Weekend Message Sep 2
Our Lady of Victories
St. Pius X, & St. Alphonsus,
Narborough Lutterworth
Dear friends,
September: Holidays are over, and our young people have returned (or are about to return) to school. Some will be going to school for the first time; others will be attending a different school. We pray for them all, that they will advance in wisdom, in knowledge, and in favour with God and with their fellow men and women.
We also pray for those who have left school in the summer, and are about to start at college or university, and for those starting a new job. These are challenging times, and we pray that God will be with them and help them all to find their feet in their new work or learning environment.
Oscott seminary also returns to work this weekend. I don’t know how many students will be in the first year – I will find out on Monday, because I will be teaching them! For four weeks I will be teaching on Mondays and Fridays, and after that just on Fridays. Unfortunately I misread the timetable, and the staff have had to do some last-minute juggling to avoid me teaching a course I have not yet prepared!
Please pray for all the students for the priesthood studying at Oscott and elsewhere. The need for young priests is urgent. The training usually lasts for six years.
New Parish Priest Father Joel will take up the responsibilities of care for you all in early October. I will leave on Monday 3rd October or Tuesday 4th October, and Father Joel will arrive on or before Friday 7th October. Please do pray for Father Joel as he prepares to take on these new responsibilities.
Altar Servers We have been delighted to celebrate First Holy Communion with nine of our young people recently. Now I ask these young people: would you be willing to help the community on a regular basis by becoming altar servers, learning how to assist Father John and Father John Joe, and Deacon Kevin as they celebrate Mass? I hope at least some of you are willing. Just let me know, and you can be kitted out in an alb and start to learn what is involved.
Welcomers at Mass and other services Everyone who attends our Church for Mass or any other service, or wishes to do so, must be made welcome. Most of those who have done such sterling work in acting as stewards and cleaners during the last two years, to enable the Church to stay open most of the time despite the pandemic, have indicated that they would like to continue as welcomers. However, they would prefer not to have a rota, but to ‘meet and greet’ every week when they are available. However, we will need other welcomers to join this happy band.. Are you willing to be a welcomer? Please let me know
Confirmation I now have a date for the Sacrament of Confirmation. 7pm on Friday 24th November, at St. Pius X, Narborough. This will be the ceremony for both parishes – the last ceremony was at Our Lady of Victories, so it is fair that this one will be at St. Pius X. Candidates will need to talk to Father Joel about their preparation.
Parish Handbook I am very grateful to those who have helped me to produce the basis for a parish handbook. When Father Joel arrives as parish priest in October, it would be very helpful to him if we could provide contact details for those who are serving our community in these various ways, as well as their names. If anyone would prefer that their contact details not be disclosed to Father Joel, please let me know.
A reminder that our Bishops have decided that the ‘Sunday Obligation’ to attend Mass is in force again from the Feast of Pentecost (5th June)
- All are encouraged to be fully vaccinated (double vaccination and booster).
- Hand sanitizers are available to be used on entry into the Church or hall.
- The windows must be open for ventilation whenever the Church or hall is being used by a number of people.
- Anyone who feels unwell or tests positive for covid-19 should not attend Church or any social activity in the parish.
Some may well wish to avoid the greater crowd of people who attend on Sunday, and the longer time that Sunday Mass lasts. So I still celebrate Mass in Narborough on Saturday morning (10am) and at Lutterworth on Saturday evening (5.30pm) – those celebrations being less well attended, so greater ‘social distance’ can still be kept; and Mass on Saturday rarely last longer than 45 minutes. There are also (usually) weekday celebrations – 10am on Monday at Narborough, and 10.30am on Tuesdays and Thursdays at Lutterworth, for those who wish to have more space and a shorter time still, usually no more than 30 minutes.
I hope that everyone will feel able to celebrate Mass again in our Churches.
This Sunday is the Twenty-Third Sunday of the Year
Confessions: I will hear confessions from 9 until 9.30am on Saturdays at St. Pius X, Narborough; and from 4.30pm to 5.00pm on the first Saturday of the month at Our Lady of Victories & St. Alphonsus, Lutterworth.
At St. Pius X, Narborough:
Times of Mass & Communion Services this weekend & next weekend:
At St. Pius X, Narborough:
- 10am Saturday 3rd;
- 9.30am Sunday 4th;
- 10am Monday 5th Communion Service
- 10am Saturday 10th;
- 9.30am Sunday 11th;
- 10am Monday 12th Communion Service.
At Our Lady of Victories & St. Alphonsus, Lutterworth:
Times of Mass this week & next weekend:
- 5.30pm on Saturday 3rd;
- 11am on Sunday 4th.
- 10.30am Tuesday 6th;
- 10.30am Thursday 8th;
- 5.30pm on Saturday 10th;
- 11am on Sunday 11th.
Mass Intentions: At Narborough the intentions for Mass this week will be Saturday (3rd September) Edwin Wood RIP; Sunday (4th) Jane Attaro RIP; Monday (5th) Communion Service. Wednesday William Snowden RIP, Thursday Kathleen Vellacott RIP. Next weekend Saturday (10th) Edwin Wood RIP; Sunday (4th) Graham Sasse RIP; Monday (5th) Communion Service.
