What are we here for? - St Alban's Monthly News - St Alban's Church, Macclesfield
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St Alban’s Monthly News
The FREE monthly magazine of St Alban’s Parish, Macclesfield
Online at www.stalbanmacc.org.uk
Issue No. 201 August 2020
September/October 2020
Our mission is to be a loving Catholic community in Macclesfield, assisted by prayer and
the sacraments, proclaiming God’s Word, serving all in need.
What are we here for?
A pious and learned friend of mine pointed me in the about the part we all must play in the Earth’s story and
direction of an article in The Tablet written by author in the countless stories of the poor in our midst and
and former Master of the Dominican Order, Timothy around the world, it is beholden on all of us to find our
Radcliffe. I’ve repeated its headline above as it, and the own answer to the question, ‘What are we here for?’
article, have been a constant presence in those times It’s the question which will be posed to anyone facing a
(all too infrequent and too short these days), when I’ve crossroads in their life, whether to retire, change jobs,
stopped in order to listen to what God is asking of me. finish our education, start a family, move to a new
The article takes as its starting point, Elijah’s visit to house – what should we do next? No matter what our
Mount Horeb in 1 Kings 19 when he staggers to the circumstance, we each face a bleak and uncomfortable
Mount of God seeking God’s help. The narrative pivots winter, throughout which we will need to act with kind-
around the question that God puts to Elijah before and ness and consideration for others, putting the health
after the great epiphany, in translation from Hebrew, needs of strangers ahead of our own will. The core of
‘What are you here for?’ Proof, if it were needed, that our Christian values out on display for all to see.
God’s questions are much more disconcerting than his My friend knew I would be interested in Timothy
commandments. Radcliffe’s article because he quoted the words of St
Alone on the mountain, Elijah is confronted with the John Henry Newman which are pinned to the board
question we must all ask ourselves, ‘What are we here next to my desk which I read before starting work each
for?’, after he rages and roars ‘like a mighty storm’ with day, “God has created me to do Him some definite
a series of ‘I’ statements which put himself at the centre service. He has committed some work to me which He
of the Elijah story, God interrupts and commands Elijah has not committed to another. I have my mission. I may
to ‘play his part in a story that is not primarily about him.’ never know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next. I
As we celebrate the close of another successful Season am the link in a chain, a bond of connection between
of Creation where we challenged ourselves to think persons. He has not created me for naught.”
KJ
Page 2 St Alban’s Monthly News
First Saturdays Devotion
Saturday 3 October and 7 November 2020
To attend in person, book
your place online via the Located in the Parish Library: Spirituality 271
Parish website or
call 07783 350 014 Swimming in
(10:30am-1:00pm Mon-Fri.)
Rosary 10:30am, the sun
Consecration Prayer and
Discovering the
Reparation to the
Lord’s Prayer
Immaculate Heart of Mary,
with Francis of
followed by Adoration of the
Assisi and Thomas
blessed Sacrament and
Merton
Confessions at 11am with
Holy Mass at 12 noon. BY
Fr Albert Haase
Cheshire East Carers’ Hub O.F.M.
Chat line Tel: 0330 022 5448 is open 24hrs 7 days a
week 365 days a year
“Saying the Pater Noster is like swimming
Cheshire East Young Carers Hub
This project supports young carers between 5 to 18yrs in the heart of the sun”
Tel: 0300 303 0208 Monday - Friday 8.00am - 6.00pm
Saturday 9.00am - 12.30pm "We need to see good in ourselves in order
Email: enquiries@cheshireeastcarershub.co.uk
www.cheshireeastcarershub.co.uk to love ourselves. God does not. He loves us
HEALING MONTHLY HEALING MASS not because we are good, but because He
SERVICE
Keep an eye on the website, social is" (Merton)
media and in the weekly bulletin for
information of when the next
healing service is taking place. Father Haase has combined the best of St.
Francis and Thomas Merton to produce a
HOLY FATHER’S PRAYER
very helpful, thought-provoking book on
INTENTIONS for September
and October the meaning and direction of The Lord's
Respect for the Planet's Resources Prayer.
