Ninth Week of Orinary Time (A)

Dear Parishioners, 

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

As our schools begin to open to some year groups and some non-essential shops soon too, we may begin to look forward to churches opening too in the next few weeks. As the apostles who met in the room were filled with the Holy Spirit, so if you pray for the coming of the Holy Spirit on yourselves and all the church, the Spirit will come to us and move us forwards. For as the Holy Spirit moved those first apostles out into the world from that room, so God will move us forwards and out from the shelter of our homes. The Holy Spirit has always been with the church since then, and it is the Holy Spirit who has constantly renewed God’s people and moved us forwards, most especially when we have got stuck in our habits and ways. You can be confident that our bishops, the descendants of the apostles in that room, want the public life of the church to resume as soon as it is possible but that as our shepherds, they have the greatest concern for our safety and well- being. This means that a risk assessment will have to be made for every church and church premises used by the public.

In order to facilitate this at St Thomas More, I think we will be needing a few volunteers as stewards/ cleaners, with different people for each day, two people for each mass, so we probably need about twenty people. The two stewards for each mass will have two tasks, with half the church each:

1. Before mass: Point parishioners to a place to sit if assistance is needed
2. After mass: Clean the seating areas which have been used.

We will probably use every other pew for seating, with one household per pew, or three individuals from separate households spaced apart. I also suggest that parishioners come to mass once a week only on any day of the week in order that we can keep a maximum number in the church at any mass of about 50. If a steward sees there are too many people already (surely a ‘good problem’) you would be asked to come back tomorrow. We can do this if there is co-operation, understanding, give and take and also we have the volunteers for the ‘steward’ role.

There is no definite date for a public return to churches, but we can hope it will be soon. I hope that with some preparations by ordering necessary supplies and having a team of helpers in place (which means two people for each mass with those two tasks each) we will be ready to go. If you would like to volunteer, please contact me on jonathonrouth@rcaos.org.uk.

We will move forwards: Christ ascended into Heaven that his Church might do so. Rather than a small group of people holding on to him in one place at one time, Our Lord left us the sacraments to be present for us in all times and places and then sent us the Holy Spirit to be with us everywhere and always, whether alone or together. The Holy Spirit within us means none of us are alone but connected to God and his church whenever we pray. Calling on God to come to our aid and asking for the gifts of the Holy Spirit , we can move forwards in courage. As St Cyril of Alexandria put it ‘the spirit changes their unmanly cowardice into the spirit of courage. We can certainly see that the disciples experienced this: the Spirit became their armour, so that they did not yield to the attacks of their persecutors but held fast to the love of Christ’.

We rejoice that God has sent us the Holy Spirit and ask for the gift of courage as we move forwards into some kind of public life in the church and society again.

GIFT AID BOXES.

If you are intending to sign up again or for the first time for Gift Aid please contact our Gift Aid organiser Melissa on Bostallpark@rcaos.org.uk and mark the subject MELISSA/GIFT AID. Once you have given your name I can deliver your box of envelopes to you or you can arrange a time to collect it from me at the House.

DEATHS

Mary Kilgannon (dd 1st April 2020. Funeral held in private 17th April 2020)

Josephine Mary Grimes (dd 8th April 2020. Funeral held in private Monday 27th April 2020)

Eileen Jurado (dd 8th April 2020. Funeral held in private Wednesday 6th May 2020)

Peter Lloyd Clarence (dd 13th April 2020. Funeral to be held in private Monday 11th May 2020)

Bridie Kilgannon (dd 14th April 2020, Funeral held in private Friday 15th May 2020)

Pauline Gosnell (dd 29th April 2020, Funeral held elsewhere. Requiem in private at STM Tuesday 12th May 2020)

Michael McDonagh (dd 11th April 2020. Funeral to be held in private Tuesday 2nd June 2020)

Agnello Gomes ( dd 8th May 2020 Funeral held in Wales Thursday 21st May)

Pamela Beadle (dd 9th May 2020 Funeral in private 26th May 2020)

Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine et lux perpetua luceat eis.

