1. religion and spirituality
2. christianity
3. catholicism

St Anthony’s Parish Picton
Bargo – Balmoral – Buxton – Couridjah –
Douglas Park – Lakesland – Menangle –
Picton – Pheasants Nest – Tahmoor –
Thirlmere – Wilton – Yanderra
—————————————————————
Parish Priest : Father John Ho
20 Stratford Road, Tahmoor NSW 2573.
Parish Bulletin
FOURTH SUNDAY IN ADVENT —YEAR B
ENTRANCE ANTIPHON:
Drop down dew from above, you heavens, and let the clouds rain down the
Just One; let the earth be opened and bring forth a Saviour
FIRST READING: Samuel 7:1-5, 8-12, 14, 16
A reading from the second book of Samuel
The kingdom of David will be established for ever in the sight of the Lord.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM:
For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.
SECOND READING Romans 16:25-27
A reading from the letter of St Paul to the Romans
The mystery kept secret for endless ages is now revealed..
Sunday 21 December 2014
WEEKEND MASS TIMES:
St Anthony’s Church - Tahmoor
Saturday Vigil - 6.00 pm
Sunday - 7.30am & 9.30am
WEEKDAY MASS TIMES:
Monday 8.00 am—Tahmoor
Tuesday5.30 pm—Tahmoor
Wednesday- CHRISTMAS VIGIL—7.00 pm
MIDNIGHT
Thursday
CHRISTMAS DAY - 9.00 am
Friday
NO MASS
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION:
Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the servant of the Lord:
may his will for me be done.
Alleluia!
Reconciliation (Confession)
Saturday 5.15– 5.45 pm Tahmoor and before
Sunday masses
GOSPEL: Luke 1:26-38
You will conceive and bear a son.
Adoration: Tuesday
1st Tuesday
COMMUNION ANTIPHON:
Behold, a Virgin shall conceive and bear a son; and his name will be called
Emmanuel.
St Patrick’s Church—Menangle
6.00 pm Mass on the First Sunday of the month.
NEXT WEEKS READINGS:
THE HOLD FAMILY OF JESUS, MARY AND JOSEPH -YEAR B
Sirach 3:2-6, 12-14, Col 3:12-21; Luke 2:22-40
SCRIPTURE QUESTIONS
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
How much do you think Mary
really understood at the time when
the angel appeared?
God chose Mary to be the mother
of His Son. What kind of qualities
do you think Mary had in order to
be chosen by God for such a role?
Why do you think God chose to
come to us here on earth in the
way he did?
Mary considered herself the serv
ant of the Lord. Do you see your
self as a servant of the Lord?
Share an experience when you
thought something was impossible
to happen, but with God's help, it
happened.
What is your favourite part of
Christmas?
4.30pm—5.15pm
9.00am-9.45am
Second Saturday of the Month
Arabic Mass—4.00 pm Tahmoor
Douglas Park—Sunday 9.00am Mass
OFFICE HOURS
Tuesday - Friday
9.00a.m. - 3.00p.m.
Parish Phone 4683 2230
Fr John’s Mobile 0408 671920
Parish Fax: 4683 2248
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.stanthonyspicton.org.au
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Pictonparish
STEWARDSHIP CORNER
In the first reading, God promises
King David that his house and his
kingdom will endure forever. It is
through Mary’s “Yes” — “I am the
handmaid of the Lord. Let it be done
to me as you say.” — that the promise finds fulfilment.
OUR PARISH WELCOMES : Curtis Russell who will be welcomed into our Parish this weekend and all our visitors and
As Members of St Anthony’s Parish, we share the new parishioners.
VISION STATEMENT:
responsibility of building up the spiritual and material welfare of our community by promoting DIARY DATES:
God’s values of love, justice and peace and ex- 
Monday 22 November, Mass at 8am, at Tahmoor
tending this message of goodwill beyond our im- 
First Rite of Reconciliation for Christmas will be on
mediate boundaries.
Wednesday from 11am—12noon
FOLLOW POPE FRANCIS:
PRAY WITH THE POPE IN DECEMBER
“It is so important to listen! Husbands and wives
We pray that the birth of the Redeemer may
bring peace and hope to all people of good
will. We also pray that parents may be true
evangelizers, passing on to their children the
precious gift of faith. Amen
PRAY FOR THE FAITHFUL DEPARTED:
Lord grant them eternal peace & joy and to their families
and friends strength and comfort
need to communicate to bring happiness and serenity to family life.” Pope Francis
CHRISTMAS MASS ROSTER 2014
CHRISTMAS EVE VIGIL MASS
1st Reader:
Eleanor Wright
nd
2 Reader:
Margaret Bowerman
Intercessions:
Courtney McSweeney
Eucharistic Ministers: Audrey Ferrara &
Taylah Earnshaw
RECENTLY DECEASED: Vera O’Mara, Bill McGrath, John
MIDNIGHT
Savage.
