French's Forest Catholic Parish eNEWS

In 1958 Cardinal Gilroy approved for the first Catholic Church to be built in Forestville to meet the growing needs of the Forest Area. On the 15th of December 1958 Our Lady of Good Counsel Church was blessed and opened.
Please join us this Sunday 16th December for a special anniversary Mass at 10am at OLGC celebrated by Very Rev Dr David Ranson, Diocesan Administrator. Morning Tea to follow (Please bring a plate to share)

This weekend we are asked in the Gospel “What must we do?” “Living the Gospel authentically needs to hold together both a relationship with the Lord and actions of mercy and justice – we shouldn’t separate the purely spiritual with the practical action.Whilst our prayer and worship is primary, to truly grow in holiness we are called to be tenacious in our practice of the works of mercy, especially towards the underprivileged. Being too concerned only with ourselves and obsessed with our own pleasure means that we can find it hard to show any real concern for those in need.We may find that we need to cultivate a simpler and less consumerist life, and not be so caught up with superficial information and virtual reality which wastes precious time and can leave us indifferent to others.” (Excerpt from Rejoice and be glad)
ADVENT PRAYER Loving God, as I read Jesus’ words in sacred Scripture, give me an attentive heart to listen deeply to each word.With the help of the Holy Spirit, I will open …

Our sincere thanks and appreciation to…
The Parishioners who so generously supported our Christmas Appeal (financially /prayerfully).
For all who donated toiletries and personal items to the Matthew Talbot Mens Hostel.
The community at St Anthony’s for the 5 wonderful hampers they made for our inner city men.
Our fantastic St Martin’s school community who supported our twinned country Conference at Coolah with 12 huge hampers of food and toys.
We are very blessed to be part of such a loving supportive and generous Parish. We wish everyone a happy & holy Christmas.
THANK YOU Our Lady of Good Counsel & St Martin de Porres Conferences.

Wishing all our Parish Catechists a Happy and relaxing school holidays.Thank you for your continued dedication to the Ministry. What is a Catechist? A Catechist is a person who gives her/his time voluntarily to provide religious education to children in primary and secondary state schools.Catechists are those who are called to serve through teaching, witness, prayer, service and building community. When do our Parish Catechists teach? Tuesdays, Wednesday, Thursday and Fridays in Primary and High Schools (one High school on a Monday) New Catechists are encouraged to start as helpers, unless they have a teaching background or feel confident enough to take a class. How do I get Involved? If you think you would like to get involved and be a part of this enjoyable and rewarding ministry or would simply like more information please contact Fran van Schie in our Parish Office 9451 5097
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This weekend during the 8.30am Mass we will present 3 certificates 3 of our Parish Catechists.

This weekend we will have Welcome Postcards in all the Churches.These are to be handed to visitors to our Parish over the Christmas period.On the back of the postcard is an opportunity for people to answer the question “What do you think God is asking of us in Australia” this is a great opportunity to listen to everyone, especially those who only visit us over the Christmas Period. There is a box in each church for us to collect the postcards.

Christmas Pageant
at St. Anthony’s Wanted…Angels, shepherds, wise men and more for our Christmas Vigil at St. Anthony’s! Our Christmas pageant is a tradition at the 6pm Vigil Children’s Mass. People of all ages are welcome to join in the fun! There are many parts, including speaking parts for our budding actors. Rehearsals will be after the 9am St. Anthony’s Mass, December 16 and 23 (costumes).
Please let Jo Reid know if you or your children would like to be involved in the Choir and/or pageant. Ph: 0411 460 777 or joreid@westpac.com.au
*** Children’s Nativity OLGC

Thank you to Sam & Jo Fiore for all their hard work organising the Eucharist Miracles Exhibition. It was a wonderful display and well attended by our Parish community.

In 1958 Cardinal Gilroy approved for the first Catholic Church to be built in Forestville to meet the growing needs of the Forest Area. On Tuesday 9th of December 1958 Our Lady of Good Counsel

Church was blessed and opened.
Please join us on Sunday 16th December for a special anniversary Mass at 10am at OLGC celebrated by Very Rev Dr David Ranson, Diocesan Administrator.  Morning Tea to follow (Please bring a plate to share)
We would like to honour and acknowledge those individuals and families that were involved in the building of the Our Lady of Good Counsel churches and thank them for their service to our community. If you are one of these people and are able to attend the mass on the 16th, please contact the Parish office on 9451 5097.

ADVENT PRAYER “We hear the words in the Gospel this weekend “A voice cries in the wilderness: Prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight” Perhaps this prayer will help us to focus…………………….. Dear Lord, as I embrace this Advent Season, please open my eyes to see the great value and blessing of Your Incarnation. Help me to discover Your hidden presence in this world and within me. I desire to see, understand and experience the profound effects that Your Incarnation has on my life and I desire to receive those effects more fully this Advent. May I become a sanctuary in which You dwell so that I, like Your dear Mother, may bring Your presence into the world.  Loving Jesus, I choose You, this Advent, I abandon myself to You and seek to put all my trust in Your tender care. Draw me close to You and free me from my sin so that I may love You with a pure and holy heart. Mother Mary, as You carried your dear Son in your immaculate womb, you also carried Him in your heart. Pray for me, this…

OUTDOOR PARISH MASS & CHRISTMAS CAROLS THIS SATURDAY 8TH DECEMBER 5.30 PM
OLGC SCHOOL GROUNDS Bring along your own picnic dinner or feast on the Indian & Aussie cuisine available for purchase.

CATECHIST NEWS What a wonderful celebration we had last Wednesday as we gathered for our Catechist Christmas Lunch.Thank you to all your wonderful Catechists for their dedication in taking the Gospel message to our Parish Children.Our Catechists will now have a well-deserved break over December and January.
In my last lesson I asked my Year 5 class a few ‘reflective questions’, one of the questions was “What story can I tell about my faith journey?”One child answered, “When I started coming to Scripture lessons (she only joined this year) I thought it would be colouring and videos, but after my first lesson I started praying at home every night and I still do.” – Hope for the future!

PLENARY NEWS These past weeks, I have travelled to the regional areas of the Bathurst Diocese the last two weekends I accompanied the people of the Broken Bay Diocese as they held the first of two diocesan assemblies. No matter where I travel to around the country, and no matter whether I have been present or not, the 21,189 people who have engaged in this process of sharing stories, asking questions and deep reflection on what future God is calling us toward have been inspirational. The integrity and courage that it takes each person to speak from their heart about their lived experiences of their faith, the place of God in their life and their engagement with the Church is something from which I have been able to draw strength. As we move towards the end of the year and the season of Advent begins, it is an opportunity to stretch beyond our “Catholic circles” and seek out people who are part of the wider Australian community whom our Church exists to nourish and serve. The mission of …

Christmas Pageant at St. Anthony’s Wanted…Angels, shepherds, wise men and more for our Christmas Vigil at St. Anthony’s! Our Christmas pageant is a tradition at the 6pm Vigil Children’s Mass. People of all ages are welcome to join in the fun! There are many parts, including speaking parts for our budding actors. Rehearsals will be after the 9am St. Anthony’s Mass, December 2, 9 ,16, 23 (costumes).
Please let Jo Reid know if you or your children would like to be involved in the Choir and/or pageant. Ph: 0411 460 777 or joreid@westpac.com.au