DEVOTIONAL PRAYER FOR JULY
CORONAVIRUS PRAYER
Lord Jesus Christ, you travelled through towns and villages curing every disease and illness. At your command, the sick were made well. Come to our aid now, in the midst of the global spread of the coronavirus, that we may experience your healing love.
Heal those who are sick with the virus. May they regain their strength and health through quality medical care. Heal us from our fear, which prevents nations from working together and neighbours from helping one another. Heal us from our pride, which made us claim invulnerability to a disease that knows no borders.
Lord Jesus Christ, healer of all, stay by our side in this time of uncertainty and sorrow.
Be with families of those who are sick or have died. As they worry and grieve, defend them from illness and despair. May they know your peace. Be with doctors, nurses, researchers and all medical professionals who seek to heal and help those affected and who put themselves at risk in the process. May they know your protection and peace. Be with leaders of all nations. Give them the foresight to act with charity and true concern for the well-being of the people they are meant to serve. Give them the wisdom to invest in long-term solutions that will help prepare for or prevent future outbreaks. May they know your peace, as they work together to achieve it on earth.
Whether we are home or abroad, surrounded by many people suffering from this illness or only a few, Lord Jesus Christ, stay with us as we endure and mourn, persist and prepare. In place of our anxiety, give us your peace. Lord Jesus Christ, heal us.
Entrance Antiphon
See, I have God for my help. The Lord sustains my soul. I will sacrifice to you with willing heart, and praise your name, O Lord, for it is good.
1st Reading (Wis 12:13,16-19)
There is no god, other than you, who cares for everything, to whom you might have to prove that you never judged unjustly; Your justice has its source in strength, your sovereignty over all makes you lenient to all. You show your strength when your sovereign power is questioned and you expose the insolence of those who know it; but, disposing of such strength, you are mild in judgement, you govern us with great lenience, for you have only to will, and your power is there. By acting thus you have taught a lesson to your people how the virtuous man must be kindly to his fellow men, and you have given your sons the good hope that after sin you will grant repentance.
The Word of the Lord.
Responsorial Psalm
Lord, you are good and forgiving.
2nd Reading (Rom 8 :26-27)
The Spirit comes to help us in our weakness. For when we cannot choose words in order to pray properly, the Spirit himself expresses our plea in a way that could never be put into words, and God who knows everything in our hearts knows perfectly well what he means, and that the pleas of the saints expressed by the Spirit are according to the mind of God.
The Word of the Lord.
Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia! Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth; you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the kingdom. Alleluia!
Gospel (Mt 13 :24-43)
Jesus put a parable before the crowds: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everybody was asleep his enemy came, sowed darnel all among the wheat, and made off. When the new wheat sprouted and ripened, the darnel appeared as well. The owner’s servants went to him and said, “Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?” “Some enemy has done this” he answered. And the servants said, “Do you want us to go and weed it out?” But he said, “No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow till the harvest; and at harvest time I shall say to the reapers: First collect the darnel and tie it in bundles to be burnt, then gather the wheat into my barn.”’ He put another parable before them: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the biggest shrub of all and becomes a tree so that the birds of the air come and shelter in its branches.’ He told them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like the yeast a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour till it was leavened all through.’ In all this Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables; indeed, he would never speak to them except in parables. This was to fulfil the prophecy: I will speak to you in parables and expound things hidden since the foundation of the world. Then, leaving the crowds, he went to the house; and his disciples came to him and said, ‘Explain the parable about the darnel in the field to us.’ He said in reply, ‘The sower of the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world; the good seed is the subjects of the kingdom; the darnel, the subjects of the evil one; the enemy who sowed them, the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; the reapers are the angels. Well then, just as the darnel is gathered up and burnt in the fire, so it will be at the end of time. The Son of Man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all things that provoke offences and all who do evil, and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. Then the virtuous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Listen, anyone who has ears!’
The Gospel of the Lord.
Communion Antiphon
The Lord, the gracious, the merciful, has made a memorial of his wonders; he gives food to those who fear him.