1st Reader: Trudy Hancock
ANNIVERSARY: Mona & Jack Waters, Robert Oakes, Freder- nd
2 Reader & Intercessions: John Maher
ick Garside, John Bowerman, Thomas Hurel, Dorothy Dunn
Eucharistic Ministers: Monica McMahon & Don Turvey
PRAY FOR THE SICK: Ian Macnamara, Stephanie Macnamara, Barba Asplet, Fr David Catteral, Alma Reynolds,
Barry Smith, Jim Matthews, Elizabeth Linsell,
GREETERS:
THIS WEEK
Vigil:
M Campbell
H Hanger
S Porter
NEXT WEEK
T Monro-King
A & A Ferrara
J Coughlan
A Cox
A Cox
READERS:
THIS WEEK
NEXT WEEK
Vigil:
A Ferrara
G Dobson
J Coughlan
S Vieira
A Schutt
S De Zilva
C McSweeney
J Maher
E Wright
Z Olegario
7.30 am
9.30 am
7.30 am
9.30 am
EXTRAORDINARY MINISTER
THIS WEEK
NEXT WEEK
Vigil:
M Chaumont
G Daley
C Daley
A Buckley
Sr Kevin
G Dobson
7.30 am
S Cichocki
P Coughlan
A Vannan
M McMahon
S Spiteri
L Amato
A Cordingley
A Vannan
TBA
A Cox
9.30 am
CLEANERS WEEK COMMENCE: 21.12.14 WEEK COMMENCE: 28.12.14
C Dunn & M Garvie
FLOWERS
C Morris & B Kiss
THIS WEEK 20.12.14
NEXT WEEK 27.12.14
No flowers during Advent
SACRISTY WEEK COMMENCE: 21.12.14
G Dobson
WEEK COMMENCE 28.12.14
C Batten
CHILDREN’S LITURGY: This Week—
School Holidays
MORNING TEA 7.30 am next week:
9.30 am next week:
M & S Gilbert
E & G Roki
CHRISTMAS DAY 9.00AM
1st Reader: Don Turvey
2nd Reader & Intercessions: Trudy Hancock
Eucharistic Ministers: Allan Cox & Anna Schutt
CALLING ALL ANGELS & SHEPHERDS: - If
you would like to dress as an angel or
shepherd for the Christmas vigil mass
and be included in this special celebration, please get mum or dad to dress you
appropriately and arrive early to join the
procession.
THANK YOU: To Fr John and the parish for your love and
care to our family as we came to terms at the loss of our
wonderful husband, father, grandfather and greatgrandfather, Bill McGrath—A man of faith. Also thank
you to all the ladies who baked, served and prepared the
shack for the wake. Many visitors and guests remarked
on the wonderful community we have here. So one again
thank you all, from the McGrath family, May God Bless
You.
WAIT ON THE LORD We sometimes put off thinking about
vocation, or what God wants, instead putting our energy
into other areas. God is calling; we need to pioritise our
response. Pray, talk with others, find out what God wants.
Please contact Fr Richard Healey, Vocations Director, on
0401 621 591, [email protected].
SACRAMENTAL PROGRAMME 2015: Information on the
parish sacramental programmes for 2015 are available
from the racks in the foyer of the Church.
CHRISTMAS MASS TIMES IN THE DIOCESE Please visit
www.christmas2014.dow.org.au for all Christmas Mass
and Reconciliation times in the Diocese.
Christmas Masses—Tahmoor
Christmas Vigil —7.00 pm
Christmas Midnight
Christmas Day—9.00 am
St Patrick’s Menangle
Christmas Vigil—6.00 pm
In light of the tragic events at Martin Place
and in Pakistan this week, we offer the following Prayer of St Francis
A PRAYER FOR PEACE
Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where
there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt,
faith; where there is despair, hope; where there
is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy.
O, Divine Master, grant that I may not so much
seek to be consoled as to console; to be
understood as to understand; to be loved as to
love; For it is in giving that we receive; it is in
pardoning that we are pardoned; it is in dying
that we are born again to eternal life.
POPE FRANCIS – ADVENT AND BIRTH OF JESUS
Our meeting is taking place in the spiritual climate of Advent,
which is made all the more intense by the Holy Christmas Novena we are experiencing in these days that lead us to the
celebration of Christmas. Therefore, today I would like to reflect with you on the Birth of Jesus, the feast of trust and of
hope which overcomes uncertainty and pessimism. And the
reason for our hope is this: God is with us and God still trusts
us! Think well on this: God is with us and God still trusts us.
God the Father is generous. He comes to abide with mankind,
he chooses earth as his dwelling place to remain with people
and to be found where man passes his days in joy or in sorrow. Therefore, earth is no longer only “a valley of tears”; rather, it is the place where God himself has pitched his tent, it
is the meeting place of God with man, of God's solidarity with
men.
