The Parish of Our Lady and St Patrick Oldham

TWENTY THIRD SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME
(YEAR B)
WEEK: SEPTEMBER 8TH - 14TH 2024

Twenty Third Sunday of Ordinary Time

“Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, the ears of the deaf unsealed”

YOUR CHARITABLE PRAYERS are requested for our parishioners and friends, especially those whose names appear below.
SICK: John and Kath Green, Joan Killeen, Eileen Killeen, Cyril and Christine Clarke, Tony Kenny, Luke Burke, Amy Howard, Dominic Boardman, Connie Marrone, Pauline Howarth, Alexander Loughlin, Mary Malone, Sheila Smith,
LATELY DEAD: Fr. Derek Woodhead, Robert Arnaud, Jeanne Townsend, Fr. Michael Gallagher, Sheila Smith, James Stott, Tom Craine, Anthony Hampson
ANNIVERSARIES: John Stephen Rigby

LAST WEEK'S COLLECTION: £758.02 (25th August) and £888.70 (1st Sept)

Standing Order: £674.00 a month

CHURCH BOXES / DONATIONS
Caritas (Homeless) £20.00
Many thanks for your kind generosity.

Our Bank: Barclays Bank - Account Name: TSDT, Our Lady and St. Patrick’s, Oldham; Sort Code 20 55 34; Account Number 90652504; Reference: Contr.

THIS SUNDAY'S MISSALETTE & HYMNS

23rd Sunday of Ordinary Time - Hymns

NOTICES:
All Masses will continue to be live streamed. A link is provided on the Parish website: www.smwsp.org.uk or via the Twitter App (@PhilipSumner13).

PARISH TEAM MEETING
There will be a parish team meeting this Thursday 12th September at 7.00pm. If you have any proposals either give them to Father Phil or put them in the suggestion box.

DIOCESAN SYNOD UPDATE
We are now entering into the Exploration Stage of our diocesan synod. Over the next four months, we will closely explore the four key themes to have emerged from our Big Listen responses. The themes are: Nurturing Faith for Tomorrow’s World, Building Connections, Enabling Access, and Fostering Christ-like Care. To find out more the first of our themes and how to get involved, please visit https://dioceseofsalford.org.uk/synod-theme-1

SOLAR PANELS ON THE PRESBYTERY
The scaffolding team will arrive this Monday and the installation will begin soon afterwards

CATHOLIC ASSOCIATION FOR RACIAL JUSTICE
As part of their 40th anniversary celebrations, the Catholic Association for Racial Justice will be holding a second conference on its ‘Agenda for change’ but, this time, here at St Patrick’s Church, Oldham, on Saturday 21st September. We will be the hosts for the day. The Bishop will attend the conference and will say Mass at 3.15pm to bring the conference to a close. I have asked our different community choirs to provide the music for the Mass. Of course, anyone is welcome to attend the conference, but you will need to inform me on Philip_sumner@tiscali.co.uk The conference begins at 10.30am. Alison Lowe (OBE) the Deputy Mayor of West Yorkshire will be the keynote speaker followed by me speaking about CARJ’s ‘Agenda for change’. Canon Michael Job will also be speaking at the event as will the Chair of our African community, Eric Olivier Kowac.

FUNDRAISING EVENT FOR FRANCIS HOUSE CHILDREN’S HOSPICE
There will be a fundraising event for Francis House on Wednesday 18th October, starting at 7.30pm in Queen Elizabeth Hall, West Street, Oldham, OL1 1QJ. Tickets are £25 per head with all proceeds going to Francis House. There will be several entertainers including Jimmy Cricket, Justin Daish (Hank Marvin tribute), Peter Sarsfield (Frankie Valli tribute) and Kimika. If you wish to go contact Jim on 0161 793 0248 or Queen Elizabeth Hall on 770 4083.

SPECIAL DAYS THIS WEEK
Monday 9th Sept. – St Peter Claver – He was born in Spain in 1580 and studied at Barcelona before becoming a Jesuit. He joined the Jesuit mission in Colombia where he spent his life ministering to the slave arriving from Africa in the most dreadful of conditions. He referred to himself as the ‘servant of the slaves.’ He continued this work until his death in 1654.
Tuesday 10th Sept. – St. Ambrose Barlow – He was born in 1585 at the still-standing Barlow Hall in Chorlton-cum-Hardy. After his studies in Douai and Valladolid, he became a Benedictine. He then returned to Manchester to work for the many Catholics of this region. He was particularly famed for his preaching, walking long distances in order to fulfil his ministry. He was imprisoned at least four times before his final arrest and execution at Lancaster in 1641. His skull is preserved at Wardley Hall, the Bishop’s residence.
Friday 13th Sept. – St. John Chrysostom – He was born in Antioch in 349 and eventually became the Bishop of Constantinople in 397. He was a powerful preacher (often referred to as ‘the golden mouthed’) and it was his preaching that caused him opposition from the Empress. He died in exile in 407.
Saturday 14th Sept. – The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.

