Both our Churches are fitted with a hearing induction loop. Please use the ‘T’ or other appropriate switch on your hearing aid. Please tell us if you experience any difficulty.

We acknowledge the Yalukit Willam Clan, the traditional owners and custodians of this land. We pay our respects to them.

May we walk gently here.

The CarmeliteParish of Port Melbourne and Middle Park

in the care of the Carmelites since 1882

in this issueParish News ............... 3Welcome to our FamilyConcert for East TimorEnrolment for First EucharistMen’s DinnerReflection on this Week’s Readings..5&12Our Liturgy ................ 6

2nd Sunday of Easter 23 April 2017My dear Parishioners,

I’ve taken the liberty of including a beautiful and timely reflection from Br Agedo on an understanding of this Sunday’s Gospel. Hugh

Reflection Many of us have had the experience of fear at some point in our lives for whatever reason, just as the disciples did. The fear of the disciples was clear because their leader and teacher, Jesus, had been killed by the Jews and they feared that they might be killed too.

This story of fear that the disciples encountered, when their leader had been killed, reminded me of my own country’s story during Indonesian occupation. Many of our leaders were killed at that time. In addition, many young people were killed during the 1991 Santa Cruz massacre in Dili, Timor- Leste. At the same time, our leader Xanana Gusmao was also captured and imprisoned in Jakarta, Indonesia. This created a lot of fear for the East Timorese people. We had nowhere to go in our own land so we had to go into hiding.

During that time of struggle some East Timorese people were quite sceptical and believed that the East Timorese struggle for independence might not happen. Others firmly believed that East Timor will gain its independence. This then created two blocs of Timorese one was known as pro-independence and the other was pro-autonomy to Indonesia.

Those who supported autonomy, even though they had been told and had seen the United Nation Peace Keeping Force coming to stabilise peace in Timor, they still did not believe. It’s just like Thomas in the gospel could not believe what the other disciples had seen and told him. Thomas wanted to see Jesus with his own eyes, and to be able to touch the wound of Jesus rather than believe what had happened as the other disciples told him. "It is only after he has seen and touched Jesus that he too recognised that Jesus was his Lord and his God”.Now, I want to come back to the story of East Timor’s struggle for Independence when the United Nations came to East Timor in 1999. Their presence touched those who were sceptical and opened up their eyes to see that what had been told was becoming a reality and then they were able to recognise and believe.

Moreover, the presence of the United Nation (UN) Peace Keeping Force in Timor Leste in 1999 brought a new hope and peace for the Timorese people. Their presence in Timor at that time

our parish this weekMonday 24 April9.00am Mass, both churches7.00pm Bible Study Group, St Joseph’s Hall

Tuesday 25 April - ANZAC DAY - Parish Office Closed9.00am Mass, Mt Carmel9.00am Morning Prayer, St Joseph’s7.30pm St Vincent de Paul Meeting, St Joseph’s Hall

Wednesday 26 April - Parish Office Closed9.00am Mass, Mt Carmel9.00am Morning Prayer, St Joseph’s

Thursday 27 April9.00am Mass, both churches7.00pm Meditation, Malone Room

Friday 28 April9.00am Mass, both churches9.30am Lectio Divina, Lady Chapel, Mt Carmel

Saturday 29 April9.00am Mass, both churches6.00pm Vigil Mass, Mt Carmel

Sunday 30 April -3rd Sunday of Easter9.00am Mass, St Joseph’s10.30am Mass, Mt Carmel

we remember

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Churches St Joseph’s cnr Rouse & Stokes Streets Port Melbourne

Our Lady of Mount Carmel cnr Richardson & Wright Streets Middle Park

Sunday Masses 6.00pm (Sat) Mount Carmel 9.00am Saint Joseph’s 10.30am Mount Carmel

Reconciliation after 9.00am Mass Saturday

Carmelite Parish Office 274 Rouse Street Port Melbourne Vic 3207

Telephone 03 9681 9600

After Hours Emergency 0408 754 283

Email parish@sj-mc.org.au

Parish Website www.sj-mc.org.au

Carmelite Website www.carmelites.org.au

Office Hours 9am-4pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday(CLOSED WEDNESDAYS)

Parish Priest Fr Hugh Brown OCarm

Parish Secretary Anne Ierardo (Monday to Thursday)

Community Liaison Sr Geraldine Stapleton csb(Monday/Tuesday & Weekend Mass)

Pastoral Life Co-ordinator Michael Murray (Wednesday/ Thursday)

