Matthew 3:1-12

1. John the Baptist came to bear witness to Jesus. Who have been the people who have borne witness to us of the good news of the gospel that God loves us - a friend, a parent, a teacher, etc.? To whom have we borne that witness?

2. John appears in the story as one who had the courage to be himself in the face of opposition. He was also a person who knew his own value, did not make exaggerated claims and was content with his mission. Can you recall times when you have been content to be yourself, without pretending to be more than you are? What was it like to have that freedom, even in the face of criticism from others?

3. John was ‘the voice of one crying out in the wilderness' - announcing confidently to those in the wilderness that they must not despair because God's grace may come to them at any moment. Have you had the experience of being in the wilderness, feeling lost? From whom did you hear a voice that gave you hope? Have you been able to give hope to other people when they were in the wilderness?

Pilgrim Prayer for the Year of the Word

Pilgrim God,
you walk alongside us
and speak to us throughout the Scriptures:
in the message of the prophets,
the songs of David
and the vision of Paul.
Your Son, Jesus Christ, listens to our hopes and fears
and shows us how to live:
in our love of neighbour
our desire for justice,
and in our dying and rising each day.
Send us the Holy Spirit to open our hearts and minds so that we may be your witnesses throughout the world:
in our protection of the vulnerable,
our words and actions
and in our communion with the earth.
Amen.
V. Your word is our path and your truth is our light.
R. This day and every day.
Our Lady of the Annunciation
Pray for us
St Matthew
Pray for us
St Jerome
Pray for us

Children wanting to take part in the Christmas Eve Mass at St Gregory's 5:30pm Mass to contact Alison on her mobile 07964894730 with the name and age of the child , no later than Sunday 15th December.

Joyce Marshall & Family wish to thank all who contributed to the beautiful Requiem Mass for Deacon Tom. Thank you to all for being there and all the cards, Masses, prayers and love sent to me and our family at this special time. On Sunday Tom would have celebrated his Silver Jubilee as a Deacon of Diocese. May Tom rest in peace.

Children's Advent Masses: Thank you to everyone who came and made these masses a wonderful joyous way to start the season of Advent. Big thanks to all those children who volunteered to read and process in the offertory.

Diocesan & Other Notices

ELECTION 2019: FIND OUT WHERE YOUR LOCAL CANDIDATES
STAND ON IMPORTANT LIFE ISSUES.
(Please note this notice is from Bishop Marcus.) In the next parliament, it is likely that there will be efforts to introduce changes to the law that would allow abortion on demand, for any reason, up to birth and that there will be further attempts to introduce assisted suicide. Whatever political party you may be considering voting for, please reflect on the importance of human life. Find out where your local political candidates stand on life issues - abortion and assisted suicide - by visiting www.righttolife.org.uk/bothlives. If you use social media, please also consider sharing this campaign on your Facebook page or whatever social media platform you use. Draft flyers are also available from: https://righttolife.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/RTL-flyer-print.pdf. Thank you. A statement has been issued by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales on the General Election which there is a copy available for parishioners to take in the porch or you can visit it online at: https://www.cbcew.org.uk/2019-general-election-statement-and-bishops-plenary/ Thank you. + Marcus

PAID WORK OPPORTUNITY WITH THE J&P COMMISSION: Do you want to make the world a better place? Do you have the time and skills to help the Commission in its work of celebrating what people do about social justice issues across the Leeds Diocese and to build awareness of what more people could do? We need one or two self-employed people who are available, on a flexible basis, to do in the region of 500 hours of work per annum. Please email jandp@dioceseofleeds.org.uk for a set of the Terms of Reference detailing out the activities that we need doing or see the home page of our website - www.leedsjp.org.uk. Closing date: 18th December 2019.

CARITAS LEEDS: CAROLS FOR ALL: Saturday 14th December 2019, 3.00pm at Leeds Cathedral, Great George Street, Leeds LS2 8BE. Prepared by Caritas Leeds Disabilities and Dementia Groups. Featuring the students from Holy Rosary and St. Anne's Catholic Primary School. Refreshments will be served afterwards at Wheeler Hall. For further information, please contact Rev. Dr. Joseph Cortis (Co-ordinator for Caritas Leeds) on: joseph.cortis@dioceseofleeds.org.uk.

DAY OF RECONCILIATION AT LEEDS CATHEDRAL: Thursday 19th December 2019. Confessions will be available from 7.00am until 7.00pm.

All children going to the toilet must be accompanied by their parent/guardian.

Will the parents of the young children who are changing to serve Mass and need assistance please help them. Please do not leave it to other adults.

There is a supply of hosts in each church. Should you need one of the hosts consecrating please make yourself known to the priest before Mass starts.

All children & adults attending children's liturgy must sign the weekly register.