ST JOHN THE BAPTIST — PARISH MATTERS — MAY 08

THE RECTOR’S LETTER

Dear Friends,
In the last few months we have seen the work at the Orthopedic Hospital
on Castle Avenue reach fever pitch. It was reminiscent of the final days of
building of our own Parish Centre.The Orthopedic has now closed the old
Veranda Wing and opened the new Vernon Wing. It is a magnificent
modern ward which will carry the hospital forward into the now not so
new millennium. Perhaps some of you have had the opportunity to visit it
since its opening.The Parish has had a long link with the Orthopedic with
succeeding Rectors acting as chaplains to the Church of Ireland population
in the hospital.
Hospital chaplaincy makes up quite a large part of the daily work of a
Rector, rural or urban. It has two main aspects: official chaplaincy and general
visitation.The Orthopedic Hospital has on average 5 to 6 Church of Ireland
patients who are visited weekly and are offered Holy Communion. The
Protestant patients are also visited by Rev’ds. Sonia Hicks from the
Methodist Church and Lorraine Kennedy-Ritchie from Clontarf and Scots
Presbyterian Church.The Roman Catholic patients are also visited, like the
Church of Ireland patients by a full-time chaplain. General hospital visitation
for the Rector is less structured. Although, the larger hospitals, like
Beaumont and the two Mater Hospitals, have full-time chaplaincy teams,
patients like to see the local Rector at the bedside. It is always nice to be
able to facilitate this. Usually I find out through the Clontarf grape-vine if a
parishioner is in hospital. If you become aware that someone is in one of the
main hospitals or is recovering in a nursing home, please contact me, as
without that information I cannot act on it. I feel it is very important to visit
parishioners when they are sick both in hospital and at home.
This aspect of the Rector’s pastoral work is vitally important. I see it as
central to my role. It probably seems as an invisible aspect of my work, as
indeed are many others. Over the next number of months I will use this
forum to talk a little about the different aspects of my work among you.
You will notice in the Mothers’ Union notes this month that Thelma Turner
is retiring from ‘active duty’. Thelma has held many different positions and
has served our branch diligently and with great care. She served as
Honorary Secretary, Branch Chairman, Media Representative, Literature
Representative Overseas, Prayer and Spirituality Representative, Honorary
Treasurer and at Diocesan level she was IMPC correspondent and a Vice
President. She has brought great gifts to her many roles and I thank her for
her many years of committed service.
On the 15th June we will gather for our Parish Family Fun Day and Fete
which will, of course, take place in and around the Parish Centre. It is
hoped to have many stalls (all the usual ones, excluding white elephant),
and fun items on the day. It is also expected that those who helped in the
past will continue with some new faces helping out. John Patten and Clive
Jackson are doing the overall co-ordination. We look forward to a great
day of fun and hopefully a successful fund-raiser also. Please come along
and encourage as many people you know to do likewise. It will be for all
ages. It is hoped to have an outdoor BBQ-style food stall and the usual
cake stall with all the usual goodies.
Yours in Christ
Derek

Bowls Club
This week we had a very pleasant evening bowling with our neighbouring
club St. Anthony’s.They were keen to see our new Parish Centre and try
our mats. They were very impressed with it and we look forward to
further friendly games with other neighbouring clubs.
An advance notice - our AGM will be held in the Parish Centre on
Tuesday 20th May 2008 - and we look forward to seeing all members
there.
H Erskine

Flower Guild
The Flower Guild rota calendar is posted on the notice board at the back
of the Church. It would be most helpful if arrangers filled in the dates
most suited to them. Otherwise the Church may be left without flowers
on certain Sundays.
B. Gallagher & I. Acheson
Mothers’ Union
We were delighted to have Linda Smith & Julie Maher from Aoibhneas
Women & Children’s Refuge down to speak to us this month. It was very
informative and interesting to hear how the centre functioned.
We were pleased to have guests from St. Gabriel’s Ladies Club, The
Presbyterian & Scots Women’s Association & The Methodist Women’s
Association. They enjoyed their first visit to our Parish Centre and were
very complimentary.
The AGM was held on 17th April.There was a good attendance.The main
changes in personnel is the appointment of three co-ordinators. Hazel
McCullagh, Elizabeth Adamson & Heather Walsh.
Thelma Turner is retiring from "active duty" We thank her for the many
years of service to the MU. She has held many positions. Hon Secretary,
Branch Chairman, Media Rep. Literature Rep.Overseas, Prayer &
Spirituality. Hon.Treasurer and at Diocesan level she was IMPC
correspondent and a Vice President.
The North Dublin Area Service will be held in Castleknock Parish
Church on 12th. May at 8pm. The special preacher will be Rev. Lorraine
Ritchie.
I. Acheson

