Sunday 1st March 2026 Second Sunday of Lent (Year A)

"This is my chosen Son; listen to him."
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March Thought:
​"God of hope and love, help me to use this time to grow in understanding and acceptance of others."

St Andrew's, Bearsden.

• Vigil Mass (Saturday) - 5.30p.m.
• Mass - Sunday morning - 10a.m.
• Confessions - Sunday before Mass - 9.10a.m. until 9.40a.m.
• It may be of help in Bearsden on Sunday mornings if you wish to speak to Fr. Michael to do so after morning confessions which end at 9.40am.
• Masses – Monday, Thursday and Friday - 10a.m.
• Eucharistic Services - Tuesday and Wednesday - 10a.m.

St Joseph's, Milngavie.

• Vigil Mass (Saturday) - 4p.m.
• Confessions - Saturday - 3.30p.m. until 3.40p.m.
• Mass - Sunday - 11.30a.m.

 
FOR THE DIARY:
The 40 Hours will take place in the parish from Sunday, 22nd to Tuesday, 24th March.

• Come and spent some time before the Blessed Sacrament.
• The general theme will be Vocations - Single, Married, Religious and Priesthood.
• Fr. P. Boyle will be with us for the Monday evening Service.
• There will be a sheet asking for helpers to watch going up soon in the porch.
• Further details will follow later.

 
PLATE COLLECTION 22/2/26

• Plate: £ 920
• Sick & Retired Priest Collection - £ 631. 
• Many Thanks.

SECOND COLLECTION:

• This weekend and next weekend for The Sick & Retired Priests of the Archdiocese.
• 4th weekend in Lent is for SCIAF.

 
Lenten Stations of the Cross:

• Fridays at 6p.m.
• Representatives of some of our parish groups will lead Stations of the Cross in St Andrews every Friday in Lent starting on the 20th of February.
• All warmly invited to join. 

 
 Let us remember in our prayers all those who have suffered any type of abuse within the church.
 
The Ignatian Spirituality Centre is delighted to be running their annual Lent retreat again this year. The retreat can be accessed online - here is the link: https://www.onlineprayer.net/L26-M/

Parish Padre Pio Group:

• Meet for prayers in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel at St Andrews, Roman Rd
• 2p.m. on the first Monday of each month.
• Next meeting is on Monday 2nd March 2026.

 
SAVE THE DATE:
The Halls Committee is holding a "Race night" after the Vigil Mass to raise funds for St. Andrew's SPRED group.

• Saturday 29th August 2026 at 6.30p.m
• We encourage everyone to 'save the date' and attend the evening to help with this great cause. 
• Tickets: Adult £10/ Child £5 to include sandwiches and cakes.
• We will send out a reminder nearer the time with details on how to purchase tickets etc.
• Thanks in advance for your support.

 
SAFEGUARDING:
The safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults who participate in the life of the Church is a top priority for the Archdiocese. It is for that reason our volunteers are trained in Safeguarding before they undertake any work with children and/or protected adults.

• Each Diocese has specially trained individuals who provide this training.
• The Archdiocese has around 2,500 tier 1 and tier 2 volunteers, plus many others who may also require training in the future. This is an ever-evolving situation with new volunteers coming on board, all of whom require training before beginning in their Parish role.
• These volunteers are essential to the life of each Parish.  We are therefore looking to expand our cohort of trainers and hope for volunteers to join our training team to help run courses throughout the year.
• Training and support are provided to all volunteer trainers.
• There is a range of courses delivered and they are done both in person and using Zoom.
• We urgently require the assistance of volunteers who have training experience either in their current or previous roles. 
• If you have these experiences and skills and are interested, please contact the Director of Safeguarding, Caterina O’Connor (DSA) mobile number: 07539 893396 email [email protected] for an informal chat

Messengers Meeting on Monday 2nd March:

• All Messengers are asked to attend our Easter Reachout Meeting at 7.30p.m. in the Lower Hall.
• All Area Leaders are asked to arrive at 7.00 p.m. to prepare their Reachout Bulletins.

 
Lunch Club:

• The next meeting of the lunch club is this Thursday, 5th March 2026 12.30-2.30p.m. in the Upper Hall.
• As always everyone is very welcome.
• Come along bring a friend, a neighbour, a family member and enjoy lunch “in a warm friendly environment".