We pray that the planet's resources will not
be plundered, but shared in a just and He challenges us to renounce the superflu-
respectful manner.
ous in our lives, to identify more deeply
The Laity's Mission
in the Church with the poor, and to have a profound
We pray that by the
reverent respect for all creation. “To be a
virtue of baptism, the
laity, especially God-seeker demands that we be awake
women, may
participate more in and alert to the here and now, to
areas of responsibility
surrender to the present moment ”.
in the Church.
St Alban’s Monthly News Page 3
S.V.P. AWARENESS MONTH
was in September 2020,
but our support of their work should last all year
An update on St. Alban's St Vincent de Paul's Society's aided direct debits. You are all life changers and
work since September 2019. savers. God bless and reward you all for your
generosity to those in need.
All of us are painfully aware of how these last 5 months,
since the outbreak of Covid 19 with it's many Please make cheques payable to: St. Alban's S.V.P.
restrictions, has affected our daily lives. Even the publi- Society and pop through Presbytery letterbox, and if
cation of this monthly newsletter on line, rather than a you wish to join us, a name and telephone number
paper copy restricts yet again open access to it, by would be appreciated, delivered the same way. We will
many of our parishioners who have no access to the get back to you. Promise.
internet or smart phones. Just a few updates on what we did with your donations
This pandemic, with all the imposed restrictions to most since last September.
people's lives, in an effort to eliminate further spread of • Annual Appeal raised: £4,009,34 including Gift aid.
this deadly virus to the wider population, has greatly
• School uniforms to present time. £1,553.66
impacted on the core work of the S.V.P. which is to visit
the lonely and the house bound amongst us. We carry • General Assistance, to those in need, includes
on this work on your behalf and it is a privilege to do so. food, utility payments etc. £6,276.00
Time is a gift we can all afford to give, no matter how • Christmas Hampers: we made up and delivered
short it is. However we keep in contact as best we can 102 hampers. Costing £2,223.92
by phoning them regularly and helping as able. We are supporting 4 S.V.P. Conferences, known as
Many of our members are retired and some suffer with Twinnage Conferences. 3 in Kerala, India. and 1 In
health issues which have caused. them to be South Sudan at £150.00 yearly. £600.00 in total. We
"sheltered" and reliant on fellow members to supply are supporting the training of 1 Doctor and 1 Nurse in
and deliver food shopping!! We have been reliant on Kerala at the cost of £190.00
our few younger and fitter members over these last Due to your outstanding generosity to the Sudan Baby
months to carry out the bulk of our normal work. Be it Food Appeal before Christmas 19, 84 babies will be fed
food shopping, providing lifts to appointments at for a year, your donations incl gift aid raised £4,372.53
hospital or Doctors, topping up of utility payments,
You are a wonderfully generous parish and we are truly
purchasing necessary articles to daily living. Over the
blessed every time we request your help. We keep you
summer months they have been purchasing new
in our prayers.
school uniforms and shoes, for disadvantaged children
starting or returning to school this month. Thank you all for reading. God bless you all.
Because of restrictions, we have been unable to visit
By Margaret Barnett, President,
people at home, hospital, care or nursing homes. We
St Alban's S.V.P. Society
had to cancel our yearly Afternoon Tea Party, the
Monday Club meetings, even our own weekly
meetings. The inability to attend funerals is a particular St Vincent de Paul Society (SVP)
loss. Several of our clients have died over the months, Turning Concern into Action
and the loss of a valued and much loved member
Our core work is to visit and befriend people in need,
Noreen Renshaw has been a particular sorrow. providing practical and moral support through
You will all be pleased that this September I will not be one to one contact. This work has been severely
curtailed by the social distancing guidance, but we
giving my Annual Appeal from the pulpit. However if continue to pray for those in need and do what we
you feel drawn to join us, or offer some money to help can to help
us in our work, we will gladly accept all offerings with
DO YOU NEED OUR HELP?
grateful thanks. We are all so grateful to those parish-
ioners who keep us going by their regular, monthly, gift Then contact Margaret on 07881 895540
Page 4 St Alban’s Monthly News
Celebrating another successful
Season of Creation
Jubilee of the Earth:
New Rhythms, New Hope
Sunday 4th October 2020
Celebration and Feast of St Francis of Assisi
Join in one of the local or global services
to focus on taking action on climate change
Continue to live as good stewards of God’s creation taking care
of yourself, people, animals and the environment that He has
blessed us with.
