PARISH BULLETIN – Easter Sunday – 4th April 2021
SUNDAY MASSES ~ ‘Townland Rota’ resumes next weekend
VIGIL MASS
St. Eugene’s, Moneyneena: 5 pm
Holy Rosary, Draperstown: 6.15 pm [webcam]
St. Patrick’s, Keenaught: 7.30 pm
SUNDAY
St. Columba’s, Straw: 9 am
St. Mary’s, Coolcalm: 10 am [webcam]
St. Patrick’s, Sixtowns: 11 am
Holy Rosary, Draperstown: 12 noon [webcam]
DAILY MASS TIMES FOR THIS WEEK
Holy Rosary Church: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday ~ 11 am. Friday ~ 7.30 pm.
St. Mary’s Church, Coolcalm: Friday morning only ~ 11 am.
All Masses in St. Mary’s, Coolcalm are transmitted live via the Desertmartin parish webcam:
https://www.churchservices.tv/Desertmartin
All Masses in the Holy Rosary Church are transmitted live on the Ballinascreen parish webcam:
https://www.churchservices.tv/Draperstown
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Fr. Peter Madden P.P. V.F.
31 Sixtowns Road, Draperstown
Phone: 028 7962 8376
Email: ballinascreenparish@gmail.com
Fr. Dermot McGirr C.C.
50 Tobermore Road, Desertmartin
Telephone: 028 7963 2196
Email: desertmartinparish@gmail.com
Fr. John Downey C.C.
36 Moneyneena Road
Telephone: 028 7962 8375
Email: j.downey75@btinternet.com
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EASTER 2021 ~ Fr. McGirr wishes everyone the Blessings of Easter. This Easter may we live as people deeply touched by the hope and spirit of the Risen Jesus as we proclaim: Christ is risen, he is truly risen! Alleluia, Alleluia!
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DEATHS AND ANNIVERSARIES
Please remember in your prayers:
Willie Cassidy and James O’Kane who died recently.
Mary Josephine McGovern, Anna O’Hagan, Frank O’Hagan, Brian Gribbin and Patricia Higgins whose anniversaries occur at this time.
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THANK YOU for your generous contributions to the Parish.
Last Week:
Sunday Collection/Priests’ Collection envelopes: £1,496.00.
Restoration Fund envelopes: £159.00.
Clerical Education Collection envelopes: £56.00 (total so far: £278.00).
Holy Places Collection envelopes: £17.00 (total so far: £309.00).
Lourdes Collection envelopes: £27.00 (total so far: £506.00).
Those who contribute with a church collection envelope, you are welcome to return them at any parish Mass or Holy Week Ceremony or put them through the Parochial House letterbox.
Many thanks to all who have dropped in parish envelopes, established standing orders, have made online payments or used the ‘Donate’ button on the Parish Website. Your generosity is vital to the parish and is appreciated very, very much.
ST. VINCENT de PAUL
If you would like to make a donation, please put it in an envelope marked ‘St. Vincent de Paul’ and put the envelope through the letterbox at the Parochial House. Thank you.
TRÓCAIRE DONATIONS
We have been requested by Derry Diocesan Office to make our parishioners aware of how donations to Trócaire may be made at this time:
- Donations may be placed in an envelope marked Trócaire and returned with your normal weekly envelope.
- If you wish to transfer your donation directly Trócaire, its Bank details are:
- Sorting Code: 93.80.92 Account No: 8822 7020
- Donate button on the Trócaire website.
- Cheques may be posted to: Trócaire, 50-52 King Street, Belfast BT1 6AD.
- Trócaire freephone number is 0800 912 1200, if you need more information.
Trócaire’s Lent Campaign is part of UK Aid Match, meaning that any money raised by people in Northern Ireland between 17th February and 16th May will be doubled by the UK government, up to £2 million. So, for every £1 donated, the UK government will give Trócaire another £1 for its lifesaving work.
CONFIRMATION AND FIRST HOLY COMMUNION 2021
Fr. McGirr held an online meeting with the primary schools in Desertmartin during the week to plan ahead for the celebration of First Confession, First Holy Communion and Confirmation. As you will know Bishop McKeown has deferred all First Holy Communion Masses until September and Confirmation Ceremonies may be provisionally arranged for June, though he will review this in May to decide whether, in the light of the Covid-19 statistics at that time, they can take place.
Nevertheless, despite this uncertainty we want to provide the parish with the relevant dates for these ceremonies in the hope that they will not be changed.
FIRST CONFESSION will take place in Knocknagin P.S. and St. Columb’s P.S., Cullion on the afternoon of Wednesday 12th May.
CONFIRMATION:
Knocknagin P.S. on Saturday 12th June at 11 am in St. Mary’s, Coolcalm
St. Columb’s P.S., Cullion on Saturday 19th June at 11 am in St. Mary’s, Coolcalm
FIRST HOLY COMMUNION:
Knocknagin P.S. on Saturday 25th September at 11 am in St. Mary’s, Coolcalm
St. Columb’s P.S., Cullion on Saturday 2nd October at 11 am in St. Mary’s, Coolcalm
PARISH ANNIVERSARY MASS
If parishioners in Desertmartin and Ballinascreen wish to have their loved one prayed for at the 11 am Mass in Coolcalm or the 7.30 pm Mass in Holy Rosary on Friday, phone the Desertmartin Parish Office answering machine on 028 7939 7047 or email desertmartinparish@gmail.com by 12 noon on Thursday of the relevant week. These Masses from Coolcalm and the Holy Rosary may be viewed on the respective Parish webcams.
