Holy Week 2018

Church of St Cross Hospital, Winchester

The timetable for Masses and ceremonies during Holy Week can be read here.

NOTE :  NEW CEREMONY

Holy Saturday      Rathcoole, 2 p.m.    All Welcome!
Blessing of Polish Community's Easter Baskets

Masses on St Patrick's Day

St Patrick Preaching the Gospel to Laoghaire, King of Ireland

Mass Times for St Patrick's Day

Friday (Vigil)           7 p.m.          Rathcoole        

Saturday 17th         9 a.m.         Saggart

                                 10 a.m.          Newcastle                  

                                 12 noon         Rathcoole

The photo above is of the meeting between St Patrick and King Laoghaire in the royal court of Tara (Teamair). The saint is preaching the Gospel to the king and his courtiers, holding up the shamrock, symbol of the Trinity, in his right hand.  This is the scene as depicted in a stained-glass window to be found in Sts Peter and Paul's church, Athlone, designed by Richard King of the Harry Clarke Studios which continued Clarke's work after his death in 1931. The photo is reproduced here by kind permission of the authors of the website Roaringwater Journal.

For more reading on Harry Clarke, see here and, for his illustrations for Ireland's Memorial Records 1914-1918 (published in eight volumes, 1919) giving information on 49,435 men killed in WWI, see here.  Vol 5 (K-McG) has been digitized by TCD and may be browsed  here. If you scroll down to the name McCann, Joseph William (p.282), you will find the following record for one of our parishioners, 

Reg. No. 52825,  Corporal Royal Engineers; d. Gallipoli 23 August 1915; b. Saggart, Co. Dublin, aged 26

Let us then remember on St Patrick's day all Irish people at home and abroad, both living and dead -- and that includes this young parishioner the Harry Clarke window has led us to. Joseph McCann lies far away today in the Portianos Military Cemetery on the Aegean island of Lemnos (see here  Note that in this Commonwealth War Graves Commission record his address is given as Keating's Park, Rathcoole).

Masses This Weekend

From Communications Office, Dublin Archdiocese 

SUNDAY MASS OBLIGATION IN CURRENT WEATHER SITUATION

Where weather conditions make it unsafe or where road conditions make it dangerous, imprudent or difficult, there is no obligation to attend Sunday Mass this weekend.

When people are unable to attend Mass it is recommended that they view or listen to the Mass on-line, on television or radio or that they spend a time in prayer as individuals or as a family.

Where serious conditions of access or safety arise regarding a Church building, the Parish Priest or Rector may decide that a Church may remain closed even on Sunday.  

From Fr John Gilligan, Moderator                      
and                                                                                                 Matt O'Sullivan, Chairperson, PPC

Due to the state of the roads and areas around our Churches we are cancelling all Masses in Saggart, Rathcoole, and Brittas this weekend. Mass in Newcastle will go ahead (i.e. Saturday Vigil, 7 p.m. and Sunday, 10.30 a.m.). The diocese supports this decision in the interests of health and safety (see above communication). We hope you are all keeping warm and have enough food.  Please keep in contact with those who are housebound to see they are okay.

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View of One Parishioner's Driveway, Corbally

See newsletter of 11th March here (p.4) for photos of our churches in the Big Snow.