May the divine assistance remain with them always and may their souls and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

NOTE ON CURRENT ARRANGEMENTS FOR FUNERALS

All catholics in this parish are given the full rites of the church with the funeral requiem mass said in the morning before the committal at the graveside/ crematorium. Current guidelines mean that no one can attend the mass and there are severe restrictions on numbers allowed at the committal. However, some families are still producing service booklets and memorial cards which they are able to send out to the majority of family and friends who cannot attend. It is a difficult time to die as people cannot come to pay their ‘last respects’ and support each other. We may long to hug each other in condolence, but if we can even meet at all, it can be no more than a nod. There can be no tea and chat in the house to talk about the life and death of the deceased. All is done by phone. It is sad indeed. However, where possible, public requiem masses will be arranged for the deceased in the future, the hall can be booked, the social club bar open and in true catholic style, after mass we can celebrate the lives of those we love. Also on the last Sunday of the Church’s year, the Feast of Christ the King, we will pray for the Holy Souls in Purgatory with our Memorial Service followed by the generous hospitality of P.L. Mulligan’s, our Funeral Directors, in our Social Club.

MASSES AND INTENTIONS FOR THE COMING WEEK: NINTH WEEK OF ORDINARY TIME (OCTAVE OF PENTECOST)

Sunday 31st May PENTECOST/ WHIT SUNDAY

Eric Moniz R.I.P.

Whit Monday 1st June

(Mary, Mother of the Church, memorial.)

Ferdie Rodrigues R.I.P.

Whit Tuesday 2nd June

(Ss. Marcellinus & Peter, martyrs.)

Funeral Requiem: Michael McDonagh R.I.P. (with committal at Eltham crematorium)

Whit Wednesday 3rd June

(St Charles Lwanga and companions, martyrs, memorial)

Maria Ponsford R.I.P.

Whit Thursday 4th June

(Our Lord Jesus Christ, eternal high priest, feast)

Ad mentem dantis

Whit Friday 5th June

(St. Boniface, bishop & martyr, memorial).

Ad mentem dantis

Whit Saturday 6th June

(St. Norbert).

Mary Kilgannon R.I.P.

MESSAGE FOR OUR FIRST HOLY COMMUNION CHILDREN

Today we have the answers to a little quiz about your local church given last week.

St. Thomas More is the patron of our parish and this is ‘St Thomas More parish’. Who are the patrons of our neighbouring parishes in Welling, Erith, the other Bexleyheath parish, Crayford and in Bexley?

In Wellling the patron saint is St Stephen. He is the first martyr of the church and we celebrate his feast day on 26th December, also called ‘Boxing Day’ in this country.

In Erith, the patron is Our Lady of the Angels. This is one of the titles we give to honour the Blessed Virgin Mary, mother of Our Lord.

In Bexleyheath, the patron is St John Vianney. He was a very humble parish priest who lived in France in the nineteenth century. The bishop gave him a very small and poor parish, in which the faith was weak, but through his dedication to serving Jesus, the parish grew and faith became strong.

In Crayford, the patron is again the Blessed Virgin Mary. This time she is honoured with the title ‘Our Lady of the Crays’. Mary is loved and honoured by Christians all over the world. Sometimes we give her a title which is ‘global/ universal’ such as ‘queen of heaven, queen of angels’, at other times we relate to her as the mother of our community and family. Our Lady of the Crays is a local title for that area.

And finally, in Bexley, the patron is St John Fisher who knew St Thomas More. St John Fisher was the Catholic Bishop of Rochester, near here. Like St Thomas More, he refused to renounce the authority of the pope in the church and give all his obedience to the tyrranical king, Henry VIII. As a result, like St Thomas More, he was executed by the king. They are both great English Martyrs The parishes named above are a group of parishes called ‘a deanery’. But we belong to an even bigger grouping of parishes called ‘a diocese’. Every diocese is led by a Bishop who takes care of his diocese from the cathedral where you can see the Bishop’s Chair.

What’s the name of our diocese? Where is the Cathedral? Who is the cathedral dedicated to? Who are the patrons of our diocese? And finally who is our bishop?

We are in the Archdiocese of Southwark. The cathedral is in Southwark, just south of the river Thames. Our diocese covers all south London and Kent. There are three patrons of our diocese: Mary, the Immaculate Conception, St Thomas of Canterbury and St Augustine, apostle of England (whose shrine is in Ramsgate)

Archbishop John is our bishop. Because we are a big diocese, there are assistant bishops. Our parish is in the south east area of London, and the assistant bishop for our area is Bishop Pat who has visited us many times.