Mairéad O’Sullivan from Athea who was enjoying the April horse fair day at
Listowel on Thursday with Tom Dwyer and Jim O Shea.
Photo Moss Joe Browne
Glin Men’s Shed
Will be in Athea on Saturday 12th April displaying and selling their goods.
Recycling
FREE Waste Electrical Equipment and Battery Recycling events in Limerick during the month of April 2025.
Our nearest is in Abbeyfeale on Saturday April 19th from 10 until 4pm.
Also remember that WEEE recycling is
FREE
at www.limerickrecyclingcentres.ie and on a “like for like” basis when purchasing electronic or electric equipment at a retail outlet or online.
Battery recycling is also FREE at www.limerickrecyclingcentres.ie, all participating schools and any retail outlet selling batteries. Look out for the BLUE box
Batt’s Bar
Duck & Swan Traditional Music Night
Saturday April 12th @ 9p.m.
Music, song, craic All Welcome
The Way I See It
By Domhnall de Barra
There was a woman on the radio the other day complaining about adverts on RTE that showed women shaving certain parts of their bodies. It was an ad for razors showing ones designed for underarms, legs and another one for the pubic area. I had seen this on several occasions and never gave it a second thought but the woman thought it was, in her words, disgusting and ads like this should not be allowed. Now, the ad in question just shows a woman shaving above the knickers line and does not expose any pubic area but I suppose the mere mention of it was enough to enrage the poor woman. I was about to dismiss her as a prude until I began to think about the reason for the way she thought. I knew from her voice she was not a young woman so she probably grew up in the same culture as I did where we were taught to be ashamed of our bodies. We couldn’t even use proper names for our “private” areas and women, in particular were encouraged to cover as much of their bodies as possible. Some young women weren’t even taught about their period until it happened to them, usually at school. We were never informed about sex; it didn’t exist and of course our parents never had any as we were all delivered by a nurse or found under a bush. I often wonder about the covering up of women’s legs. If we got a glimpse of a thigh it was mind blowing but it is all in the mind. When we went to the strand in Ballybunion during the summer, there were women dressed in skimpy swimsuits and, after a couple of minutes, no notice was taken of them. It is the idea of seeing something that is forbidden that turns us on. We all have body parts and there should be no shame about them. Some women do shave their legs, arms, under arms and , yes, their pubic areas. There is absolutely nothing wrong with it and nobody should be offended by an ad depicting them doing that as long as it is done discretely. There was also an objection to adverts for sanitary towels and the likes but they are also necessary and people have a right to be able to choose the best and most appropriate for themselves. Thank God we live in a more enlightened world today where children are given proper information and have no problem understanding the facts of life and human relationships. This is what proper education is all about and we need it to counter what appears on social media platforms. Any question asked by a child should be answered honestly and truthfully. They will be all the better for it.
Another item on the radio caught my attention. It was about a forthcoming programme talking to priests about confession. There aren’t that many going now but, back in the day, it was a big thing on Saturday nights. I remember the church in Abbeyfeale where there would be three different priests in different boxes hearing confession lasting for many hours. There were long seats, stretching from both sides of the confession box, full of people waiting to tell their sins. I got my first confession in the usual way. We were told how to do it at school and had it off by heart before the day when we cycled to the village to make our first admissions of sin. It was the custom then to go to confession at least once a month and I did that for years using the very same words as I did the first day with maybe an addition or two. It went like this: “bless me Father for I have sinned. It has been four weeks since my last confession. I cursed, I told lies, |I took the Lord’s name in vein, I was disobedient to my father and mother.” I’m sure the priest was bored to tears listening to us all with almost the same stories every month but that changed once we took interest in the opposite sex. Confession then became very difficult, admitting that you had impure thoughts etc. Things were strict back then so, God forbid you had any physical contact with the opposite sex because that was going into the occasion of sin and that was a mortal sin in itself. I remember, after having a kiss and cuddle with my first date, being afraid that I would die before I got absolution and would burn in Hell forever. It was all about fear. God was just waiting for you to slip up so that you could be punished. The idea of confession has some merit. It is good to be able to admit your failings to another human being and also to God, if that is what you believe but there should be no need to be going every week with a few failings that are normal to most people. I have known some good priests and some very bad ones. One of the best told me once; “when you die, God will not ask you how many times you went to Mass or received Holy Communion. He will be more interested in how you treated your family, friends and neighbours.” How you live your life is what really matters. I knew people who went to Mass every day but were not good to their spouses and children. My grandmother gave me a rule to live by. She said; “if you can’t do somebody any good, don’t do them any harm.” Wise words indeed.
Other wise words at this time of year, especially with people throwing off their clothes during this fine spell:
“April and May keep away from the sea,
June, July you can swim ‘till you die”
It may feel like summer but there is still a nature of frost at night so, be careful!
Church Notices
Priests: Fr. Tom Mangan 087-2348226, Fr. Willie Russell 087 2272825, Fr. Dan Lane 087 2621911.
Masses this week- Tuesday morning 9.30am & Friday evening 7pm and Sunday 11am.
Intentions: Friday 11th April: Pasty Dalton (1st A/v). Sunday 13th April: Thomas Mckenna & Mary Pyke. Kathleen O’Halloran.
Eucharistic Adoration and the Devine Mercy Chaplet every Tuesday morning after mass.
To book a Mass intention contact the sacristy after mass or contact Siobhan on 087-3331459.
All masses are streamed live on https://www.churchservices.tv/athea
Baptisms take place on the fourth weekend of the month. Parents who wish to baptise their child in the next few months should contact Siobhan on 087-3331459.
Sacrament of Reconciliation will take place in Abbeyfeale church on Monday 14th April 7.30pm.
Chrism Mass 2025 – St. John’s Cathedral, Limerick on Wednesday, 16th April at 7.00 pm.
Adoration of The Blessed Sacrament in Athea Church on Holy Thursday night 9pm-12am
Easter Dawn Mass at Holy Cross graveyard on Easter Sunday morning at 5.30am.
Parish Administration: Tues-Fri 11am-1pm. call Siobhan on 087-3331459, outside of these hours text or email [email protected] Facebook: Athea Parish Church Community
Athea Community Council Lucky Numbers Draw
07/04/’25 No’s Drawn: 1, 8, 27, 28 No Winner
Lucky Dips
Carla Quinn, Kilmorna
Helen Cleary, Knocknagorna
Declan White, Upper Athea
Mikey, Mag & Lisa, Upper Athea
Sellers Prize: White’s & Collins’
Next Draw: 14/04/’25 Venue: Brown Joe’s
Jackpot €25,100
