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Gathered As Church
A couple of evenings ago, our diocese held a Synod event at Carfin Grotto. The weather wasn’t the best as there were various weather warnings in place thanks to Storm Babet. And this almost certainly reduced the numbers of people who were present that evening from across the diocese. Alongside this, there were anecdotes of some parishes not having been told anything about the synodal event taking place; and at least one parish – whose priest is perceived as being not in favour of the Synod taking place – was said to have arranged a service at the same time that evening, seemingly as a counterpoint to what was taking…
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A Golden Celebration
We had the pleasure of welcoming Bishop Joseph Toal, of the Diocese of Motherwell, yesterday for the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Church of Saint Francis of Assisi, one of the two Churches which make up our Parish of Saint Ambrose. As part of the celebration, we also welcomed two of the former parish priests, Monsignor John McIntyre and Fr Vivian Hayes, together with our current parish priest, Fr Tom Devlin. They were accompanied by our parish deacon, Michael Meechan, and visiting fellow deacon, Joe Gallagher. In his homily, Bishop Toal spoke about the time of the building of St Francis of Assisi Church, coming not so long…
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Pastoral Letter – Bishop Toal
Bishop Joseph Toal of the Diocese of Motherwell, my own diocese, has published a Pastoral Letter regarding the Synod on Synodality. The text of this Pastoral Letter is given on the diocesan website and it is reproduced here in full – 26th September 2023 PASTORAL LETTER FROM BISHOP TOAL Dear Brothers and Sisters, As the Assembly in Rome for the Synod on Synodality: Communion, Participation, and Mission, approaches this coming weekend, the Church everywhere prays for those present and asks the Holy Spirit to guide and bless their work on our behalf. In the Synodal journey to date, much has been said about listening, and Jesus himself often encourages…
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The End Of An Era
In a town near here there is a little wooden Church, a quiet suburban parish which is now part of a larger parish, though for a long time it was a parish in its own right. It is the little Church of Saint Paul and for many, many years, this was my home parish. A couple of days ago I learned that the little Church is now to close, with a final Mass taking place in a few weeks time, which I will attend. St Paul’s Parish was in one of the housing estates of the town, and not – in those days, at least – one of the better…
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A Synodal Diocese
It is greatly encouraging to see that our diocese – the Diocese of Motherwell, in Scotland – is engaging fully with the work of the Synod and ethos of our Holy Father, Pope Francis. The Diocese has a Synod Team who work quietly behind the scenes to keep the spirit of the Synod at the heart of the life of the Diocese and to support the Bishop in his work in this area. Nationally, there is a further team drawn from across the eight dioceses of Scotland – the task of this team is to support the Bishops Conference of Scotland in the work of the Synod. The diocesan synod…