Finance Officer Shane Harrison (Tuesday - Friday)

Facilities Manager Ken Chaffer

Galilee Regional Catholic Primary School Bank Street South Melbourne Vic 3205

Telephone 03 9699 2928 Principal Simon Millar

Those who are sick or ill and in need of prayer: Michael Baine, Michael Baine, Molly Baker, John Bassett, Ellen Beams, Sash Somerset Beauverie, Josie Broemann, Karen Brown, Lulu Cooney, Vincenza Cortazzio, Luka Dabovic, Jelena Djokmarkovic, Ron Dalton, Charles Dalli, Maureen & Doug Dickason, Paola Ghicui, Lesley Gilbert, Catherine Gillies, Andrew Hamilton, Harry Henry, Ivy Hermence, Tony Jandayar, Maria Lancuba, Lina Lawrence, Maria Loc, Baby Nagorcka, Fr Phelim McGowan SJ, Elishka Marvan, Betty Molnar, Sastra Munanto, Baby Nagorcka, B O’Mahony, Rafal Rafalski, Lolo Fred Revita, Joanna Kilner, Fr Rybe, Salvatore Sirio, Joy Skeffington, Chris Smith, James Smith, Maurie Smith, Poppy Smith, Domenico Speranza, Helen Stanley, Jim Sullivan, Bill Toohey, Nola Vincent, Rosemary Walsh, Diah Wardhani, Laura Winter and Tami Yap.

Those who have died recently: Peter Brookes, Peter Junkovic, Gus Powell, and Peter Walker.

Those whose anniversaries of death occur about this time: Maureen Burgess, Tom Cummins, Pasqua Lettieri,and Carmelites, Wilfred Frizzell, John Gearon and Peter O’Dwyer

ministers

for your generosity last SundaySt Joseph’s Carmelite and Parish Offering $1,501.00Our Lady of Mt Carmel Carmelite and Parish Offering $2,253.00

thank you

in our parish

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29/30 April3rd Sunday of Easter

6.00pm Mount Carmel

Commentator Des Collins

Readers: Carmel Collins

Eucharistic Ministers Carmel Collins, Kelly McEnhill, Margaret Murphy

Communion to the Sick Marlene Carlin

9.00am St Joseph’s

Commentator: Elisabeth Northam

Readers: Ron Cassano

Eucharistic Ministers Zabette Howson, Cathy Garbellini and Frances Correa

Counters Cathy Garbellini & Jan Scrivens

Childrens’ Liturgy TBA

10.30am Mount Carmel

Commentator Damien Peile

Readers: Irene Hayes

Eucharistic Ministers James Mendes, Irene Hayes, Damien Peile

Childrens’ Liturgy Pam Newman

Hospitality Brenda Walsh

was like a breathing of a new spirit; a new beginning of hope and joy for the people of East Timor. Today, all the Timorese including those who did not have faith for independence rejoice because they have seen the light in which East Timor became a nation. Similarly, in the Gospel’s story today, the disciples were in fear and perhaps were losing their hope in Jesus. It was when Jesus rose from the dead, appeared to them, said to them, “Peace be with you” and breathed his spirit on them that the disciples were able to rejoice.

Furthermore, the presence of the UN in Timor in is analogous to Jesus giving the spirit to his disciples and granted them the authority to forgive sin. The UN was like them saying to the East Timorese people “receive the spirit,” of self-determination but remember that Timor-Leste must forgive the Indonesians.

Two years later after Timor gained independence in 2002 with its first president of Xanana Gusmao. Under Gusmao leadership Timor Leste has established a commission of reconciliation which is known as “comisaun acholamento verificasaun no reconsiliasaun (CAVR),” which means “the commission of verification and reconciliation.”

This commission was hosted by the Timorese movement with the aim to verify what had happened, especially what was done by the Indonesians to the people of East Timor during their illegal occupation. This was in order to be reconciled and to forget the past and also to forgive one another for the sins that were committed during twenty-four years of Indonesian occupation in Timor.

This was not an easy solution for many East Timorese people to forgive the Indonesians but if the East Timorese people and also for us as Christians who understand and live out today’s Gospel message, we may say that just as Jesus has given the authority for his disciples to forgive sins that we, as the new disciples of Jesus Christ, through our baptism, we have received the spirit and authority to forgive the sins.

To sum up, let us have fear no more and believe that Jesus has risen and his spirit dwells within us -the spirit of peace, reconciliation and forgiveness.

