Parish Newsletter- 5th January 2025

The Magi, guided by a moving star, traveled separately from their individual lands in the east in search of the newborn Jesus. Tissot depicts the Magi at the moment when their retinues meet in the vast, arid landscape of the volcanic hills on the shores of the Dead Sea between Jericho, the Kedron Valley, and Jerusalem. In his commentary, the artist notes that their flowing saffron robes—a luxurious counterpoint to the simple woolens of the shepherds— signal their status as astronomers.
Typically described as wise men and kings, the Magi present the Christ Child with gold, frankincense, and myrrh. In the series of watercolors, the Magi’s visit to the grotto inexplicably appears after the presentation in the Temple, representing one of the curious inconsistencies in Tissot’s construction of his Gospel harmony.

Mass times for the week aheadMASS INTENTIONS
Saturday 4th January @7.00pm
Clara
Frank & Mary Ann Mullins. Paddy & Anne Robbins. Ita & Doney Carey. Christy & Theresa Geoghegan. Marie Tobella. Joe, Rose & Johnny Bracken. Deceased of Bastic family.
Sunday 5th January @10.00am
Horseleap
No Intention.
Sunday 5th January @11.30am
Clara
Tom, Norrie, John & Peg Duffin. Deceased of the Lynam & Hogan families. Joseph Fitzpatrick. Dan Griffiths.
Monday 6th January @10.00am
Clara
The Feast of the Epiphany.
Monday 6th January @7.00pm
Horseleap
The Feast of the Epiphany.
Tuesday 7th January @7.30pm
Clara
St. Raymond of Penyafort
Imelda Gibbons (Month’s Mind).
Wednesday 8th January @7.30pm
Clara
Olive Dunne. Pat Joe & Mary Jo Hynes.
Thursday 9th January @10.00am
Clara
Blessed Pauline Jaricot
No Intention.
Friday 10th January @10.00am
Clara
No Intention.
Saturday 11th January @10.00am
Clara
No Intention.
Saturday 11th January @7.00pm
Clara
Frank, Kathleen & Francis Newman.
Sunday 12th January @10.00am
Horseleap
Bernard & Bridget Keegan.
Sunday 12th January @11.30am
Clara
Margaret Cunningham (Month’s Mind).

Adoration of the Blessed Eucharist
Monday & Friday – 5.00-6.00pm
Tuesday & Wednesday – after 7.30pm Mass to 9.00pm.
All are welcome!
Come and find peace in the Lord.


Please pray for the soul of Margaret Kinsella (nee Clyne) Dublin/Clara; recently deceased.  R.I.P.


The Visit of the Wise Men
The prologue to John’s Gospel today is a piece of poetry. Like all poetry, one of the ways to enter into it is to read it a few times slowly and let the words and images speak to you. The prologue proclaims Jesus as the true light come into the world. The prologue also affirms the transforming power of faith: ‘to all who received him … he gave power to become children of God’. As ‘Jesus people’ in the world today, we also are called to be witnesses to the light. The Kingdom of God is for all peoples of the world. Faith in the person of Jesus is all we need to enter the Kingdom of God. Today’s gospel is a true, powerful, exciting and hope-filled message for our world and all who live in it. It is, in a word, the ‘Joy of the Gospel’.


‘Where is the child who has been born King of the Jews?
For we observed his Star and its rising, and have come to pay him homage.’

The feast of the Epiphany marks the arrival of the Magi to worship the Baby Jesus and the manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles as the Saviour of the world. Although little is known about the Three Wise Men, tradition provides us with their names: Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar. The Epiphany celebrates the moment Christ, the ultimate gift, was made known to the Three Wise Men and thus the Gentiles. Their journey is central to the Feast of the Three Kings 2025, highlighting the global acknowledgment of Jesus as the Messiah. The term “Epiphany,” based on the Greek word meaning “manifestation” or “revelation,” commemorates key events in the life of Christ: the visitation of the Three Wise Men, the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan, and Christ’s first public miracle at Cana and each reflects a moment of divine and special revelation in the life of Jesus.

Jubilee Year 2025: ‘Pilgrims of Hope’


Collections 28th/29th December: Development Fund: €1,360; Offerings: €645; Plate; €745.
Thank You Very Much!


Happy New Year!


++++++++

Image: Les rois mages en voyage by James Tissot

Views: 185

Upcoming Events