St. Bartholomew’s Church, Athea
Mass Times:
Sunday & Thursday mornings at 10.30am
Friday & Saturday evenings at 7.30pm
Readers:
Sat 26th Sept – Patsy Hayes
Sun 27th Sept – Linda Hunt
Eucharistic Ministers:
Sat 26th Sept – Margaret Ahern
Sun 27th Sept – Mary Dalton
Mass Intentions this week:
Fri Sept 25th 7.30pm: Jack & Mary Kelly. Bridget & Richard Sheehy.
Patrick & Josephine Enright. Bridget O’Connor.
Sat Sept 26th 7.30pm:
Kathleen & Matthew Dillon.
Sun Sept 27th 10.30am:
Margaret O’Connor -1st Anniversary.
Jackie & Nora Hassett.
Collections: Sept 19th/20th €735.00
Harvest Dues: The Harvest Dues (which form part of the priests income) are to be taken up on the 4th October, the envelopes which are in your box can be handed in at any mass from next weekend onwards and if you are not back attending mass yet and use our webcam services you can also drop your envelopes in to Fr Duggan at the parish house. This year has been unusual as due to Covid 19
Fr Duggan did not get to have a Lenten or Easter dues collection, therefore your kind generosity is greatly appreciated. We are very lucky to have Fr Duggan in our midst as some parishes around do not have a resident priest and are not having their priest replaced when he retires
Milford Hospice: The annual coffee morning is the main fundraiser for Milford Hospice, however this year due to Covid 19 it cannot take place – local ladies Ann O’Keeffe & Peggy Casey usually organise this – so this year instead donations may be given to Ann or Peggy, O’Riordan’s Pharmacy or Collins’ Shop. All donations greatly appreciated.
Church Opening Hours – Due to the recent increase in the COVID 19 Virus the church will only be open during mass times for the next few weeks – we are taking this measure on health & safety grounds to protect each other. If you need to book an Anniversary mass etc. or get a mass card signed please contact Fr Brendan on 087-2600414 or Siobhán on 087-2237858.
Please always remember to sanitize your hands upon entering and leaving the church.
Once again we thank you most sincerely for your patience and understanding.

Athea Golf Society team receiving the Inter-Society trophy from Andy O’Dea at Adare Manor Golf Club on Saturday last.
L-R – Noel Barry, Declan White, Andy O’Dea (Organiser), Domhnall de Barra, Ned Mahony and Tommy White. Team members missing from photo: Timmy Sheehan, John Redmond, Tony Barry, Billy Crowley and Pat Power.
A Time to be Sensible
By Domhnall de Barra
This has been, up to now, a very different year. We have all had to change our behaviour for the common good because of Covid 19 and learn a new way of living. We are not out of the wood yet by a long chalk and, for some people, life will never be the same again. This is not just us, the whole world is in trouble and nobody knows what the end result will be. We may get a vaccine eventually that gives us some hope but the economic fallout is going to be something else. At the moment governments are giving money to those workers and businesses that are most affected by the pandemic but this money will have to be paid back eventually and that is a daunting prospect. Many businesses are going to fail with a huge loss in employment which leads to a downfall in revenue and more people on the dole creating further drains on the government purses. Up to now, whenever we had a depression in Ireland it created a wave of emigration to other countries but, this time, there is no place left to go because the countries that we normally emigrate to have the same problems as ourselves. Many countries like Ireland will be at the mercy of the big banks who could land us in debt for decades to come. This is how I see it at the moment and I hope to God that I am wrong. There is nothing I would like better than to see us all getting back to the kind of normality that we used to enjoy but it is difficult to see how this is going to happen. The fight against the pandemic is not helped by a huge number of people who act in a totally irresponsible way. Dublin is under limited lock down but that did not stop people organising a rave in the capital last weekend. There was also the footage of the scenes at the end of the Tyrone senior football final when spectators invaded the pitch and ignored all social distancing advice, hugging the players and each other, thereby increasing the chances of spreading the virus. What is wrong with people? I think we will have to follow some other countries and make it a criminal offence subject to a hefty fine to breach government advice that is there for our own protection. There is no use in appealing to people’s better nature because a lot of them do not have one. The most stupid and unsociable of our population react best to a good slap in the pocket and for all of you out there who want to protest about the invasion of civil liberties, tell it to all the families that have buried loved ones who contracted Covid through social interaction. The thing is, we have the solution to the problem in our own hands. The religious motto “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” comes to mind. If we approach everyone we meet as if they were infected and we did not want to catch it and also that we have it and do not want to pass it on, then we will eventually have no new transmissions. It really is as simple as that. I do not want to be a prophet of doom and I am really encouraged by what I see locally. People are wearing masks in all the business premises in the village and I haven’t seen any evidence of people gathering in clusters ignoring the social distancing advice. The longer it takes to bring this pandemic under control the more likely we are to experience the future I have predicted earlier in this article. Each one of us, parents, children, grandparents, brothers, sisters, friends, all have a responsibility to put our loved ones first and put our own social needs second. If we do, this will pass but , if we don’t, God help us.
Next week, Athea Community Council will run off the “Lucky Numbers” draw that was cancelled back in March. If any of you have tickets for the draw please hand them in to the office or to Collins’ Shop. We hope to continue with the weekly draw as it is our only source of revenue. We need to finish paying for the the office (formerly Pa O’Connor’s) as soon as that is done, we can make a start on making fit for purpose. This building could be a great asset to the community and employment in the area into the future but nothing is free so we have to raise the money. The lotto is a great way of doing that but times have changed and many of our outlets are not functioning anymore. We need additional sellers to help us. Could you sell a couple of tickets to family and neighbours? If you could, please get in contact with me at 087 6758762 or Lillian at 087 7813123. The money from the draw also helps fund the CE Scheme that is so important to enhancing the village and doing vital work for the Tidy Towns Committee. It also provides employment for 15 people locally every year which in turn helps the local economy. People who visit always comment on how well Athea is looking and we want to keep it that way. So please give us a hand if you possibly can.