St John the Baptist calls out not just to the people of his time who longed for the Messiah but to people of all times who experience the desperation and darkness of a world that rejects God.  Joy and light are to be found in Jesus Christ, the Messiah.  John is calling us to prepare, prepare ourselves, prepare our children, and prepare the world for its Saviour.  We prepare ourselves by rooting out the darkness of our lives.  That is why we strive go to confession during Advent.  We want to clean the house for company, Special Company, the Presence of the Lord.  We prepare the world for its Saviour by emphasizing the reason for the celebration.  So why not this Christmastime don’t just say, “Happy Christmas” but rather invite family and friends to join you at Mass on Christmas Day; where, as parishioners, each of us, can welcome visitors warmly.  We are in preparation mode, preparing not only for the fun of the celebration but preparing for the Lord to come among us.  May our preparations let us see the salvation of our God.

PARISH CHRISTMAS CAROL SERVICE SUNDAY 15^th DECEMBER 4PM All welcome and please join us in the parish centre afterwards for mince pies & mulled wine.

HYNING DAY OF RECOLLECTION: Saturday 14^th December, 10.30am – 3pm.  All are welcome to come along to Hyning for a quiet day with time for a little input and plenty of time for prayer.  Please sign up at the back of church if you’d like to join us.  Bring your own packed lunch.      Fr Hugh

Bulletin 8th December 2019

Advent begins with two very positive readings and a warning.  Jeremiah speaks to a people decimated by their enemies.  The Babylonians had captured many of them and exiled them to Babylon.  The Hebrews knew they had sinned; was the exile the result of their sins, had God totally deserted them?  Jeremiah reassures them: No!  God has not given up on them.  The time was coming when a righteous shoot of David would lead them, and Jerusalem would be made safe.  St Paul tells the Thessalonians – anxious that the Lord would come soon – that all they have to do is abound in love for one another and thus be blameless before God at the Lord’s coming.  These are comforting words, particularly in light of Jesus’ warnings in the Gospel where He speaks of dread-filled signs in the heavens and of death.  He adds that when we see the Son of Man coming on the clouds with power and great glory, we should be ready, lifting our heads, because our redemption is at hand.  Waiting for the Lord to come again is the focus of this first week of Advent.  This waiting for the Lord demands that we make the best use of the time we have before He comes.

HYNING DAY OF RECOLLECTION will be on Saturday 14^th December from 10.30am until 3pm.  All are welcome to come along to Hyning for a quiet day with time for a little input and plenty of time for prayer.  Please bring your own packed lunch and put your name on the list in church.

THURSDAY CLUB CHRISTMAS AFTERNOON TEA –  The Thursday Club are inviting all senior parishioners and their friends to come along for tea and entertainment on Thursday 12th December in the parish centre from 2pm until about 3.30pm.  If you need transport please put your name and contact on the sign-up sheet at the back of church or contact the parish office.

Download Bulletin 1st December 2019

National Youth Sunday was celebrated this weekend with the young people in our parish and community and all the gifts and talents they share with us.  The young people helped to prepare readings, music and prayers for the 10am Mass below.  Please keep them in your prayers.

 All hail, Redeemer, hail!  For You have died for me!

Today we celebrate Jesus Christ, the King of kings.  Jesus’ only focus was serving God. He showed us how to serve God as He healed the sick, raised the dead, and called others to do works of charity. Immediately before He gave us the Eucharist, He washed the feet of His disciples and told them, and tells us, that what we see Him do, we also must do.  The gift of the Eucharist itself is the Body that is given up for us and the Blood that is shed for us.  When we are united to Him in communion we are united to the one who is calling us to give our bodies and blood up for others in service to the Father.  We are confronted with choices throughout our lives.  We can make political choices; those choices which will bring us the greatest popularity among others, or, we can make the Christian choice, the choice that would make the presence of the Kingdom a reality in our world.  Jesus Christ is our King.  He is the King who frees us from political choices.  We can, and we must serve Him in all we do and say; we must serve Him by living our faith each day.

CENACOLO COMMUNITY OPEN DAY at Dodding Green on Saturday 30^th November with Rosary from 10am.  Holy Mass will be at 12 noon followed by lunch.  After lunch there will be testimonies, concluding with the Open Air Nativity presentation at around 5pm.  We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible!

Download Bulletin 24th November 2019

Today’s gospel begins with the disciples marvelling at the glory of the Temple; it must have been truly wonderful to see. It had taken fifty years for Herod to rebuild the Temple. Solomon’s original Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians in 588 BC, when the Israelites returned to Jerusalem in around 528 BC the people first had to rebuilding their homes, it took about fifteen years for them to begin building a new Temple. In 26 B.C. Herod decided to restore the Temple to the Glory of Solomon’s Day. The work on the Temple had just been completed when Jesus’ disciples looked on amazed at the precious stones and votive offerings. In response to their wonder Jesus said to them it really doesn’t matter, it’s all going to come to a ruin anyway. The voice of the Lord rings out: But before all this happens… that will be your opportunity to bear witness. Jesus challenges us to stand up for Him, His kingdom and the Christian way of life in a self-centred world: Your endurance will win you your lives. We are, each of us, Temples of the God’s Holy Spirit and as such we bear witness to Him in our daily lives. Let us pray for the grace to endure any trials that are essential to our witness of Jesus Christ.