Agedo

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Tuesday Matins Prayer8.30am Tuesday mornings in the Lady Chapel, Mt Carmel

Lectio Divina9.30-10.15am Fridays in

the Lady Chapel, Mt Carmel

Carmelite Centre Program BookingsT: 9690 5430 (leave message if unattended) or reregistration@thecarmelitecentremelbourne.org

via website: www.thecarmelitecentremelbourne.org

The Carmelite Centre is a joint venture of the Carmelites of Australia and East Timor and our Parish of Port Melbourne/Middle Park.

Address: 214 Richardson Street, Middle Park Vic 3206 (Mel Ref 2K C10) T: (03) 9690 5430 Website: www.thecarmelitecentremelbourne.org

in our parish

The St Vincent de Paul Society meets next Tuesday evening, 25 April at 7.30pm in St Joseph’s Hall, Port Melbourne. All welcome. If you would like to enquire about helping in our rewarding work please join us on Tuesday evening or call Gerhard Correa on 0400 640 611, or Kathy Mount on 0437 588855.

Welcome to our FamilyWe celebrate the Sacrament of Baptism during the 10.30am Mass at Mt Carmel for Max Levi Herman and Mia Moreen Milinovic Goff.

Please keep Max and Mia, their parents, and godparents in your prayers.

Classical Music Concert - Arias and Ensembles from Italian OperasSoprano: Catriona DeVere, Tenor: Salvatore Granata, Bass baritone: Desmond Lukey,

Piano: Justin Jacobs

THIS Sunday 23 April at 2.00pm Saint Joseph’s ChurchThe concert will be followed by afternoon tea in St Joseph’s Hall

Tickets: $25.00 ($20.00 concession/seniors) to assist the Carmelites’ work in East Timor

Hosted by the Parish of Port Melbourne/Middle Park with the generous support of these artists.

First EucharistEnrolments are now open for children in Grade 4 and above who wish to prepare for the Sacrament of First Eucharist. Your child must have completed their First Reconciliation Program and received the sacrament of Reconciliation. An enrolment form can be obtained from both churches, the Parish Office, or the Parish website: www.sj-mc.org.au.

At least one parent must attend the Parent Information Session on Thursday, 11 May, so that your family will know how to accompany your child during their preparation for the Sacrament.

During the 6.00pm mass on Saturday evenings there will be a special ritual for the children involved in preparing for the Sacrament – this is not an ‘optional extra’ it is an integral part of your child’s preparation.

Enrolments close on Friday 5 May, and the First Eucharist Program commences on Saturday 13 May. For further information, please contact the Parish Office on 9681 9600 during business hours.

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Reflection ontHIS wEEK’S readingsThe gospel story about doubting Thomas has to be one of the most misunderstood episodes in the New Testament.

If you're like me, for years we have been consoled by Thomas doubting that Jesus had been raised from the dead. Thomas' doubts were in Jesus, we have been led to believe. But let's read the story very carefully. It's not Jesus Thomas doubts, it's the disciples. In fact when Jesus appears to them seven days later, Thomas has the opportunity to share in the experience of the Risen Lord and like the others he immediately confesses Easter faith.

There are three elements in this story that should give us great comfort. The first is that Thomas doubts the early Church, and not just in regard to a minor issue of discipline or procedure. He doubts the central Christian message: that God raised Jesus from the dead. Some of us, too, at various times in our lives, can have doubts about all sorts of things in our faith. There are very few Catholics who get through life without asking some serious questions of God, about Jesus, the Spirit and the Church. These questions are good in themselves. They are necessary for a mature, adult faith. What we need to ensure is that we sincerely want answers to the questions we ask and not just use them to justify our wandering away from our faith. Thomas is the patron saint of all of us who sometimes struggle to believe what everyone else in the church seems to accept. And he is also the patron saint of those of us who seek the courage and patience to wait for the answers.

The second consoling fact to this story concerns the earliest Church. Even though they were filled with the presence of the Risen Lord and though Thomas refuses to believe their witness, they remain faithful to him in his doubts. We know this because he is still with them a week later. They didn't expel him from the group or excommunicate him, they held on to him in the hope that he would experience the Lord for himself.

Sadly for us, today, there are some who argue that Catholics who struggle with their faith should ‘shape up or ship out’. While every group has its boundaries and there are limits to what people can dissent from, we could take the earliest Church as our model and stay faithful to our doubters and help them come to see the transforming truth that has changed our lives.

