Deacon John Writes

Recently Martin appealed to you all to come forward and offer to become a welcomer, a reader or a Minister of Holy Communion. This was a reminder that there are many roles in our parish that are helpful, possibly critical, for any parish to function properly. It serves as a reminder that a parish is not just a priest. It takes all kinds of roles, and all these roles make up our parish. St. Paul in his First Letter to the Corinthians makes this quite clear to all of us. Everyone has a role but not the same role. We are not all called to be ordained priests. Neither are we all called to be prophets. But we do all have one thing in common. We have all been baptised into one Body, and because of this we each have a necessary and relevant role that contributes to the well being of the whole.

So I ask you all to consider volunteering to help our parish in at least one of the roles I mentioned at the beginning of this letter. If you have already volunteered then I thank you on behalf of the whole parish. If you have not volunteered yet then perhaps you will consider it anew. There is nothing to stop you carrying out more than one role for the parish. You would not be asked to do more than one role at any mass except in unavoidable exceptional circumstances. Thank you again for your help and support.