At Lutterworth the intentions for Mass will be Saturday (3rd) People of the Parishes; Sunday (4th) Holy Souls; Tuesday (6h) Holy Souls; Thursday (8th) Private Intention. Next Saturday (10th) Mary Darrell RIP; Sunday (11th) People of the Parishes; Tuesday (13h) Holy Souls.
Prayers for the living and the dead:
Please pray for Paul Toogood, Daniel Murphy, Father Robert Rutledge, Gerald Bolsover, Malcolm Lowe, Eileen Copp, and for all who have died recently.
Please also pray for Edward Taylor, Deon Viljoen, Stephen Janssens, Chris Joy, Michael Tingle, Maria Matkovits, Tara Viljoen, John Mather, Vivian Kettle, Beulah Blomfield, Diana Coughlin, Tony Thorlby, Hayley & Kaci Dunnill, Monica Teeling, Peggy Merrell, Suzanne Foxon, John Burns-Sweeney, Tom McDermott, Dave Knapper, Teresa Maugham, Mary Dunne, and Juanita Zaman and for all who are ill.
Please let me know of any others who have died, or anyone who is ill and asks for prayers.
A prayer for Ukraine
Loving God, we pray for the people of Ukraine,
for all those suffering or afraid,
that you will be close to them and protect them.
We pray for world leaders,
for compassion, strength and wisdom to guide their choices.
We pray for the world that in this moment of crisis,
we may reach out in solidarity to our brothers and sisters in need.
May we walk in your ways so that peace and justice
become a reality for the people of Ukraine and for all the world. Amen.
The following link is for the Leicester Ukrainian Community website set up to advise how to help:
https://linktr.ee/KalynaHome?fbclid=IwAR1276GMobH47ddWizyn5Mj6vlP89le1XB5JNuhoHjS1p5r0J0Or_Lji0jQ
Poverty Challenge Following the pandemic, many households now face new hardships as prices rise. Caritas Social Action Network, the Catholic agency addressing poverty and injustice in England and Wales, has released a new booklet to increase awareness of Catholic Social Teaching on poverty, and to inform local responses. This can be downloaded from www.csan.org.uk
Refugees from Ukraine CSAN is in close contact with the UK government on responding to the war in Ukraine. Guidance on how Catholic households and groups can support refugees from Ukraine is available on the CSAN website and updated as new information becomes available. www.csan.org.uk/ukraine
Tools With A Mission is a charity which has succeeded in transforming the lives of many people in Africa, offering them the means to support themselves and their families. But the charity needs lots more volunteer tool collectors. To find out more please visit their website www.timefortwam.uk or contact the volunteer co-ordinator Paul Daley by email pauld@twam.uk
Scrabble Group: Mondays 2pm – 4 pm for relaxed scrabble. At Lutterworth Catholic Church Hall. No winners, beginners welcome, just fun playing scrabble; cake and hot drink.
Evergreens: Bingo on Tuesdays from 1.30 pm until 4pm approx., in St. Pius X Narborough Parish Hall. Entry £2. All welcome.
Next Sunday is the Twenty- Fourth Sunday of the Year
Safeguarding: training for Volunteers:
Rachael Campion, the Director of Safeguarding for the Diocese of Nottingham has asked for volunteers to be notified about an upcoming course of 3 safeguarding training modules, in order that they may attend if they would like to do so.
You are invited to attend the Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency (CSSA) National Safeguarding Training via webinar. The sessions will be delivered by Sebastian Carro, the National Training Coordinator for CSSA.
The National Training Learning Portal will also provide these courses later this year, which can be completed online for those who are unable to attend the initial webinar training, further details will be released once this is available.
Volunteers who require a DBS for their role can access these courses. Details of the events and how to book will be available on the diocesan website shortly https://www.dioceseofnottingham.uk/departments/safeguarding). I have provided the content and how to book on the courses now below;
Volunteers will need to complete the following 3 modules:
Safeguarding Children in Church Communities
Safeguarding Adults in Church Communities
Creating a Safer Environment for Church Activities
All courses will start at 6.00pm and finish by 8.00pm. To register for this training and confirm your attendance please click on the appropriate link which will take you to the Eventbrite website;
Tuesday 11th October Safeguarding Children in Church Communities
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/396438547367
Wednesday 12th October Safeguarding Adults in Church Communities
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/396443311617
Thursday 13th October module Creating a Safer Environment for Church Activities
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/396445267467
Tuesday 25th October Safeguarding Children in Church Communities
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/396445929447
Wednesday 26th October Safeguarding Adults in Church Communities
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/396525878577
Thursday 27th October Creating a Safer Environment for Church Activities
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/396526520497
You will receive a link to the training event 2 days beforehand.
Please contact the Nottingham Diocese Safeguarding Department if you have any queries by emailing safeguarding@dioceseofnottingham.uk or telephone 0115 9539849.
Parish Priest’s contact details address 52 Leicester Road, Narborough. Leicester. LE19 2DF; telephone (0116) 2863676; email johnhadley1971@gmail.com
With my prayers for every blessing, Father John
