"The Cross Behind The Coast"

Scripture References:- Exodus 22:20-26; 1^st Thessalonians 1:5-10; Matthew 22:34-40

The great commandment of Jesus (Matthew 22:34-40; Mark 12:28-31; Luke 10:25-28; John 13:34-35) is, in fact, made up of two Jewish Old Testament injunctions. The command to love God totally and above all else is found in Deuteronomy 6:5. The command to love ones neighbour as ones self comes from Leviticus 19:18. The genius of Jesus is to bring these 2 commandments together in a union that means that a person cannot do one without doing the other. Conversely we cannot fail to do one without failing to do the other. In reality, we cannot do/live out the great commandment without the help, strength, inspiration and guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that fills us with the power to receive and live in Gospel truth (Thessalonians 1:16). Living out of love for God means living out of love for one another, especially the poor, (materially and emotionally) the strangers, refugees, outcasts, lonely, weak and powerless. This is the heart of the message from the prophet Isaiah.

Yet it is of the very nature of love that it cannot be demanded or forced nor can it be imposed on others. Love must be chosen as a path, freely given and freely received. Love excludes violence of any kind, manipulation and the using of persons as things. Love chooses to see beyond superficial appearances to the depths that lie below the skin of any person or situation. Love can see, really see what is not immediately visible and so, in this sense, love is thoughtful not thoughtless. Love empowers us to break free of our worship of and allegiance to idols because all idols such as money, power, fame, lust and so on attract us by their surface, their superficial "skin"which initially seems so appealing. To break with idolatry, very much still alive and well and living in each and all of us, we need the vision, the depth-appeal of love (Thessalonians 1:9). Genuine love then, cannot be separated from a commitment to the work of justice and solidarity with those oppressed or suffering in any way. Such love will lead us to the heart of God and to our own true hearts. We will live with integrity and goodness because love fulfills all of the commandments (Romans 13:10).

If we want to see what such love is like then we only have to look to the life, ministry and teaching of Jesus. Particularly, we can see it written in bold print in his self-giving death and acknowledged by God as the way to true life in his resurrection. Of course, we all still and perhaps often fail in love; fail in openness and responsiveness to the Holy Spirit; fail to receive fully and be converted to the way of the gospel.

The great commandment of Jesus is both lived, lived partially and not lived at all by us, often within minutes of each other. We are very contradictory beings, frequently a mystery to ourselves let alone others.

Our failures can discourage and even defeat us! They should not, however, because God’s love for us, received in faith is always greater than our failures in love for God and each other. Where sin abounds, grace and mercy abound even more generously. When we realise our failures and turn back from them love and compassion greet us, heal us, lift us up and enable us to try again and again (Romans 5:1-11 and Romans 5:15-21). In the end, it is not the failing in love that will win out but the getting up/being lifted up again by God. Reconciled and renewed, forgiven by love and restored in love we are able to move on and travel in the Spirit a little deeper into the way of Christ.

With all my love and prayers.

Fr Mark

WEEKDAY MASS TIMES (25^th, 26^th, 27^th and 29th October 1999)

Monday 9.00 am Tuesday 7.00 pm

Wednesday 7.00 am Friday 9.00 am

RECONCILIATION 11am Saturday or any time by appointment. Phone 5596 1111

WEEKEND TIMES... 31^st Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A 30^th/31^st October 1999

St Brigid’s Nerang Saturday Vigil 6pm. Sunday 8.30am.

St Johns Beechmont 2nd and 4th Sundays at 10.30am.

Next masses 14^th & 28^th November 1999

BAPTISM PREPARATION AND CELEBRATION NOTICE ..... Enrolments for the celebration of Baptism in October are closed as preparation is now under way. Parents and families are now invited to enrol for the next celebration of Baptism on 21/11/99. The important preparation gathering for this celebration is on Monday 1/11/99 at 7.30pm, in the Parish Centre, McLaren Rd. Please direct all inquiries and bookings to the Presbytery on Ph 55 961111.

ST. VINCENT de PAUL .....The society meets on the 2nd and 4th Monday of every month at 6 pm at the Parish Centre. New members always welcome. Phone 5578 2706. Next meeting

Monday 25^th October.

SOLO CONNEXIONS ..... Is a support group for widowed, separated or divorced persons looking to build friendships. The group has respect for the Christian tradition. The group meets twice monthly ( public holidays excepted) at 2 venues. They are on the second & fourth Mondays of each month at 7 pm at The Sacred Heart Church meeting rooms at 50 Fairway Drive, Clear Island Waters, and, on the first and third Mondays at 7 pm in the Hall adjacent to St Augustine’s Church, Tweed St, Coolangatta. Information on 5526 1959.

