Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
16 August 2026
Services during the Week:
Saggart: Mass: Sunday 9am, Tue, Wed & Fri 11am.
Adoration: Sat/Sun 4 – 7pm
Rathcoole: Mass: Sat 6pm, Sun 12pm, Tue & Thur 10am.
Adoration: Sun 4 – 6pm, Tue 10.30 – 5pm; Fri 9 – 12 & 3 – 7pm
Newcastle: Mass: Sun 10am. Mon & Fri 10am.
Adoration: Sat 3 – 5pm.
Confession: Available by request, generally after any Mass.
Baptisms/Marriages: Contact Parish Office for details (086 0108420 Tue – Thu 10.00 – 12.30)
St. Mary’s Cathedral
St Mary’s Cathedral, Marlborough Street, Dublin, will close temporarily from 17th August to allow essential conservation, accessibility and renewal works as part of the next phase in its development as the Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Dublin. (The construction budget is 17 million euro (excl. VAT) ¾ pledged already)
For 200 years the Pro-Cathedral, as it was known, has been the centre of Catholic life in Dublin. It has hosted major religious ceremonies and significant national events, from the funeral of Michael Collins in 1922 to the visit of Pope Francis in 2018. Last November, on its 200th anniversary, Archbishop of Dublin Dermot Farrell announced that the Holy See had designated St Mary’s the Cathedral for Dublin, placing it at the centre of the diocesan mission, looking in faith-filled and creative ways to the future. For more information on the project, including practical arrangements during the temporary closure, please connect with us at www.dublindiocese.ie/cathedral/.
Dublin Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes Sept 3rd – 8th 2026
Support the Dublin diocesan pilgrimage to Lourdes by becoming an Associate Member. You are invited to make a donation in the sacristy and take an associate member prayer card. Names & intentions can be written on the attached pad. These will be sent to Lourdes to be included at all Masses during the pilgrimage.
Rathcoole Heritage Walk – August 20
“Heritage walk and Talk”. Meet at The Scout Den, formerly Old School at 5.45pm. Travel to St. Bridget’s Well, The Old Courthouse, Rathcoole Inn, Graveyard. (For those who don’t want to go the graveyard you can stay on in the courthouse for tea.)
RAMS Fundraiser – Four Districts CFR
Fundraiser in Avoca, Rathcoole on Saturday 22 August between 12 & 3pm in aid of the Four Districts Cardiac First Responders. Drop in for a visit, see demos on CFR on the day, donate. All in a good cause.
Prayer App
Deacon Gerry Malone has developed a free Prayer App to provide support in our daily prayer life. The App contains various types of Prayer for different times of the day including; the Liturgy of Hours, Daily Mass Readings, The Rosary, Praying with Pope Leo for his monthly intentions and much more. This is completely free and is available through www.thesower.net
Knock Shrine – Annual Novena (13th – 21st August)
Each year the novena in Knock takes place from 14th until 22nd August with special homilies at 3pm & 8pm Mass in the Basilica. Log on to www.knockhshrine.ie for more or head down to the west for even a few days. This year’s theme “Sheltered in God’s Love,” invites us to reflect on the comfort, strength and hope that sustain us through life’s joys and challenges. As we gather in prayer and community, may this time offer an opportunity to pause, find renewed perspective and be reminded of the love and care that surround us each day.
Cemetery Mass/Blessings during Summer
Esker – 30th August at 3pm.
Pathways into Pastoral Ministry
This course is for any adult who wants to explore and grow their faith. Over a year, participants are offered inputs on foundational issues of faith and the impact they have on ministry and parish life. There is also time for small group sharing and the opportunity for three different retreat experiences. On completion of the course, people are presented with a certificate.
Pathways is run on a Thursday evening (during term times) at the St Patrick’s campus of DCU in Drumcondra from 7.15pm to 9.15pm. The course starts on September 24th and runs until May 13th, and costs €300.
For further details, please visit the adult faith section of www.dublindiocese.ie/missionministry or contact peter.siney@dublindiocese.ie.
