Today the Church honours St Vincent of Saragossa, the first martyr of Spain. Like St Agnes whom we recalled yesterday, he was martyred at the beginning of the fourth century in the persecution of Diocletian. In the early Church deacons had a particularly close relationship with the bishop, and in
Continue readingToday is the feast of St Agnes, Virgin and Martyr, one of the best known of the saints of Rome. On this day in one of the churches dedicated to her in Rome, run by the Canons Regular of the Lateran, lambs are normally blessed at Mass, and then again
Continue readingI expect many of you watched the inauguration this afternoon. The prayer led early in the ceremony by the Jesuit priest who in the past was President of Georgetown University (a Jesuit university) was very moving; he quoted Pope Francis’ recent encyclical ‘Fratelli Tutti’, which we will be looking at
Continue readingToday (Tuesday) is the feast of St Wulstan of Worcester, the last Anglo Saxon saint. He was the only Anglo Saxon member of the hierarchy who was allowed to continue in office for any significant time after the Normal Conquest in 1066, until his death in 1095, renowned for his
Continue readingWe know that these times have been difficult for a lot of families. We want to provide local support to as many as we can of those children and families who need it the most during this time of national lockdown and school closure by offering them a fresh, hot
Continue readingThis Sunday is Peace Sunday, when the Church in England and Wales observes the World Day of Prayer for Peace kept elsewhere on New Year’s Day. Prayers and Reflections for today, including a Zoom reflection, can be found on the website of Pax Christi UK, www.paxchristi.org.uk. Normally in our parish
Continue readingIt has been just over two weeks since I announced the closure of our church. It was not an easy decision to make but I’m certain in the circumstances, the right one. It would seem that many of you were in agreement, even though like me you felt sadness. Thank
Continue readingIn light of the environmental crisis our world is facing, Pope Francis has called each of us to listen to the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor. This Lent, join us for a series of reflective evenings with inspiring speakers, prayer and discussion, using the film-based
Continue readingFr Steve, has, as he promised, introduced the saying of the rosary on three weekday mornings, and in addition there will be Benediction at 5.00 pm every Friday and also on the last Sunday of every month. These will all be live streamed and are another way that we can
Continue readingThe Epiphany is a beautiful feast – I think it’s special for many of us in that it captures the heart of the Christmas narrative while being free of the commercialisation which now surrounds the feast itself in December, which in a way makes sense because it is probably older
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