All Masses
St Alban’s Church, Chester Rd SK11 8JD
10.00am St Michael’s Church,
Market Place SK10 1DY
No to plundering. Yes to sharing
The Pope has The message
repeated his “We are squeezing out the planet's goods. Squeez-
concern for the ing them out, as if the earth were an orange.
environment and
“Countries and businesses from the global north
support for the Day
have enriched themselves by exploiting the natural
of Prayer for
resources of the south, creating an "ecological debt."
Creation released
st Who is going to pay this debt?
on 1 September in a video calling for our rededica-
tion to our common home - the planet. “In addition, this "ecological debt" is increased when
multinationals do abroad what they
The message available at https://
would never be allowed to do in their
www.youtube.com/watch?
own countries. It's outrageous.
v=Ziryacd5vIw
“Today, not tomorrow; today, we have
It reinforces his intention from
to take care of Creation responsibly.
September: “We pray that the
planet's resources will not be “Let us pray that the planet's resources
plundered, but shared in a just and will not be plundered, but shared in a
respectful manner. just and respectful manner.”
St Alban’s Monthly News Page 5
Keeping the Parish Connected
Did you know the Parish has a Zoom account?
Parishioners and group leaders alike can book
an online meeting and share the link with
invitees. It’s a great way to stay in touch when
we can’t be together as often as we’d like.
To book a meeting and get the link, contact
Anna Hughes by emailing
aga_hughes@lineone.net
Fr Peter’s Zoom Coffee Morning, after 9:30 Mass each week
To get the link contact Anna as above
Monthly News Editor: Karyn Johnston
E: karynmjohnston@gmail.com T: 01625 501172
Contributions welcome from Parish
all groups and individuals in
the Parish Centre
Copy deadline: Last Monday of the month for
inclusion in the following month’s edition
Advertising: Contact Karyn as above Rates
£6/ single insertion (width 6cms x depth 4cms) Booking Secretary
£30 for six months
Required
Website: This month’s and previous editions of
the Monthly News are available at The Parish needs a volunteer to co-ordinate
www.stalbanmacc.org.uk the bookings to avoid clashes and make
best use of our Parish Centre facilities
To find out what the role entails, email
Anne Hannon annehannan@talktalk.net
or call her on 428 850
Page 6 St Alban’s Monthly News
A Harvest Fast Day like no other…
Usually around this time Fr Peter would have al-
lowed me to speak to you after Mass to ask for
your support for CAFOD and the Harvest Fast Day.
Each year, I have been overwhelmed by the gener-
osity the Parish has shown to this appeal.
This year, such an appeal can’t be made and Mass
attendances are restricted and there is no collec-
tion by envelope, but the problems of the poor re-
main. Now more than ever, let us stand alongside
the poorest and most vulnerable families and help You can still give to CAFOD
them to rebuild their lives. quite easily:
First - pray: SCAN: the QR code on the church door at St
Alban’s, Macclesfield
A Prayer for Harvest Fast Day
TEXT: simply text the word CAFOD to 70085 to
God, you call us out of darkness. donate £10 (to vary the amount put a whole
May we hear your voice in the cry of our brothers number after the CAFOD e.g. CAFOD1, CAFOD27)
and sisters in crisis. You will receive a text acknowledgment and an
As you walk alongside us always, option to GiftAid. (If your reply states your donation
cannot be processed, check your network’s safety
May we walk beside one another listening
buffer and adjust it to include the amount you wish
and responding in love. to donate. You can then reset the safety buffer.)
