S ,20 O 201929 S O T ,Y C

T C P T C P R

Our Parishes incorporate suburbs located on the tradi onal country of the Awabakal and Worimi peoples. We acknowledge their cultural heritage, beliefs and con nuing rela onship with the land, pay respect to their Elders past and present,

and commit ourselves to work together for reconcilia on and jus ce.

Clergy in the Region Fr Andrew Doohan Fr Ma hew Muller Fr Joseph Figurado Fr James Odoh Fr Peter Street Deacon Lawrence Caelli

Regional Office—St Benedict’s Centre 25 Farquhar Street, The Junc on PO Box 6, The Junc on 2291 P: (02) 4979 1101 F: (02) 4962 4644 E: newcparish@mn.catholic.org.au W: www.newcastlecatholic.org.au

Regional Office Staff Chris Cootes (Regional Business Manager) Margaret Cox (Recep on & Administra on) Anne Warren (Administra on) Dr Anne Millard (Director of Music, Liturgy & Sacramental Program)

Office Hours The Regional Office is open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm, and closed for lunch from 1pm to 2pm.

Other Contacts Lingard Hospital Team Contact the Regional Office Mercy Pastoral Team Sr Patricia Whi en rsm (02) 4979 1116 St Joseph’s Pastoral Team Contact the Regional Centre

Regional Bulle n The Bulle n is published weekly.

Prayer requests and items for the Bulle n should be received at the Regional Office by Noon on Wednesdays.

IncorporatingtheParishesofStBenedict’s,InnerNewcastle,StColumban’s,May ield,andStPeter‐in‐Chains,Stockton,ourmissionistoproclaimChristin

theinnersuburbsoftheCityofNewcastle.

Sacred Heart Cathedral, Hamilton

St Joseph’s, The Junc on

St Mary, Star of the Sea, Newcastle

Immaculate Heart of Mary, Tighes Hill

St Laurence O’Toole’s, Broadmeadow

Christ the King, Mayfield West

St Peter‐in‐Chains’, Stockton

T P D …(fortheweekahead)29th Week in Ordinary Time

Monday 21 October 8.15am Mass @ The Toohey Room

Tuesday 22 October 7.30am Mass @ The Junc on   8.15am Mass @ The Toohey Room 8.45am Rosary @ Stockton   9.15am Mass @ Stockton 9.15am Mass @ Broadmeadow

Wednesday 23 October 7.30am Mass @ The Junc on   8am Mass @ Mayfield West 8:15am Mass @ The Toohey Room 9.15am Mass @ Tighes Hill

Thursday 24 October 7.30am Mass @ The Junc on   8am Mass @ Stockton 8.15am Mass @ The Toohey Room 9am Marian Prayer Group @ Mayfield West 9.15am Mass @ Broadmeadow 5.30pm Mass @ Seafarers’ Centre, Wickham

Friday 25 October 9.15am Mass @ Mayfield West 9.15am Mass @ Tighes Hill 10.15am Mass @ The Junc on 10.30am Anoin ng Mass @ Charles O’Neill Hostel 12.05pm Mass @ The Toohey Room No exposi on nor reconcilia on on Friday, due to the Cathedral pain ng. 

Saturday 26 October 9.15am Mass & Novena @ The Cathedral 5.30pm Vigil Mass @ Broadmeadow 5.30pm Vigil Mass @ The Cathedral 5.30pm Rosary @ Mayfield West 6pm Vigil Mass @ Mayfield West

Sunday 27 October 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time 7.30am Mass @ Newcastle 8am Mass @ Tighes Hill 9am Mass @ The Junc on 9am Mass @ Stockton 9.30am Mass @ The Cathedral 10.30am Italian Mass @ Broadmeadow 11.30am Polish Mass @ The Cathedral 5pm Mass @ The Cathedral

T W ’ L

First Reading Ex 17:8‐13 With the staff of God, Moses helps Israel defeat Amalek.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 120. R. v.2 Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. Second Reading 2 Tm 3:14 ‐ 4:2 All scripture is inspired of God. Gospel Acclama on Heb 4:12 Alleluia, alleluia! The word of God is living and ac ve; It probes the thoughts and mo ves of our heart. Alleluia!

Gospel Lk 18:1‐8 The widow and the irreligious judge.

