Fifth Sunday of Easter 07.05.2023

MASS TIMES AND INTENTIONS

Sun 7th May

8.30 am People of the Parish

10 am King Charles III and Queen Camilla

12 noon Alex Ogbechie, intentions

Mon 8th May Easter Feria

10 am Avril Woods, RIP

Tues 9th May Easter Feria

10am Suresh Satkunarajan

Weds 10th May NO MASS

Thurs 11th May Easter Feria

10 am Michael Walsh

Fri 12th May Easter Feria

10 am Nancy O’Shaughnessy, RIP

Sat 13th May Sixth Sunday of Easter

5pm Dirce Negrotti, anniversary

Saturday 6th May No exposition or confession in the morning

Saturday 4.30pm – 5pm: Confessions and Exposition

ITS NEXT WEEKEND!

· For the International Feast Day Mass at 11am – You are invited to come in your National Dress.

· Please let Fr Peter know if you would like to read or say a prayer in a language unique to your culture.

· Statues of Our Lady will be crowned by First Holy Communion Children

Your Prayers:

Let us keep in our prayers: Michael O’Boy, Christina Cahill, Eric Nicholas Darwent, Therese Kemp, John O’Shea, Rekha, Bina, Noel, Jose Luis Pérez, Alice, Karina McKiernan and Izabela Lissowska – all unwell at this time. We also pray for:: Gino Tomei, James Meally, Peter Sartori, Noel Ryan, Donato Merola, Siobhan Lynch, Catherine Kelly, Josephine Okuyiga, Jane Ikwueke, Maureen O Sullivan, Patrick Reilly, Ann Gourdarznia, Nina Cole, Lorenzo Marcantuono, Pat McMahon, Michael Walsh Esther Ampomah Arhin, Peter McHugh, Marguerite Kyunga, Kathleen Molloy, Maria Pini, Madeleine Melling, Jenifer Danvers, Enrico Soracchi, Raymond Tissot, Sr Theresa, Patricia Caddle, Antonio Ostacchini, Lilian Murphy, Martin Wyrazik, Rita Graham and Judith Agholor whose anniversaries occur at this time or have died recently. May they Rest in Peace.

Offertory:

The offertory collection for the week ending 30th April was £817.16 . Please do not forget, that arranging a standing order is the easiest way to support St Mary’s. Please contact the parish office for a Standing Order form.

Priests’ Training Fund – Thank You!

Thank you for your generosity to the Priest Training Fund. The amount raised was £918.48. It is not too late to make a donation. Envelopes are available at the back of the church or by contacting the parish office. Please continue to pray for vocations to the priesthood. For more information, or to make a donation, visit www.rcdow.org.uk/donations.

Catholic Identity Cards:

Fr Peter writes: “A very kind parishioner has printed “Catholic Identity Cards” (to have in our purses and wallets) in the event we have an accident. The card request that hospital staff or paramedics ask for me or an ‘on call’ RC healthcare chaplain to visit and anoint you.”

Eucharistic Minister and Reader Rotas

The present rotas end on Sunday 21st May. New rotas will be drawn up for the period of 28th May to 22nd October, excluding as usual five weekends of the school summer holidays, this year from 30th July to 27th August inclusive. If you cannot read on a particular day or you wish to change the mass you usually attend, please let Yvonne in the parish office know by Monday 15th May.

“God is our clothing. In his love, he wraps and folds us. He enfolds us in love and he will never let us go”

Julian of Norwich

The Coronation of King Charles III

The Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla in Westminster Abbey is a historic occasion for the nation, and also for the Catholic community. For the first time in over 400 years, a Catholic Archbishop will take part in a Coronation service in this country. Seventy years ago, it would not have been permitted for any Catholic to enter a Protestant church, let alone to take part in a Coronation service. This significant step is the fruit of decades of ecumenical relations. As the Cardinal explains: “It’s symbolic of the whole ceremony because it respects our history, builds on our history, and complements the history, both in this way, and with the presence and greeting of the faith leaders from the other major religions now present in this country.”

For many centuries prior to the Reformation, a Coronation of a monarch was a Catholic ceremony. The ceremony still contains elements that would be familiar to most Catholics as they are found in our liturgies and the celebration of the sacraments.

One such moment is the anointing, which will take place behind a screen. Using oil that has been blessed in Jerusalem, the Archbishop of Canterbury will anoint the King on his head, hands and breast – a gesture that is familiar to Catholics from sacramental practice as it echoes the anointing at Baptism, Confirmation, Ordination and the anointing of those who are grievously ill.

“This tangible expression of the gift of the Holy Spirit, which goes back to Old Testament times, is something which is precious and, in this Coronation setting is intimate and therefore private,” affirmed the Cardinal.