📢 Parish Notices
- The SECOND COLLECTION next weekend is for PLANNED GIVING.
- CATECHISM HAS RESUMED (as follows) Wednesday, 22 July at 17h30 to 18h30:
Bridge, Levels 5, 6 and 7 Friday, 24 July at 17h00 to 18h00:
Good Shepherd, Levels 1, 2, 3 and 4
Parow Youth & Young Persons
Please diarise our special upcoming Mass on Sunday 26th July at 10am.
ALL ARE WECOME
The Theme: Opening to the Lord’s love, and giving love in return.
World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly
Dear brothers and sisters,
Through the prophet Isaiah, the Lord promises that he will never forget any of us. He assures us that he has engraved our faces on the palms of his hands (cf. Is 49:16) and that his love is greater than a mother’s love for her child (cf. Is 49:15). The prophet gives us a glimpse of an intimate and intense dialogue in which God addresses, in familiar terms, each person individually and the people as a whole. Even today, we can read these words as referring to each of us, and everyone can hear that “I will never forget you” spoken directly to them. The painful feeling of being forgotten is, unfortunately, shared by many people, and among them are quite a few elderly people.
God’s love, which forgets no one, offers itself as an act of justice and a response to the anonymity in which human life all too often ends up lost. The lives of many elderly people, in particular, seem to be covered by a veil that blurs the features of their faces and shrouds them in oblivion. This is what happens in homes where loneliness reigns and also in those care facilities where each person’s uniqueness risks being reduced to a bed number or an illness.
The celebration of the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly is an opportunity to rediscover that the Church is called to be a mother to all and that at any age it is always possible to recognize ourselves as sons and daughters of God. May this day, therefore, be an inspiration for everyone, especially the young, to revive the beautiful custom of visiting their grandparents, the elderly members of the family and even those who have no one to visit them.
The Church understands the suffering of her elderly members; she knows full well that they are all too often viewed through the lens of stereotypes and considered a burden; she is aware that a profit-driven economy weakens family ties; she knows that many elderly people are left behind by children who are forced to migrate or, in some cases, to fight in wars. For each of these reasons, she joyfully proclaims the Lord’s promise: “But I will never forget you!”
Dear elderly men and women, Pope Francis spoke of you as a “new people” (Catechesis, 23 February 2022), since the number of older adults has never been so large in human history. It is, therefore, more important than ever to reflect with you, this “new people,” on what our vocation might be when fragility — the human person’s companion from birth — seems to take over. I would like to say to you: do not be afraid of fragility! This is how we can live out our old age as Christians: “fragile” yet at the same time “called.”
Dear elderly brothers and sisters, I thank you for supporting me every day with your prayers, especially when you recite the Holy Rosary. I return this gratitude from the bottom of my heart and leave you with this prayer: may the Lord always renew us in faith, hope and love — He who never forgets us!
[Message: Pope Leo XIV: Grandparents Day: 26th July 2026]
A Heartfelt Thank You
The St Francis Society for the Poor sincerely thanks every parishioner who has supported our mission through donations of cash, food, clothing, household items, and prayer. Your generosity is a living expression of Christ’s love and has brought hope and dignity to many families in need.
A special thank you to everyone who embraced our Adopt a Box campaign. Your compassionate response filled countless grocery boxes, bringing nourishment, comfort, and hope to those facing hardship.
May our Lord bless you abundantly for your kindness, and may St Francis continue to inspire us all to serve with humble and joyful hearts.
Marriage Encounter
“Love one another as I have loved you”
(John 15:12)
The Marriage Encounter weekend is currently taking place 24–26 July 2026.
Please pray for the couples attending, as well as Fr. Emmanuel Siljeur and his team who are presenting the Retreat.
Eucharistic Adoration
The Adoration Chapel has re-opened.
Tuesday – Thursday
2pm – 5.30pm
Mass Intentions for the Week
Please notify the office by latest, before 10am on the Thursday before.
Mass Stipends are R50