N W ’ R

First Reading Sirach 35:12‐14, 16‐19

Second Reading 2 Tim 4:6‐8, 16‐18

Gospel Lk 18:9‐14

The Cathedral and St Joseph’s are served by a hear-ing loop—use the setting marked “T”.

N R M In the Newcastle Region, November is a me we join in prayer for all those whose funeral rites were held in our parishes within the past year and those whose remains rest in our Columbaria at the Cathedral and at St Joseph’s.

In each case we will endeavour to contact the next‐of‐kin of their deceased loved one, with a personal invitation to attend the remembrance ceremony. Our data base is only as accurate as the information provided to us, so if contact details have changed please advise our office by phone on 4979 1101 or via email: newcparish@mn.catholic.org.au

The details of the remembrance rites for Stockton and Mayfield are yet to be confirmed, but for the other parishes the 2019 Remembrance Masses will be as follows:

Broadmeadow Saturday, 9 November at 5.30pm Tighes Hill Sunday 10 November at 8am Newcastle Sunday, 17 November at 7.30am The Junc on Sunday, 17 November at 9am The Cathedral Sunday, 17 November at 5pm

I Y C ,P R P :

R D : Susan Salamon, Nola Rose Watson, Michael McDonald

A : Elsie Victoria Mar n, Thelma Mar n, Mark Delaney, Joan Preece, Sr Patricia Jackson rsj, Sr Colleen Carney rsj, Bill Palmer, Joseph Smith, David Russell

S : Dennis Harvey, John Belcher, Be y Sto , Geraldine Bound, Ignacio Umali, Mercedes Umali, Shane Walsh, Ken Jeary, Kate Newsome, Phil Milman, Jean Curry, Finn Fitzpatrick, Libby Oates, Graeme Burrage, Brian Swi , Monica Bound, Peter McCabe, Geraldine Nurtsis, Joan Haynes

Names may be placed here by contac ng the Regional Office. Please refer to the Policy Document on the Regional website—

visit www.newcastlecatholic.org.au/downloads.

S H C P

Internal pain ng of the Sacred Heart Cathedral con nues again this week. It is taking longer than planned because the plaster work repairs are more extensive than first an cipated. The 8.15am weekday Masses will again be held in the Toohey Room in the Chancery Building, as will the 12.05pm Friday Mass. There  will  be  no  Exposi on,  of  the  Blessed Sacrament,  nor  reconcilia on  on  Friday. Again we apologise for any inconvenience and appreciate your con nued pa ence and understanding.

C S

Reconcilia on is available at Sacred Heart Cathedral: Usually Fridays from 11am un l 11.55am and on Saturdays from about 10.30am un l 11am. Other

mes available by appointment.

Bap sms are celebrated on Sundays, generally following our Sunday Masses. A monthly Bap sm Prepara on mee ng takes place on the first Wednesday of each month. The next mee ng will take place in the Regional Office on Wednesday, 6th November, commencing at 5.30pm. Please contact the Regional Office for more details, or visit the website.

A Sacramental Prepara on process runs each year in the parishes for children wishing to complete the celebra on of the Sacraments of Ini a on as part of the community of the parishes of the Region. Please contact the Regional Office for more details, or visit the website.

For adults who wish to become part of the Church, our parishes celebrate the Rite of Chris an Ini a on of Adults for those who have not been bap sed, and the Rite of Recep on into Full Communion for those who have been bap sed in other churches as part of our commitment to proclaim the Gospel. Please contact the Regional Office for more details, or visit the website.

Weddings are celebrated by arrangement with at least three (and preferably more) months no ce. Please contact the Regional Office for more details, or visit the website.

Do You Want To Make A Difference? 

The voca on of St Vincent de Paul Society Members and Volunteers is to follow Christ through service to those in need and so bear witness to his compassionate and libera ng love. Join with us in mee ng the needs of those less fortunate in our community. For more details, please speak to a SVdP member, call Central Council on (02) 4967 6277 or email maitland.newcastle@vinnies.org.au.

The persistence of the widow is the heart of today’s Gospel.

She constantly pleads for what she needs. So too will God hear the cry of those who call

on him.

Reques ng Expressions of Interest February 2020 Special Event! 