Shine the light of your compassion through us, ONLINE: cafod.org.uk/give and click the link
dispelling chaos, fear and despair. Donate now – one-off, or regular donations
Breathe hope and courage into all our hearts PHONE: 0303 303 3030 (Though please bear in
as we work together to rebuild once more. mind that CAFOD has only a skeleton staff in their
Strengthen us, Lord, and keep us steadfast. office at present)
Bring healing and comfort to all MAIL: send cheques made payable to CAFOD to
Romero House, Westminster Bridge Road, London
and lead us renewed into your marvellous light.
SE1 7JB
We ask this through Christ our Lord,
What else can you do?
Amen.
Use Social media and spread the word:
Second – support:
Harvest Family Fast Day will continue
To focus on the coronavirus appeal and our
need to respond across the world.
To focus on those who are already
disadvantaged to survive and rebuild their
lives in the face of this pandemic…
….and to heal our world in the face of this
pandemic.
St Alban’s Monthly News Page 7
This picture is from the Homa Bay
area of Kenya. CAFOD has been
paying for food and hand-washing
supplies for vulnerable families
here during the coronavirus out-
break.
Thank you for anything you have
done during the last few months
to raise money or awareness for
our work. If it’s slipped your mind,
and you’d like to support visit
cafod.org.uk and follow the links.
As we approach the end of the
summer, we look ahead to our
Harvest Fast Day appeal, which
will be focussed on our contin-
ued coronavirus response. Our
Harvest appeal has never been
more needed, nor in more challenging circum- counted upon. How exactly Harvest Fast Day will
stances. There is much you can do to help, and be managed is still to be worked out. I’ll know
more than ever, we need you! what’s happening shortly and will publish the de-
At the moment, no one quite knows at what stage tails in the October edition of the Monthly News.
we’ll in resuming our parish life, but I think it’s fairly Let’s come together as a parish to help the poorest
safe to say it’ll be far from normal. This will make and most vulnerable people in the world survive,
our Harvest Fast Day more of a challenge, but I rebuild and heal.
know that the generosity of our parish can be Jerome Johnston
Join CAFOD events online:
Thursday 8th October
• 9.30 am: Primary Schools’ Assembly
• 10am: Secondary Schools’ Assembly
Friday 9th October “With our gaze fixed on
• 11am: Listen to our live talk about the latest
Jesus and with the
on our coronavirus response. certainty that His love is
operative through the
• 6pm: Our Harvest Family Fast Day community of His
livestreamed Mass. disciples, we must all act
Saturday 10th October together in the hope of
• 12pm: Its lunch time! Join our Global Family generating something
Food event from your own kitchen. different and better. Christian hope, rooted
in God, is our anchor. It moves the will to
• 7pm: Join us for the ultimate Family Fast Day share, strengthening our mission as
online quiz! disciples of Christ, who shared everything
Sunday 11th October with us."
• 10am: Children's Liturgy Live - Pope Francis
Harvest Special. General Audience, 26 August 2020
Page 8 St Alban’s Monthly News
Pope Francis - on Healing the World
“In our reflection on the current global pandemic, we have seen that it has made us sensitive to an even
graver virus affecting our world: that of social injustice, lack of equal opportunity and the marginalisation of
the poor and those in greatest need.”
“Christ’s example and teaching show us that a preferential option for the poor is an essential
criterion of our authenticity as his followers.”
“May the gospel inspire us to find ever more creative ways to exercise that charity, grounded in faith and
anchored in hope, which can heal our wounded world and promote the true welfare of our entire human
family.” General Audience of 19 August 2020
To 1st September, CAFOD has raised £2,500,000 in its Coronavirus appeal.
Here are just three examples of how your donations have helped the world’s poor.
Brazil – Paraiba State
Distributing bags of cassava.
Local farmers supported by partner CPT Joao Pessoa in
Paraíba state are supplying healthy organic food to
vulnerable families during the coronavirus pandemic.
Farmers have supplied pineapples, papayas, cassava and
leafy vegetables which were then distributed by the local
government to families in need of food.