 
WORLD DAY OF PRAYER ~ WORSHIP SERVICE:

• All Saints’ Episcopal Church, Drymen Road, Bearsden
• Friday 6 March at 11a.m.
• All welcome

 
The Piety Stall has a range of cards and gifts on sale for St Patrick's Day and Easter.
 
 St Patrick’s Day Mass: The annual St Patrick’s Day Mass will take place on Saturday 14th March at 10a.m. in St Andrew’s Cathedral, Clyde Street, Glasgow. All welcome.

CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK – 1st March 2026
"God’s mercy transforms human hearts; it enables us, through the experience of a faithful love, to become merciful in turn. In an ever new miracle, divine mercy shines forth in our lives, inspiring each of us to love our neighbour and to devote ourselves to what the Church’s tradition calls the spiritual and corporal works of mercy."
Pope Francis, Message for Lent 2016
 
Laudato Si’ – on new biological technologies
Here I would recall the balanced position of Saint John Paul II, who stressed the benefits of scientific and technological progress as evidence of “the nobility of the human vocation to participate responsibly in God’s creative action”, while also noting that “we cannot interfere in one area of the ecosystem without paying due attention to the consequences of such interference in other areas”. (#131)
 
The Justice & Peace groups of St Joseph's, St Andrew's, and Immaculate Conception, have invited the political parties in Scotland to a series of Q&A evenings on Thursdays during March/April, 7.00 - 8.30pm, to respond to a range of pre-set questions on issues such as poverty, addiction, immigration, net zero targets, health, and environmental protection.
Details are:

• 5th March - Dr Pam Gosal - Conservative - St Andrew’s Lower Hall
  
• 12th March - Cllr Thomas Kerr - Reform - St Joseph’s
  
• 19th March - Ross Greer - Green Party - St Joseph’s
  
• 26th March - Marie McNair - SNP - St Andrew’s Lower Hall
  
• 9th April - Adam Harley - Lib Dem - St Andrew’s Lower Hall
  
• 16th April - James Adams - Scottish Labour - Immaculate Conception

 
Choir Dates for this term all at 10a.m. Mass:

• 8th &15th March
  
• 5th April
  
• 10th &17th May
  
• 14th & 21st June.
  
• If your child is not at St Nicholas and would like to join the choir, please contact Annamaria Strachan 0141 942 9799 /07749 715514/ [email protected]

 
ST ANDREW’S EMBROIDERY GROUP:

• Gavin’s Mill is holding an embroidery exhibition from 19th February until 5th May 2026.
  
• Some artwork from the St Andrew’s Embroidery Group will be featured. 

 
The Beginning Experience is holding a weekend for those suffering through divorce, separation or widowhood:

• 27th-29th March 2026
• Conforti Centre, Coatbridge.
• For more details contact Louise on 07786 687631 or see the notice in  the porch.
• Completed applications must be returned by 13th March.

 
Bearsden and Milngavie talking newspaper (BEAM) 

• Provides a free weekly recording to the visually impaired of extracts from the Milngavie & Bearsden Herald and the Community News magazine, plus short stories from The Scottish Book Trust.
  
• Speakers supplied at no cost & the Post Office provides a free weekly delivery & collection service. 
  
• Volunteer readers are also needed – can you spare an hour or so once a month to help? For more information contact Graham Silcock on 07770 524983

 
World Youth Day 2027 | RCAG Youth Expression of Interest:

• World Youth Day will take place in Seoul from 3rd–8th August 2027.
• Young people who will be 19 by 1st July 2027 and aged 19–35 at the time of the pilgrimage are invited to register their interest in travelling with RCAG Youth by completing the Expression of Interest form: https://tinyurl.com/wydrcagyouthEOI
• An Information Evening will be held on 23rd March 2026 at 7.00 pm at the RCAG Youth Office, 196 Clyde Street, G1 4JY.
• For enquiries, please email [email protected]. 

Parish Bulletin:

• Items for inclusion should be sent to [email protected] by 5p.m. on the Tuesday before publication, maximum 80 words.
• The Parish Bulletin is available weekly on our website/by email for all those on our Parish database (subscribe here to have it emailed weekly) and on the noticeboard in the Church porch.​

Please remember in your prayers those in need, those who are sick and housebound and those in hospital.
Recently Deceased: Carole Angelini, James (Jim) Barton (formerly of Deveron Road) and Margaret LittleJohn.
Anniversaries: Nessie Cannon, Chris Cole, Harry English, Mary Bell MacCormack, Christina MacPherson, and Lawrence Russell.