St John the Evangelist

Dear Friends

This week seems very different to us all in the parish office. To finally hear the school yard noisy again with enthusiastic children is truly music to our ears. To once again see the children, parents and teachers returning is a great relief and a wonderful opportunity to stop and spend a few minutes thanking God.

Recently the Chairpersons of the Parish Leadership Team and the Parish Finance Committee wrote to parishioners providing an update of the financial impact of the pandemic on our parish. I wish to say thank you for your ongoing support. 

All parishioners who have provided the parish with an email address have been receiving a weekly email that includes my weekly message and advice that our Sunday Mass is available to view via the Parish website. If you know of a parishioner who is not receiving these emails please encourage them to contact the parish office.

From Monday we are allowed 20 people to attend mass together with all the physical distancing requirements along with the collecting of contact details of the attendees. While I understand that it is very important that we open the church for mass, I still firmly believe it is not the best thing to do in our parish at this point in time. Instead, we will continue to do our masses online and I am visiting parishioners, taking them the Eucharist. 

As I have previously indicated I am happy to visit your family and spend some time chatting and sharing the meal of Eucharist. You may invite one or two families for this, of course, keeping in line with the government regulations. Please call me on 0413 683 153 to book a time. Please do not worry about distance, I will come wherever you are. It would be a fantastic opportunity for me to get to know your families too. 

Our Sunday parish mass for this Pentecost Sunday is now online. Please visit our parish website https://stjohnsmitcham.com.au/ .  Our weekly Parish Newsletter is also available on the parish website. If you know of anyone who does not have internet access please print a copy and drop it in to them.

I miss you all!!! I cannot wait to gather together in our church to celebrate everything faith. Let us keep each other in our prayers. 

Take care and stay safe.  God Bless    Dispin

The COVID-19 pandemic has seriously affected our parish finances. We understand some parishioners are suffering financially too. But many have asked how they can give, now that there is no possibility of using the envelope system or making a contribution to the first collection which pays for our priest, Fr Dispin, and sick and retired priests. You can go online and make a donation to both collections through your own bank account. Please make sure you include your envelope number & surname in the transaction reference field when contributing to the second collection.
Details are:
First Collection -        Account Name: St Johns Presbytery Account
                                  BSB  083343 ACCTNUM 515 469 035
Second Collection -   Account Name:  St Johns Church Account
                                  BSB  083347 ACCTNUM 676 841 942
                                  Reference field : Envelope number and Surname
                                  (contact the Parish office if you don't know your env no.)

You can also mail a cheque, mentioning the split between the 1st and 2nd collections. Please mention your name and envelope number.
If you have any questions about this, please ring the parish office 9401 6366.

Great News - new Faith resources available to every parishioner!
St John’s has just subscribed to Word on Fire - the best Catholic Faith resources available in the world.
And it's free for every parishioner.
To access them you need to first sign up to Flocknote, using the “Flocknote Signup” form on the right of this page.. You will receive a “welcome” email with a link to a Word on Fire Introductory Video. Then you will have access to all the WOF programs. 

You do not have to enter any details into Flocknote to use Word on Fire, just your email and name. Let us know how youenjoy them. Tell a friend.

If you have any questions or comments, contact Barry Kearney 0412 379 253 bdkearney@gmail.com

Aileen's funeral was on Friday 22 May 2020.  Her family invites you to view the mass by using this link:

https://www.myevent.io/aileen-hally/

It will be available until Friday 5 June 2020.

Fr Dispin will be recording Sunday Masses. They will normally be available by 6:00pm each Saturday. The text of his homilies will also be available on each Sunday.

We come before you Lord as the Parish Family of St John the Evangelist. Thanks you for calling us to this community. Through Your Holy Spirit lead us as we turn to You for guidance, courage and faith. Keep us faithful to all that is true and help us to willingly follow You, so that we may become a more loving, forgiving and affirming community. Continue to nourish and inspire us by Your love so that we may bring peace, hope and justice to our families and to our world. Together may we journey with You and with one another.

St John pray for us. St James Pray for us.