Myanmar
Northern Shan State is an area affected by conflict.
A nurse from a local hospital highlighted the need for
medical supplies before coronavirus hit the local area.
In response, volunteers and staff from the Ecovillage
Design alumni came together to make and distribute
supplies. CAFOD has been funding the Freeland
Organization and supporting the Ecovillage Design
alumni since 2016.
Kenya
Caritas Marsabit with the support from the CAFOD supported the
county department of health with 386 alcohol-based hand
sanitisers to minimise the spread of the deadly virus.
Thorough hand washing is an essential way to save health and
prevent the spread of illness, particularly during cold and flu
season.
The event was launched by the County governor at Marsabit
referral hospital.
St Alban’s Monthly News Page 9
Page 10 St Alban’s Monthly News
Our Lady of Fatima
Celebration of the Miracle of Fatima 13 October
When our Lady of Fatima appeared at It should be noted that the sudden
Fatima in Portugal in 1917 she asked dissolution of the Soviet Communism
for a prayer and penance in order to occurred in the early 1990s on the 21st
bring peace to the world the first world August, the Feast of the Queenship of
war raged and it was the year of the our Lady.
Russian Revolution Mary promised special graces to those
“I have come to warn the faithful to who, on the first Saturday of five con-
amend their lives and ask pardon for secutive months, confess and receive
their sins” holy communion recite five decades of
“Say the rosary every day, to obtain the rosary and keep her company for
peace for the world.” 15 minutes while meditating on the
mysteries of the rosary, with the
“Pray, pray a great deal and make
intention of making reparations to her
sacrifices for sinners…”
Immaculate Heart.
“God wishes to establish in the world the
We have the opportunity to fulfil these devotions every
devotion to my Immaculate Heart. If people do what
first Saturday here at St Alban’s.
I tell you, many souls will be saved and there will be
peace.” 9:30 Mass on Tuesday 13th October 2020
“Tell everyone that God gives graces through the We celebrate the Feast of our Lady of Fatima on the
Immaculate Heart of Mary.” 13th May each year and this month, the Celebration of
“In the end my Immaculate Heart will triumph, the Miracle of Fatima will take place at the 9:30 Mass
Russia will be converted and there will be peace!” on Tuesday 13th October 2020.
Our Lady’s appearances to the three children Lucia, At the Mass, special prayers will
Jacinta and Francisco began on the 13th May and be said and a procession with the
continued each month until the 13th October. At this statute of El Niño (the child
final appearance to the children in Fatima 70,000 Jesus, who especially honoured
people witnessed a miracle is a sign with this title in the image this
from God of the veracity of the visions. image of the Philippines) and the
This was seen by believers, sceptics statue of our Lady of Fatima.
and atheists and was reported widely in
the news. It is known as the miracle of Novena Prayers at Home
the Sun. Would you like the privilege of
Our lady appeared again to Lucia in welcoming the statues of Our
1929 telling her that “God asks the Holy Father, in Lady and of the child Jesus into your home? On the
union with all the bishops of the world, to make the first Saturday of each month they are taken to a
consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart, house where there are novena prayers said and they
promising to save it by these means”. Successive stay until following for Saturday
Popes did this and St. John Paul II renewed this Con- If you would like to receive the many blessings
secration fully, in union with the bishops all around the obtained by this please contact Pacita and the team
world in Rome on the 25th March 1984. on telephone (01625) 423679St Alban’s Monthly News Page 11
CST – Catholic Social Teaching – is the common Solidarity links with another set of
sense blueprint established by the Church for the words not heard that often – the
Gospel in action in the world. preferential option for the poor,
But it is known as the best kept Catholic secret, The poor include all in need of any
partly because it is expressed in scholarly tomes sort. No wonder the Pope speaks
with many words used in special ways and or a bit of the “Church of the poor and for the poor” and
away from everyday talk, ….Take subsidiarity. of his vision of the Church as “field-hospital.”
