Reflections on the Daily Readings 23rd January 2023

Webmaster • January 21, 2023

Monday 23rd January


Don’t let fear keep you from serving 


The disease of leprosy has been curable since the mid-20th century and is actually not highly contagious, as was believed in the past, but the physical effects were devastating enough to cause tremendous fear. Mother Marianne Cope was not afraid, which she stated in 1883 in her letter of acceptance to King Kalākaua of Hawaii, who had already asked for help from—and been turned down by—more than 50 other religious congregations to care for his people who had leprosy. The German-born American sister and six others came to his aid all the way from New York. When you go beyond your fears to answer a call, you may be bridging the greatest distance of all.


Today's readings: Hebrews 9:15, 24-28; Mark 3:22-30 (317).



Tuesday 24th January


There is strength in gentleness


Francis de Sales is famous for his gentleness. He used it on his stubborn father, convincing him he was meant to become a priest instead of a lawyer. It was a virtue Francis tapped to win hardened Calvinists back to the Catholic faith following the Protestant Reformation, a time of much bitterness. Explaining that a “spoonful of honey gathers more flies than a barrel full of vinegar,” Saint Francis practiced what he preached by greeting everyone with simple kindness, speaking good-naturedly about the goodness, truth, and beauty of the Catholic faith. “Be who you are and be that well,” he reminds us in Introduction to the Devout Life.


Today's readings: Hebrews 10:1-10; Mark 3:31-35 (318).


Wednesday 25th January


I can see clearly now


We’ve all had the rather unpleasant experience of “being shown the error of our ways,” though none perhaps as dramatically as Saul of Tarsus, zealous persecutor of early followers of Christ. On assignment to round up these dissidents, Saul was knocked from his horse by a blinding light and a voice from heaven. Three days of blindness ensued before the scales literally “fell from his eyes” and the newly awakened apostle and great evangelist we know as Saint Paul emerged. Don’t wait to be knocked to the ground before considering how your own life may have gone astray. Pray that anything that blinds you may fall away from your vision.


Today's readings: Acts 22:3-16 or Acts 9:1-22; Mark 16:15-18 (519)

Thursday 26th January


Our moment is now


In the ’90s, it seemed everyone wanted in on the “dot.com” internet startup craze. Many were excited to be in on the ground floor of something brand new. It’s tempting to think that Timothy and Titus (both of whom have letters in the New Testament addressed to them) were like the dot.com entrepreneurs when it came to the new, exciting religion of Christianity. In contrast, today’s Christianity can seem weighed down by centuries of precedent and proscriptions. Titus and Timothy dealt with plenty of church trouble in their time, however, from division to drunkenness to false teaching. Their witness reminds us to pray for the strength to rise to the challenges of the moment we’ve been given, just as they did.


Today's readings: 2 Timothy 1:1-8 or Titus 1:1-5 (520); Mark 4:21-25 (320)

Friday 27th January


Stay the course


Sometimes when the going gets tough, if they are honest, the tough want to curl up under the blankets and never come out! Life is not always an easy road, even when we feel called by God. But we’re not alone on the journey. We can look to the saints to see how they’ve weathered the storms. Today, on the feast of Angela Merici, educator and founder of the Ursuline Sisters, let us take heart in her wisdom. “Strive with all your might to keep yourselves as you have been called by God, and seek out and desire all those means and ways that are necessary to persevere and prosper till the end.”


Today's readings: Hebrews 10:32-39; Mark 4:26-34 (321).


Saturday 28th January


Be resolute 


Sometimes your commitment to your faith or choice of a vocation or calling can lead to uncomfortable conflicts with loved ones who have a different idea of who you should be or how you should live your life. Even a saint as illustrious as Saint Thomas had to struggle against opposition. His family was so opposed to his decision to enter the Dominican order that they had him abducted and held captive for a year! Thomas stood firm and they finally relented, and as a result the church gained perhaps its greatest theologian. Stand firm when you need to—who knows what God has in store for you!


Today's readings: Hebrews 11:1-2, 8-19; Mark 4:35-41 (322).

