Sunday Missal:  Solemnity of St Peter & St Paul  - Page 1155.

Teas and Coffees available after Mass on Sunday and Thursday.

Peter’s Pence Collection  will be taken up next Sunday. The Vatican encourages you to participate in this special collection to support the Holy Father in his mission at the service of the universal Church. Your contribution is an expression of support for the needs of the Catholic Church around the world and the charitable works it carries out.

Lourdes:  Fr James will be in Lourdes for the Archdiocesan Pilgrimage, which leaves on Friday, 11^th July. If you would like to have a petition placed at the Grotto, please write your intentions and place them in a sealed envelope marked ‘Petition’. Please do not enclose any cash, as the petitions are burned unopened. If you would like a candle put up for your intentions, place an offering inside an envelope and mark it ‘Candle’ and I will do that on your behalf.

St Vincent De Paul Afternoon Tea: Monday 14^th July, 2pm to 4pm. Food, drink and entertainment. Please add your name to the list in the porch.

Study Catholic Theology in Edinburgh: Registration is now open for the MA in Applied Catholic Theology at St Mary's University Scottish campus in Edinburgh. Details at bit.ly/catholictheology. Watch the preview webinar on the YouTube channel of the Archdiocese. Queries: stephen.dolan@stmarys.ac.uk

Talk on Blessed Antonio Rosmini: Priest, Philosopher & Prophet: Talk by Fr Antonio Bellsito IC at St Kentigern's Church, 26-28 Parkgrove Avenue, Edinburgh, EH4 7QR, this Tuesday (1 July) at 6:00pm. Mass will follow the talk. Refreshments served.

Children's Liturgy: The latest weekly resources for Children's Liturgy are available in the resources section at: https://archedinburgh.org/pastoral-governance/catechetics/

World Day for Grandparents & the Elderly: To celebrate this day, the National Marriage, Family and Life Commission of the Bishops' Conference of Scotland invites everyone to St Francis Xavier’s, Carfin, for Mass with Bishop John Keenan at 3:00pm on Sunday 27 July.

Solemnity of St Peter and St Paul: Peter and Paul are the principal pillars of the Church. This weekend we celebrate the feast of their martyrdom. 

Peter was son of Jona and brother of Andrew. He was a professional fisherman from Bethsaida, a fishing town on the Lake of Galilee or Gennesaret. He might have been a follower of John the Baptist. It was his brother, Andrew, who introduced him to Jesus, and Jesus who changed his name from Simon to Cephas or Peter. Jesus made Peter the leader of the apostles. At Caesarea Philippi, Jesus promised to make Peter the head of the Church, and the risen Jesus confirmed Peter’s precedence. It was the Holy Spirit through Whose Presence and Power, Peter’s speech on the day of Pentecost, inaugurated the active life of the Church. Peter made missionary journeys to Lydda, Joppa and Caesarea Maritima. He also offered the decisive argument settling the question of Gentile converts and the Jewish Law at the first Council in Jerusalem. He wrote two epistles to the whole Church, and he was martyred in Rome by crucifixion under the emperor Nero.

Paul, the “Apostle to the Gentiles” and the greatest apostolic missionary, was a Roman citizen by birth, as he had been born in the Roman colony of Tarsus. His original name was Saul. As a Pharisee, he was sent to Jerusalem by his parents to study the Mosaic Law under the great rabbi Gamaliel. As a student, he learned the trade of tent-making. He was present at the stoning of Stephen and “consented to” this deed (Acts 8:1). But he was miraculously converted on his way to Damascus to arrest the Christians. He made several missionary journeys, converted hundreds of Jews and Gentiles and established Church communities. Paul wrote 14 epistles. He was arrested and kept in prison for two years in Caesarea Maritima and lived under house arrest for two more years in Rome. Finally, he was martyred by beheading at Tre Fontane in Rome.

Have a good week. Take care. Fr James