Carmelites – Come & See Weekend
For men aged 20-40 years who are discerning a vocation.. A weekend to Explore your future, Explore God’s plan
for your life, Explore becoming a Carmelite Friar. Takes place in Gort Muire Carmelite Community, Dublin 16,
on September 11th to13th (Friday evening to Sunday afternoon). For more details Chat to Fr Michael, O.Carm email carmelitemoate@gmail.com or phone 090 648 1160.
Diocesan Certificate in Catechesis
This 8-session course, run in St Paul’s Arran Quay, is for current members of a Parish Sacramental Preparation Team or anyone who might be considering this important ministry. The course is divided into 4 foundation modules and 4 modules that explore Catechesis in practice. The course costs €200. Those who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate. For more information, and to apply for a place, please contact patricia.carroll@dublindiocese.ie.
Mother & Baby Institutions Payment Scheme
The Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme launched in March 2024 following the Government agreed actions arising from the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby homes and certain related matters. The Payment scheme provides financial payments and health supports to eligible people who spent time in Mother and Baby and County Home Institutions in Ireland. Eligibility criteria can be found online, and applications can be made via an online portal (website here) or by post. Contact Helpline 01 5229922 (call to request application pack). All applications are handled with care, dignity and full confidentiality.
Phishing Emails
Please remain vigilant around emails purporting to be from well known Irish companies but which are in fact scams. Recently, phishing emails using the branding of Eir and Electric Ireland have been claiming to offer refunds to recipients. Please do not click on any links, open any attachments or reply to the sender. Delete any such emails.
Glendalough Pilgrimage Walks
At the Glendalough Hermitage Centre we are delighted to offer parish groups from all localities a pilgrim experience in the valley of Glendalough, visiting the sacred sites associated with the 6th Century Saint Kevin and the monastic settlement which flourished through the Early Christian period in Ireland. Our project was initiated in the Jubilee Year 2000 by the Archdiocese of Dublin at the beginning of the third millennium, with the purpose of ‘restoring Glendalough as a place of pilgrimage’. During the Jubilee Year 2025 many ‘Pilgrims of Hope’ experienced a life-giving day walking in the Valley of the Seven Churches. For 2026 we continue to extend this invitation to all new and returning parish groups seeking to experience a day of retreat, reflection and renewal in the beautiful Glendalough valley. For details and bookings contact 0879356696 or failte@glendaloughhermitage.ie. Visit www.glendaloughhermitage.ie.
Manresa Retreat Centre
Manresa Jesuit Centre of Spirituality (426 Clontarf Road, Dollymount) – September 2026 Retreat Offerings
Individually Directed Retreat, Mon-Fri, 7-11 Sep (4-day) / Tue-Thu, 15-24 Sep (8-day). A directed retreat offers time for personal prayer, silence, and reflection, with daily guidance from a spiritual director – a chance to deepen your relationship with God and discover His personal call to you.
The Reign of God (Residential Retreat). Sun, 27 Sep-Wed, 30 Sep. Facilitator: Fr Bernard McGuckian SJ. The concept of kingdom features frequently in both the Old and New Testaments. Come and find out its importance and how its meaning changed over the course of salvation history. For more information, check our website at www.manresa.ie or contact us at reception@manresa.ie / 01 5529 448.
Volunteers Needed
New members are needed for our Parish Pastoral Council and Parish Finance Committee. If you feel that you may have an interest in shaping the parish of the future please leave contact details to the parish office and you will be contacted with more information shortly.
We are always looking for new Readers, Ministers of the Eucharist, Altar servers, Choir members, Stewards, Church Cleaners, Eucharistic Adoration and also people to help out with Funeral Ministry and Baptism Teams.
Training, if needed, will be provided. Please leave name and contact details in your local church sacristy.
Merchant’s Quay Bookshop
St Paul’s Books and Gifts, Ireland’s leading Catholic publisher and retailer of religious books, gifts, educational materials and parish resources, is now open at 4 Merchants Quay, Dublin 8. Email dublin@stpauls.ie or call 0892793978.