The parish of Lismore and Ballysaggart news
The ragged wanderer arrived in the local town built on a beautiful clear medium river. The water looked so good. Our wandering friend asks on one local’s to get him something so that he could enjoy a draught of the water. Well! I am sure you will enjoy it and I will get your request but we notice that some people get very sick from using this river water. We have good medicine men and women who can come up with a mixture that may not cure them but they can go on living. Oh! Said the wander, has anyone gone up stream to see what the problem might be? Oh, no, we would be afraid of what we might find. We have a good system going that meets our needs.
The number of children and teenagers waiting for psychological supports are very large. And there are many more in the system and many more have come through the system. Our schools are resourced with many extras along with the main line teachers. We have not heard much about the clinical investigations as to the causes of all this suffering. Finland and Sweden did work on trying to assess similar causes. There is surely room here for some PhD student to do a thesis on this matter. Every parish has to be enlightened as to the best conditions for the human flourishing of the children and the young people. It is all part of the rights of the child.
We are still on our Lenten journey. We keep the many people who are preparing for adult Baptism at Easter. We are preparing to renew our own Baptismal vows. The Word of God for the coming Sunday draws us into praying about the mystery of Death and Resurrection. Easter life is the life we now experience as we make Jesus the fundamental option for our lives.
Because we do not celebrate a Sat morning Eucharist we will miss out of the Feast of the Annunciation of the Lord. Those of you who are scholars of the Lord of the Rings know the great significance of the 25th Mar. It is seen as the beginning of the New Creation, when evil was defeated. God enters our world not in power but in the humanity of Jesus. Through the strong character of Jesus he challenged all the oppressive people of his time. He stood with the poor and with the outsiders. The response of the powers that be at the time was to crucify him as a criminal and between two criminals. Out of that powerlessness Jesus rose to new life.
Continue to feed your family Trocaire box so that it will come back in premium condition for Holy Thursday Mass of the Last Supper. Your collective generosity was truly generous. You have a great sense of social justice and solidarity with the poorest of God’s poor.