Subsidiarity - the idea that people Some thoughts in this context:
should live lives in dignity not
dictated more than is necessary
from above. This also means that
we are all entitled to contribute our
talents to the structures in which we live. Hence the
Pope’s prayer intention for October is The Laity's
Mission in the Church
We pray that by the virtue of baptism, the laity,
especially women, may participate more in areas
of responsibility in the Church.
JDI AGM will give a clear picture of work for young
Solidarity - a word not on people in challenging times
everyone’s lips every day but one Information from tori.allen@justdropin.co.uk
defined by Archbishop Tutu as the
Zoom Talks this month on the theme of food
instinct and the calling to go to the
aid of anyone in difficulty not poverty.
limiting oneself to friends and family. Tuesday 6th October The work of Cre8
Hence the expectation on the part of Cafod in their Tuesday 28th October The work of Macclesfield Silk-
Coronavirus Appeal on Harvest Fast Day life Food Bank
https://tinyurl.com/HFDOct For details Contact Keith Taylor (J&P Group)
skeithtayl2@outlook.com
of More about CST next month.
Meantime take a look down under
https://www.caritas.org.au/learn/cst
A Monthly New s series of introductory notes on Catholic Social TeachingPage 12 St Alban’s Monthly News
Mass and prayer session schedule
Morning Prayer and all Masses continue to be livestreamed on:
http://www.stalbanmacc.org.uk/stalbanslivestreamhtml
In-person Prayer and Mass attendance
Book your seat for Mass or Prayer Session on the Parish website or using this link:
Church Attendance
or by telephone on 07783 350 014 between 10:30am - 1:00pm Monday to Friday
Sacrament of Reconciliation has been re-instated at the usual time of Saturday 11am-11:45am.
Booking is not required, but please follow instructions of the stewards and wear a face covering whilst attending
At
Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday
St Alban’s
12noon
9:30am
9:30am 7:00pm 9:30am 6:30pm
11:00am Booking Booking Booking
9:30am 9:30am Vigil
Booking required for in required for in required for in
Masses Live Streamed Live Streamed Booking
required for in person worship person worship person worship
only only required for in
person worship
Also Also Also person worship
Also live streamed live streamed live streamed
Also
live streamed
live streamed
Exposition of 6:00pm- 11:00am-
the Blessed 7:00pm 12:00noon
Sacrament Live Streamed Live Streamed
Private Prayer 2:00pm
session Booking
30 minutes required
Sacrament of 11.00am –
Reconciliation 11.45am
Can you help out at the in-person Masses?
We need volunteer stewards and cleaners to help keep
everyone safe when attending St Alban’s.
If you would like to help, contact Jane Cole by emailing
jmfcole@hotmail.co.ukSt Alban’s Monthly News Page 13
In-person Mass - keeping everyone safe
Under government and Diocesan guidelines and • A steward will direct you to your seat and
approval, we are being allowed to open up our indicate your exit route for leaving church
church for socially distanced Masses. This obvi-
• Take note of the colour of the zone where you
ously can only be achieved, like the miracle of faith
have been seated as there are different exits for
itself, if everyone involved plays their part.
each zone
What you need to do
1. Decide if you are in a medically high risk At the Mass
group. There is no obligation to attend Mass at
this time, please do not come if you think you • The running order of the Mass will be different
are putting yourself or those you live with in to accommodate social distancing measures
harms way. • Mass will last for no more that 40 minutes to
2. Obtain a face covering allow for the church to be cleaned between and
like the one illustrated. after each service
Many people in the parish • The Celebrant will have full charge of all
are offering their skills preparation and assembly of the offertory items.
with a sewing machine to make these for a
donation to a nominated charity. Scarves will do • Those carrying out delegated duties in the
just as well. Disposable versions are available Mass, will practice safe social distancing, have
to buy, but please consider our Common Home adequate PPE and adhere to strict hygiene
before using anything which will take time to procedures throughout the Mass.
