New beginnings

Diocesan Festival of Hope at Ardingly Showground on 20th Sept 2025: Firstly, celebrating the Jubilee Year of Hope designated by the late Pope Francis, secondly the 60th anniversary of the Diocese, and thirdly our renewed call to mission as laid out in Bishop Richard’s Pastoral Plan. As a parish we have been allocated 12 tickets for the event, coach transport is being organised so that people are collected and dropped back locally, anyone under the age of 18 is to be accompanied by an adult who will take responsibility for them across the day. If you would like to attend, mindful of the small number of tickets, please speak to Fr. Ian, who will be able to advise further.

We need at least two people to help as catechist for First Holy Communion for the next academic year; a weekly commitment from late October to June is required to help our children to prepare for this wonderful Sacrament. If you are willing and able to help, please speak to Fr. Ian FIRST HOLY COMMUNION AND CONFIRMATION 2025 /2026:- Application forms for next year’s respective programmes will be available shortly. If you have a child in year 3 or above (First Holy Communion) or in year 9 or above, (Confirmation) then, provided that you and your children are in regular attendance at Mass you and they will be able to join the programmes. The deadline for returning application forms is mid-night pm on Sunday 5th October 2025, once this deadline has expired for both programmes, no child will be accepted onto either the First Holy Communion or Confirmation programme until the following year, 2026/2027.

Application forms for next year’s respective programmes are available at the entrances to the church. If you have a child in year 3 or above (First Holy Communion) or in year 9 or above, (Confirmation) then, provided that you and your children are in regular attendance at Mass you and they will be able to join the programmes . The deadline for returning application forms is mid-night pm on Sunday 5th October 2025 , once this deadline has expired for both programmes, no child will be accepted onto either the First Holy Communion or Confirmation programme until the following year, 2026/2027. If you know of families where children and young people should be preparing for these sacraments, PLEASE encourage them to be coming along to Mass and practicing their faith by joining with the rest of the believing community! Mass is not as complete as it should be when people are not there…..’I ask you, my brothers and sisters….’

Every now and again the question about Mass intentions comes up in regard to having a Mass for a particular intention, e.g. the repose of someone’s soul, a person’s health or well-being, thanksgiving etc. Priest are allowed to celebrate one Mass each day for a particular intention, such as those mentioned above, however it must be stressed that we cannot ‘buy’ a Mass! Remember, that the Mass, the Holy Eucharist, is the unbloodied sacrifice of Christ upon the Cross, Jesus offers Himself to God the Father on our behalf; through the action of the Mass He unites us to our Heavenly Father especially through Holy Communion, the Mass then, is the perfect prayer of the Church and is not something we can ‘buy’. The ‘Mass Stipend’ or ‘Mass Offering’ is a gift to the priest, (normally financial) when a particular intention is requested, its roots are in the Old Testament and the Levitical priesthood. The tribe of Levi, were set aside by God through Moses to administer the Tent of Meeting which later became the Temple in Jerusalem. The Tent of Meeting / Temple was the place of the Holy of Holies which contained the Ark of the Covenant; it was here that the Levites served God on behalf of His people, they were ‘set aside’ for such work.  Part of the priestly work was to offer sacrifices to God, and the priests were allowed to take certain parts of the sacrificial animals so as to sustain themselves and their family (see Dt 18:1-8). In the same way, if we would like a Mass for a particular intention, we can always put details on a ‘Mass Intentions’ envelope (available at the back of the church) with an offering, and hand it to Fr. Ian or put it through the presbytery letter box. The financial offering, or ‘Mass Stipend’ is a personal gift to the priest and helps, as its roots suggest, in sustaining the priest personally for a day

Pope Leo XIV will officially declare St John Henry Newman, the most recently canonised saint from England and Wales, the 38th Doctor of the Church. A ‘Doctor of the Church’ is a man or woman of great holiness and learning whose teaching and wisdom not only resonated with their own contemporaries, but still illuminates, instructs and inspires today. Very few people in the history of the Church have been given this title, beginning with some of the early Church Fathers like St Ambrose and St Augustine, up until St Thérèse of Lisieux. They are now joined by St John Henry Newman. While many Doctors of the Church are notable for one particular aspect of their teaching, St John Henry Newman is especially remarkable for the breadth of his teaching across many aspects of the faith, his influence upon various branches of doctrine and theology, and his engagement with problems of faith which remain burning issues in our own time. Newman’s teaching has been acclaimed by many Popes, ……… He was a very prolific writer and produced a daunting amount of material. (Taken from the Diocesan website at:- The writings of St John Henry Newman are a true expression of the faith | News )

