Brisbane Oratory News

“Our Lord hears our prayers anywhere, but He has revealed to His servants that those who visit Him in the Eucharist will obtain a more abundant measure of grace”  says St. Alphonsus Ligouri. Our world needs prayer, especially at this time. Now that restrictions are easing in terms of church access, and to encourage people to pray, the community of the Brisbane Oratory in Formation invite you to come and pray before Our Eucharistic Lord during the next twelve weeks when we will have continuous Exposition and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, from the Vigil of Pentecost, Saturday 30 May, until the feast of Our Lady’s Assumption into heaven, Saturday 15 August, at Saint Elizabeth’s chapel, Effingham Street, Tarragindi. To register your interest in a weekly adoration hour/s, please email: adoration.brisbaneoratory@gmail.com, or phone/text: 0492 987 132. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament gives us more strength in life, gives consolation to the soul, and helps us grow in love of our Lord Jesus Christ.

With the easing of restrictions parishioners and friends of the Brisbane Oratory in Formation, now have the opportunity to begin attending Mass, attend set times in the church for Confession, make a visit to the Blessed Sacrament. There are some other ways to also participate online including Live Sunday Mass. In order to view how to participate please see our Restriction Updates Page. Visit this page to always see the latest updates:

While lockdown measures are in place, we are live streaming from Mary Immaculate Church Annerley at the following times:

Sunday:
8:30am English Mass
10:00am Sung Traditional Latin Mass.

The livestream is accessible via our Facebook page. You do not need to have a Facebook account to view the stream. You can access our stream at https://www.facebook.com/brisbaneoratory/live_videos/.

When we cannot attend Sunday Mass we must still keep the Lord’s Day Holy. Read our recent post about ways we can keep the Lord’s Day Holy when we cannot attend Mass.

While we cannot be together in person, we are united in prayer and faith. Last week we shared with you some ways we can continue to sanctify the Lord’s Day while we cannot assist at Mass, you can read that article here. One thing we can also do is read through the Mass texts for the day. You can find here the extraordinary form propers and the ordinary form propers. The Fathers continue to offer daily Mass, and this Sunday Fr Armstrong will offer Mass for our parishioners at 9:00am, you may unite yourself in prayer with Mass. The fathers and brothers also chant Vespers together on Sunday evenings at 5:00pm, you can join with us from your homes in prayer by praying Vespers which can be found here.

We are also going to be bringing you a homily on Sunday’s and a brief sermon during the week, you can subscribe to our YouTube Channel to stay up to date.

Watch this Sunday’s Homily here.

Dear friends,

A lot has changed since our last letter. Whilst there is still some freedom of movement, it is likely that we are heading towards a total lockdown as has been seen in other countries. I think we owe it to our families and friends and others we have contact with that we follow the guidelines that are given to us by civil and Church authorities. I’m sure all of us would want to prevent making another person sick, even unknowingly. It’s not bad that we’re being asked to make sacrifices during Lent, and I think many would agree that the sacrifices imposed on us are usually more meritorious than the sacrifices we choose for ourselves.

Please know that the Oratory community is united with all of you as we go through this present trial. And whilst we cannot gather in our usual ways, we are still doing many of our usual things. At this time, the Fathers generally offer their daily Masses at 8:30am, 9:00am and 9:30am. Where we can we will continue to publish the Mass intentions in the parish newsletter, which itself will continue to be published and posted online. We are ringing the Angelus on the church bell at noon and 6:00pm so you might like to pray with us at these times. Also know that the Oratory community prays together each evening between 6:00 and 6:30pm, and we are praying for all our parishioners, benefactors, relatives and friends.

As much as we’re able, the Fathers and Brothers are available to speak with people on the phone. If you do need to see someone face-to-face we ask that you phone the Oratory house first (3392 9247) to ensure that someone is available. We are presently getting together some of the equipment necessary to be able to live-stream some things so that you don’t forget what we look and sound like! We’ll let you know more about this as it progresses. You might want to subscribe to our YouTube channel, and of course you can keep an eye on our Facebook page. We’ll try to put more things on our website, too, for those not on social media, and also send out more regular email updates (subscribe here).

One blessing that will surely come of this current time is that those who live with others may well find new ways of being together that will last long after this pandemic. This is a wonderful moment for families and households to pray together. If you don’t already have one, you might consider setting up an altar or prayer corner in an appropriate spot, as a focus for prayer, adorned with holy pictures and images. You might decide to pray the rosary together after dinner each evening. Now that some fathers in particular might be home more than they usually are, this is a great time for them to exercise spiritual leadership in their families. What a gift this would be to your children. Because of this imposed isolation, we all might become a bit better about thinking about those who are on their own, and doing what we can to support and help them. Above all, we must pray for each other, that each of us will have the graces we need to continue trusting in the Lord and seeking His will before all else. We know that being kept at home will be more distressing for some than for others, and we need to pray particularly for those for whom this is a heavy cross.

On today’s feast of the Annunciation we celebrate the beginning of our redemption, and we ponder the great mystery of God becoming man. Our prayer, as said in the Mass, is that we may come to share the divinity of Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity. As Pope Saint Leo the Great says in one of the readings of today’s liturgy: the invisible God becomes visible for us; the God who is beyond our grasp chose to come within our grasp. Existing before time, be began to exist at a moment in time, and took the nature of a servant.

This feast reminds us of the love and mercy of God, who came amongst us to lead mankind back to Him, and so that we would know the way that leads to our Father’s home. Even in this time when we are deprived of some of the things that sustain us on our earthly pilgrimage, may we still know the closeness of God to us. God is not limited even to the things that He has established for our sanctification. May we therefore turn to Him with faith and trust, and look forward to when this present trial is over. After this Lent of suffering and trial, may we look forward to the promise of the resurrection. Even in the midst of sickness and death, we know that Christ lives and is King, and His Kingdom will last forever.

Father Adrian Sharp
Moderator.