For Coolcalm go to www.desertmartinparish.com and click on the blue webcam button.
For Holy Rosary, go to www.parishofballinascreen.com and click on the word ‘webcams’ in yellow.
COOLCALM AND KEENAUGHT OPEN FOR PRIVATE PRAYER
St. Mary’s, Coolcalm, will be open for private prayer and to light candles this week on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 11 am to 2 pm.
St. Patrick’s, Keenaught, will be open for private prayer and to light candles this week on Thursday from 11 am to 2 pm.
Please, you must wear a face covering while entering and leaving the church. When you call into the church please pick up a coloured card at the door on the way to your seat. When you have finished praying please leave the card behind on your seat. That seat will be cleaned later in the day. Do not sit on a seat where a card has been left behind. Thank you.
CELEBRATING EASTER
The Derry Diocesan website has compiled a comprehensive list of Easter resources and activities in which parishioners can join online, watch on TV or listen to on radio. These include live Easter broadcasts from the Vatican with Pope Francis, live Mass broadcasts from Knock Shrine, films for Easter, downloadable activities for children, prayers for use in your home, instructions on creating an Easter garden and much more. To view, visit: derrydiocese.org/easter
PADRE PIO PRAYER GROUP DERRY
The Padre Pio Prayer Group will resume from Tuesday 6th April at Holy Family Chapel, Ballymagroarty, starting with the Rosary before Mass and continuing with prayers afterwards. A first class relic will be available for blessing. Social distancing and masks at all times. All welcome.
GIVE BLOOD SAVE LIVES
The next blood donation sessions in our local area will be held at Magherafelt High School on Tuesday 6th April from 10.30 am to 1 pm and from 2.15 pm to 5.15 pm and on Wednesday 7th April from 1 pm to 4 pm and from 5 pm to 7.30 pm. By appointment only. Please tel. 080 8553 4653 to book. Consider being a blood donor as our hospitals still need a vital supply of blood.
AID FOR THE CHILDREN OF YEMEN
Fr. Neal Carlin’s (of the Columba Community in the Diocese) new book, The Eagle, The Tiger and Covid, is now on sale at €10/£10 and can be purchased by contacting goldenagecentre@hotmail.com. All proceeds are being sent via a direct contact to aid the Children of Yemen.
SMOKING CESSATION SERVICE
Thinking of giving up smoking for 2021? Free smoking cessation service available at O’Kane’s Pharmacy, Draperstown. Please phone 028 7962 8209 for more information.
SACRED HEART MESSENGER
A digital edition of ‘The Messenger’ is available to subscribers. A digital subscription costs just €15 per year and we hope you will decide to subscribe if you are not currently a subscriber. Contact Coordinator, Elizabeth Foley, on 00353 87 230 9219 or email: e.foley@messenger.ie.
STRESS CONTROL ONLINE
Stress is a normal reaction to the rapidly changing and uncertain times we are all living in at the moment. If you are feeling a bit more stressed than usual and would like to learn some great ways, free-of-charge, to deal with common problems like anxiety, depression, panicky feelings, poor sleep and poor wellbeing then come along to our online Stress Control class. ‘Stress Control’ is a six-session cognitive-behavioural therapy class used extensively in community-settings by the NHS (UK) and HSE (Ireland) and across the world. You can find out more here: https://ni.stresscontrol.org/
As you can’t come to a regular Stress Control class due to the current circumstances, Stress Control will come to you and live stream the sessions. Each session will be available on the YouTube channel from 9 am and will be 62 hours after the start time. The sessions will be led by Dr. Jim White, consultant clinical psychologist, who created the class and who has taught most of the NHS (UK) and HSE (Ireland) trainers who would normally be running classes across the country.
To take part:
- Go to https://ni.stresscontrol.org/ where you can learn more about the class and get the dates. Everything you need to successfully complete the class – the booklets, self-assessment, relaxation and mindfulness – can be found in the ‘Free zone’. If you can, please read, and start working on, the booklets in the ‘Preparing for the course’ section before Session 1.
- On the homepage, click on the ‘Stress Control Online’ link to access our YouTube channel where the classes will be available to view at the scheduled times. If you click the ‘Subscribe’ button on our YouTube page (free), you will receive notifications when a new session is available. You can also follow this link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdCfzKgmXbB30baWLv6L5-g
- The session will begin exactly on time, so make sure you are there from the start. Sessions run for about 90 minutes and there will be a 10-minute break in the middle.
- Each session is one piece of the jigsaw in tackling your Stress. By coming to each class, the jigsaw will form, and the big picture can emerge, making you better able to handle your stress. This is cognitive-behavioural therapy so it is crucial you practice the skills you will learn between sessions.
Life is very hard for us just now and there are no easy solutions or magic cures, but, with hard work and determination, we can boost our resilience to cope with these difficult times and come out the other end stronger. Please pass this on to anyone who you think might benefit from the class.
