Weekly Bulletin 17th April 2022 (Easter Sunday)

Today is Easter Sunday. This is the most important and oldest festival of the Christian calendar. St. Bede who lived in the sixth century maintained that the English word “Easter” came from “Eostre” who was the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring and fertility. In Latin and Greek the Christian celebration of Easter is still called “Pascha”. This word denotes the Jewish festival, known in English, as Passover.  The feast of Passover commemorates the Jewish exodus from slavery in Egypt. We, Christians, celebrate the fact that Jesus Christ by his death and resurrection has freed us not from slavery in Egypt but from sin and death. The opening prayer of Mass on Easter Sunday morning states: “O God who on this day through your only begotten Son have conquered death and unlocked for us the path to eternity….” One of the customs on Easter Day when I was a child was, with the rest of my siblings, rolling hard boiled eggs down a hill. The eggs were boiled mixed with the flower of the whin bush which turned the shell of the egg yellow. The egg that travelled the farthest while remaining intact – wins the game! This ancient medieval egg-rolling game symbolised the rolling away of the stone from Christ’s tomb.  It was fun but Easter has little to do with childish games. G. K. Chesterton in his book “Everlasting Man” wrote “On the third day the friends of Christ coming at daybreak to the place found the grave empty and the stone rolled away. In varying ways they realised the new wonder; but even they hardly realised that the world had died that night. What they were looking at was the first day of a new creation, with a new heaven and a new earth; and in a semblance of the gardener God walked again in the garden, in the cool not of the evening but of the dawn”. What we celebrate today is not about Easter eggs or bunnies or daffodils or Spring but it is about a body that is risen.  It is about a dead Jesus who has come back to harass us.  Who urges us to fight for justice, who is appalled that every six seconds a child dies in our world because of hunger. Pope Francis said: “Putting the paschal mystery at the centre of our lives means feeling compassion towards the wounds of the crucified Christ present in the many innocent victims of wars, in attacks on life, from that of the unborn to that of the elderly, and various forms of violence. They are likewise present in environmental disasters, the unequal distribution of the earth’s goods, human trafficking in all its forms and the unbridled thirst for profit, which is a form of idolatry” Happy Easter to all from the community at the Graan.

Thank you to all our Readers, Ushers, Ministers of the Eucharist and all who helped during the Holy Week ceremonies. It was a privilege for us also to celebrate the sacrament of Reconciliation with so many people this past week. Your faith and commitment to Christ spurs each one of us to be better disciples of the Risen Lord.

Thanks also the collection last week. It came to £2100. Your generosity is very much appreciated. The Easter collection this week is taken up for the community. 

Exposition: Continues each Friday from 10am – 2pm.

Easter Monday (18^th) & Easter Tuesday (19th) Mass will be at 11am only. There will be no 7pm Mass. The shop will be open until 1pm on Monday & Tuesday.

(Confessions & duty) resumes on Wednesday (20th) from 2pm – 5pm  – Victor.  Thursday  – Brian.  Fri –  Anthony. Saturday 5 – 6pm. Sat – Anthony.   

Guild Mass Cards: Deceased, Mass Bouquets, Get Well, Wedding. Cost £2 / €2.50. We have confirmation and Holy Communion items etc.