 

We are seeking expressions of interest in a bus trip to Sydney’s St Mary’s Cathedral on Saturday, 1 February 2020, for venera on of the relics of St Thérèse of Lisieux and her parents, Saints Louis and Zelie Mar n. This is the first me in 18 years the relics have been in Australia. It is a wonderful opportunity for people to come together to find inspira on in the life of St Thérèse.

‘Expression  of  interest’  sign‐up  sheets  are  again available at the churches this weekend. Details about the cost involved will be advised when we know how many people are interested. Please add your name to the list at the back of the church.

Thérèse was born in France on 2 January 1873. Her mother was Marie‐Azélie (Zelie) Guérin and her dad was Louis Mar n, a jeweller and watchmaker. Thérèse was the last of nine children born to Louis and Zelie, though only five of the children lived to reach adulthood.

Thérèse lived a very simple and holy life. At age 15, she entered the Carmelite convent in Lisieux and took the religious name, Sister Thérèse of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face. Thérèse’s four sisters all became nuns as well, dedica ng their lives to God. Louis and Zelie Mar n were very proud of their daughters and showed them great love. Sadly Zelie died when Thérèse was only four years old.

Thérèse lived a simple life of prayer and was gi ed with a great closeness to God. She loved the work of mission and wanted to spread the Gospel all over the world and show how Jesus loves all people. She could not fulfil this wish, because she became ill when very younf. A er a long struggle with tuberculosis, she died on 30 September 1897, at the age of only 24. Her last words were the story of her life: "My God, I love you!"

Thérèse was made a saint on 17 May 1925 by Pope Pius XI, only 28 years a er her death. All four of her

sisters were s ll alive when their li le sister, Thérèse, was declared a saint. St Thérèse of Lisieux is the patron saint of aviators, florists, illnesses and mission. Her feast day is October 1st.

St Thérèse of Lisieux is one of the most popular saints in the history of the Catholic Church. St Thérèse saw herself as a child of God. She liked to keep things simple and focused as a child does. Trust, especially trust in God, is a childlike virtue. Thérèse’s love for God was very simple and she called it her ‘li le way.’ She teaches us that God is everywhere ‐ in every situa on and person ‐ and in the ordinary, simple details of life. It is because of this that so many people have followed her example and grown to love her, because she shows us that we can love God in simple acts of kindness and love for others.

“Love proves itself by deeds.”

St Thérèse of Lisieux

Cancella on of Concert at The Cathedral Tuesday, 5th November 

In recent weeks we have been adver sing a concert performance by Deirdre Ni Chinneide, on Tuesday, 5th November, at the Sacred Heart Cathedral. Unfortunately Deirdre is no longer able to meet this commitment and we regret to advise the concert has now been cancelled.

Have you thought?

A parable about God When Jesus tells the parable about the widow and the judge, he is actually pain ng a picture about God for his disciples. This is not to suggest that God needs to be worn down by persistence, but rather it is a descrip on of what God is not. If such a wicked and unjust judge can eventually be worn down, how much more quickly will God respond to a just cause? Yet the parable is told to reinforce the need to pray con nually. The con nuous prayer is not to wear God down – like the judge – but rather to demonstrate the genuine need.

R N Regional Luncheon is held on the 3rd Monday of each calendar month. A delicious main meal and dessert, great company and an opportunity to mix with your fellow parishioners! Cost $15. Monday, 21 October @ 12.30pm in the Victor Peters Suite (841 Hunter St, Newcastle West). Contact Maureen on 4961 6254 or Kay on 0407 676973.

First Friday Food & Fellowship (FFF&F) has approached very quickly and once again our faith community will come together for Mass and Anoin ng at 10.15am on Friday, 1 November (All Saints Day), in St Joseph’s Church. Morning tea will follow in the Chapel. Last month we missed our dear friends from Lindsay Gardens and we hope to see them in November.

First Friday Fish & Chips: Join us for Fish & Chips on Friday, 1st November. With the warmer weather and daylight saving upon us, we can again enjoy the great outdoors! Meet at Bar Beach Pavilion at 6pm and ’BYO Everything’. All welcome! Enquiries ‐ phone Chris on 0419 265194.

Council for Australian Catholic Women Magdalene Award 

Do you know someone you could nominate?  

Each year the Magdalene Award recognises a woman living in and commi ed to the Diocese of Maitland‐Newcastle. It is a public affirma on of a life being lived in ways that echo the spirit of Mary Magdalene, exemplifying courage, leadership, fidelity and strength.