Next Week’s Readings
1 Kg 3:5, 7-12; Rom 8:28-30; Mt. 13:44-52
Feasts of the week
Wed, 22 July - St. Mary Magdalene
Sat, 25 July - St. James
PARISH NEWS
THE PARABLE OF THE WHEAT AND THE WEEDS
(A reflection by Dcn. Charles English)
As followers of Our Lord Jesus, what do we do with the problem of evil? Today’s Gospel about the wheat and the weeds, suggests to us that we should deal with evil, as God deals with evil. That is, with patience and
forbearance but always trying to speak the truth when the opportunity arises.
The first character in the parable, the sower, is Jesus, the Son of Man. He is the one who sows and is responsible for the seed defined as ‘good’. The ‘good seed’ are us, who try to follow Our Lord Jesus and His teachings. All good things come from God. All blessings come from the grace of God. The field is the world.
The second character in the parable, the enemy, is the devil and he comes at night to sow darnel, which is a weed. Darnel resembles wheat and it is very difficult to distinguish darnel from wheat, until both have grown. The darnel are those who follow the evil one, the devil.
The third characters in the parable are the servants, they represent us too, the people of God, people who do their best to try to serve God. The servant’s desire in the cause of good, to remove the weeds, moves them to propose a hasty and reckless plan. In trying to tear out the darnel the wheat could be damaged. The servants listen to their Master’s instructions to leave the weeds until harvest time, when the weeds will be gathered and bound in bundles to be burned.
The owner of the field, the Master, remains calm and in control, he is not surprised that his enemy came at night and sowed weeds amongst the wheat. In the world, there is both good and evil and they are not separated. They are destined to grow together until the end of time.
It is very clear that Jesus takes seriously the consequences of sin, in speaking of fire and a blazing furnace: ‘Just as the darnel is gathered up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of time. The Son of Man will send His angels and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that provoke offences and all who do evil, and throw them into the blazing furnace’.
Hell is a very real thing. Our Lord Jesus talks about hell many, many times in the Gospels. It is not to be dismissed lightly or thought to be non-existent, which would be a terrible mistake. We find this teaching in the Catechism of the Catholic Church: ‘To die in mortal sin, without repenting and accepting God’s merciful love means remaining separated from God forever, by our own free will choice. This state of definitive self-exclusion from communion with God and the blessed, is called Hell”. Good and bad, like the wheat and the weeds, in today’s Gospel passage, will always coexist until the end of time. Good and evil will always be found together among persons and in institutions. We Catholics await the blessed hope, when God’s angels will separate weeds from wheat at the second coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ, at the end of time.
Meanwhile, we pray for the gift of discernment, the proper use of our free will so that we may one day gather again in the safety of God’s barn, and be counted among ‘the virtuous ones who will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Listen, anyone who has ears!’
LIVE STREAMING OF DAILY MASS FROM OUR CHURCH
Our church will live stream daily Mass through our Facebook Page link https://m.facebook.com/stpetershoppers/
Masses are Monday to Friday 8:30am, Saturday 9:00am.
Sunday 10:30am Mass will also be available on YouTube link as follows https://youtu.be/4fR5RcEf3UI.
ACT OF SPIRITUAL COMMUNION
My Jesus, I believe that You are present in the Most Holy Sacrament. I love You above all things, and I desire to receive you into my soul. Since I cannot, at this moment, receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already there and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You. Amen.
UPDATED PARISH GUIDELINES
Our church is now closed as per Government regulations. Please note that the Sunday Obligation will not apply during this time of suspension.
- During this lockdown period, the Parish office will be open on Tuesday/Thursday/Friday from 9:00am to 3:30pm.
- See our note on live streaming of daily Masses from our church in a separate note in this bulletin.
- To keep yourself updated with Parish news, visit the Parish website at http://stpeterapostlemission.org.au
Facebook at https://m.facebook.com/stpetershoppers/
Weekly Bulletin – kindly send your email address to stpeters@westnet.com.au to have a copy of our bulletin emailed to you every Friday.