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 Family Fun Day & Parish Fete
We are looking forward to and planning our first Parish Fete and
Family Fun day in and around the Parish centre, It will take place on
Sunday 15th June from 2.00p.m. — 5.00p.m.
There will be fun for all the family from burger stalls to bouncy
castles, to all the usual stalls. Please keep that day free and come
along and enjoy yourselves while supporting the work of the Parish.
It will be preceded that morning by our usual All-Age Worship for
all the family at 10.30a.m. so why not make it a real Parish day for
the whole family.
Derek Sargent

Clontarf Womens’ Group

We will meet next on Tuesday 6th May at 8.00p.m. in the Pavilion Room of
the Parish Centre. Joy Lennon will be joining us to introduce us to
alternative medicine.
B. Sargent & H. McCullagh

Whist
Parish Whist Drives will take place on the first Thursday of every month
during the summer in the Pavilion Room at 7.30p.m. — dates for the diary
1st May and 5th June.The 3rd July Whist Drive will incorporate an end of
season social and refreshments.
H. Hunter

Parish Study Group

A Study Group will be held on Wednesday 28th May at 7.30p.m. in the
Pavilion Room of the Parish Centre. Evening Worship will be followed by
a talk ‘Saul of Tarsus, Paul the Apostle: A Life of Opposites.’

Ladybirds
All is going smoothly at Ladybirds but we are all sad to be losing Wendy
when she leaves us this month to get married and live in Kerry. We wish
her every happiness and hope that she settles in her new home.
Brownies
We are delighted that the long bright evenings have finally arrived and we
can avail of the lovely grounds at the parish centre.
We also know that now May has arrived Wendy will be leaving us very
soon and we will all miss her very much. Wendy has given 25 years of
service to guiding in Clontarf both at company and district level and we
thank her very much for that. We also wish her and her husband to be
(Pat) every good health and happiness in the future and we hope that she
will be able to visit us when she is in Dublin.
Guides
We are planning a weekend away at The National Memorial cottage in
Enniskerry in June of this year so the planning of activities for this has
already begun.We also look forward to doing outdoor activities now the
finer weather is here. Like the ladybirds and brownies we too are
preparing to say a fond farewell to Wendy with a few surprises up our
sleeves! We all wish her and Pat a long and happy life together.Who knows
maybe she might be persuaded to become involved in guiding in Kerry!
M.Watts

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 Seafield Singers
A concert by the Seafield Singers will take place
in the Church on Friday 16th May. It will start at
8 o’clock.Tickets are available at the door or from
the usual sellers. All are welcome.

Anchor Boys
The boys have been working really hard over the last number of weeks for
our Annual Display which will be held on Saturday 10th May in the Parish
Centre at 7.30pm. I would like to thank all the parents for their support
throughout the year and also the helpers - Breda Sargent, Olive Jackson,
Diane Kitching and Susan Connolly for coming down week by week.Thank
you also to Damian Duggan for playing football with the boys and teaching
them good football skills. Damian is very popular as you can imagine.
Without this help we could not run Anchor Boys. We are really looking
forward to our first Display in the Parish Centre.
H. McCullagh

Boys’ Brigade Junior Section

April has been a busy month with the Figure Marching Competition and
preparations for the Annual Display keeping us busy.
On Friday 11th we travelled to Dundrum Methodist Church to take part
in the Figure Marching Competition. 18 Boys travelled and took part in
two teams representing us. Overall there were 10 teams competing — the
eventual winners being the 5th Dublin who are from Dundrum Methodist
Church.
Our boys did very well — both coming in not far behind the third placed
team. Many thanks to Sam O’Byrne, Mark Bailey and Karl Black for their
work with the boys.Thanks also to the parents who gave lifts and travelled,
I think we had the best parent support on the night.
Our Annual Display is on Saturday 10th May at 7.30pm (DV). This is an
important occasion for the Boys so your support at our “Return Home”
display would be appreciated. Our Chief Guest will be Mr. Greg Fromholz
who is Director of 3Rock Youth, the diocesan youth body.
M. Acheson
Boys’ Brigade
We are now forging ahead with preparations for our Annual Display in the
Parish Centre on Saturday 10th May. It will be our first display in the new
venue, so hopefully it will be a night to remember.We don’t want to give
away too much about the program yet - one or two surprises are usually
fun. All are very welcome to attend the Display - doors open from
7.00p.m. and the Display will start at 7.30p.m.
Our Chief Guest for the night will be Greg Fromholz from 3 Rock Youth,
who preached at our Enrolment Service in November last. Greg has
shown a keen interest in the Boys’ Brigade and we are delighted to
welcome him to our big night.
Planning is also in progress for our Summer activities, which will include
a week-long Camp in Northern Ireland which will be in August. Overseas
summer trips in recent years have been very successful and we believe
that although this year’s trip will be somewhat more local, it should
promise just as much.
A. Ayling