The Council for Australian Catholic Women contact group in the Diocese of Maitland‐Newcastle now invites nomina ons for the award, with the recipient to be announced on or around Interna onal Women’s Day 2020. All nominees will be recognised and the successful nominee will receive the award at a special presenta on in Cathedral House, following the Mass at the Sacred Heart Cathedral on Sunday, 8 March 2020.

For more informa on contact Alyson Segro via email: alyson.segro @mn.catholic.org.au.

O O R Diocesan Synod Celebra on will be held on Saturday, 23 November at the Diocesan Offices, 841 Hunter St, Newcastle West, from 9.30am to 5.00pm followed by Mass. The theme is Building the Kingdom of God Together.

Palms Australia needs you. Working in Educa on, Health or Trades? Help to reduce poverty in overseas communi es by sharing your skills. Mutual development is assured! Palms is preparing our latest mission applicants at our January Orienta on course (4 to 12 January 2020). There are five places le for people who can share their skills in an overseas community next year and beyond. This is a great opportunity to live our faith in response to the mission call as expressed by Pope Francis and Bishop Wright. Apply by 1 November to start your adventure in 2020! Contact Palms on (02) 9560 5333 or at palms.org.au

A profoundly rewarding mission!

Walk the Camino 2020. Catholic Mission Pilgrimages: Portuguese Camino (May 2020) and Camino Francés (September‐October 2020). Small groups. Places are limited. Phone Sr Veronica Rosier, OP, 0451 387 906 or visit www.catholicmission.org.au/camino2020

Bookclub meets at 6.30pm on the first Sunday of each month at the St Benedict’s Regional Centre, 25 Farquhar Street, The Junc on. All are welcome to join Bookclub for one book or for them all. We bring along a light snack to share. At our next mee ng on Sunday, 3 November, we will share our thoughts on the book, The Forest of Wool and Steel, by Natsu Myashita.

Aurora: The October edi on is available this weekend. There are a number of interes ng ar cles. Copies are available at the church doors.

Special Mass Celebra ons for Mater Hospital Graduate Nurses: The 9.30am Mass at Sacred Heart Cathedral on Sunday, 10th November, will be the annual Mass of celebra on for the Mater graduate nurses, while the 12 noon Mass on Friday, 22nd November will be offered in remembrance of their deceased members.

Keep Praying Persistence! That’s a customary explanation given for the point to the Gospel story; only the way we have often presented it is to cast the judge in the role of the God‐figure. Consequently, in our usual dramatic portrayals, God is implicitly the one who is slow to listen to the pleas of a poor and vulnerable widow — a woman without a husband, without status, without income, without security. According to this account, God only grants the woman her claims because she pesters him to the point that God loses his patience and reluctantly gives in. Persistence triumphs! But there’s a problem with the picture this story paints. The judge, the God‐figure, does not come across as someone we would want to emulate. The Gospel story tells us that he neither “feared God nor respected any human being.” Beyond that, the sense we get is that God is someone to bargain with, or pester to the point of wearing him down. Fr. William Bausch, in the publication Hungry, And You Fed Me, suggests another possible way to understand this story. The question he asks is: “Why not see the widow as the image of God?” So if the widow is now pictured as the God‐like figure, it becomes possible to arrive at a whole new meaning for this parable. From this perspective the message is still about the importance of persistence, but the persistent one is now presented as that person who — often against all odds — keeps resisting injustice, keeps renouncing discrimination, keeps opposing bigotry in all its dimensions. The widow, then, takes on the role of a Rosa Parks, a person who endured until justice was achieved. The original meaning of the Gospel passage is still maintained, only now it becomes the constant commitment to seek justice wherever it is being denied. This stance then insists we refuse to relent in our requirements to provide our children with adequate education. It insists that all of us demand that our prisoners are treated with respect, that our elderly are able to afford an adequate pension, that our planet is respected as a God‐given gift. It’s a story about persistently hungering and thirsting for justice. The problem, though, is that throughout human history, multitudes have begged God to grant relief to those who are burdened with pain and sorrow. And yet injustice remains. Peace seems hopeless. Bigotry persists. As a consequence, many

lose heart. They find that perseverance in the face of repeated horrors is one of the greatest challenges that human beings have to face. ... For years now I have heard the word ‘Wait!’… This ‘Wait’ has almost always meant ‘Never.’ We must come to see, with one of our distinguished jurists, that ‘justice too long delayed is justice denied.’” Today’s Gospel story ultimately becomes the Christian answer to the painful reality of justice delayed and denied: namely, that God’s plan for a kingdom of justice and peace will eventually be accomplished. In the meantime, we are called to “pray always without becoming weary.”