Prayers for the Sick

By Webmaster • February 14, 2026
Please pray for Our Sick : Margaret Callaghan Doreen Cleary, Michael Ritchie, Neil Boyle, John Rielly Molly Strang, James Clark, Fr. Michael McLaughlin, Patricia Henderson, Joanna Maier (Connecticut USA), Therese Gilgunn Tressy Callaghan, Suzanne McMurray, Mary Coyle, Lesley Watson (Spain) Maureen McHugh, Margaret Burke, Marie White, Kathleen Daly, John McGuire, Jill Brown, Karen Pritchatt, Louise Newton, Faith Lyndsey, Jill Brown, Marie McGuire, James Morton, Paul Kearney, Thomas Daly, Andrew McCluskey, Premature Baby Vincent McDowell, Bill Allan, Gudren Berk (Germany), Jaqueline McReynolds, Mary Morrison, Helen Howarth (Easterhouse), Margaret Loan, Avril McCluskey and all our sick.

Ash Wednesday

By Webmaster • February 14, 2026
Ash Wednesday 18th February What is Ash Wednesday? Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent—and a wonderful opportunity to make yourself 100% available to God! How available to God are you? 50%? 75%? 96.4%? No matter what your answer, Ash Wednesday is the perfect time to decide that you will spend this Lent increasing that number. On Ash Wednesday, you can get your forehead blessed with ashes at Mass or a prayer service. These ashes are a reminder that we need to repent. Repentance is a powerful invitation. When John the Baptist first appeared in the desert of Judea, this was his message: “Repent, prepare the way of the Lord” (Matthew 3:2). Later, when Jesus began his ministry, he led with this message: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). But what does it mean for us to repent, here and now, more than two thousand years later? It means the same as it did to the people walking around the dusty pathways in their sandals, trying to inch closer to Jesus as he passed through their town or village. Repent means “to turn back to God.” We all find ourselves needing to turn back to God many times a day, in ways small and large. It is not a matter of guilt and it is not a shameful thing. It is simply that we are a better version of ourselves when we return to his side!  Ash Wednesday Mass Times 18th February: Masses 7am, 10am & 6pm

This week's readings

By Webmaster • February 14, 2026
The Sermon on the Mount continues as the focus of the Gospel readings during Winter Ordinary Time, and today’s passage from Matthew chapter 5 contains some of the most challenging verses in the Gospel. Before turning to that teaching, however, let’s consider the other readings. The First Reading comes from the Book of Sirach, also known by its Latin title Ecclesiasticus, or “Church Book,” so called because the early Church made extensive use of this wisdom text in moral instruction for catechumens and the faithful. Sirach reflects powerfully on moral freedom: If you choose, you can keep the commandments; they will save you. Before you are life and death, good and evil; whichever you choose shall be given you. Freedom of the will is one of God’s greatest gifts. God places before us the choice between good and evil and invites us to choose life. What is equally clear is that God does not choose sin or injustice on our behalf. The responsibility for our moral choices rests with us. The Second Reading continues from Saint Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Writing to a Christian community surrounded by moral confusion, Paul reminds them that true wisdom does not come from the world, but from God: What eye has not seen and ear has not heard… what God has prepared for those who love him, God has revealed through the Spirit.  This reading complements Sirach beautifully. If the First Reading emphasizes our freedom to choose, the Second reminds us that God does not leave us unassisted. Through the grace of the Holy Spirit, God prepares us to live according to divine wisdom rather than worldly standards. Together, these readings lead us into today’s Gospel. Jesus makes it clear that he has not come to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it. He then calls his disciples to a righteousness that surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees – not through legal technicalities, but through holiness of heart. Jesus’ striking examples – equating anger with murder and lust with adultery – may sound harsh to modern ears. Yet Matthew presents these teachings to a Jewish Christian community still shaped by strict legal interpretation. Jesus’ strong language is meant to awaken his listeners to the truth that holiness requires more than outward observance. It calls for an interior conversion, where the heart itself is transformed by God’s grace.