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 SERVICES FOR MAY

4th May Ascension 1/Easter 7

8.30 a.m. Holy Communion
10.30 a.m. Morning Prayer

11th May Pentecost

8.30 p.m. Holy Communion
10.30 a.m. Parish Family Communion

18th May Trinity Sunday

8.30 p.m. Holy Communion
10.30 a.m. All-Age Worship

25th May 1st Sunday after Trinity

8.30 p.m. Holy Communion
10.30 a.m. Parish Family Communion
 Scripture Readings for May

4th May Ascension 1/Easter 7

Acts 1: 6-14
Psalm 68: 1-10, 32-35
1 Peter 4: 12-14; 5: 6-11
John 17: 1-11

11th May Pentecost

Acts 2: 1-21
Psalm 104: 26-36, 37b
1 Cor 12: 3b-13
John 20: 19-23

18th May Trinity Sunday

Isaiah 40: 12-17, 27-31
Psalm 8
2 Corinthians 13: 11-13
Matthew 28: 16-20

25th May 1st Sunday after Trinity

Leviticus 19: 1-2, 9-18
Psalm 119: 33-40
1 Corinthians 3: 10-11, 16-23
Matthew 5: 38-48
Youth Notes
The Youth Clubs have been progressing as strongly as ever.The 4 — 6 year
olds in Klub have been partaking in a variety of arts and crafts lately
including pom-pom men and the ever popular cake decorating.
Meanwhile, the Wired Group have been enhancing their faith through
games and though-provoking discussion. The oldest of the three youth
clubs, Connect, are gearing up to begin fundraising and preparation for our
missions trip to Africa next summer.
With the end of the year approaching, I would like to take this
opportunity to thank all the leaders who have helped out throughout the
year, hopfully we will have their continued support over the next few
months and on to the summer camps.
S Connolly

Greenlanes N S Update
It was with great sadness that we learned of the death of Esme Walpole
who was a great friend and past Principal of Greenlanes. Esme served the
School for many years before her retirement, her work goes on and the
School is a testament to her and many others who have worked so hard
down through the years. Our prayers are with her family at this time.
We are looking forward to a BBQ which will take place on Friday 20th
June in the School. This night is for parents/guardians and their friends.
More details will follow in the next edition.
The Food Dudes has been a very successful project encouraging all the
children to eat more healthily.
The children took part in the National Spring Clean on 22nd May, they
went around the roads in Clontarf picking up lots of litter.
5th & 6th Classes took part in a Rugby Blitz in St Mary’s Rugby Club,
Terenure. They played very well and they won the best dressed School.
Special thanks to Stephen Maher from Mount Temple who teaches Tag
Rugby to 5th & 6th classes every Wednesday in the school.

Why not keep up to date with Parish goings-on by logging

on to the website clontarf.dublin.anglican.org
Georgina Little
Georgina entered the nearer presence of God on March 15th after some
time in the Mater Hospital. The large congregation at her funeral was a
testament to the love she engendered in so many by her quiet gentleness
and stalwart attendance at church Sunday by Sunday. The many
parishioners who brought her to Sunday Services by car in recent years
helped her more than they may ever realise, as regular attendance at
Morning Prayer or Holy Communion was a very important part of her life.
Despite increasingly poor health over the last few years, she ‘soldiered on’
with patience and Christian fortitude and never missed getting to church
if she could possibly help it!
Although never one to step into the limelight, and known by many as a
very private person, she took a great pride in having her picture on the
cover of the parish magazine as she also did in attending the various
church landmarks such as baptisms, confirmation services and weddings of
nieces and nephews and their children. She is remembered by her family
as a kindly, generous lady who lived her
life helping others in quiet and often
unpublicised ways.
Her family would like to express their
thanks to all those who attended her
funeral service and sympathised with
them at this time of loss.Thanks to the
Church Wardens for their help but
especially to the Rector for his visits to
Georgina and his time spent in
arranging the service with the family.
P.E.deN.L (nephew-in-law)