©Ted Wolgamot

Never lose heart Luke’s community lives at a me when hope for an imminent return of Jesus is fading. The ini al enthusiasm of faith is wearing thin with the constancy of living in a society where Chris an values are odd. The images in the parable are strange. The community is presented as a helpless widow. In the patriarchal society of that me, a woman without a male provider would be the most powerless. God is portrayed as a judge having neither a religious nor a social sense of responsibility. So the parable begins with one absolutely in need, with nothing to offer, and one with no sense of any moral claim to respond to the woman’s need. The judge eventually gives in to the widow purely out of concern for himself, as the transla on reads, ‘She will worry me to death’ (literally, ‘punch me in the face’! ... The reasoning is that if this unjust person will do the right thing for someone he doesn’t care about, then surely we can trust that a loving God will do the right thing for us. Even though prayer seems to go unanswered, don’t give up on God. The images point to the humanness of prayer. A woman wants jus ce. A judge wants peace. Prayer is a simple ac vity we can take part in anywhere and any me. I o en pray when I’m out walking or driving for in these mes of solitude it is easy to begin a dialogue from my heart and let God know my current concerns. There’s no need to save up prayer un l you’re in a holy place, or a prayerful posi on. Bring God into your daily ac vi es and discover God as friend.

© Mary Coloe

COMING WEEKEND ROSTERS

TIGHES HILL WELCOMERS MINISTERS OF THE WORD

PROCESSION WITH GIFTS

MINISTERS OF COMMUNION

27 Oct 8.00am

Jacob Healey Barry Reed

Brian O’Donnell Rose McAllister

Bob Frazer Mary Samwell

Lawrence Hallinan, Nicky Cathcart, Peter Ryan

THE JUNCTION

WELCOMERS MINISTERS OF THE WORD

PROCESSION WITH GIFTS

MINISTERS OF COMMUNION

COUNTERS

27 Oct 9.00am

Isaac Flanagan Cheree Flanagan

Michael Alexander K Walker

Cath Purkiss Rebeka Stokes, Sally Casey, Elizabeth Hickling

C & R Perrin T & J Collins

BROADMEADOW MINISTERS OF THE WORD MINISTER OF COMMUNION

COUNTING TEAM WELCOMING TEAM

26 Oct 5.30pm

Sr Pauline Murray rsm Daniel Close

Chris ne Mason Judy & Denis Johns Eileen Howard & Robin Cathcart

The Cathedral ADULT SERVER MINISTERS OF THE WORD MINISTERS OF COMMUNION COUNTERS

26 Oct 5.30pm

Louise Outram Michael Fuller Lena Josue

Kath Williams, Douglas Burke, Ching Burke, Helen Bridges

Announciata & Marian

27 Oct 9.30am

Peter Owens Vincia Mar n Mary Allado

Cora Arnstrong, Trish O’Dowd, John Askew, Christopher Lovell

27 Oct 5.00pm

Sue O’Sullivan James O’Sullivan

Clare Walsh‐Gregory, Vera Walker, Jane McNaughton,

NEWCASTLE MINISTERS OF THE WORD PROCESSION WITH GIFTS MINISTERS OF COMMUNION

27 Oct 7.30am

T Mather Roger Peters

Volunteer C Prider K Rees

STOCKTON WELCOMER MINISTERS OF THE WORD PROCESSION WITH GIFTS

MINISTERS OF COMMUNION

27 Oct 9.00am

Mel Sue M, Helen O’B Sue, Harry Harry, Stan, Angela

MAYFIELD WEST WELCOMERS MINISTERS OF THE WORD PROCESSION WITH GIFTS

MINISTERS OF COMMUNION

26 Oct 6.00pm

Diane & Doreen

K Williamson P Boland

L Tolhurst M Williamson, Sister Ann, M Caelli