Saint Charles Swinton
Parish Newsletter
12 May 2013
The Ascension of the Lord
Page 276 in Mass Book
Painful Goodbyes
and Ascension.
The Coming
Week
Among the deeper mysteries in life
perhaps the one we struggle with the most
is the mystery of the Ascension. It's not
so much that we misunderstand it, we
simply don't understand it.
Sunday
12 May
What is the Ascension?
Historically it was an event within the life
of Jesus and the early church and is now a
feast-day for Christians, one that links
Easter to Pentecost. But it is more than an
historical event, it is at the same time a
theology, a spirituality, and an insight into
life that we need to understand to better
sort out the paradoxical interplay between
life and death, presence and absence, love
and loss.
Mass - 8.45 am and 11.00am.
Why is it better sometimes that we go
away?
Any parent with grown children has heard
similar words from their children, unspoken
perhaps but there nonetheless. When
young people leave home to go to college or
to begin life on their own, what they are
really saying to their parents is: "Mum and
dad, it is better that I go away. You will be
sad now, but your sadness will turn to joy.
If I don't go, I will always be your little
boy or little girl but I will be unable to give
you my life as an adult. So please don't
cling to the child you once had or you will
never be able to receive my adulthood. I
need to go away now so that our love can
come to full bloom.” The pain in this kind of
letting go is often excruciating, as parents
know, but to refuse to do that is to
truncate life.
The same is true for the mystery of
death. For example: I was 22 years old
when in the space of four months both of
my parents, still young, died. For my
siblings and me the pain was searing.
Initially we were nearly overwhelmed with
a sense of being orphaned, abandoned, of
losing a vital life-connection (that,
ironically, we had mostly taken for granted
until then). And our feelings were mainly
cold, there's little that's warm in death.
Continued over…………….
The Ascension of
The Lord
Monday
13 May
Our Lady of Fatima
8.30am Mass
11.00am Funeral Mass in Saint
Mary’s cemetery chapel for
James Thornhill, RIP, aged 78 of
Thornmere Close.
Tuesday
14 May
St Matthias, Apostle
Chosen by the apostles to replace Judas
Iscariot, so that the number of apostles
might remain twelve. Tradition has it that
Matthias went on to preach in Ethiopia.
8.30am Mass
7.45pm. Swinton and
Pendlebury Churches Together
hold their meeting at Holy Rood
church.
Wednesday
15 May
8.30am Mass
7.30pm RCIA –
This week we will be looking at
the second DVD of Fr. Henry
Wansborough’s talks on the
Trinity as part of our Year of
Faith series.
Thursday 16 May
8.30am Mass
7.30pm the latest in the series
“Women Speaking Wisdom”.
This week – Saint Therese of Lisieux.
All welcome – at Saint Joseph’s
Convent, Greenleach Lane.
Friday
17 May
8.30am Mass
“Bag to School” Day.
Do you have any unwanted clothes,
curtains, sheets, blankets, (but not
pillows or duvets), shoes (tied
together please) soft toys, belts or
handbags?
These items can be recycled to
raise money for our school. Please
take a look to see if you could
make a donation.
The collection van is coming to
Moorside Rangers Car Park at 9 a.m.
on Friday 17th May. Bags are
available in the church porch but
any bag will do
Saturday 18 May
9.00am Mass in Cemetery.
11.30am - 12noon
Sacrament of Reconciliation
Sunday
19 May
Pentecost Sunday
3.00pm The children of our
Sacramental Programme will be
celebrating the Sacrament of
Confirmation.
6.30pm Moorside churches
monthly ecumenical worship.
This month in Holy Rood church
will be a words and music event
with “Paradise Lost and Paradise
Regained” as the theme.
********************************
But time is a great healer. After a while,
and for me this took several years, the
coldness disappeared and my parents'
deaths were no longer a painful thing. I
felt again their presence, and now as a
warm, nurturing spirit that was with me all
time. The coldness of death turned into a
warmth. They had gone away but now they
could give me their love and blessing in a
way that they never could fully while they
were alive. Their going away eventually
created a deeper and purer presence.
The mystery of love and intimacy
contains that paradox: To remain present
to someone we love we have to sometimes
be absent, in ways big and small. In the
paradox of love, we can only fully bless
each other when we go away. That is why
most of us only "get" the blessing our loved
ones were for us after they die.
And this is even true, perhaps
particularly so, in cases where our loved
ones were difficult characters who
struggled for peace or to bless anyone in
this life. Death washes clean and releases
the spirit and, even in the case of people
who struggled to love, we can after their
deaths receive their blessing in way we
never could while they were alive. Like
Jesus, they could only give us their real
presence by going away.
"It is better for you that I go away!"
These are painful words most of the time,
from a young child leaving her mother for a
day to go to school, to the man leaving his
family for a week to go on a business trip,
to the young man moving out of his family's
house to begin life on his own, to a loved
one saying goodbye in death. Separation
hurts, goodbyes bring painful tears, and
death of every kind wrenches the heart.
