Thank you for your offerings last week of £1,241.  Mass attendance 477.
Sunday 6^th August (Saturday Vigil)	The Transfiguration Of The Lord 6pm          Joel Parker RIP (A Parker)
	9.15am      Francesca M Sio RIP (J&L Sio) 11am         John Mulvey RIP (M Mulvey)
Monday 7^th August	Feria 9.30am      Peggie & Mai Linehan
Tuesday 8th August	Saint Dominic 9.30am      Thanksgiving for Annie & Patrick McGeown (C McGeown)
Wednesday 9^th August	Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross 9.30am      Betty & Tom Cotter
	10.45am    Eucharistic Adoration
Thursday 10th August	Saint Lawrence
	9.30am      Anthony Olivelle RIP (M Olivelle)
Friday 11^th August	Saint Clare 9.30am      Sarah Loughlin RIP (Pini Family)
Sunday 13^th August (Saturday Vigil)	19^th Sunday in Ordinary Time 6pm          Ann Prifty RIP (Prifty Family)
	9.15am      Francesca M Sio RIP (J&L Sio) 11am         Eileen Oshea RIP (E Gibson)

Confessions heard Saturday 5.00-5.45pm or by appointment.

Morning Prayer: Takes place Monday – Friday at 9.10am.  All are welcome to attend.

Pondering the Word (Lectio Divina)

A quiet reflective look at the following Sunday’s Gospel.  Mondays 11am - 12 noon, except for Bank Holidays, here in the church.  All welcome.

Second Collection

Next week’s second collection will be for the Parish Maintenance Fund.

Mark’s was the first Gospel to be written; he gives the basic account which Matthew and Luke both use.  This commentary looks first at Mark, then at the changes made by Matthew and Luke.  Mark’s Gospel has been described as ‘a Passion Narrative with extended introduction’.  In this second half of the Gospel, everything is overshadowed by the Passion of Jesus.  The disciples are going to be stunned and shaken by the Passion, when their loved and awesome leader is taken from them and tortured to a humiliating death.  So beforehand God allows them to see the other side, to see Jesus for what he really is.  They see his features as a heavenly person, transformed with the divine light and clothed in dazzling garments.  With him are the two heavenly figures who had experienced God on the Holy Mountain, Moses and Elijah, for this is an experience of Jesus as God.  The overshadowing cloud is further evidence of the divine presence.  The Voice that spoke to Jesus at his baptism now speaks to them all, authenticating Jesus as God’s Son and chosen teacher.  The disciples are literally ‘gob stopped’, and want to preserve the experience by building three shelters for the heavenly visions.  But such an experience, like any mystical experience of the divine, is not to last.  They must return to the business of living their daily lives in the light of this overwhelming experience.  Matthew’s account is almost the same as Mark’s.  He adds the detail of Jesus’ face shining like the sun.  This was the case with Moses when he encountered God on the Holy

Mark, and Matthew, writing for Jewish Christians, is always keen to stress that Jesus was a Second Moses.  He also changes the reaction of the disciples: in Mark, they are so scared that they do not know what to say, but in Matthew, they fall to the ground and do reverence, and Jesus gently raises them up.  Luke stresses that Jesus went up the mountain to pray.  He frequently stresses Jesus’ constant need for prayer, and many of Luke’s parables are about prayer (the Importunate Widow and the Unjust Judge, the Pharisee and the Tax Collector).  Luke also details that Jesus, Moses and Elijah were conversing about his journey up to Jerusalem, a journey that is the theme of the latter half of Luke’s gospel.

(Fr David will be on holiday for a little while from this weekend.)

“Drop-In” – Evening Surgeries

There will be no drop-in evening surgeries until further notice.  So if you would like to see Fr David, please email him or phone the parish office for an appointment.  Thank you.

One Parish Weekend

Our Autumn Festival on 30th September

This year’s Autumn Festival will be held on Saturday 30th September from 12noon to 4pm.  This is something to look forward to in September - we’ve got exciting plans! - so please put the date in your calendars now.

Thank you to everyone who attended the planning meeting on 27th July and thanks for all of your offers of help.  We would like to invite as many parishioners as possible to join in, so please read the flyer attached to Briefly to find out more.  If you would like to help (we need you!), please fill in the flyer and return it to the box in the church porch.  If you prefer, you could also email Pam who is coordinating this event at pam.lundy@stjamespettswood.org.

The Raffle tickets are now on sale, and we got some great prizes, so collect your books after Masses from this weekend onwards.

Justice & Peace Group

Foodbank current needs

Many thanks to everyone who responded to the call for food needed over the school holidays.  The Foodbank is currently asking for the following items: tinned vegetables, tomatoes and fruit, tinned meat for hot meals, tinned cold meat, rice pudding, tinned custard, squash, UHT milk.  Thank you.

Liturgy Pillar

Eucharist Adoration

takes place for an hour each Wednesday shortly after the morning Mass starting at 10.45 am and finishing at 11.45 am.  This Devotion to the Eucharist is a time of silent prayer and quiet music.  Everyone is welcome for all or part of this time of prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.

First Friday of Month - Eucharist Adoration also takes place on the 1^st Friday of each month from 7.30 pm – 9pm and concludes with Benediction.  Everyone is welcome for all or part of this time of prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.

Youth Pillar

Post-Confirmation Retreat

29^th September - 1^st October 2017

In collaboration with Southwark Catholic Youth Service, we are offering all young people who have made their Confirmation the opportunity to attend a Post-Confirmation retreat which promises both fun and faith exploration under the experienced guidance of the youth team in Whitstable (Costs tbc).  Please contact the parish office by 24^th July 2017 to register your interest.

Communications Pillar

The Parish’s Welcome Booklet

The parish’s booklet has been revised and updated.  Copies are available in the repository for £3 a copy (to cover costs).

Time and Talents Questionnaire

Thank you to everyone who has completed a questionnaire.  We will be collating the information over the next few weeks and then members of the PPC will start contacting you.  If you haven’t completed a form but would like to help there are still some spare forms at the back of the church.

Pastoral Care Pillar

Peace Candle in Our Lady’s Chapel

A quiet space is available in Our Lady’s Chapel, and a book is available for anyone who wishes to write a prayer for peace or for their own personal intentions.

Seeing a Chaplain if You Are Admitted to Hospital

Protecting personal information (data protection) is really important when you become an inpatient in hospital.

So please specifically ask hospital staff to pass on your details to the hospital’s Roman Catholic chaplain as soon as you are admitted if you would like a Chaplain to visit you.

Fr David would always be very happy to visit you too, so please ask a relative or friend to let him know about your admission.  You or they can email Fr David on father.david@stjamespettswood.org, or phone the parish office on 01689 827100.

Weekend Rotas:  Thank you for helping.

Saturday 12^th August
Cleaning the Church	A Haylock,  A Crosland, G Macmanus, K Evans

13^th August
Mass	Saturday 6pm (Vigil)	Sunday 9.15am	Sunday 11am
Welcomers	A Lench	D Hairs C Hairs	S Barradell P Benson
Readers	K Lams L Rusmini	H Denham C Hairs	M Morley P Lowe
Ministers of Holy Communion	H Rothon M Cahill C Cahill J Callinan C Cosgrave	T Forde B D’Arcy S Cotta A Ward A Hawkins	T Willard R Mwansa K Evans A Evans K Chan

Tellers

P Cosgrave, P Dabrowski