Most Holy Trinity

Download Bulletin 4th June 2023

Fr Hugh’s Homily for Most Holy Trinity

Set in Marseilles in 1940 and ’41, before America has joined in the war, there is a film and a book, about the American Consulate.  Their aim is to get as many artists and painters, who are threatened by the Germans and Vichy French, out of the country.  Many Jews, some communists and others the Nazis have banned.  None of this is easy.  The under-Consul (his boss does not approve) deals with the legal stuff such as visas for the US.  There is a rich, elegant and good looking American woman who can worm her way into all sorts of places who can charm vital information out of people and cover for others.  And there are a couple of refugees themselves who can liaise with those in danger, but who are always under threat of death themselves.  Each in their own way working together, working to save those in hiding.  Looking at our readings today on this feast of the Trinity.  What can they tell us about the Trinity? ….

Complete Homily for Trinity Sunday

Readings for Trinity Sunday

Daily Prayers Week 9

Pentecost

Download Bulletin 28th May 2023

Fr Hugh’s Homily for Pentecost Sunday 2023

We’ve been talking about the Holy Spirit over the last few weeks.  In various ways we’ve been trying to work out who this Holy Spirit is.  What does the Spirit do for us?  (Beings human beings that is often how we approach a question as ‘How do I benefit?’)  And sometimes the word ‘mystery’ has been used, which basically means we do not have all the answers.  What we do know is that somehow this Spirit is important.   Jesus himself was anointed by/with the Spirit in order to start his mission.  ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,’ he said.  Then off he went.  We do not think of Jesus as being afraid really, but he was human with all our feelings and so taking off from a small provincial town to start preaching was a pretty big leap for him.  But with the Spirit he can do it…..

Complete Homily for Pentecost

Readings for Pentecost

Daily Prayers Week 8

READ THE CATHOLIC VOICE HERE

Seventh Sunday of Easter

WORLD COMMUNICATIONS DAY 2023

Download Bulletin 21st May 2023

Fr Hugh’s Homily for 7th Sunday of Easter

None of us like suffering.  None of want the wounds that it leaves behind.  In fact we often do  our  best to erase them or forget them.  Yet, somehow the idea of suffering and being wounded runs through the story of Jesus and in a variety of ways through our own lives.  Jesus suffered for us.  We can often be the cause of our own suffering.  But there is that strange phrase in the letter to the Hebrews that Jesus learn to obey through suffering, and when we portray the risen Jesus it is with his wounds, we do not airbrush them out.  The truth is that if we are brave enough not to run from our wounds, we learn a great deal from them. In a strange way they are part of our maturing process…..

Complete Homily for 7th Sunday of Easter

Readings for 21st May

Daily Prayers Easter 7

Sixth Sunday of Easter

Download Bulletin 14th May 2023

DEACON GEORGE’S HOMILY FOR 6TH SUNDAY OF EASTER

From the very beginning of time, there has existed a threefold relationship, whom we know as the Trinity – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  But now, there exists an additional threefold relationship, the Father, the Son, and YOU!.  This is because the third person of that relationship, the Holy Spirit, now lives in YOU.  Because the Holy Spirit is living in us, we are each, in a threefold relationship with the Father and the Son.  This relationship exists, and remains so, because of our Baptism, and Pentecost, and because we keep his commandments – love God and love your neighbour.  But what is the purpose of having this personal threefold relationship? …

Complete Homily for 6th Sunday of Easter

Readings for 6th Sunday of Easter

Daily Prayers Easter 6

Fifth Sunday of Easter

Download Bulletin 7th May 2023

Fr Hugh’s Homily for 5th Sunday of Easter

‘Living stones’ doesn’t really make sense does it.  So why does St Peter choose this image in the second reading?  Well, stones do have significance. If you could have peeked under the throne during the Coronation you would see another stone that King Edward I stole from Scotland after the Battle of Dunbar in 1296, the Stone of Scone, on which Scottish kings had been crowned since possibly the 4th Century, starting with Fergus son of Erc! …..

Complete Homily for 5th Sunday of Easter

Readings for 5th Sunday Easter

Daily Prayers Easter 5

 

Fourth Sunday of Easter

GOOD SHEPHERD SUNDAY

Download Bulletin 30th April 2023

A Pastoral Letter from the Bishop of Lancaster

My dear people,
Each year, on the fourth Sunday of Eastertide, we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday. As I write this Pastoral Letter, I am keeping in mind in a particular way all the priests of the Diocese, thanking God for each of them, in their magnificent diversity! I think of those in active ministry, those retired, some of whom live far from the Diocese, those who celebrate significant jubilees this year and those working away from the Diocese.  The image of Christ the Good Shepherd is given to us as the model of all Pastoral Ministry, and is especially the model for the priest, called to guard and tend the Lord’s flock. Our sophisticated lives can mean we are less conscious of the realities Christ brings us in this image, but we can try….

Complete Pastoral Letter

Readings for Fourth Sunday of Easter

Daily Prayers Easter4

READ THE CATHOLIC VOICE HERE

 

 

 

Third Sunday of Easter

Download Bulletin 23rd April 2023

Deacon George’s Homily for 3rd Sunday of Easter

Our Lord had twelve Apostles, seventy- two disciples, and many other followers, who accompanied him on his missionary journeys.  They came with him to Jerusalem, and witnessed the sad, and, to them, the fatal events on Good Friday.  However, today we have a beautiful account, of an event that happened on the first Easter Sunday.  Now two of the disciples, Cleopas and his friend, having given up all hope, were now returning home, depressed and sad.  They must have found it hard to understand, how Jesus, who had worked so many miracles, and had even raised the dead to life, could allow his enemies to put him to death.  They had no doubt as to who were responsible for the death of Jesus……

Complete Homily for 3rd Sunday of Easter

Readings for 3rd Sunday of Easter

Daily Prayers Easter 3

 

Easter Sunday

Download Bulletin 9th April 2023

Fr Hugh’s Easter Vigil Homily

Standing looking up at Sourmilk Gill as it runs fast down from Easedale Tarn to Grasmere (as a number of you may have done) a well-known scripture scholar, Michael Winstanley, gazing at it, thought, This is how I picture the living water that Christ speaks of.  Flowing fast and, as Jesus says to the Samaritan woman, whose story we recently heard, “water which will quench our thirst and become a spring within us, gushing up to eternal life.”….

Complete Homily for Easter Vigil

Readings for Easter Sunday

Daily Prayers Easter Sunday

Palm Sunday

Download Bulletin 2nd April 2023

DEACON GEORGE’S HOMILY FOR PALM SUNDAY

Jesus organised all the Passion events, from his entry into Jerusalem, to his gruesome death on a cross at Calvary.  His disciples are told, to go and fetch a specific colt.  And being a colt, this meant that no-one had sat on him before, Jesus was the first person to do so.  And they were told to cover its back with their clothes, as a makeshift saddle.  Jesus entered Jerusalem, not as a king with his entourage, soldiers and musicians, but humbly, riding on a donkey, with his band of followers.  Now, the day before, many of the people had seen Lazarus raised from the dead, so they knew that Jesus was someone special.  So, they waved their palm branches, and laid down their cloaks and shouted their “Hosannas” in welcome.  But we’ll see later, that all of these people turned and ran, when the going got tough…….

Complete Homily for Palm Sunday   

Daily Prayers Holy Week

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