Għasri Parish's notices for this week are as follows:
1. Thank you for everyone's help during feast: From the bottom of my heart, I wish to say congratulations and thank you to everyone who participated and contributed to the beautiful feast we had. You truly made me proud to be your parish priest; we had a feast as it should be, without exaggerations and without shortcomings. I feel I can say that other villages should imitate our feast. This is how a Christian feast should be. Heartfelt thanks.
2. Acknowledgment from Msgr. Mikiel Mintoff in his own words: "For me, celebrating the 50th anniversary of my Priestly Ordination in our parish had a specific purpose that I wanted to achieve, and I think it was achieved. I wanted to say a profound THANK YOU, together with you, to the Lord and to our mother Mary, whose help I have always found, in the community and with the community where I was born and raised. I believe this purpose was achieved through your cooperation and numerous presence and with the help of Fr. Edward. I also wanted to give this occasion a vocational aspect, with the hope, enthusiasm, and prayers of all of us to support all seminarians in their formation and so that when the Lord calls, there will be those who listen to His calls. Once again, THANK YOU for your sincere wishes, your numerous presence, and everyone's cooperation. Let us always pray for Vocations, so that the Christian community is always served by shepherds according to the heart of God. I wish you the Lord's blessing in your families and the entire parish. Mons. Mikiel Mintoff."
3. Official Start of My Work as Parish Priest of Għasri—Saturday, 5th October. The official start of the pastoral work of a new Parish Priest is commonly referred to as ‘Pussess’ in Maltese: this word can be misunderstood, implying that the Parish Priest will possess the parish, but in fact, it should be the opposite, meaning that the parish will possess the Parish Priest, because it is not the parish that is at the service of the Parish Priest but the Parish Priest who is at the service of the parish. As a tentative date, we are thinking of Saturday evening, 5th October. It is my wish that it be something simple yet dignified and without pomp. Therefore, I ask you to keep this date so that, God willing, it will not only be the official start of my pastoral work as parish priest but also the beginning of the Pastoral Year together as a family of Faith.
4. Eucharistic Adoration by the English-Speaking Community — Coming Thursday 13th of June at 3.30 pm. The 13th of June is the second Thursday of the month and time for another Eucharistic Adoration event organised by the English-speaking community. We meet at the Parish Church at 3.30 pm and after we share some refreshments at the parish house. Please come and bring others with you.
5. The next edition of Il-Korpus (i.e. the annual publication exclusively on Għasri's spiritual and secular history) is being distributed door-to-door in Għasri Residences.
6. Marian Wednesdays: Through a visit to the Madonna of Ta’ Pinu or to the Patronage Madonna, Mass is celebrated every Wednesday evening at 6.30 pm at the Basilica of Our Lady of the Patronage, preceded by the rosary and hymns at 6.00 pm. During these Marian Wednesdays, there is no Wednesday evening Mass at the parish church as per the times in this link: https://www.ghasriparish.org/en/mass-times-ghasri.
7. Confession Times: On Saturday, a visiting confessor will be available from 6.00 pm to 7.00 pm. On Sunday, confession times are from 8.30 am to 9.00 am, 10.15 am to 10.45 am, and 5.55 pm to 6.15 pm. On the First Friday of the month, a visiting confessor will be available from 6.00 pm to 7.30 pm. Additionally, every First Sunday of the month, a visiting confessor will be available throughout all Masses.
8. Communion for the sick (Viaticum) is given every Sunday after 8.30am's Mass.
Updates from various pastoral groups in Għasri Parish:
- Weekly spiritual meetings for students from Form 2 until Form 5 every Friday evening at 7.30pm at Għasri Parish Centre.
- Sunday School: There are two catechism sessions every week: Saturday at 5.00pm and Sunday at 9.15am. Both are currently held at the Għasri Parish Centre and are available for all kids until Form 2 (Year eight). The necessary form is required to be filled prior to enrolling in Sunday School. Please send an email or contact Fr. Edward Vella.
- Every third Saturday of the month, at 7.30pm, we have a monthly meeting for married couples at the Għasri Parish Centre.
- Legion of Mary: Fridays at 5.00pm (Summer-Time) at the Church Sacristy (Għasri).
- English-Speaking Group: Prayer meeting in English every second Thursday of the month at Għasri Parish Church at 3.30pm followed by an Afternoon Tea at the rectory opposite the church.
Updates from the Għasri Parish Council:
- The parish office is open on Tuesdays (9am-10.30am), Thursdays (9am-10.30am), Sunday (9.15am-10.30am). The person who is available during these office hours is Ms. Grace Calleja from the Għasri Parish Council. Thus, one can speak directly to a parish representative on logistical/administrative matters relating to the parish during these hours.
- The updates on the two infrastructural projects which are currently ongoing at our parish are as follows > (a) Updates on the Church's roof restoration: collections during the first weekend of each month will go directly to this infrastructure project. The architect noted that it's not just the membrane which needs changing but also some stones around the windows. > (b) There are no new updates on the cemetery works. However, those who would like to reserve a new grave are kindly requested to contact the parish.
- Finance updates from the Financial Committee within the Għasri Parish Council -- The follows is a report on the Collection for the Month of May: The second collection for the Feast on 19th May raised €2390, with an additional €438.70 collected after the procession of the statue. Donations included €500, €100, €100, €40, and €20 from anonymous donors. Bingo on 29th May raised €125, Iklafest lotteries collected €447, and the Diamond Painting Lottery Madonna ta' Pinu has gathered €270 so far. The parish collection for May totalled €954.39, with an additional €146.70 from the May Patronage collection. The weekend collection for the Feast amounted to €1018.59. Special thanks to a child and his parents who, on a special occasion, chose to donate funds intended for souvenirs to the restoration of our church. Grateful for everyone's help!.
- Those who would like to make a literary contribution to the next edition of Il-Korpus (i.e. the annual publication exclusively on Għasri's spiritual and secular history) are kindly requested to contact the editor as usual. Alternatively, one can contact the parish and we will provide the contact details of the editor.
Notes from the Gozo Diocese:
- The Diocese's pastoral theme for this year is "Stay with us, Lord" (Luke 24:29). More information on the social media of Gozo Diocese.
- Those who would like to subscribe to the print-version of Gozo Diocese's monthly publication "Il-Ħajja f'Għawdex" can send a separate email which would be forwarded to the publishers. The printed publication is in Maltese only and the fee is paid annually.
- The 5 Spiritual Sessions led by the Bishop of Gozo, Msgr. Anton Teuma, which were held at the parish church of Għasri in February 2024, where the theme was Repentance, are now available online on the YouTube playlist of the Diocese of Gozo at this link: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJsSpKY689vl7VB-Mn0g6LXOMt9cbzj_c
- For updates on the Synod on Synodality, one can follow the official media of either the Gozo Diocese, the Archdiocese of Malta or the Vatican News.
I wish you all a blessed week!
Comments