on Wednesdays at Ashby, and after the Saturday evening Mass at Measham on the first Saturday of each month. Please stay for a chat and an opportunity to meet fellow parishioners and visitors alike. New parishioners: If you have recently moved into our parish or your address/contact details have changed, please complete a pale blue forms on the stand (near the newsletters at the back of Church) and pop it through the presbytery letterbox. The Ashby Foodbank: Donations of dried/canned items can be put in the foodbank box at the back of the church. They are dropped off at the foodbank depot on a regular basis. If you would like to know more or get involved please visit ashbyfoodbank.org.uk, contact The Ashby Food Bank at the Holy Trinity Parish Office, or speak to Jane Desjardins at church Invitation to pray the Rosary: On Tuesday after the 9.30am Mass (about 10am) we pray the Rosary for priests and on Friday after the 9.30am Mass we pray the Rosary for peace. Please join us. St Charles Catholic Pre-School: To donate £2 towards the fundraising to replace our Pre-School PLEASE TEXT SCPS13 £2 TO 70070. If you would like more information please take a leaflet from the back of church. Please help to save this valuable asset to our community. Missio and Faith in Families boxes: These can be returned to church to be collected at any time. Please remember to look for your box at the back of Church once it has been emptied. Vacancies in Catholic Schools: Please see ololstcharles.blogspot.co.uk Gift Aid: Thank you to all who have made a Gift Aid Declaration. This greatly increases the value of your giving at no cost to you. If you pay Income Tax and haven’t yet signed one, please ask for a form. If you have signed a declaration and no longer pay Income Tax it is vital that you tell us. There is a form at the back of the Churches for you to let us know if you would like to Gift Aid, or if you need to stop because you no longer pay tax. You can also use the form to ask us for more information. Mass Envelopes are at the back of church or sacristy to fill in the details. Please always use one of these envelopes to request a Mass as it ensures Fr Colin has the necessary details. The Diocesan recommended offering is £10 a Mass or whatever is affordable. Please put completed envelopes through presbytery letter box. Drop in to St Charles: On Tuesday afternoons during term time, St Charles’ Church is open and light refreshments available from 2.30pm until it’s time to meet children from school. We hope that this will help to strengthen the links between our school and parish communities. Please spread the word. Parents/grandparents/others meeting children and parishioners all welcome. Keep in touch: As well as this newsletter you can always keep up to date with our parish life at ololstcharles.blogspot.co.uk. You will never miss anything if you submit your email address via the “Follow us by email” box. The site also gives links to the parish on Facebook and Twitter.