THIS SUNDAY’S READINGS
The following is part of a reflection from Pope Francis for today: “The Gospel for today’s liturgy presents Jesus who heals a deaf man with a speech impediment. What is striking about this story is how the Lord performs this prodigious sign. He took the deaf man aside, put his finger into the man’s ears, and touched his tongue with saliva. Then he looked up to heaven, groaned, and said to him: “Ephphatha”, that is, “Be opened!” (cf Mk 7:33-34). In other healings, for infirmities as serious as paralysis or leprosy, Jesus did not do as many things. So why does he do all of this, even though they had only asked him to lay his hands on the sick man (cf. v.32)? Maybe it was because that person’s condition had a particularly symbolic value… That man was unable to speak because he could not hear. To heal the cause of his infirmity, Jesus…placed his fingers first in the man’s ears, then his mouth, but his ears first. We all have ears, but very often we are not able to hear. Why is this? Brothers and sisters, there is an interior deafness that we can ask Jesus to touch and heal today. It is interior deafness, which is worse than physical deafness, because it is the deafness of the heart. Taken up with haste, by so many things to say and do, we do not find time to stop and listen to those who speak to us. We run the risk of becoming impervious to everything and not making room for those who need to be heard. … Let us ask ourselves: how is my capacity to listen going? Do I let myself be touched by people’s lives? Do I know how to spend time with those who are close to me in order to listen?... Think about family life: how many times do we talk without listening first, ... or we do not let the other person finish talking, expressing themselves, and we interrupt them. Starting a dialogue often happens not through words but silence, by not insisting, by patiently beginning anew to listen to others, hearing about their struggles and what they carry inside. The healing of the heart begins with listening.
And the same is true with the Lord. ..Do we remember to listen to the Lord? We are Christians, but sometimes with the thousands of words we hear every day, we do not find a moment to let a few words of the Gospel resound in us… if we dedicate time to the Gospel, we will find the secret for our spiritual health. This is the medicine: every day a little silence and listening, fewer useless words and more of the Word of God. Always with the Gospel in your pocket that can help greatly. Today, as on the day of our Baptism, we hear the words of Jesus addressed to us: “Ephphatha, be opened!” Open your ears.”.

DIOCESAN JOB VACANCIES
Cleaner - Diocese of Salford - Appointment Type: Full-time, Permanent
Working Hours: 21.15 hours per week to be worked Monday to Friday, 7.45am – 12 pm. Location: Cathedral Centre 3 Ford Street, Salford, M3 6DP
Salary: £12 per hour Find out more and apply at https://dioceseofsalford.org.uk/news/vacancies

HEATING IN CHURCH
At the moment, we have had two quotations to replace the boiler, one for just less than £18,000 and another for just over £28,000! I sent these to the Diocese but, so far, I have had no response, despite a couple of emails from me to stress the urgency of the matter! Our applications for something of this cost are required to go to the Diocesan Property Committee, which only meets every so often. I suspect that the earliest we will have something will be November of this year! Please be patient and pray for warm weather!

DIOCESAN PILGRIMAGE TO LINDISFARNE
Discover the fascinating history of our Northern Saints with this one-off pilgrimage to Lindisfarne, Ripon, and Durham in celebration of our 2025 Year of Jubilee. Led by Bishop John, the pilgrimage will take place between 15th-17th May 2025.
Find out more about this and all of our pilgrimages during our Jubilee year at https://dioceseofsalford.org.uk/news/jubilee-2025/pilgrimages/

WEEKLY SERVICES
SUNDAY:	10.00am. 12.30pm (Polish Mass) 6.00pm
MONDAY:	12 noon Mass
TUESDAY:	12 noon Mass
WEDNESDAY:	12 noon Mass
THURSDAY:	12 noon Mass
FRIDAY:	12 noon Mass
SATURDAY:	12 noon Mass