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Showing posts from April, 2016

Sunday 1st May

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6th Sunday of Easter 11am. Solemn Mass at St. John Fisher Catholic Church Home to the Southend Ordinariate Mission Celebrant Fr. Lee Bennett Scott Hahn Reflects on the Readings of the Day The first Church council, the Council of Jerusalem we hear about in today's First Reading, decided the shape of the Church as we know it.  Some Jewish Christians had wanted Gentile converts to be circumcised and obey all the complex ritual and purity laws of the Jews. The council called this a heresy, again showing us that the Church in the divine plan is meant to be a worldwide family of God, no longer a covenant with just one nation. Today's Liturgy gives us a profound meditation on the nature and meaning of the Church. The Church is One, as we see in the First Reading: "the Apostles [bishops] and presbyters [priests], in agreement with the whole Church [laity]." The Church is Holy, taught and guided by the Spirit that Jesus promises the Apostles

Sunday 24th April 2016

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5th Sunday of Easter 11am. Solemn Mass at St. John Fisher Catholic Church Home to the Southend Ordinariate Mission Celebrant Fr. Jeff Woolnough  Scott Hahn Reflects on the Mass readings for this Sunday By God's goodness and compassion, the doors of His kingdom have been opened to all who have faith, Jew or Gentile. That's the good news Paul and Barnabas proclaim in today's First Reading. With the coming of the Church - the new Jerusalem John sees in today's Second Reading - God is "making all things new." In His Church, the "old order" of death is passing away and God for all time is making His dwelling with the human race, so that all peoples "will be His people and God Himself will always be with them." In this the promises made through His prophets are accomplished (see  Ezekiel 37:27 ;  Isaiah 25:8 ;  35:10 ). The Church is "the kingdom for all ages" that we sing of in today's Psalm. That's why w

Sunday April 10th

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Third Sunday of Easter 11am Solemn Mass at St John Fisher Catholic Church Home to the Southend Ordinariate Mission Celebrant: Fr. Bob White - Preacher: Deacon Richard Cerson         Fire of Love: Scott Hahn Reflects on the Third Sunday in Easter There are two places in Scripture where the curious detail of a "charcoal fire" is mentioned. One is in today's Gospel, where the Apostles return from fishing to find bread and fish warming on the fire. The other is in the scene in the High Priest's courtyard on Holy Thursday, where Peter and some guards and slaves warm themselves while Jesus is being interrogated inside (see John 18:18 ). At the first fire, Peter denied knowing Jesus three times, as Jesus had predicted (see John 13:38 ; 18:15-18 , 25-27 ). Today's charcoal fire becomes the scene of Peter's repentance, as three times Jesus asks him to make a profession of love. Jesus'  thrice repeated comma

Sunday April 3rd Divine Mercy

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Second Sunday of Easter Divine Mercy + 11am. Solemn Mass at St John Fisher Catholic Church Southend Ordinariate Mission Celebrant: Fr. Jeff Woolnough