The Presbytery, Abbeydorney (066 7135146)
abbeydorney@dioceseofkerry.ie
Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, 17.1.2016
Dear Parishioner,
When I put ‘Dear Parishioner’ together every week, my
hope is that there might be something for everybody in it – maybe not for
everybody but for those who take it from the church. That something
might be the pieces connected with the Sunday readings, (The Deep End,
Seeing your life through the lens of the Gospels, and Musings), all taken
from Intercom Magazine. It might be the short piece, ‘Just three cups of
tea’ taken from the Irish Catholic or it might be a piece (not happening as
often as I would wish) contributed by a parishioner. Of course, I would be
hopeful that the normally longer article (usually from Intercom, The
Furrow or Reality) might appeal to a good number of parishioners as well.
This weekend, you have the chance to read the second part of the article
‘Liturgy in Ireland Today’. Last Sunday’s passages and today’s are part of
a longer article and a full copy is available (in smaller print) for anybody
who would like to have it. I wrote last Sunday that some articles in the
Furrow magazine might be seen as intended for people with training in
theology, while others are reflections of the writer and easier reading.
If you read that first part, you might have concluded that I was joking
when I said it would be easy to read it. Fr. Aidan Ryan was dealing with a
subject that is of interest to most priests but those who are in the church
for Mass – whether in this parish, elsewhere in the diocese or in the
country – may feel he is complaining about something that has been
there for a long time and trying to change it is like trying to get blood
from the proverbial turnip. Readers may feel that I put this article in
‘Dear Parishioner’ because I share Fr. Ryan’s opinions. Yes, I do feel very
strongly about the need to look at our habits and to be open to change,
even if that is not what we would wish. On a few occasions, I have
invited readers of ‘Dear Parishioner’ to write a response to something
that had appeared in it. I can understand that many people feel they
have nothing to say or they could not express their thoughts on paper. If
somebody does write something but would not wish to be named that
will be acceptable. Do have a go! For inclusion next week, I would need
it not later than Thursday next. (Fr. Denis O’Mahony)
Liturgy in Ireland Today (continued)
Funerals, Baptisms and Major Liturgies
There is one liturgical area that seems to have a particular resonance in
the Irish psyche and that is in the area of the rituals that surround death.
Funerals and evening removals are probably the best attended liturgies
in many parishes and the celebration of an annual Mass in cemeteries
brings what may well be the largest congregation in the parish in the
course of the year. Funerals are generally among the best liturgies in
rural Ireland, where we are still spared for the most part, the eulogistic
excesses that sometimes mar the funeral liturgies in larger urban areas,
where social change is further advanced. The congregation, being mostly
older people and therefore more likely to be regular worshippers, tend to
answer the Mass responses better. The filing past the mourners to offer
sympathy, and the filling of the grave at the cemetery are rituals which
people, especially men, are not just willing but keen to join. Baptisms,
too, at least in rural Ireland, can be celebrations in which the extended
families concerned can be happily and willingly involved. Station Masses,
where these survive, or house Masses, can also evoke a similar
willingness, while the domestic nature of the setting is more conducive to
a feeling of community among those present.
We usually do ‘big’ liturgies well – ordinations to the episcopate,
priesthood or diaconate, religious profession, church dedications, jubilees
of people or of places. The sacramental celebration of ‘rites of passage’
such as First Communion, Confirmation and Marriage are usually given
careful preparation, though one sometimes wonders about the faithcontent among the people most immediately concerned. One might have
a similar concern about some large scale-liturgies organised by secondlevel schools – an opening of the year Mass or a ‘Grad’ Mass in which the
vast majority of the attendance is not normally Mass-going and whose
link with church outside the school may be very tenuous.
However, for young people, even still, the Mass can provide a setting and
a structure in which they can express themselves e.g. at a time of tragedy
or grief among them. The suggestion that school occasions might be
marked with a Prayer Service rather than a Mass is often not welcomed
by students or by school authorities. Many students, of course, might not
be aware of the difference, as evidenced by the widespread practice of
referring to any kind of religious gathering or group prayer as ‘Mass’.
