Today we celebrate Pentecost Sunday and the giving of the Holy Spirit to the apostles. As Catholics, we first receive the Holy Spirit at Baptism. St Peter calls on those who witnessed the twelve speaking in tongues to “be baptised… and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). Our Baptism … Continue reading Receive the Holy Spirit
Liturgy Corner
One way in which we mark the Easter Season in the celebration of the Sunday Mass at Wentworthville is by using the rite of sprinkling of holy water. When it is celebrated, it takes the place of the usual Penitential Act in the Introductory Rites. As the texts used for this rite make clear, sprinkling … Continue reading Sprinkling with Holy Water
The Second Sunday of Easter brings to an end the Easter Octave; an eight-day period of particular celebration of the Resurrection. The first eight days of the Easter season make up the octave of Easter and are celebrated as solemnities of the Lord. General Norms of the Liturgical Year and the Calendar, no. 24 One … Continue reading Alleluia, alleluia
Lent is a time when we, among other things, celebrate the unconditional and boundless mercy of God. This is evident throughout the season, but is probably epitomised for many in the parable of the Prodigal Son, which we will hear in a couple of weeks’ time. Jesus presents the father in this parable as … Continue reading Seeing the Face of Mercy this Lent
Lent and Easter are very early this year. In fact, Ash Wednesday is only a week and a half away, on 10 February. Easter Sunday, and consequently the weeks of Lent and Easter either side of it, is obviously not determined by a fixed date. It is set by looking to the cycles of the earth … Continue reading When’s Easter This Year?
Liturgy 