Parishes of Swords Clonmethan Kilsallaghan Donabate and Lusk

Newsletter December 2016

We wish you a holy and blessed

Christmas

and peaceful New Year!

Ladies Tuesday Club:

Friday 9th Dec – Club Christmas Dinner – The Well.

Tuesday 20th January – Cinema Night.

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We were delighted to welcome two new members into the

Family of God through the Sacrament of Holy Baptism recently.

The first is Ben Owen, son of Heather & George Eastwood,

Swords, who was baptised in St Columba’s Church, Swords, on

Sunday 23rd October.

And the second is Kacie Joan, daughter of Sarah Burnby and Sean Cullen,

Swords, who was baptised one week later in St Columba’s Church, Swords,

on Sunday 30th October.

God bless them all their days.

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PRESENTS FOR CHILDREN AT CHRISTMAS:

Again, this year, children are invited to bring a Christmas

present to Church for a child less fortunate than

themselves.

The present needn’t be expensive, but should be new! And it would be all

the nicer if it were wrapped up in Christmas paper, marked on the outside

whether for a boy or a girl, and what age group.

Please bring your present with you to one of the Carol

Services, so that they can be distributed in time for

Christmas.

And, in advance, a really big “THANK YOU” from

those who will receive them.

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CAROL SERVICES 2016:

Sunday 11th December at 3.00pm, Kilsallaghan;

Sunday 18th December at 10.30am, Donabate;

Sunday 18th December at 4.00pm, Swords.

Mulled Wine and mince-pies afterwards

in Donabate and Swords!

There’ll be many friends from the wider community there –

and we hope to see you too!

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CHRISTMAS 2016:

Christmas Eve:

4.00pm Children’s Christmas Eve Service;

11.30pm Holy Communion, Swords.

Christmas Day:

10.00am Holy Communion, Donabate;

11.30am Holy Communion, Swords;

1.00pm Holy Communion, Kilsallaghan.

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Coffee and Catch-up You’re never too busy for a coffee and catch-up!

Join us on the third Thursday of each month for coffee/tea and biscuits

and enjoy catching up with friends and neighbours.

Our next meet up is on Thursday 15th December at 11am in St. Columba’s Parish Centre, Church Rd, Swords.

Hope you can make it!

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BE A REGULAR CONTRIBUTOR

Regular financial giving to your parish will help to ensure it can continue in

its own entity and remain a viable unit, paying its way, and that it ought

not be in danger of having to be amalgamated with another parish. And by

‘regular’ is meant ‘weekly’ or ‘monthly’ financial instalments of how much

you plan to give in any given year.

Organising a Standing Order through your Bank or using the Freewill

Envelopes scheme, has an added two-fold benefit for your parish:

(1) the Select Vestry can make more accurate estimates of income for the

year, thus helping with cash-flow and budgeting; … and

(2) if your contribution amounts to over €250.00 in the year, the parish can

claim tax relief on the amount.

The Select Vestries encourage all parishioners to play their full financial part

in running the parish, and invite you to contact the Churchwardens and/or

Treasurers to put arrangements for you in place — they’ll be glad to give

you more details.

Thank you in advance.

Who:- To everyone! What:- Sunday Brunch! Where:- Jones Garden Centre When:- 8th January 2017 (after 10.00am Donabate Church)

Why:- Just for a get-together! How much:- €10.00 per person!

To book, please contact Jean Ellerker – phone: 086-2331300

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REGISTER OF VESTRYMEN.

Each year, at the January meetings of Swords and Donabate Select Vestries,

the Register of Vestrymen for both parishes are revised and updated.

One benefit of being on the register is that you have a vote when it comes

to the election of the Select Vestry and who serves on it, which happens

each year at the Easter General Vestry.

Another benefit is that you are also eligible to let your name go forward for

election and to serve on the Select Vestry (a duty each parishioner should

consider positively).

If any parishioners would like to be added to the register next January,

please contact the Churchwardens or the Rector as soon as possible about

registration, and request a registration form for completion.

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Old Borough National School, Swords:

The school’s Carol Service will be held in the Parish Hall this year, as there will be more room and better sound equipment for a Nativity Play than in St Columba’s church. It will be held on Thursday 22nd Dec at 10.30am. refreshments will be served afterwards. All welcome.

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16 DAYS OF ACTIVISM AGAINST GENDER VIOLENCE Dublin & Glendalough Mother's Union would like to invite you to join us in a Prayer Vigil on Saturday, 26th November, 2016 when we will join together in a powerful gesture of solidarity with our sisters in Ireland and around the world to raise awareness and call for an end to violence against women and girls.

This event is being organised by Mothers Union but is open to all.

We would be delighted if you can make time to join us and if possible, to also include this campaign in your Sunday Service prayers.

