Faith and Prayer
The incident in this Sunday's Gospel tells us that the woman who came to Jesus was a pagan. Her faith in Jesus was simply astounding. She showed far more faith in him than did the Jews. They wouldnt believe in him unless they saw signs and wonders. Indeed, they saw signs and wonders and still refused to believe.
The story of the pagan woman tells us of the importance and power of intercessory prayer. The woman goes through her ordeal not for herself but for her daughter. Her faith in Jesus is the vehicle by which someone elses life is enriched. So too for us. As Christians, many of us regularly tell others, whom we know are in need, that we will pray for them. Often these people, some who do not share our faith, are touched by this kindness.
When we make our prayer intercessory, whether at home or in the prayer of the faithful at Mass, it can be our finest hour. We can learn a lot about a parish or a community from its Prayer of The Faithful. It can be the time when we forget about ourselves and our needs for a while and ask for the needs of someone else, even if we dont know them. This type of prayer is very important.
A Year of Promotion and Prayer for Vocations
Understanding God's Call
The Lord has a plan for each of us; he calls each one of us by name. Our
task is to learn how to listen, to perceive his call, to be courageous and
faithful in following him and, when all is said and done, to be found
trustworthy servants who have used
well the gifts given us. Pope Benedict XVI
Such a call may come as a
– sense of longing for something more;
– a desire to commit one∂s life completely to Christ;
– wanting to be of service to others in and through the Church;
– a suggestion or invitation from another.
God's call to each of us is as personal and individual as we are, but it is
always a call to love, to freedom, to fullness of life.
Prayer for Vocations
Lord, make me a better person,
more considerate towards others,
more honest with myself, more faithful to you.
Make me generous enough to want sincerely to do your will whatever it may
be.
Help me find my true vocation in life,
and grant that through it I may find happiness myself and bring happiness to
others.
Grant Lord, that those whom you call to enter the priesthood or the
religious life may have the generosity to answer your call, so that those
who need your help may always find it.
We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Deaths
We extend our prayers and sympathies to the families of Evelyn Barrett, Hawthorn Villas and Vera Breedt, St. Anns Park who died recently Lord grant them eternal peace and joy – and to their families and friends strength and hope.
Baptismal Team Training.
The Parish Assembly are organising in conjunction with the Cork & Ross
Pastoral Planning Development a training course for Baptismal Teams 2
nights training Mondays 22nd Sept and 6th October in The Turners Cross
Parish Centre. We are currently inviting parishioners who would like to be
involved in this course to contact members of the Parish Assembly, Fr. Kerry
or Fr. Charlie
St. Michael's Cemetery Blackrock
Mass will be celebrating for all the deceased who are buried in St.
Michael's Cemetery on Wed. 27th August at 7.p.m. All are welcome to attend.
Ministers of the Eucharist / Altar Servers
As some are still on holidays, there may be a shortage of
Ministers of the Eucharist and Altar servers for daily and weekend Masses.
All Ministers and Servers are requested to come prepared to help out if they
are required.
Cork's Catholic Cathedral is 200 years old this month and the North Cathedral parish is inviting people from near and far to celebrate the bicentenary.
An exhibition relating to the Cathedral, its people and its history has been planned in conjunction with the Cork City & County Archives which are based in Blackpool.
The exhibition opens at the Cork City & County Archives on Fri. 22nd Aug. It contains historic photographs (old & not so old), memorabilia, and story boards telling us about the Cathedral and the people associated with it.
The Cathedral of St. Mary and St Anne was dedicated in August 1808, rebuilt after a fire in the 1820s, extended in the 1860s, extended again in the 1960s, and completely refurbished in the 1990s. It is the mother church of the Diocese of Cork & Ross.
The Cork City & County Archives are based in Great William O'Brien St., Blackpool, (next to Madden's Buildings).
Time: Tues. — Fri.: 10.30am — 1pm and 2.30 — 5pm.
Admission is Free
The Cathedral parish has also launched a new website to coincide with the bicentenary. See the link below.
Related Link: http://www.corkcathedral.ie
Fr. Jerome Murphy-O'Connor a Dominican priest born in Cork and a renowned authority on the New Testament (especially St. Paul) and the Holy Land, will talk in Christ the King Church, Turner's Cross, Cork, on Wednesday 3rd Sept. at 8pm.
His topic will be: How Paul changed The World
Pope Benedict XVI has declared June 2008 June 2009 the year of St. Paul in celebration of the 2000th anniversary of the saints birth.
The letters of St. Paul have exercised a decisive influence on the life of the Church.
The Year of St. Paul is a personal invitation to each of us to discover something more of the man who, by careful reflection and radical change in his own life, shaped the first communities of the Early Church as they struggled to find a way of living the Gospel in a secular and often hostile world. By discovering the man behind the letters, we can find ourselves drawn into St. Pauls energy and enthusiasm, Paul who placed Jesus at the centre of his life and found not only a sense of fulfilment in all that he did but also a real purpose in all that he undertook. Whoever we are, St. Paul has something to say to us and he might even change our lives.
Fr. Jerome has lived in Jerusalem for over 40 years and will be returning there shortly to continue his work of teaching and writing. He is a frequent contributor to radio and television.
All are welcome.

An excellent website on the "Year of Paul"
http://www.rcdow.org.uk/paul/
Some of Fr. Jerome's Books: http://www.allbookstores.com/search?type=author&q=Jerome+Murphy-O%27Connor&Go.x=10&Go.y=13&Go=Go