Here are the announcements for Palm Sunday, the 13th of April:
NOVENA TO THE DIVINE MERCY
The novena to Divine Mercy, will be celebrated from Good Friday 18th – Divine Mercy Sunday 26th April 2025. Forms can be found at the side table in the Shrine Church.
THANK YOU
Thank you to Fr Joseph Maria for accepting to be the main celebrant for today’s Palm Sunday / Fatima Day and for his inspiring homily and reflection. May the Lord bestow on him an abundance of blessings as he continues to serve the Shrine and the community.
WORKING BEE
The next working bee will be on Saturday 10th May 2025. Please consider coming along and helping to keep the Shrine beautiful for our local area and the pilgrims that visit. This Shrine is a treasure to the Order, Diocese and country, any help and forms of talent are always most welcome. Please speak to Fr Joseph Maria, Subprior for more information or specifics.
MORNING TEA AFTER 8AM MASS
The next morning tea after Mass will be on Sunday 27th April 2025. All Welcome!
PASCHAL PRECEPT
A reminder that all Catholics are obliged to go to Confession and Holy Communion at least once a year between Ash Wednesday and Trinity Sunday (15th June).
PASSION PLAY
The annual reenactment of the Lord’s Passion (Passion Play) will take place in the Shrine, commencing at 11am on Good Friday 18th April 2025. Please note, this is free and open to all, no bookings need to be made. Food & drink will also be available for purchase. Good Friday is also a day of Fasting and abstinence, Pilgrims are allowed to picnic on site but we ask that NO meat is consumed or BBQed on the day. There are still some roles that need to be filled, for more information and to receive updates regarding rehearsals etc please go to: https://goodfridaypassionplay.blogspot.com/ and sign up to receive notifications.
FUTURE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SHRINE REGARDING CHAPELS
Fr Richard is currently undertaking an audit of all the Chapels that are onsite at the Shrine. The International shrines we originally begun as a means for a community to come together to build a devotional chapel which would also become a place of pilgrimage. As the years have gone by, more chapels have been built varying in size and usage. Along with the passing of time groups have dropped in numbers due to death, retirement and moving away or lack of transport. Permission to build chapels were granted to groups so as there is a succession plan to look after it as well as it doesn’t fall on just one person plus the added numbers would help in the maintenance of the Shrine at large. Due to the declining number for some groups they have fallen into disrepair right through to outright neglect. In the event of a group folding, disbanding or neglecting a chapel, it returns to the custodianship of the Pauline Fathers for the community to decide to whom and for what the future of a chapel has in store.
Fr Richard is slowly getting in touch with the contacts and the groups that run the various chapels but he has also made the decision that until all is clarified, there will be absolutely NO MORE chapels built and custodianship will not be given to a group until it is clear that there is no one else assigned to care for the chapel.
This decision is not easy but it will also allow the community and those who help at the working bees to focus on maintaining and updating the current chapels and especially the surrounds / landscaping which again is in desperate need for TLC. For more information of to put yourself forward to help in any way please speak to Fr Richard or Fr Joseph Maria.
THANK YOU
A big Thank you to everyone who came and participated in the Lenten day First Saturday Retreat last week 6th April 2025.
VOLUNTEERS FOR GOOD FRIDAY 18th APRIL 2025
Due to certain bureaucracy, the Rural Fire Brigade (RFS) are not allowed assist with the parking of pilgrims on Good Friday. Fr Richard is asking for volunteers who are willing to help in parking and crowd control on the day, for those interested please contact Fr Richard. For those who have already volunteered, there will be a briefing at the front door of the Monastery at 7:45am on Good Friday morning.
YEAR OF JUBILEE 2025
The Diocese of Wollongong’s celebration of the Jubilee year of the Universal Church is from Sunday 29th December 2024 – 28th December 2025. During this time the faithful are encouraged pilgrimage to the designated sites in the Diocese and in doing so can gain a plenary indulgence. Pilgrim passports have been produced for people to take to get stamped that they have visited one of the sites, these are available on the side table of the Church. Penrose Park is one of the designated Pilgrimage sites, the other 5 sites for the Diocese are as follows:
ST FRANCIS XAVIER CATHEDRAL, WOLLONGONG
36 Harbour Street, Wollongong NSW 2500
SHRINE OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, UNANDERRA
48–50 Princes Hwy, Unanderra NSW 2526
OUR LADY HELP OF CHRISTIANS, ROSEMEADOW
80 Demetrius Road, Rosemeadow NSW 2560
ST MARY STAR OF THE SEA,
MILTON
Lot 1 Corks Lane, Milton NSW 2538
ST JOSEPH’S,
KANGAROO VALLEY
130 Moss Vale Road, Kangaroo Valley NSW 2577
PILGRIMS PASSPORTS Pilgrims passports for the Diocese of Wollongong are available at the Mass intention stall and at the side table of the Shrine Church. The passport is used to help in pilgrim visits to the designated places of pilgrimage in the Diocese and when a visit is completed they are stamped as a recognition of the visit. For those wishing to get their passport stamped please enquire at the Monastery.
HOLY WEEK SCHEDULE
11am – Holy Monday, Holy Tuesday & Holy Wednesday (14th, 15th & 16th April)
HOLY THURSDAY (17th April)
No Mass at 11am
6pm – Solemn Mass of the Lord’s Supper (with washing of the feet and procession to the Altar of Repose)
Adoration at the Altar of Repose – until midnight
GOOD FRIDAY (18th April)
Adoration at the Altar of Repose – 8am until 10pm
11am – Passion Play (commencing at the front of the property)
3pm – Commemoration of the Lord’s Passion (In the Shrine Church)
5pm – Novena to Divine Mercy 7pm – Vespers (Prayer of the Church)
HOLY SATURDAY (19th April)
Adoration at the Altar of Repose – 8am to Midday
8:30am – Lauds (Prayer of the Church) 11:30am – Novena to the Divine Mercy
6pm – Solemn Mass of the Easter Vigil
EASTER SUNDAY (20th April)
8am, 9:30am & 11am – Solemn Mass of Easter Sunday
Divine Mercy Novena – immediately following each of the Masses
EASTER OCTAVE (21st-27th April)
11am – Mass followed by the Novena to the Divine Mercy.
DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY (27th April)
8am & 9:30am
11am – Solemn Mass of Divine Mercy Sunday
2pm – Divine Mercy Holy Hour (Confession available)