But that is part of the mystery of love.
Eventually we all reach a point where what
is best for everyone is that we go away so
that we can give our spirit. The gift that
our lives are can only be fully received
after we ascend.
edition (June) of Bible Alive is
also available.
Caritas Diocese of Salford
wishes to recruit a
registered Social Worker to
our Adoption Support
Team. This position will be
based in Salford. For more
information and to download an
application form please visit
www.caritassalford.org.uk/jobs
**********************************
Sainsbury’s
Vouchers….
Once again, an appeal from the
uniformed organisations for
your vouchers – there is a box in
the porch and the last date for
collecting them instore is 22
May.
“Cubs Clean Up”
Thank you to the cubs for their
clean up around the grounds of
the church recently. This was
part of their “Cub Good Turn”
project.
**********************************
Praying for the Sick….
I have now changed the way we
include the sick on the Bidding
Prayer list each Sunday.
I am now following the same
practice as I do with those who have
recently died and those whose
anniversaries we remember- simply
keeping names of the sick on for
three weeks, unless asked to keep
them on for a further period of time.
From next week therefore, I will just
include these plus anyone I
personally know is seriously ill.
Community
Garden
Plans are now well afoot now.
What we need are some willing
hands to do the preliminary ground
work.
Many thanks to all for you who have
completed forms with promise of
tools or time.
You will be contacted very soon.
Meanwhile, we are pleased to have
support from B&Q along with the
company working on the new store
in the precinct.
*********************************
New Offertory
Envelopes…
are at the back of church.
Please take the set with your name on.
Please check the boxes on the
table at the back of church again
as more have been added.
Anyone who pays tax and hasn’t
already done so, please do think of
signing up for Gift Aiding your
offerings.
If you have taken box Numbers
70; 92; 126; or 135. Please will
you put your name and address in
your next envelope.
*********************************
Lourdes Water
There are still some bottles of
water brought back from
Lourdes by Liz Lord. You are free
to take one from the back of
church. She has also brought
back a candle.
All this is a thank you from the
HCPT for your generous
support of their recent
pilgrimage.
**********************************
*********************************
Crusader Magazine.
Mission Appeal. The
The May edition is now on the
table at the back of church and
as always is free. The latest
Columban Missioners are very
grateful for your generous
response to last week’s appeal
which raised £417.84
A member of Churches Together in Swinton and Pendlebury
Parish Priest: Rev Mgr Paul F Smith STL   0161 794 1089   paulsmith@saintcharles.freeserve.co.uk website: www.stcharlesswinton.co.uk
MASS TIMES
Saturday: 6.00 pm (First Mass of Sunday)
Sunday
 8.45 am (Church Parade every second
Sunday of the month)
 11.00 am (with children's Liturgy of the
Word)
Registered Charity No. 250037
SACRAMENT OF
RECONCILIATION
Saturdays: 11.30 am to 12.00 noon
and after evening Mass
BAPTISMS
By appointment. Parents are expected to
attend a course of preparation.
Monday to Friday: usually 8.30 am
WEDDINGS
Holy Days
7.30 pm (eve), 8.30 am
Six months notice is normally required.
Saint Vincent de Paul Society
Monthly as announced
Union of Catholic Mothers
First and third Tuesdays at 7.15pm
Beaver Scouts
Mondays in school at 6.00pm
Cub Scouts
Tuesdays in school at 6.00 pm
Brownies
Wednesdays in school at 6.00 pm
Rainbows
Thursdays in school at 6.00 pm
If you would like to receive this weekly newsletter by e-mail please give me your e-mail address.
*********************************
A member of Churches Together in Swinton and Pendlebury
Parish Priest: Rev Mgr Paul F Smith STL   0161 794 1089   paulsmith@saintcharles.freeserve.co.uk website: www.stcharlesswinton.co.uk
MASS TIMES
Saturday: 6.00 pm (First Mass of Sunday)
Sunday
 8.45 am (Church Parade every second
Sunday of the month)
 11.00 am (with children's Liturgy of the
Word)
Registered Charity No. 250037
SACRAMENT OF
RECONCILIATION
Saturdays: 11.30 am to 12.00 noon
and after evening Mass
BAPTISMS
By appointment. Parents are expected to
attend a course of preparation.
Monday to Friday: usually 8.30 am
WEDDINGS
Holy Days
7.30 pm (eve), 8.30 am
Six months notice is normally required.
Saint Vincent de Paul Society
Monthly as announced
Union of Catholic Mothers
First and third Tuesdays at 7.15pm
Beaver Scouts
Mondays in school at 6.00pm
Cub Scouts
Tuesdays in school at 6.00 pm
Brownies
Wednesdays in school at 6.00 pm
Rainbows
Thursdays in school at 6.00 pm
If you would like to receive this weekly newsletter by e-mail please give me your e-mail address.