There are reports that the Bill will begin scrutiny in the House of Lords on September 12th . Baroness Hollins, President of the Catholic Union, has, from the outset, urged everyone to engage with their local representatives, community and media on this issue. Amongst other things, the Catholic Union have provided 21 suggested points to put in your own words in letters to your local newspaper, or newsletters of organisations that you belong to. To give you some idea of the suggested points, this is point 5, by way of an example: “ 5. Do we really want this in our NHS? This Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill mandates the creation of free of charge "Voluntary Assisted Dying Services" in England and Wales, while palliative care is still not properly funded or available to many dying patients.”  Do have a look at the document and use it to write to members of the House of Lords, engage with those whom you know and do all you can to prevent the Bill from succeeding. (See: 21_Questions_by_the_Catholic_Union_2.08.25.pdf ) As this Bill has progressed, one notices there has been an increased agitation and silencing of Christian voices contributing to ‘the public discussion’ and at the same time, the family as the fundamental unit of society as well as any stand for traditional marriage, that is, between a man and a woman, has come under increasing attack. (See:- Coalition For Marriage Home - Christian Concern and CitizenGO ) We cannot be silent in the face of these things, so by prayer, engagement and example we can and should do all we can to promote a Christian society. Just look at the Latin text on any UK coinage, whereby, the Monarch, as Supreme Governor of the Church of England is ‘Defender of the (Christian) Faith’. If the Christian basis and roots of our society are not to be eroded, we cannot be silent. ‘Bad things happen when good people do nothing.’

ROSARY CIRCLE FOR PRIESTLY VOCATIONS As we enter into the month of July there is a new ‘Rosary Circle Chart’ on the noticeboard, to encourage us all to pray for vocations to the Priesthood. The ‘Chart’ lists the 20 decades of the Rosary and a number of columns for people to put their initial or a tick in a box to indicate they will commit to praying the particular decade each day for the month of July, and hopefully, this will create a number of ‘circles’ praying for this intention. This is a very simple spiritual exercise many of us could join in with; at least 20 people praying one decade of the Rosary each day, so the whole of the Rosary is prayed for this particular intention, thus creating a ‘Rosary Circle’. Let it be said, however, that anyone can join the Rosary Circles at any time. PLEASE BE PART OF A ROSARY CIRCLE PRAYING FOR PRIESTLY VOCATIONS FROM THE PARISH! Thank you Prayer for vocations to the Priesthood: ( Dropped in through the presbytery letter box, so a ‘thankyou’ to the courier) God our Father, look in love upon our homes, our families and our communities. Raise up from amongst us worthy priests to preach the Gospel to all people, to minister at your altar and care for your flock. Fill us with your Holy Spirit and make us faithful and inspiring witnesses to your Kingdom. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen

Although much work done in the church is on a voluntary basis, we still have to follow health and safety requirements, which in turn, applies to voluntary ‘lone workers’. If you are doing any jobs in the church, flower arranging, metal polishing, general cleaning, etc. etc. and you will be doing so alone, YOU MUST make sure that someone knows! It is therefore a good idea to tell someone you are coming to the church to do some work, the time at which you anticipate arriving at the church and when you expect to return home; if needs must, give them your phone number or that of the parish. Furnishing someone with such information, should something untoward occur, the person you have informed can then make enquiries after your well-being, if you have not arrived home as you had anticipated. ADDITIONALLY, it is always a good idea to call at the presbytery so that there is an awareness of your presence.  Under no circumstances, should anyone climb portable ladders / steps or stand on a chair (which we should not do, anyway) without someone else being present. THANKS FOR YOUR CONCERN AND CONSIDERATION.

“We are expecting the Leadbeater assisted suicide Bill to have its Second Reading in the House of Lords on Friday 12 September. As I’ve shared with you before, there is a real chance we can defeat this Bill in the Lords – and the assisted suicide lobby knows it. That’s why their campaign in the Lords is now in full swing. Several Peers have told us they’re getting a large amount of correspondence urging them to support the Bill. It’s crucial that Peers also hear from those of us who oppose this dangerous change in the law. TAKE ACTION We’ve just launched a new EasyAction tool to help you email a few Peers directly. It creates a tailored message that highlights a key concern with the Bill and ensures it reaches the right Peers. Please take action and click the button below to email Peers now . It only takes 30 seconds.” Ask Peers to oppose the Leadbeater assisted suicide Bill