Date: Saturday, 26th November, 2016 Venue: St Brigid's Church, Stillorgan Time: 10.30 am - 12 noon (please feel free to drop in at any stage during this time)

What is 16 days of Activism Against Gender Violence: Beginning on 25th November, International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and ending on 10th December, Human Rights Day, the campaign is used by individuals and groups around the world to call for an end to all forms of violence against women. Figures from the World Health Organisation show that, globally, an estimated 23% - 37% of women suffer violence from an intimate partner; and that 38% of all women murdered across the world are filled by their partner. '16 Days' provides the opportunity to raise awareness of this issue, demonstrate solidarity against violence and put pressure on governments to take action. For more information: http://www.mothersunion.org/get-involved/campaign/16-days-activism-against-gender-violence Hilary Gallagher, Dublin & Glendalough MU Secretary Mobile: 087 7817875 Email: dgmusec@gmail.com

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… a few wee crackers! Q. What bee can never be understood? A. A mumble-bee. Q. What do you call a one-eyed dinosaur? A. Doyouthinkhesawus? Q. What do you call a cow that plays the guitar? A. A Moo-sician. Q. What’s white and goes up? A. A confused snowflake.

A PARISH PRAYER

Father, we pray for your blessing on our parish. Give each one who worships in this place, grace to grow in faith,

that we may live and work to your glory. Fill us with your Spirit and bind us together,

that, in all we do, we may seek to build each other up in love. Be with us as we come together to give witness in our community.

Help us to look beyond ourselves and to reach out to those in any kind of need; always remembering to put our trust in you.

We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

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CHURCH SERVICES IN DECEMBER

Date Donabate Swords Kilsallaghan 27th Nov

1st Sunday

of Advent

10.00am

Holy Communion

11.30am

Girls’ Brigade

Enrolment

11.30am

Morning Prayer

4th Dec

2nd Sunday

of Advent

10.00am

Morning Prayer

&

Sunday Club

*10.30am *

KIDZ OWN +

11.30am

Holy Communion

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11th Dec

3rd Sunday

of Advent

10.00am

* Sunday Club *

Nativity Play

11.30am

Morning Prayer

* 6.30pm *

Bangers@MASH

3.00pm

Carol Service

18th Dec

4th Sunday

of Advent

10.30am

Carol Service 4.00pm

Carol Service

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24th Dec

Christmas Eve

------------- 4.00pm

Children’s

Christmas Service

11.30pm

Holy Communion

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25th Dec

Christmas Day

10.00am

Holy Communion

11.30am

Holy Communion

1.00pm

Holy Communion

1st Jan

2nd Sunday

of Christmas

10.00am

Morning Prayer

&

Sunday Club

*10.30am *

KIDZ OWN +

11.30am

Holy Communion

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Church of Ireland United Dioceses of Dublin & Glendalough

Church of Ireland House

Church Avenue Tel: 0(0353) 1 4125 663

Rathmines archbishop@dublin.anglican.org

Dublin 6

The Most Reverend Dr Michael Jackson

Archbishop of Dublin and Bishop of Glendalough, Primate of Ireland and Metropolitan

Housing Appeal for Refugees in our Country

To all clergy in United Dioceses, Hon. Secretaries of Select Vestries, all Principals of Schools,

in United Dioceses, both Primary and Secondary, University Chaplains.

In the face of the personal impoverishment of enforced emigration, we who are

significantly better off can frequently find that we feel powerless in a world picture that is

beyond our grasp. It is in response to this need that a group within the Diocesan Councils has

come up with a project partnership on behalf of the United Dioceses of Dublin and

Glendalough. The Diocesan Review has details of this project which will be carried through in

partnership with the Irish Refugee Council (IRC) / Association of Missionaries and Religious in

Ireland (AMRI). The Diocesan review article is appended to this letter.

I wish to emphasise that the provision of all this very sizeable new accommodation will

have the very positive benefit of not adding even more to the demands of our already existing

and esteemed accommodation/homeless Agencies and public services here. Indeed, by

supporting this Appeal, these existing services and agencies will have a further and additional

heavy weight taken off them and be more ‘freed up’ to get on with further developing their

existing good works and services.

The Diocesan group that researched this particular Project undertook some months of

extensive research and discussion with a number of our homeless agencies. That group

unanimously proposed supporting this AMRI/IRC Project, because it had the double knock-on

effect of directly and indirectly benefitting both our own current homeless/accommodation

challenges and also all those who will require accommodation from our Reception Centres,

and, as refugees, coming to our shores.

Our aim with this appeal is to raise €100,000 for each of the next three years, starting this year.

The twin aims of this IRC/AMRI Project are:

1. Accommodation provision being made available in both Dublin and other parts of our

country, in support of the Government’s accommodation initiative for Syrians.

2. Accommodation provision being made available in both Dublin and other parts of our country for the thousands of people awaiting housing in our Reception Centres, in some cases for a number of years, of whom a third are children.

Appeal funds raised will be used to fund the major renovation and modernization

requirements of existing properties that are being generously donated by AMRI.

