DEVOTIONAL PRAYER FOR SEPTEMBER
CORONAVIRUS PRAYER
God our Father, we come to You in our need, to ask Your protection against the COVID-19 that has disturbed and even claimed lives.
We pray that You guide the people tasked to find cures for this disease and to stem its transmission.
Protect the medical experts that they may minister to the sick with competence and compassion.
We pray for those afflicted. May they be restored to health soon.
Protect those who care for them.
Grant eternal rest to those who have died.
Give us the grace in this trying time to work for the good of all and to help those in need.
We implore You to stop the spread of this virus and to save us from our fears.
Grant all these through our Lord Jesus Christ your Son who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.
We fly to Your protection, oh Holy Mother of God. Do not despise our petition in our necessities, but deliver us always from all dangers, Oh glorious and blessed Virgin. Amen.
Our Lady, health of the sick, pray for us.
St. Peter Apostle, pray for us.
Entrance Antiphon
You are just, O Lord, and your judgement is right, treat your servant in accord with your merciful love.
1st Reading (Ez 33:7-9)
A reading from the prophet Ezekiel.
The word of the Lord was addressed to me as follows, ‘Son of man, I have appointed you as sentry to the House of Israel. When you hear a word from my mouth, warn them in my name. If I say to a wicked man: Wicked wretch, you are to die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked man to renounce his ways, then he shall die for his sin, but I will hold you responsible for his death. If, however, you do warn a wicked man to renounce his ways and repent, and he does not repent, then he shall die for his sin, but you yourself will have saved your life.
The Word of the Lord.
2nd Reading (Rom 13:8-10)
A reading from the letter of St. Paul to the Romans.
Avoid getting into debt, except the debt of mutual love. If you love your fellow men you have carried out your obligations. All the commandments: You shall not commit adultery, you shall not kill, you shall not steal, you shall not covet, and so on, are summed up in this single command. You must love your neighbour as yourself. Love is the one thing that cannot hurt your neighbour, that is why it is the answer to every one of the commandments.
The Word of the Lord.
Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia! God was in Christ, to reconcile the world to himself; and the Good News of the reconciliation he has entrusted to us. Alleluia!
Gospel (Mt 18 :15-20)
A reading from the holy Gospel according to St. Matthew.
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘If your brother does something wrong, go and have it out with him alone, between your two selves. If he listens to you, you have won back your brother. If he does not listen, take one or two others along with you: the evidence of two or three witnesses is required to sustain any charge. But if he refuses to listen to these, report it to the community; and if he refuses to listen to the community, treat him like a pagan or a tax collector. I tell you solemnly, whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven. I tell you solemnly once again, if two of you on earth agree to ask anything at all, it will be granted to you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three meet in my name, I shall be there with them.’
The Gospel of the Lord.
Communion Antiphon
Like the dear that yearns for running streams, so my soul is yearning for you, my God; my soul is thirsting for God, the living God.
Next Week’s Readings
Sirach 27:30 - 28:7; Rom 14:7-9; Mt 18:21-35
Feasts of the week
Tue, 8 Sep - Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
A BLESSING FOR ALL FATHERS
Heavenly Father, you entrusted your Son, Jesus, the child of Mary, to the care of Joseph, an earthly father.
Bless all fathers as they care for their families.
Give them strength and wisdom, tenderness and patience;
Support them in the work they have to do, protecting those who look to them, as we look to You for love and salvation, through Jesus Christ our rock and defender, in union with the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever.
St. Joseph, Pray for all our Fathers.
Amen.
PARISH NEWS
23RD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME, YEAR A
(A reflection by Fr. Vincent John CMI)
The key to fulfilment in life is love, which is concern for the welfare of others shown in many ways – including by praying for each other and correcting one another in fraternal charity. As Christians, we have a responsibility to others. That is the theme of this Sunday’s readings. In the first reading our Lord advises the appointed leaders through the prophet Ezekiel. The appointed leaders bear responsibility to point out to wrong-doers the error of their ways and to try to get them to reform.
St Paul in the second reading emphasises to us that if we truly loved our neighbours, we would not harm them in any way. That indicates our duty to respect everyone. St Paul lists in his letter to the Romans, the duties of love: do not kill, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not covet. We can state them in a positive way. We have the responsibility to respect another’s life, respect another’s marriage, respect another’s property and respect another’s integrity.
In the Gospel we hear about the duty of a Christian to correct an erring brother or sister. But there is a proper way to do this. Every effort is to be made to bring the erring person to repentance: first in private, then before a few, finally before the whole community.
The Responsorial Psalm must also be read with the other readings. Here the Psalmist stresses to us not to make our hearts hard. A hard heart means a stubborn, arrogant and closed heart. Contrary to this is open, welcoming, receptive, loving and caring – where we find divine presence and feel loving and being loved. The feeling of love unites hearts together; a kind of unity and mutual understanding takes place. The feeling of closeness and oneness brings an understanding of staying together and working together. It includes eating together and praying together. Our Lord emphasises the worth of each member of the community, we are all interconnected and we are responsible for others.
Jesus concludes his teaching today with a promise that: “where two or three meet in my name, I will be there with them.” “And if two of you on earth agree to ask anything at all, it will be granted to you by my Father in Heaven”. So love is a wonderful virtue and true love can bring heaven down to earth. In short, Christian love is not a feeling or an emotion but a responsibility.
May God bless you all.
LIVE STREAMING OF DAILY MASS FROM OUR CHURCH Our church is live streaming daily Mass through our Facebook Page https://m.facebook.com/stpetershoppers/
Fr. Vincent invites parishioners to join in the Mass via Zoom. ZOOM link https://zoom.us/j/93990476817
Meeting ID: 9399 047 6817. Masses are Monday to Friday 8:30am, Saturday 9:00am and Sunday 10:30am.
