THE SEASON OF LENT

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.

Please keep in your prayers those who are undertaking public exams at this time. Although a very short period in a lifetime, it can be a time of stress, anxiety and various other emotions for those undertaking exams and their families, so, please pray for them and be mindful of their needs.

First Holy Communion programmes will continue on Tuesday 3rd June, for the older children at 4.15 and for the younger ones on 5th June Thursday, at 4 pm (the hall will be open from 3.30). Rehearsal: A reminder this will be at 11.30 on Saturday 7th June in the church. Please do not be late. The following Saturday, 14th June, the children will be given their First Holy Communion certificates at the evening Mass and this will be followed by a ‘First Holy Communion Breakfast’ in the hall; you are welcome to join the children and their families for a cup of tea and ‘lite bite.’ First Holy Communion catechist for 2025/26 :- 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

Here at St. Joseph’s, Dorking on Saturday 14th June . There will be tea & coffee from 11 onwards in the hall. Further details to follow. The theme is ‘Christ our Eucharist’.

The programme will continue Monday week on the 2nd June at 7 pm . our subject on this occasion will be the Sacrament of Baptism. Everyone is welcome to attend (those under 18 need to have a parent or guardian with them).

Worth Abbey - 11 June 10am - 3.30pm annual day of reflection and friendship. Join us for Mass, time to pray together and the opportunity to talk to fellow grandparents, sharing your experience, joys and challenges of family life. To register your place, go to the Diocesan website at: https://www.abdiocese.org.uk/diocese/events and then follow the Grandparents’ Pilgrimage link. For more details contact Deacon Simon South, Marriage and Family Life Adviser E: simon.south@abdiocese.org.uk , M: 07415 306222

The latest attack on life is upon us, with an amendment being tabled to the Crime and Policing Bill by Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi; the following from the ‘SPUC’ web site: MPs are launching a new push to expand our already horrific abortion laws even further. Abortion advocates in Parliament are seeking to hijack the Government’s Crime and Policing Bill by tabling amendments to remove abortion from the criminal law. New Clause 1 , tabled by Tonia Antoniazzi MP, seeks to change criminal law so that “no offence is committed by a woman acting in relation to her own pregnancy” at any gestation. This means that a woman who induced her abortion at home using pills (or any other method) at any stage of pregnancy, including just before natural birth, would not commit a crime. New Clause 20 , tabled by Stella Creasy MP, is even more extreme. It completely repeals the laws that form the legal underpinning of the current abortion law, meaning that there’d be no way to bring an abusive partner who causes the death of an unborn baby to justice. We must rally to defeat these evil amendments. The earliest they could be debated is 11 June , which means there is time to lobby MPs and rally public opinion. Please contact your MP , asking him/her to oppose and vote against new clauses 1 and 20 to the Crime and Policing Bill. Separately, a debate is being held on the subject of decriminalisation on 2 June in Westminster Hall. Such debates cannot change the law but raise awareness of an issue. Briefings on both amendments can be found here , and here . For further details and to attend a webinar this Tuesday, go to: Fight the latest attempts to decriminalise abortion – SPUC Please take action and contact your MP via the ‘Right to Life’ link :- Write to MP to stop abortion up to birth - Easy tool - No To Abortion Up To Birth campaign asking him or her to oppose the amendment Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill: - The Bill will further be debated on 13th June. Based solely on Parliamentary process various UK news channels reported that there are grave concerns about the Bill, one MP saying that if the Second Reading of the Bill last November showed Parliamentary debate at its best, the debate this time showed quite the opposite! Worth a read in such regard: Declaration “Dignitas Infinita” on Human Dignity (2 April 2024)

For those of you who contribute through the ‘gift aid envelope system’ please collect your box for 2025/26 (with your name on it) from the sacristy.  Gift Aid Declaration for 2024/25 : A message from Penny, our Gift Aid Co-ordinator: I will be emailing everybody with GiftWise their statement for the past tax year. Patricia Wrightson will be printing the remainder and sending them out in post. Many thanks.

ROSARY CIRCLE FOR PRIESTLY VOCATIONS As we enter into the month of June 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 June, 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