The final element in this extraordinary story which can help us in our Easter faith concerns the significance of the time between the first and second appearances of Jesus. We're told it was seven days and the parallel to the story of creation would not have been lost on the first hearers of John's Gospel. And even though the earliest disciples experience the Risen Lord on Easter Sunday, they are still locked in their fears one week later. The creation of the early Church, the movement of its earliest leaders from timidity to boldness took time and having a doubter in their midst ends up a great blessing for them all, for Christ is present at every step of the Church’s creation and re-creation as well.

This story was written for people like us who do not have access to the historical Jesus. The birth of the Church is an ongoing act of God's creation in every generation. It takes time, and

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OUR LITURGYProcessional Hymn - All You NAtioNs

Penitential Rite

gloria

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Acts 2:42-47 The whole community remained faithful to the teaching of the apostles, to the brotherhood, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers.

The many miracles and signs worked through the apostles made a deep impression on everyone.

The faithful all lived together and owned everything in common; they sold their goods and possessions and shared out the proceeds among themselves according to what each one needed.

They went as a body to the Temple every day but met in their houses for the breaking of bread; they shared their food gladly and generously; they praised God and were looked up to by everyone. Day by day the Lord added to their community those destined to be saved.

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gospel acclamation

Give thanks to the Lord for he is good; his mercy endures for ever.Let the House of Israel say: “His mercy endures for ever.”

The hand of the Lord has struck with power, his right hand is exalted,I shall not die, but live anew, declaring the works of the Lord.

The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,the Lord of love and mercy has brought wonder to our eyes.

responsorial psalm PsAlm 118 let us Rejoice

1 Peter 1:3-9 Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy has given us a new birth as his sons and daughters, by raising Jesus Christ from the dead, so that we have a sure hope and the promise of an inheritance that can never be spoilt or soiled and never fade away, because it is being kept for you in the heavens. Through your faith, God’s power will guard you until the salvation which has been prepared is revealed at the end of time. This is a cause of great joy for you, even though you may for a short time have to bear being plagued by all sorts of trials; so that, when Jesus Christ is revealed, your faith will have been tested and proved like gold – only it is more precious than gold, which is corruptible even though it bears testing by fire – and then you will have praise and glory and honour. You did not see him, yet you love him; and still without seeing him, you are already filled with a joy so glorious that it cannot be described, because you believe; and you are sure of the end to which your faith looks forward, that is, the salvation of your souls.

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APOSTLES CREEDI believe in God,the Father almighty,Creator of heaven and earth,and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,born of the Virgin Mary,suffered under Pontius Pilate,was crucified, died and was buried;he descended into hell;on the third day he rose again from the dead;he ascended into heaven,and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty;from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church,the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins,the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.

Jn 20:19-31 In the evening of that same day, the first day of the week, the doors were closed in the room where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews. Jesus came and stood among them. He said to them, ‘Peace be with you,’ and showed them his hands and his side. The disciples were filled with joy when they saw the Lord, and he said to them again, ‘Peace be with you.

‘As the Father sent me, so am I sending you.’ After saying this he breathed on them and said: ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. For those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven; for those whose sins you retain, they are retained.’

Thomas, called the Twin, who was one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. When the disciples said, ‘We have seen the Lord’, he answered, ‘Unless I see the holes that the nails made in his hands and can put my finger into the holes they made, and unless I can put my hand into his side, I refuse to believe.’ Eight days later the disciples were in the house again and Thomas was with them. The doors were closed, but Jesus came in and stood among them. ‘Peace be with you’ he said. Then he spoke to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here; look, here are my hands. Give me your hand; put it into my side. Doubt no longer but believe.’ Thomas replied, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him:

‘You believe because you can see me. Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe.’

There were many other signs that Jesus worked and the disciples saw, but they are not recorded in this book. These are recorded so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing this you may have life through his name.

Gospel

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Great Amen

The Mystery of Faith

HOLY, HOLY

Cel: The Lord be with you. All: And with your Spirit.Cel: Lift up your hearts. All: We lift them up to the Lord.Cel: Let us give thanks to the Lord, our God. All: It is right and just.

The Celebrant prays the preface at the end of which all sing:

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Lamb of God

Cel: Behold the Lamb of God. Behold him who takes away the sins of the World. Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.

All: Lord I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.

Communion Hymn

Coda over page Z

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from page 5

recessional Hymn

people will be at different stages at different moments. Our fidelity to one another on the long journey of faith is only surpassed by our Crucified God who does not give up on us, no matter how many questions we ask or how much we doubt.

May this Eucharist give us confidence enough to hold on to each other in good times and bad so that we can all continue to experience his presence and have life in his name.© Richard Leonard SJ.