Newsletter

Second Sunday of the Year

January 18th 2026

 

I hope you and your families are well as we begin our journey of life and faith through 2026. May this be a year of fruitful discipleship for us all. What might this include?

 

Last year, as part of our Holy Year Journey of Hope, we sponsored the provision of a daily meal for the pupils of Namichenja Primary School, in the Sinda District of Zambia. We did this through the good work of Mary’s Meals, a Scottish charity dear to our hearts and for good reason.

 

So often the daily news is challenging to watch, with so much warfare, hatred and disregard for human life. Mary’s Meals offers us the opportunity to bear witness to a very different type of response to human challenges; this good charity invites us, to be on the side of life, and in a very concrete way, by providing nourishing food for hungry children and by giving them the opportunity to develop their gifts and talents through education.

 

We are a parish that greatly values the education of our own young people, therefore the education of every young person, male or female, really matters to us. Perhaps that’s why Mary’s Meals has asked if we would sponsor Namichenja Primary School for one more year. It feels like an invitation to have another Year of Hope!

 

Namichenja Primary School has a roll of 302 pupils, 134 boys and 168 girls. Mary’s Meals believes in the power of a nourishing meal; 20 years’ experience has shown that a daily school meal has hugely positive and long-term improvements to a child’s life. Through our involvement, we are helping to break the cycle of poverty by ensuring the children gain an education, setting them up for a brighter future with better employment prospects. We are giving them a chance at life!

 

This year, 2026, Mary’s Meals is celebrating 10 years of feeding children in Zambia. They are currently feeding more than 400,000 children; a typical school meal consists of a corn and soya porridge that is fortified with essential vitamins and minerals, The school feeding programme operates in 11 districts in the Eastern Province, and Mary’s Meals are the main provider of school meals in all areas where they work.

 

The charity has asked to visit us on the weekend of February 7/8; it costs £19.50 to provide a school meal for a child for a year. Astonishing, but true!

Father O’Brien

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Schedule for the Daily Liturgy:

Monday January 19th: Mass at 10am

Rosary at 9,40am; confessions at 6.30pm; Novena at 7pm

 

Tuesday January 20th: Mass at 10am

Rosary at 9.40am

 

Wednesday January 21st: Mass at 10am

Rosary at 9.40am; adoration until 2.30pm

 

Thursday January 22nd: Requiem Mass at 10am

for Eleanor Cook

 

The church’s daily liturgy is a wonderful gift and enables us to journey with Jesus, Mary and the Saints every day of the year; the daily Eucharist offers us the opportunity to contemplate the great mystery of Christ day by day,

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Parish Pastoral Council meets on February 4th at 7pm. The Council is there to serve the parish community, and your suggestions and comments are welcome and appreciated. Please speak to one of the Council members or place a note in the box at the back of the church or email PPC1846@hotmail.com.

 

A Message from the Catholic Parliamentary Office: Don’t miss out: Financial Help for Scots in 2026: as households across Scotland continue to feel the pressure of the cost-of-living crisis, many people may be missing out on vital support they are entitled to; find out more about benefits that may be available, visit www.mygov.scot/benefits

 

RCIA continues in our meeting room on Thursday at 7pm; please remember our six candidates in your prayers.

 

Recently Deceased: Eleanor Cook, Frank McGeechan, John Francis Moore, Maria Angela Novani, Bob Wilson (Moffat), Margaret Boyd, Johnny Carr (Carfin), Mary Linehan, Fr. Simon Bishop SJ, Grace Clark

 

Special Remembrance: John McInnes, Peter and Betty Mulllvaney, Anne Hunter, Laraine Fox, John Emerson, Elizabeth and Michael McSorley, Mary and Agnes Daly, John Harkins, James Lynas, Josephine Lynas McLean, Agnes Sheerin McLean, John and Elizabeth Fulton, James Fulton, Esther and Thomas Reid, Catherine Phairs, Sally and John Lavery, Canon Sam Lavery, James McDonald, Daniel Devanney, Lynne Devanney, Catherine Devanney, Peter Mooney, Rose Terrett, George Terrett,

Ann Boyd, and all the benefactors of our parish

 

Diocese of Motherwell Website:

for good and reliable information about events across our Diocese

please consult www.rcdom.org.uk