Dear Parishioners,
I would like to wish you all a very happy and healthy New Year. It was such a shame that a number of families were restricted by Covid and other illnesses s at Christmas. We wish them well in their recovery. Given this situation I hope it was still possible for everyone to enjoy the Christmas spirit. It was lovely to see so many parishioners at the Christmas Services. I would again like to thank everyone in the Parish for their wonderful support, help and assistance with all the services in the churches. As always, the church decorations were very special and created a wonderful festive atmosphere.
Christmas Fair and Raffle- Saturday 11th December
The Fair and Raffle was a wonderful success and I would like to again thank the wonderful team of stall holders and helpers, who worked so hard to make this occasion such a success. All your efforts were warmly appreciated by everyone.
Gift Day
I would like to thank everyone for their very generous support with the Parish Gift Day which was greatly appreciated.
Epiphany
Epiphany is a very important occasion in the life of the Church and on Epiphany, Thursday 6th January, we will celebrate Epiphany with a Service in All Saints’ at 11.00 am. On Epiphany we celebrate the arrival of the Wise Men and the significance of Epiphany continues to have an important relevance for the life of the world.
Epiphany Carol Service- this is a united Service for all the churches
The Epiphany Carol Service will be held at 11.00 a.m. on Sunday 9th January in All Saints’. At the Service we have an opportunity of singing the lovely Epiphany carols. The young leaders will lead the liturgy. I hope parishioners from all the churches will be able to come together as God’s family we can offer our praise to Him.
Lighten Our Darkness- Special Bio- diversity weekend -29th/30th January
We look forward to a special weekend on 29th /30th January, led by the young leaders. On Saturday 29th at 11.30 a.m. there will be a fact-finding visit to the three churchyards that will be the pilot areas for our initiative on bio-diversity. At 6.00 pm Dr. Dara Fitzpatrick of University College Cork, will present the challenge to the world regarding bio-diversity. As a scientist, Dara has an encyclopedic knowledge of bio-diversity and his presentation promises to be both informative and inspiring. The presentation will take place in All Saints’ public health guidelines permitting .
Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
In January each year we celebrate the octave for Christian Unity from 18th to 25th. This year from Tuesday 18th through to Tuesday 25th there will be a special Prayer Service in All Saints’ each day at 11a.m. On Sunday 23rd at 7.00 p.m. we will meet with Christians from all the other churches in Mullingar for a special service of praise and thanksgiving in the Cathedral at 7.00 p.m. We share a wonderful relationship with all the other churches in Mullingar and I urge parishioners to make the Octave this year a special priority.
Service of Crowns
The Children’s Gift Day Service will be held in All Saints at 11am on Sunday 16th January when we invite the children in the parish and their families to bring a small gift of 2 Euro which goes to support Children in Need.
Holy Baptism
We congratulate Abigale who was baptised in All Saints on 18th December. We pray for her, her parents and godparents.
Bereavements
We were all deeply saddened at the tragic death of Roy Ashmore before Christmas. We offer our deepest sympathy to Diane, Amy William, Emily and Ross and the family. Roy will be very sadly missed and throughout his life his many contributions and achievements were greatly appreciated and admired and we pray that now in the fuller presence of God he may rest in peace and rise in glory. We also pray that Diane and the family will also be comforted by God’s presence and by the love and support of all of us who admire and respect the Ashmore Family so much.
We were also saddened before Christmas at the loss of Watson Mills who over his long life of 96 years had made such an impact on the parish and local community. Watson’s achievement s were many and like Roy he will be so sadly missed by us all. We pray he will now rest in peace and rise in glory and we offer our deepest sympathy to his family and wide circle of friends.
We also offer our deepest sympathy to David Webster following the untimely death of his Uncle before Christmas. We hope that David and the family will be comforted by their warm memories of him and that his uncle may rest in peace and rise in glory.
Holy Days
Epiphany – 6th January
Conversion of St. Paul – 25th January
St. Bridgit’s Day – 1st February
Candlemas – 2nd February
As we begin the New Year I hope, as the year progresses, that we will be able to see an end to the restrictions that we have all had to accept since the onset of the pandemic. As we all know, it has been a challenging time for everyone but, please God, as the year proceeds we will all begin to see a bright light on the horizon.
I hope you will all keep safe and well and that this year will be good to you and your families.
With God’s blessings,
Rev. Alastair Graham
087 7870985