(Fr. Aidan Ryan Diocese of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise in The Furrow)
SEEING YOUR LIFE THROUGH THE LENS OF THE GOSPELS
John 2:1-11
1. The story is a story of abundance, the abundance of the blessings God
gives us. How have you been aware of the abundance of God’s blessings?
Let the memories lead you to prayer of thanks and praise for the times in
your life when that joy and fulfilment have been very real to you.
2. John uses a number of images (marriage, wine, feast, etc.) to symbolise
the abundance of God’s love. What are your favourite images of the
abundance of God’s love and blessings?
3. The hour of Jesus had not yet come when the glory of God would be
fully revealed, yet even so something of the glory of God was revealed in
the sign that took place. For us also the revelation of the full glory of
God lies in the future, but we do get glimpses along the way. Recall
some of the signs that have revealed to you something of the glory of
God, e.g., nature, art, friendship, etc.
4. Mary/Jesus. It is interesting to note that despite the apparent rebuff,
Mary is the first person in the narrative to show (at the level of the action
of the story) that the correct response to the presence of Jesus is to trust
in him. When have you trusted in the word of Jesus like that? What
relationships do you have that you can trust like that? Do you recall times
when your trust was rewarded even when you had been initially
disappointed??
(John Byrne osa Intercom December 2015/January 2016)
MUSINGS
The words of political theorist Hannah Arendt confront us on this World
Day of Migrants and Refugees: ‘The conception of human rights, based
upon the assumed existence of a human being, as such, broke down at
the very moment when those who professed to believe in it were for the
first time confronted with people who had indeed lost all other qualities
and specific relationships – except that they were still human. The world
found nothing sacred in the abstract nakedness of being human ... it
seems that a man who is nothing but a man has lost the very qualities
that make it possible for other people to treat him as a fellow-man’.
(Salvador Ryan in Intercom December 2015/January 2016)
THE DEEP END • WORLD DAY OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES
During this past year we have watched, in almost disbelief, as hundreds
of thousands of people flee their homes in Syria and other parts of the
world. The image of three year old Aylan Kurdi, washed up on a beach
last August as his family attempted to reach safety, caused complete
outrage around the world. For a while we reacted and acted and called
for an immediate response from our governments. Not since WWII have
so many people been forced from their homes. So much can be said
today about this crisis and we must continue to ask ourselves: how can
we respond?
We must always be ready to welcome the refugee and migrant. Our faith
is one of hospitality, compassion and mercy. In the Gospel today, Mary
urges the disciples to ‘do whatever he tells you’ and we see Jesus perform
a sign that shows he has come for the transformation of that which
causes barriers to God’s Kingdom. The refugee crisis may challenge us but
as people of the Gospel of Mercy, we must respond:
‘Mercy nourishes and strengthens solidarity towards others as a
necessary response to God’s gracious love… Each of us is responsible for
his or her neighbour: we are our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers, wherever
they live. Concern for fostering good relationships with others and the
ability to overcome prejudice and fear are essential ingredients for
promoting the culture of encounter, in which we are not only prepared to
give, but also to receive from others. Hospitality, in fact, grows from both
giving and receiving.’ Pope Francis.
(Jane Mellett)
‘Migrants and refugees challenge us. The response of the Gospel of
mercy’ is the theme set for the international day, which take s place just
over a month after the commencement of the Jubilee Year of Mercy.
Pope Francis wants to highlight two aspects of this theme. The first half
of the title ‘Migrants and refugees challenge us,’ ‘aims to create
awareness about the dramatic reality of migrants and refugees who are
forced to abandon their homelands.’ The second half of the title, ‘The
Gospel’s response is mercy,’ ‘aims to draw an explicit link between the
migration phenomenon and the response of the world, in particular the
Church.’ Pope invites to reflect on the physical and spiritual works of
mercy during the jubilee, that includes welcoming foreigners.
(Both items above are taken from Intercom, Dec. 2015/Jan. 2016)