THANKSGIVING CONTRIBUTIONS
If you would like to continue your contributions to support the parish during this time of church closure, the following options are available:
- Drop off your Thanksgiving envelope at the Parish office during office hours Tuesday/Thursday/Friday from 9:00am to 3:30pm.
- Thanksgiving donations can be made directly to our Church Bank Account. Details as follows:
Account Name: St Peter Apostle Parish Church Account
BSB: 083-347 Account No: 637286747
Please use your Thanksgiving Envelope Number and your name for reference purposes (eg.TG123 - Tom Smith) - Parishioners can also make payments online if you wish to do so, either by going to the link Online Thanksgiving Payments CDF Pay OR by going to the link on our website (under the Support your Parish tab) Please add your Thanksgiving Envelope number if you have one. You also have the option to choose which collection you would like the offering to go to, i.e. first collection (Parish) or second collection (Presbytery).
THANKSGIVING PROGRAM
If you have not already collected your Thanksgiving envelopes or letters for the new financial year, they are available for collection from the Church office (Tue/Thu/Fri, 9:00am to 3:30pm). New envelopes started from the weekend of 4/5 July 2020. Please contact the parish office on 9749 4300 if you have any queries regarding Thanksgiving Envelopes, Direct Debits or anything in relation to Thanksgiving contributions.
ZOOM INVITATIONS FROM:
ST PETER'S CHARISMATIC PRAYER COMMUNITY -KNK
Saturdays at 3:00pm – Divine Mercy & Praise & Worship
Sundays at 7:00pm – Rosary & Praise & Worship
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/7414862105?pwd=NlVwaXUyS3hVSlFzZ0pNOG1MT29Ldz09
Meeting ID: 741 486 2105 Password: 023368
BIBLE STUDY MINISTRY
Every week on a Monday from 7:00pm to 8:00pm.
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/9689427525?pwd=akpXUHFPQTJRazRxZVZaOVVhZlM4QT09
Meeting ID: 9689427525 Password: 2Vp4ef
ALL SHALL BE WELL (Retreat in Everyday Life)
Heart of Life Melbourne is offering a at-home retreat via ZOOM over 5 weeks starting Monday 3 Aug at 1:15pm, concluding Monday, 31 Aug at 1:45pm.The retreat provides an opportunity to spend some time daily in prayerful reflection pondering on your experience of the day and to be accompanied by a prayer-companion once a week, at a mutually suitable time. A weekly reflection sheet will be made available to you. If interested apply before 27 July to 9890 1101, or info@heartoflife.melbourne (Limited participants). If you are unfamiliar with ZOOM, other options may be available. Small donation appreciated.
RECENTLY DECEASED
We pray for Rose Farrugia, Mariyakutty George, Baby Pereira, Charles Vassallo, Alphonsus De Roza, Mariquita Concepcion, Emmanuel Viktor Cea, Paula Money and all who have passed away recently.
DEATH ANNIVERSARIES
We pray for Vera Fernandez, Hugo Chetcuti, Paul Spiteri and all whose anniversaries occur at this time.
PRAYERS FOR THE SICK
We pray for Adrian Tully, Gary Spotswood, Sean Donaldson, Kath Meddings, Lucy Ballan, Irene Jones, Thais Long, Jean Cameron, Gordon Newman, Denis Webber, Monique Hoaster, Wilfredo Villareal, Rolando Navarro, Avis Fernandes, Francis Goonting, Anne Deluca, Hellen Bonnici, Filippo Sciglitano, Anthony Hanford, James Barwick, Gerry Akein, Helga Jacob, Carmelina Costanzo, Bryan Dalton, Pat Borcich, Antony, Alki Christopoulos, Bill Fairney, Charlotte Mary, Frank Forbes, Baby Lucy Rodriguerz, Carmela Saragoza, Nicolas Caruana, Baillie Millar, Teresita Grisancich, Wilma Pimenta, Jobbin John, Philomena Rita Jenning and all who are ill in our Parish.