Newsletter 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time
25th October 2026
PARISH CELEBRATION SACRAMENTS OF FIRST COMMUNION AND CONFIRMATION 2027
The date for the Sacrament of Confirmation is Thursday the 20th of May and the date for First Communion is Sunday, May 23rd. Both celebrations will be at 11:30 am.
Due to the closure of City Quay Church for renovations both Sacraments will be celebrated in Saint Andrew's Westland Row,
Please complete the form via the link or QR code below to register for the parish program. For all First Communion and Confirmation candidates, a valid Baptism Certificate is required before registration will be accepted.
Please note that any parishioner is entitled to register for the program in the parish.
Registration Form
WIDOWS, ORPHANS AND STRANGERS
Reflection by Ronald Rolheiser, OMI
The Old Testament prophets have a mantra that goes like this: The quality of your faith will be judged by the quality of justice in the land; and the quality of justice in the land will always be judged by how “widows, orphans, and strangers” fared while you were alive.
Widows, orphans, and strangers. That phrase becomes code in Scripture for the most vulnerable people in any society, and the prophets warn that we will be judged on how well they fared while we were alive.
Jesus not only ratifies this, but he deepens it by identifying his very person with “widows, orphans, and strangers.” In Matthew 25 (“whatsoever you do to least of my children, you do unto me”), he tells us that how we treat “widows, orphans, and strangers” is how we are treating him. These are words we rarely take seriously. Do we really believe that, surpassing all other criteria, we will be judged for eternal life on how we treat the “widows, orphans, and strangers” who pass through our lives?
In today’s Gospel, Jesus says, “love your neighbour as yourself.” What does that mean? Certainly, it means what is implied in the Golden Rule, that we treat others as we want them to treat us. But for Christians there is this deeper level expressed in today’s reading from the book of Exodus; it means reaching out specially to the stranger, the widow, and the orphan, knowing we will ultimately be judged by how well or poorly we did this.
REMEMBERING:The Annual Mass to remember the deceased members of the parish will take place on Saturday the 7th of November at the 6pm Mass.
Hospitality after Mass ~ Following the 11.30am mass on Sundays - All Welcome!
Hospitality after Mass ~ Following the 11.30am mass on Sundays - All Welcome!
Martin Erspamer, OSB