PRAYER GROUP …….meets every Tuesday night for prayer and praise in St Brigid’s Church after 7.00pm Mass. Place your prayer requests in the box marked St Brigid’s Prayer Group at the Church entrance. Pencil and paper attached. Names not necessary.

ROSARY.....The Rosary will be prayed on Mondays after Mass in the Prayer Chapel. All welcome.

JOURNEY TO EASTER 2000….. Wednesday 27th October 7.30pm Parish Centre – Incarnation. Earthing God.

CHILDREN’S CHURCH ..... An invitation during each Mass is extended to you to let your children join with others so they can hear and learn about God’s word at a level suitable to their age. Children’s Church is Not held during school holidays. NOTE: Children’s church is for pre-schoolers (4 years old) to grade 5 (10 years old) ONLY!

BIBLE STUDY …. Mondays at the Parish Centre from 9.45am to 10.45am. Morning tea and baby sitting provided. An informal and pleasant way of sharing Scripture and understanding God’s message. All welcome! Enquiries Debbie Black on 5527 3643.

CHURCH CLEANING….Thank you to Coral & John for this week’s effort. Irene & Robin are rostered for next weekend 29/10/99.

PARISH INCOME ..... is from the 2nd collection and is used to pay all debts, bills, maintenance and running costs of the parish including all loan repayments. The 2nd collection planned giving is NOT tax deductable.

Parish target to fully meet expenses is $1,600.00

REMEMBERING YOUR PARISH AND THE CHURCH...through a bequest in your will is a great way for you to continue to contribute to our future after your death. You or you solicitor can find out the correct wording for such a bequest by phoning the Diocesan Bequest Officer Mary-Anne Roberts on 07 3224 3282.

THANK YOU….for all the prayers, kind enquiries, visits and cards while I was in hospital. It was very much appreciated, it is wonderful to be back. God bless you all. Jeanie Bird

OVER 50’S…..Melbourne Cup Luncheon – 2^nd November 11 am ALL WELCOME. Contact Jean Finch 55 332809 or Betty Hennessey 55 966966.

MENTAL HEALTH WEEK 1999 …..You can make all the difference. 1in 5 Australians will suffer from mental illness at some stage in their life. The difficulties can be enormous for the people involved: the person, the family, friends. But the difficulties can be made far less. What can you do if one of these people is someone close to you? You can keep ready in a handy place the phone number of Catholic Psychiatric Pastoral Care who can provide you with all the practical answers and support you need 07 3252 5461. This may seem such a small thing to do. But, like the little boy with the 5 loaves and 2 fish, you will have helped to make all the difference.

BEGINNING EXPERIENCE : Losing a spouse either through separation or death is a traumatic experience. Beginning Experience programmes help people to deal with the grief of that loss in a caring and constructive way. They are run in the strictest confidence by a group of trained caring people who have themselves lost a spouse.

The programme offered is the Beginning Experience weekend for people who have been separated or widowed for more than 12 months. The weekend is a live-in one running from Friday evening, 5^th to Sunday afternoon 7^th November 1999.

For further details and application forms please ring:

Weekend coordinators Jane 3392 7471 Jackie 3355 6589 Julie 3856 0080

ST BRIGID’S TEA BRIGADE ……New Rosters are now available at the back of the church. It’s great to see such a dedicated band involved in parish life. Sincere thanks on behalf of parishioners.

MARTIN STREET COMMUNITY LONG DAY CARE CENTRE ..... situated in Nerang has limited places available for children aged between 12 weeks and 5 years. The centre is sponsored by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane and is a Government Funded non-profit Long Day Care Service providing care for children of workforce participants. Childcare Assistance is available. Hours of operation 7.00am to 6.00pm Monday to Friday. Hot Lunches, Morning and Afternoon Tea provided. Priority of Access guide-lines apply to all families. Further details contact the Director, Mrs. Margaret Horton on 5596 3026.

SCRIPTURE READING FOR THURSDAY …28^th October Sts. Simon & Jude. Ephesians 2:19-22. Luke 6:12-19.

DECEASED RELATIVES AND FRIENDS This week we remember in our prayers with fondness, Keith Wilson, Franciscus Smits, Kevin Toohey, Luigi Gonzo, the Souls in Purgatory and all those who have gone before us in faith.