Raising €100,000 in each of three successive years may seem ambitious. However, we are a large United Dioceses with a significant number of parishes and schools and university colleges. We have shown ourselves in the past willing and able to raise in one year €150,000 for the Al Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza City. There are so many ways in which monies can be raised: by direct individual and parish and institutional giving; by personal fund raising initiatives, by a range of imaginative and safe sponsorship activities and by coffee mornings and other such tried and tested initiatives. We are also entering the Seasons of Advent and Christmas when there will be Carol Services and other gatherings of people to celebrate the coming of God into the world in the person of Jesus Christ. I wish to encourage you to participate in this Project Appeal, in ways both small and large. I wish also to encourage you to inform Lynn Glanville Diocesan Communications Officer email address dco@dublin.anglican.org of the initiatives you take so they can be shared on the Diocesan Website and the Diocesan Facebook Page. Monies can be forwarded by cheque to the United Dioceses of Dublin and Glendalough marked ‘Housing appeal’ or directly to the bank account (details below). Donations may attract a tax rebate through the completion of either a CHY3 or CHY4 form.

Christmas is a time in the Bible of enforced migration: “So Joseph got up, took the child

and his mother by night, and sought refuge with them in Egypt.” (St Matthew 2.14.). Millions

of people are today in transit as refugees from the Biblical Lands and elsewhere. This project

includes a well-structured opportunity to offer practical welcome to those who will arrive in

Ireland in the near future.

I should like to thank you for giving this initiative and appeal your consideration and pray that you will find it in your heart to contribute. I also hope that you will enjoy this in the company of friends, family and community.

Thanking you,

Yours sincerely,

+Michael

Bank details: DIOCESAN FUNDS OF DUBLIN AND GLENDALOUGH Bank of Ireland, College Green, Dublin 2 BIC: BOFIIE2D IE50 BOFI 9000 1769 3548 78 Reference: Housing appeal

Links to relevant forms on Revenue.ie: CHY3 and CHY4 forms are downloadable here:

http://www.revenue.ie/en/personal/charities.html 18 November 2016

Be Part of the Solution! A Diocesan Appeal to Raise Funds for

an Asylum and Refugee Accommodation Programme A new diocesan fundraising project which seeks to support the provision of accommodation for refugees and those emerging from direct provision is being launched in November. The united dioceses plan to raise €300,000 over the next three years to assist in an accommodation programme being put in place by the Irish Refugee Council (IRC). The seeds for the new fundraising project were sown at Diocesan Synod 2015 when there were passionate speeches calling for ‘something more to be done’ about the housing crisis, homelessness and the refugee situation. In response to the request, Canon Horace McKinley, the Revd Olive Donohue and Dr Sharee Basdeo were appointed by Diocesan Councils to explore possible projects. The sub- committee worked on identifying something specific since they felt it was not possible to do everything – ‘start small and think big’ was their motto. After extensive research and discussions, the committee recently made a proposal to councils on a project being advanced by the Irish Refugee Council. This proposal was accepted unanimously. The IRC is Ireland’s only national non-Governmental organisation specialising in working with refugees and people in the asylum process. In collaboration with the Association of Missionaries and Religious in Ireland, AMRI (formerly CORI and IMU), the IRC is in the process of acquiring several properties, both in Dublin and nationwide, that are being donated by the various AMRI congregations. These properties will all require very extensive renovation and modernisation and this is where the money raised by the people of Dublin and Glendalough will be utilised. It is hoped that the initial work on some of these properties will commence in June 2017.

AMRI has requested that properties they donate be used for two purposes. Firstly, they wish to provide new, first time accommodation for people waiting to come out of the various Direct Provision Centres nationwide. At present, 3,500 people, one third of whom are children, are housed and waiting in this way. When they are granted leave to remain in Ireland, finding accommodation then becomes the next major obstacle. Secondly, AMRI also wishes to contribute to providing accommodation for refugees, for example Syrian people, coming here under the Government’s recent emergency response. This whole initiative is entitled ‘A Transitional Housing and Resettlement Programme in Ireland’. In partnership with various State Agencies, the IRC has set out three core areas to underpin and resource the project: Accommodation, Employment and Education. The ultimate aim is to move people on to independent living. The IRC is always very happy and willing to visit and give talks in schools and parishes, and their organisations. Responding to the proposals by the Diocesan Councils sub-committee, an IRC official stated: “AMRI is really delighted to have received this contact from the Church of Ireland’s Dublin and Glendalough United Dioceses. The support of inter-Church bodies is quite essential for this project, as is the whole Church’s public support and voice for those marginalized in our society”. Commending the project Archbishop Michael Jackson said: “We in these United Dioceses would wish to be part of this Project’s truly Christian response by AMRI. I shall therefore be contacting every parish and school (Primary and Secondary) in the United Dioceses in early November, asking that an appeal for this project be made before Christmas. This can be done by a direct local appeal or through a fundraising event. The sub-committee has proposed a diocesan target of €100,000 for this year’s appeal and the same figure to be targeted for the two following years of 2017 and 2018”.