Welcome to our parish newsletter

Welcome to our parish newsletter! A particular welcome to you, if you have recently moved into the Rathmines area. We hope you will find here a pleasant neighbourhood and a friendly community. Even if you are not a Catholic, we hope that you may find something of interest in our newsletter.

We have begun the season of Advent: a beautiful season full of magic and anticipation, as we prepare to celebrate the mystery of ‘Immanuel , God-with-us’, a God who cares intimately about us and accompanies us in all our living and loving, planting and building. In the midst of winter Advent is a reflective time, which invites us to recognise the light that shines in the dark. For many these weeks can be full of stress as we try to get organised for Christmas. The following Advent prayer invites us to get the balance right:

God our Father, during these weeks of Advent, help us to prepare for Christmas, not just by planning and buying presents or being worried about money, but in our hearts by being kinder, more generous, more prayerful, more like your Son, Jesus. Amen

We are inviting the children of the parish to create their own cribs this Advent, which will be displayed in the baptistery of the church from Sunday 17^th December. As in other years, each of the primary schools in the parish is taking it in turn to organise the Family Mass on the four Sundays of Advent. The 6pm Folk Mass on Christmas Eve will be a special Family Mass for Christmas organised by the Ranelagh Multi-Denominational School. There will also be a Christmas Family Mass on Christmas Day at 11am with Nativity Tableau and Carols. A Service of Reconciliation will take place on Monday 18^th December at 7.30pm. This service will include the possibility for personal reconciliation and should be of particular help to those who may not have availed of the sacrament for some time.

Jubilee year celebrations. 2006 marks the 150^th anniversary of the solemn dedication of our present parish church. Our year of celebration began with a special Mass with Archbishop Diarmuid Martin on 10^th June. Other events include a choral concert with Cantairi Oige Atha Cliath (Nov. ’06), publication of Jubilee magazine (Jan ’07), exhibition in Rathmines Library, organ recital with David Adams (March 07), family fun Day (May 07) and closing liturgy (June 07). Many thanks to all who have donated sponsorship to support these various events.

Parish Pastoral Council. Since its formation last Easter, the Parish Pastoral Council has been busy meeting the various parish groups and organisations, formulating a parish pastoral plan and developing a Child Protection Policy. A parish Child Protection Officer has been appointed who can be contacted c/o the parish office or

There is now a regular Family Mass organised by the Family Mass group, which should be of interest to parents with young children. The Family Mass is on the first Sunday of every month at 11am. Light refreshments are provided in the parish house afterwards, so it’s a great opportunity to get to know other young families in the parish. For more info contact the parish office

The Young Adult Group has been providing tea/coffee and biscuits after the 6pm Folk Mass each Sunday now for the past year. They are also currently running a ‘Discover’ Programme, which provides an opportunity for young adults (18-35) to share together informally about their faith. They are planning a new Discover programme early in 2007. If your interested in joining the next programme, contact Alan Falkenburg at 087-295 1341.

As part of our parish outreach to non-national parishioners, Deacon Piotr, a Jesuit from Poland, currently studying at Milltown, assists at the 6pm Folk Mass each Sunday and is available afterwards to meet members of the Polish and Slovak speaking communities.

Renovation work was recently completed on the Parish House: No. 52. Lr. Rathmines Road. The Parish Office is now located there (opening hours: 10am-1pm, Mon-Fri), and there is also a group meeting room and kitchenette. A major upgrading of the electrical and mechanical installations in the church has been given the green light and is due to commence early in the new year. The Finance Committee has been working very hard over the past year and will issue its annual report to parishioners early in January

Personnel changes: after 18 years’ loyal service to the parish of Rathmines, Fr Peter Kilroy has taken up a new appointment in the parish of St. Columba, Iona Road. We wish Fr. Peter well in his new parish. We are very happy to welcome Fr. John Galvin to the parish. Fr. John is no stranger to the area, having previously worked in Harrington St parish before being appointed to Our Lady of Good Counsel, Mourne Road.

If you have recently moved into the area and are wondering what services are available in the parish or would like a priest to call to you, please contact Michelle, the parish secretary, at Tel. 497 1531 or e-mail: secretary@rathminesparish.com

You are also invited to register with the parish by contacting Michelle at the parish office, so that we can keep you informed of events and services which may interest you.

School news

– St. Louis Senior Primary School Sixth class took part in a class project competition. To mark the Irish National Information Day on Disability 2006, the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform is promoting a competition for primary school pupils, organised by INTO, to continue to raise awareness of people with disabilities in our society among primary school children. Primary school classes were invited to create, as a class project, a game that can be played in a school yard in which all pupils can participate. ‘Games We Can All Play’. The game should be capable of being played in a school playground by people with disabilities and people without disabilities. Congratulations to Rory from sixth class who won the Dublin County Finals of this competition. He will represent the school in the National Finals on Wednesday 6^th December to be held in the Helix. We wish him all the best of luck!

If you had your child baptised in Rathmines church during the year 2006 - The Baptism Team would like to invite you back for a special mass of celebration at 11.00am, January 14^th 2007. Please bring your child’s baptism candle. We look forward to seeing you there.