FATHER’S DAY MORNING TEA/CHAT WITH PARISHIONERS
Fr. Vincent invites parishioners to join him for a Father’s Day Morning Tea/Chat via Zoom on Saturday 5th September. The ZOOM Room will open at 9:45am, so that any connection issues can be resolved prior to starting the chat at 10:00am. Meeting ID: 9590 572 9639.
PARISH OFFICE
The Parish Office is closed, however staff will be working from home on Tuesday/Thursday/Friday from 9:00am to 4:00pm. You can still contact us on the office phone 9749 4300 or send in your enquiries/prayer requests by email to stpeters@westnet.com.au or hopperscrossing@cam.org.au
ONLINE CHILDREN’S LITURGY
St Peters Young Adults will be holding Online Children’s Liturgy for children aged 5 – 8 years, commencing Sunday 20th September 2020, from 11:30am to 12:30pm. Children will pray together, read and listen to the Gospel and be supported to grow in their faith through sharing and activities. We welcome you and your family to take part! Parents are required to register their children before attending, details will be in next weekend’s bulletin. Our parish will ensure that child e-safety is maintained as we follow the child safety guidelines recommended by the Archdiocese of Melbourne. For more information, send in your enquiries to the Parish office at hopperscrossing@cam.or.au.
MESSAGE FROM ARCHBISHOP PETER COMENSOLI
Please use the following link to listen to Archbishop Peter’s message for this week
https://melbournecatholic.org.au/News/ArtMID/416/ArticleID/24596/Read-something-spiritually-nourishing-Message-from-Archbishop-Comensoli
CHILD PROTECTION WEEK (6-12 September) leads into Child Protection Sunday on 13 September. Our parish is committed to the safety and well-being of all children and young people in our parish. As part of this, we have a Child Safety Committee which meets regularly to ensure that our Ministries safeguard all children and young people in our parish.
ZOOM LINKS TO WEEKLY ST. ANTHONY’S NOVENA & OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL SUCCOUR NOVENA
St. Anthony’s Novena held every Tuesday at 7:00pm, followed by Rosary
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82338237597?pwd=dlZyKzFCOERFNDBDMCs5cDBkUnFOdz09
Meeting ID: 823 3823 7597, Password: 524250
Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Novena held every Wednesday at 7:00pm followed by Rosary
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83632685197?pwd=RWRxQWJ1TXpoZHlLRTRIUVp0Nk0zdz09
Meeting ID: 836 3268 5197. No Password.
HSI SCHOOL OF DISCIPLESHIP
HSI School of Discipleship continues this Sunday (6 September 2020) and every Sunday from 7:00pm. The session consists of prayer, song, video talk, discussion, sharing and blessing. This week the session is on Understanding Scripture. Newcomers welcome. Meeting ID 843 9084 5271. No password. Enquiries Connie Skinner 0422165133
ST. PETER'S CHARISMATIC PRAYER COMMUNITY – KNK
Saturdays at 3:00pm – Divine Mercy & 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.
Focus on Gospel of John, Chapter 12.
Enquiries Francis Thomas francispthomas@hotmail.com
Meeting ID: 9689427525 Password: 2Vp4ef
RCIA (The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) is a program for anyone interested in becoming a Catholic and receiving the Sacraments. Meetings are held on Wednesdays at 7:00pm on Zoom. Meeting ID 937 5345 2162. Passcode: 624286. If you or anyone you know is interested, you are welcome to join. Please contact Francis Thomas on 0401 787 372 or francispthomas@hotmail.com or Evelyn Stowers on 0499 416 158.
50TH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY
Congratulations to our parishioners Tony and Sylvia Palmer as they celebrate their 50th Wedding Anniversary on 5th September. We wish them God’s Blessings in abundance.
DATE NIGHT
It can be difficult at any time for husband and wife to have that special fun time together to ‘re-charge’ and potentially even more difficult at the moment with the effects of ‘lockdowns’ and ‘curfews’. This Australia-wide online Date Night event is partnered with Focus on the Family Australia to be held on Saturday 19th September, 8–9pm. Hosted by Christian comedian, Ben Price. Brett and Kate Ryan of Focus on the Family Australia will talk on "Looking back to help strengthen your future." Discussing how to grow your relationship when life throws you a curve ball ....or two!” Cost $10 a couple who on registering will receive an email with content and ideas to make the evening relaxed, fun and special. Registration through https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/virtual-date-night-2020-tickets-117714763025
RECENTLY DECEASED
We pray for Mary Vella, Annakutty Joseph, Lilia Balasabas Capuno, Kari Pesonen, Stella Dias, Bill Fairney, Vin Beasley, Manny Zamora, Daphne White, Betty Donald, Charles Lovett, all who have died due to COVID-19, all those who lost their lives in the Beirut explosion and all who have passed away recently.
DEATH ANNIVERSARIES
We pray for Raymond Linning, Joseph Varkey, John Tanti, Hugh Goodfellow and all whose anniversaries occur at this time.
PRAYERS FOR THE SICK
We pray for Gary Spotswood, Sean Donaldson, Kath Meddings, 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, Carmelina Costanzo, Bryan Dalton, Pat Borcich, Antony, Alki Christopoulos, Charlotte Mary, Frank Forbes, Baby Lucy Rodriguerz, Baillie Millar, Teresita Grisancich, Wilma Pimenta, Kathy Smith, Paul Burton, Martina Serrao, Honerine Rosario, Aloysius Silva, Shirley Poppen, Joseph DiBeneditto, Norma Medina, Nicolas Caruana and all who are ill in our Parish.