Prayers for the recently dead, months, mind and Anniversaries

By Webmaster • February 14, 2026
Our Recently Dead Thomas Gallacher, Frank Cook, John Harkins, Bridie McKechnie, Mary Irvine, Frances Drummond, Mary McCrudden, Paul McGoldrick, Kevin McMahon, Christine Divers (Glasgow), Ellen Thomson (Glasgow), Eugene McVay, Catherine Chrighton (Holytown), James Neary, Campbell McFall (St. Ninian's), John Monaghan, John Collin Month Minds & Anniversaries John Corns, James, Ruby & Mary McDaide, Elizabeth & Stuart Johnston, Margaret Fox, Laraine Fox, Christine Archibald, Ann Rodgers, Hugh Rodgers, Giovanni Battiste Fionda, Marie Carmen Fionda, Johny D'Ambrosio, Margaret D'Ambrosio Please if you could make sure all month minds and anniversaries are handed in no later than Wednesday Night. If they come in after that they will be read out at Mass on Sunday. If the recently dead come in after the Wednesday deadline they too will be read out at Mass on the Sunday

Dates for your diary

By Webmaster • January 30, 2026
Mass of the Sick Saturday 14th February 10am Mass Ash Wednesday 18th February: Masses 7am, 10am & 6pm Sacramental Meetings Tuesday 24th February St. Peter's & St. Mark's 6pm First Confession 6.30pm First Communion  7pm Confirmation Meetings will take place in the Church

Gift Aid

By Webmaster • January 30, 2026
If you wish to sign up for Gift Aid. It is a great way to help the parish financially, costing you absolutely nothing. If you wish to sign up contact myself or Doreen Lee and we will give you the form and hand it back as you can and we can get it organised. As I said it costs you nothing, but helps the parish so much.

Powerpoint Remote Control:

By Webmaster • January 30, 2026
I am looking for Volunteers to move the power-points on during the Sunday Masses, Vigil 4pm, 9.30am & 11am. It is very easy to operate, if we get enough volunteers for each Mass we would put a wee rota together. It would take a wee bit of pressure off me.

Year of St Francis of Assisi

By Webmaster • January 24, 2026
The “Year of St Francis of Assisi”, was proclaimed by Pope Leo, in Rome to mark the 800th Anniversary of St Francis’ death in 2026. I am proposing to put a statue of St. Francis in the Church for this jubilee year. This is from EWTN Pope Leo XIV has proclaimed a “Special Year of St. Francis” to commemorate the 800th anniversary of the saint’s death. During this time of grace, which will extend until January 2027, the faithful are granted the opportunity to obtain a plenary indulgence . This Franciscan Jubilee Year, considered a gift for the entire Church and an occasion for authentic spiritual renewal, was inaugurated on Jan. 10 with a decree issued by the Apostolic Penitentiary of the Holy See. Until Jan. 10 of next year, the faithful can obtain this grace under the usual conditions — sacramental confession, Communion, and prayer for the intentions of the pope — by making a pilgrimage to any Franciscan conventual church or place of worship dedicated to St. Francis anywhere in the world. Furthermore, the elderly, the sick, and those who, for serious reasons, cannot leave their homes can obtain the plenary indulgence  by spiritually joining in the jubilee celebrations and offering their prayers, pains, or sufferings to God.

Mass of the sick

By Webmaster • January 17, 2026
Mass of the Sick Saturday 14th February 10am Mass Ash Wednesday 18th February more details to follow.

Second Sunday of Ordinary Time - 18th January

By Webmaster • January 17, 2026
The Second Sunday of the Year A, falling on January 18, 2026, is known as the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, featuring readings from Isaiah (calling the Messiah a shoot from Jesse), 1 Corinthians (emphasizing unity in Christ), and John's Gospel (John the Baptist identifying Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world). This Sunday marks a shift after Christmas and Epiphany into the regular flow of Ordinary Time, focusing on discipleship, God's calling, and Jesus's identity as revealed through the Baptist. Key Readings (Year A): ● First Reading : Isaiah 49:1-7 (The Servant Song, foretelling the Messiah's mission). ● Responsorial Psalm : Psalm 40 (A response of praise and commitment). ● Second Reading : 1 Corinthians 1:1-9 (Paul's greeting and call to unity). ● Gospel : John 1:29-42 (John the Baptist points to Jesus as the Lamb of God). Themes & Focus: ● The Calling of Disciples : The Gospel highlights Jesus's first disciples (Andrew and another) meeting and following Him. ● Identity of Jesus : The powerful declaration "Behold the Lamb of God" is central, connecting Jesus to sacrifice and redemption. ● Unity in Christ: 1 Corinthians speaks to the diverse people called to be saints, united in Christ. ● Ordinary Time : Moving from festive seasons into regular liturgical focus on Christian life and growth. Context: ● This Sunday often coincides with the start of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.
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