Burial Register
Frederick Burtenshaw — 5th March 2008
Columbarium
Georgina Little — 11th April 2008
Mount Jerome
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Sunday Club
We are winding up for the summer at the end of May.This month we are
concentrating on Pentecost and hope to do a little more artwork relating
to it. We enjoyed doing some art leading up to Easter earlier this year. We
are looking at painting on fabric using acrylic paints.This is not as washable
as our previous endeavours — so parents please don’t have anything too
good to wear.
Thank you to all the leaders and helpers over the months for their time
and work. It is only with their help that Sunday Club happens.
We would like to wish all our helpers in 3rd and 6th Years, who are
approaching their state exams shortly, all the best with them. Also, all the
best to Stephanie for her finals!
As always, we welcome anyone who might be available to help with
leadership. Please talk to Jean Acheson or Rev’d Derek Sargent if you are
interested.Those interested do need to go though the vetting process so
any advance notice is always useful.
We would like to wish everyone a good summer.

MAY SCHEDULE
4th None Morning Prayer (Bank Holiday)
11th Sunday Club* Holy Communion
18th In Church All Age Worship
25th Sunday Club* Service of the Word
*Please do not wear anything too good as the paint we will be using will
not be totally washable!
J. Acheson

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Reflection
A recent TV programme was cause for reflection. It covered the
Prohibition Era in the USA with emphasis on Chicago, the epicentre of the
crime associated with the illegal importation of alcohol.Well-remembered
were the days of our youth when the cinema was at its zenith.We’d gaze
marvelling at the glamour and glitz but the obverse side was given and we
were rather glad in retrospect that we lived in secure ‘dullness’. The TV
documentary ended by saying that there was a murder committed for
every day of the year! In our understandable innocence we thought ‘that
could never happen here, thank God’.
Now in 2008, almost every day in Ireland, the vicious Prohibition
scenario is repeated viz. murder, gang-warfare and vast alcohol
consumption.The cause? There are several but they all stem from one root
- Godlessness ... not godlessness for there are many gods in the
ascendancy, not least materialism and prosperity. Alas, not as of yore, one
doesn’t hear ‘thank God’ uttered very often. Christians must stand firm
against this onslaught and thank their God and Saviour for their assurance
of “change and decay in all around I see, O Thou who changest not, abide
with me”.We remember that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and
forever.Thank God!
A Maharry.

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 PARISH GROUPS/CONTACTS
RECTOR: The Rev’d D. C. Sargent (833 1181)
clontarf@dublin.anglican.org
YOUTH AND CHILDREN’S PASTOR: Susan Connolly
(086 377 7278) susanconnolly04@yahoo.co.uk
GREENLANES NATIONAL SCHOOL
Principal: Ms. C. Atkin (8331554) greenlanes@oceanfree.net
B.B. COMPANY SECTION: Mr A. Ayling (831 5234)
B.B. JUNIOR SECTION: Mr. M. Acheson (831 8645)
ANCHOR BOYS: Mrs. H. McCullagh (853 5594)
WOMEN’S GROUP: Mrs. B. Sargent (833 1181) and
Mrs. H. McCullagh (853 5594)
YOUTH GROUPS: Ms. S. Connolly (086 377 7278)
BOWLING CLUB: Mr. H. Maude (833 1056)
BADMINTON CLUB: Mrs. P.Watts (832 6078)
JUNIOR BADMINTON: Mr. R.Watts (832 6078)
ORGANIST/CHOIRMASTER: Mr. J. Rowden (2809948 \ 0876347546)
SUNDAY MORNING CRECHE: Mrs. B. Sargent (833 1181)
FLOWER GUILD: Mrs. I. Acheson (833 8288) and
Mrs B. Gallagher (833 8683)
GB PAST MEMBERS: Mrs. I. McMullen: (853 0356)
BROWNIES: Mrs. P. and Ms. M.Watts (832 6078)
LADYBIRDS/GUIDES: Ms.W. Kelly (848 1569) and
Ms. N. Flynn (8476110)
MOTHERS UNION: Mrs. I. Acheson (833 8288)
SUNDAY CLUB: Mrs. J. Acheson (831 8645)
POST-CONFIRMATION GROUP: Susan Connolly
(086 377 7278) susanconnolly04@yahoo.co.uk
PARISH WHIST GROUP: Mrs. H. Hunter (833 7940)