biodegrade and harm the environment. • Communion will be distributed upon leaving the
3. Book yourself/family a place at one of the church once Mas has ended at two locations:
five weekend Masses. The online booking the side entrance and the main entrance to
system is on the parish website If you do not church. Outstretch your cupped hands, receive
have access to the internet, you can book by the host, lift your face covering to consume and
telephone on 07783 350 014 between then exit the church
10:30am—1pm Monday to Friday • Unfortunately, there will be no individual
blessing instead of Communion; this has been
What you can expect temporarily replaced by the general
congregational blessing in the Mass
On arrival at Church
• If you do not wish to take Communion, please
• Please don your face covering still leave in the order in which your pew is
• You will be greeted by one of our volunteer dismissed by the stewards
stewards who has been trained to ensure your
safety and that of others On leaving the Church
• Please be patient as you may be asked to • Please do not move to leave until you are
queue to maintain social distancing in the ushered forward to do so by one of our
church entrance volunteer stewards
• Once inside, your booking will be checked and • Please exit the church promptly and maintain
you will be shown how to sanitise your hands social distancing if chatting in the church
with a special gizmo groundsPage 14 St Alban’s Monthly News
Happy Anniversary Fr Paschal
Having celebrated a beautiful Mass to mark the 25th Anniversary of his
ordination, Fr Paschal joined members of the parish through the magic
of Zoom.
Most of us are getting a bit more used to meeting like this, but there is
still much fun to be had to shouts of ’You’re on mute!’
We are so lucky to have Fr Paschal in our Parish and to be able to
share this milestone of his ministry is truly an honour and a privilege.
O Most Holy Trinity, we thank Thee this day and every day for our good, holy, humble,
devout, faithful, prayerful and wonderful priest, Paschal!
Thank you Paschal for answering God’s Call; for your unbounded generosity in offering
the great sacrifice of your life, exemplifying Christ in the Heart of the Church, for bringing
to us the inestimable Gifts of the Sacraments; for absolving us of our sins in the purifying
Sacrament of Reconciliation; and for offering each and every Mass, feeding our souls with
the consubstantial Bread of the Holy Eucharist, the Source and Summit of our Faith!
Amen
"O Sacrament Most Holy, O Sacrament Divine, All Praise and All Thanksgiving
Be Every Moment Thine!"St Alban’s Monthly News Page 15
Catenians Zoom to help young people
Like many organisations, Catenians meet on Zoom mentoring, working also with schools and parents.
these days. It's not ideal, the Association is about From its own bases and from community centres
friendship which normally means personal contact. in Cheshire East it supports some 1500 young
However technology is helpful. The people through personal contact and many more
August meeting illustrated this. The indirectly through its work with schools.
Macclesfield and District Circle was Covid means funding halved.
joined by a number of "visitors" from Like all charities, Visyon depends significantly on
other circles to a convivial total of thirty. funding by the public. Fun runs, coffee mornings,
A particular feature was a live briefing given by a raffles all bring in cash which actually has an
representative of Visyon. This important role to play in their operations. But with
Congleton organisation has lockdown – and social distancing – revenue is
been chosen as the Circle's down by 50%.
charity for the year. It was The things which stop people gathering affect bod-
given by Laura Whitaker, the Visyon service devel- ies like Catenians. But President David Brayford is
opment manager and there was an opportunity for determined to keep up the tradition of raising
questions and discussion. funds, this year for Visyon, even without the usual
Good comes from tragedy social activities . He
Founded some 26 years ago by the parents of a said: “It’s even more
child who had committed suicide, Visyon is a important now to en-
charity that supports the emotional health of sure their work goes
children, young people and their families. on. Young people are
having a difficult time.”
Started as a listening service Visyon has expanded
its ways of helping youngsters with counselling and
Join St Alban’s Church Cleaning Crew
One short shift in every five weeks
For more information, contact Marie Senior on 420916
Call for Cooks
Are there any volunteers available to join the Clergy Meals rota?
This entails providing one meal every 7 weeks.
A new rota is being complied for September onwards.
To find out more call Mary Loughran on 426219, or
email: maryfrommacc@msn.comTo advertise in St Alban’s Monthly News telephone Karyn Johnston on 01625 501172
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