Today's gospel: 'Ts and Cs' of Christian discipleship
Please scroll down for notices.
Today in the parishes:
- Midweek Holy Communion, Wed, at 10.30am, in St Mary’s Westport (thanks to our friends there for accommodating us), followed by coffee in the Clew Bay Hotel. All welcome
- Online Prayer and Bible Reading every Wed at 8pm, via Zoom. All welcome. Please scroll down for link.
Today's gospel Luke 14:25-33
Now large crowds were travelling with him [Jesus]; and he turned and said to them, ‘
Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him, saying, “This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.” Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace. So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.
Comment on the gospel
Patrick van der Vorst, in Christian Art, makes this helpful comment on this challenging gospel:
"The opening verses of today’s Gospel may sound unsettling to our ears. When Jesus tells the crowds that they must “hate” their father, mother, wife, children, brothers, and sisters, we know he cannot mean this literally. Earlier in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus commanded his followers to love their enemies, bless those who curse them, and pray for those who treat them badly. Jesus healed the ear of the soldier who came to arrest him and prayed for those who crucified him. So in today's, Jesus is using striking, exaggerated language to shock us and make us pay attention. What he really means is that anyone who wishes to follow him must love him above all else. We must love him even more than those we naturally hold most dear.
In this sense, Jesus calls us to a discipleship that is wholehearted and deliberate. Following him is not a casual decision or a passing enthusiasm... it should be a commitment that touches every part of our lives. So Jesus gives us two images in today's reading. He speaks of the man who begins to build but cannot finish, or the king who goes to war without first counting the cost. So he is urging us to reflect deeply before committing ourselves to him. Discipleship, he suggests, is not something we enter lightly or sentimentally. It requires an inner resolve that can withstand the tests of life.... and so there is a cost. Just as a builder must calculate the strength of his foundations and a king must assess his chances before battle, so too must we understand the demands of following Christ."
(See https://christian.art/daily-gospel-reading/luke-14-25-33-2025-2/ .)
Sacred Space
A gentle prayer guide may be found here:
https://sacredspace.com/daily-prayer/2025-11-05/
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Dates for the diary
(Subject to change)
Westport Sunday Club: Sunday 16 November, starting at 12 noon in the Holy Trinity service in St Mary's, and moving to Carrowbeg House.
Other dates:
- Movie night at the Rectory, Friday 7 November, 8pm. Please let us know if you plan to come along, for planning purposes. All welcome!
- Blessing of a Marriage, of Kirsty and Tim, Sat 8 November, 12 noon in St Thomas's Dugort.
- Tues 11 November, 7.30pm, Castlebar Select Vestry meeting
- Friday 14 November, 7.30pm, Westport-Dugort Select Vestry meeting, Carrowbeg House
- The next Sunday Club is on 16 November, starting in the HTW service at 12 noon in St Mary’s Church Westport, and moving to Carrowbeg House.
- Ecumenical Prayer Service for those Bereaved by Suicide, Friday 21 November , 7.30pm in Holy Rosary Church, Castlebar
- The First Sunday in Advent 2025 is 30 November.
- 5 December, 8pm in St Mary’s Church, Westport, Christmas Concert with the Roscommon Solstice Choir and guests Eriko Hopkinson and Westport Children’s Choir. A fundraising event for Holy Trinity Church repairs
- 6 December, 7.30pm, Christmas Concert with Bella Capella in Christ Church Castlebar. Charity fundraiser, details on Bella Capella Facebook page.
- Castlebar Community Carol Service (traditional 'Nine Lessons & Carols'), in Christ Church, Castlebar, Monday 15 December at 7.30pm. (T.b.c.)
Regular Service Pattern in the Aughaval Group of Parishes:
Turlough
Saturdays Weekly at 7pm:
Holy Communion on 2nd and 4th Saturdays of the month.
Evening Prayer on 1st and 3rd Saturdays of the month.
Castlebar
Sundays Weekly at 10am:
Holy Communion on 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month.
Morning Prayer on 2nd and 4th.
Open church every Friday from 11am - 1pm.
*Christ Church Castlebar is a registered charity: Registered Charity Number 20206867
Westport
Sundays Weekly at 12 noon, Holy Communion or (occasionally) Morning Prayer
Wednesdays at 10.30am.
Services are in St Mary's RC Church, South Mall, Westport, while Holy Trinity Church is closed for safety repairs.
Dugort, Achill: October - April inclusive
2nd and 4th Sundays of the month at 3pm. Evening Prayer/ Holy Communion
Inishbiggle
As announced
Pastoral care and enquiries:
Revd Suzanne Cousins
Aughaval Group of Parishes,
United Dioceses of Tuam, Limerick & Killaloe,
Church of Ireland
Tel. 083 800 3233
Email aughaval@tuam.anglican.org
Aughaval Parishes' Website aughaval.tlk.ie
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/AughavalParishes
Christ Carrying the CrossMaster of the Freising Visitation, 1916Art Institute of Chicagovia Wikimedia Commons