God willed to share in our human condition to the point of
becoming one with us in the Person of Jesus, who is true Man
and true God. However, there is something even more surprising. The presence of God among men did not take place in a
perfect, idyllic world but rather in this real world, which is
marked by so many things both good and bad, by division,
wickedness, poverty, arrogance and war. He chose to live in
our history as it is, with all the weight of its limitations and of
its tragedies. In doing so, he has demonstrated in an unequalled manner his merciful and truly loving disposition toward the human creature. He is God-with-us. Jesus is Godwith-us. Do you believe this? Together let us profess: Jesus is
God with us! Jesus is God with us always and for ever with us
in history's suffering and sorrow. The Birth of Jesus reveals
that God “sided” with man once and for all, to save us, to
raise us from the dust of our misery, from our difficulty, from
our sins. Rome 2013
GOD JUST MAKES NO SENSE
Many young people thought they were crazy. Eight high school
seniors decided to help start a retreat program at their
school. And they heard it all: “Who would want to do that?”
“Are you a Jesus freak now?” “What a waste of time.”
It made no sense – unless you know God.
Go back two thousand years. A teen girl hears God’s call. She
lives in a culture where young women are viewed as men’s
property. She lives in a region, Galilee, looked down on by the
rest of Israel. Yet God chose her to change the world by bearing Jesus.
It made no sense – unless you know God.
Mary must have known her Jewish scripture. She must have
grown up learning that she could trust God’s love, trust it
enough to risk her life by agreeing to bear Jesus as an unwed
mother. You can trust this God as well. You might think you
can’t make a difference. Trust God and risk a try. You might
feel unlovable at times. Trust God and reach out for the
friends God will put in your life. You might think you can’t take
tough stands for what’s right. Trust God and feel holy strength
fill you.
Oh, and what about those crazy high school seniors? They
started their retreat program. It ran for nine years and helped
more than five hundred young people, changing some of their
lives dramatically.
It made no sense to many – unless they knew God.
This week how can I take a risk for God that makes sense
only to those who know God?
(from GPBS—Gather Proclaim Break Send)
Dear Parishioners,
I would like to thank each and everyone of
you for your support and contributions to our
Parish during the year 2014.
May this Christmas be a reminder that the
Saviour of the world was born in a lowly
manger, for you and me, because of His Great
love for all mankind.
Wishing you and your family a very happy
and holy Christmas and all the best for the
year 2015.
May the Lord help us to work together in the
new year to build up the Kingdom of God in
this parish community.
Best wishes,
Fr John HO, P.P
LAST WEEKEND:
1st COLLECTION
2nd COLLECTION
CODE:
Very Good
Good
Hangin’ in
HELP
When patronizing our sponsors, please thank them for supporting our Parish
Bakery
Blinds & Awnings
Williams Blinds
Funerals
THIEN DINH
HOT BREAD
* Verticals
* Security Doors
* Roller Blinds
* Awnings
* Venetians
* Roller Shutters
* Roman Blinds
* Panel Glides
* Plantation Shutters
U14/Picton Business Park
Tel:(02) 4677 2777
15 Henry Street
Fax: (02) 4677 2919
Picton NSW 2571
www.williamsbinds.com.au
Shop 4 Argyle
St,
Picton 2571
Tel: 4677 2800
Open 7 Days
Funerals
Take Away
Australian Family Owned and Operated



24 Hours - 7 days
Pre – arranged funeral plans
All Areas
PICTON - 4677 1644
365-367 Argyle St
CAMDEN - 4655 6433
67 Broughton St
www.williamrgroves.com.au
Catholic High-School
Local Member
Tutoring
The Hon. Jai Rowell MP
Member for Wollondilly
Office : Shop 1- 117 Remembrance Dr Tahmoor
Phone : (02) 4683 2622
Mail : PO Box 1005 Tahmoor 2573
Email : [email protected]
Auto Mechanic
Auto Mechanic
Mechanical Repairs
4683 2529
Tyres & Batteries
4683 2529
4681 0760
Cnr Bargo River Rd & Rememberance Dr
Tahmoor NSW 2573
In2Cricket Juniors Senior
Boys
Girls
Rego during August
403 HUME HIGHWAY (B.P.)
PICTON NSW 2571
PHONE: 4677 2555
FAX: 4677 1755
EMAIL: [email protected]
AUTOMOTIVE– PETROL—L.P.G. DIESEL—TYRES
BEQUEATHING
Play Cricket
Carpentry & Home Maintenance
DIAGNOSTICS
SERVICING & REPAIRS
REGO & L.P.G. SAFETY CHECKS
Contact: Kevin Dries 0417 448 561
Andrew Murphy 0418 612 054
Jane Eva 0419 296 508
BEQUEATHING
Would you like to remember the
parish in your will?
Property, money, artwork, plants…
there are many ways
you can be remembered.
Please contact the parish office for
further info.
Phone: 4683 2230