WINTER SHELTER: The Winter Shelter desperately needs more volunteers on Friday nights at Sandylands Methodist & Saturday nights here in our parish centre. If we don’t get more volunteers it may be that we aren’t able to open on those two nights. Firstly we need helpers to open and set up at 6pm, cook a meal and act as welcomers, usually leaving about 10pm if not before. We will also occasionally need volunteers to sleep over with those who come in. You would not be asked to do every weekend but maybe a few weekends when you are available throughout December, January & February. There will be a rota on the table at the back of church and if you can help please sign up. Thank you for your support.  Fr Hugh

YOUTH SUNDAY PREPARATION MEETING: WEDNESDAY 20TH NOVEMBER. This will be celebrated in church next Sunday, 24th November, at 10am Mass. We would love as many children and young people as possible to be involved! There will be a preparation meeting for children and young people on Wednesday 20th November from 4 pm – 5.30pm in the parish centre. This will include a ‘chip buttie’ supper for everyone! Please come along if you can or if you can’t make the preparation meeting, please do come along to the Mass and be part of this special celebration! Please speak to Mary Biddle or Fr. Hugh for any more information.

Download Bulletin 17th November 2019

Temple image https://wellcomecollection.org/works/ncy3s94j CC-BY-4.0

Eternal Rest grant unto them, O Lord…May they rest in peace!  Both books of the Maccabees teach us that eternal life belongs to those who have lived for the Lord and of the necessity to pray for the dead.  We are all imperfect and need healing from the results of our sins, even if those sins are forgiven.  The wounds of sin do not just go away because the sin is forgiven.  In life we ask the Lord’s healing and when our lives have ended we will depend on the prayers of those still living to continue to ask God to heal the wounds we have inflicted on others and ourselves as a result of our sin; in other words there needs to be healing for the consequences. of our sins. November is the month of the Holy Souls.  We do them a disservice by presuming, no matter what their lives may have been like, they must be in heaven.  It is a disservice because they need our prayers and need us to keep the memory of their goodness alive and before the Lord.  The Books of the Maccabees tell us that it’s a good thing to pray for the dead, this we do especially this month.  Let us pray that they be healed and be admitted into the perpetual, healing and eternal light of the Lord. 

There will be a Service for the Commemoration of the Dead in church on Sunday 17^th November at 3pm.  All are welcome to join us especially those who have lost in the past year.

PARISH CHRISTMAS COFFEE MORNING in the parish centre on Saturday 23^rd November between 10am and 12 noon.  Meet Santa in his grotto and there will be tombolas, stalls and children’s activities.  Tickets on sale after weekend Masses or pay on the door – £1 to include drink & mince pie.

Download Bulletin 10th November 2019

Royalty free music from http://www.fesliyanstudios.com

No longer lost for today salvation has come to this house! Sometimes we can feel as though we are just going through the motions of living a proper Christian life.  Perhaps in such moment today’s Gospel can help us.  When we walk in through the doors of the church, we are taking steps to try to get a fresh glimpse of Jesus.  Our walking through the church door can be like Zacchaeus climbing the sycamore tree to get a good view as Jesus passes by.    Like Zacchaeus we don’t expect Jesus to notice us. We certainly don’t expect Jesus to single us out from the crowd; but discreetly, He does.  He stands beneath the tree we have climbed and He calls us by name; He invites us to join Him.  He wants us to be at one with Him, and with ourselves.  When we feel lost in a crowd, Jesus is there, watching and waiting for us to come to Him. If Jesus seems distant to us, it’s usually because we are not hearing His call or because other things are getting in the way and blocking our view.  Let’s ask Jesus to rid us of any distractions that prevent us from seeing and listening to Him.

George Airey will be giving a talk after the Gospel at 10am Mass on Sunday 4^th November.  George completed the Camino (with Marian) in memory of her late daughter Sophie who took her own life in December 2018. George has selected some beautiful images and created a poster and calendars to raise awareness of, and funding for PAPYRUS, the national charity devoted to the prevention of young suicide.  Please support their work through the purchase of a beautiful gift!  Thank you.

White Peace Poppies will be available at Masses this weekend. The tradition started in the 1930’s when war widows and others wanted future conflicts to be resolved without violence. The net cost of a poppy is 60 pence. Any extra money raised will be sent to the Peace Pledge Union.

Download Bulletin 3rd November 2019