St. Thomas More High School Open Days
Wednesday 12th and Thursday 13th October 2016 by appointment. Telephone 01702 344933. For parents who have a son due to transfer to Secondary School in September 2017, come and see the school during a normal school day, meet the staff and pupils. Parents of boys who wish to apply to St Thomas More School for a place in September 2017 should complete the Local Education Authority (LEA) Common Application Form (CAF) and fill in the Supplementary Information Form (SIF) that can be collected from the school or downloaded from the website
www.st-thomasmore.southend.sch.uk
Thursday 24th November, 6.00-9.00pm
Sixth Form Open Evening for families who have pupils - boys and girls - in year 11 of secondary school who are intending to begin sixth form studies in September 2017. Come and visit the school and meet the staff and current sixth form students. There will be tours of the sixth form building and the rest of the school.
Counters & Folders
Counters: Jan Lewis, Sandie Hippard & Nina Bridgeman.
Newsletter Folders: Amanda Phipps & Clare English.
ABC - About Being Catholic
Following Fr Kevin’s Introductory Talks, the series informal talks designed to give an insight into the teachings and traditions of the Catholic church continues every Monday, starting at 8pm in the Parish Centre.
10th October: Christian Living - Ten Commandments. You are welcome to attend some or all of these talks; if you would like more information please speak to Fr Kevin or telephone Pat O’Connell on 01702 712123.
Catholic Women’s League
The next business meeting of the CWL is on Monday, 10th October at 2pm in the Newman Room. Please feel free to join us.
Please pray for the Repose of the Soul of
Christopher John James who died on Sunday 25th September. His Funeral Service will be held on Friday 28th October at 1.15pm followed by committal at Sutton road Cemetery.
Pray for the Dead
Please pray for our dead on their anniversaries:
Pope Pius XII, Fr John Dempsey, Fr Patrick Malin, Mgr Matthias Kearney,
Mgr Canon Michael McKenna, Canon Roderick Grant, Joyce Pycroft, Henry Hart, Thomas Gunsell, Ronald Ballard, Mary Chin Eng Sawyer, Julia Shields,
Amelia Eaglesfield, Mary Clark, Moira O’Riordan, Francis Gurney, Charles Cutter, Arthur Hooper, Chloe Watts, Valerie Martin, Thomas Patrick Costello, Joan Lucey, Eric Phillips, Irene Earl, Stanley Greaves, Teresa Morton, Winifred Archer, Adele Cumbo, Caroline Cussen, Annie Dunne, George Masi, Kathleen Liannett, Eva Riley, Christopher Adams, Francis Jones, Martha Tanner, Phyllis Koch, John Young & John Murray.
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.
Twenty-seventh Sunday of the Year
Dear friends in Christ
October is the month of the Holy Rosary. Monsignor Ronald Knox once described the Holy Rosary as the furniture of our lives as Catholics. As such, we can take it rather for granted, perhaps like the sofa in our living room. It is the sort of devotion, he says, which causes us more scruples when we forget to say it than comfort us when we remember it. There is a special feast of Our Lady of the Rosary on 7th October to remind us of it’s meaning. There are other inanimate things in our Faith that we celebrate - the Holy Cross and the Chair of St Peter - but there is a warmth and familiarity about the Rosary which makes it most intimate and personal. It might be a good moment to remind ourselves at the start of October that the Rosary has some special qualities as a prayer. First, it is a source of meditation. As the beads occupy our fingers, the prayers are to occupy our minds, so that we can think-on the events in Our Lord’s life. Second, the Rosary can be said in private or in public and it links us with Catholics the Church over. Third, it is Our Lady’s way of highlighting for us the Incarnation. If we believe in God’s closeness to us how can we be but close to our neighbour wherever we find ourselves? It is the Word become flesh that links the beads. Knox says that we could think of the Holy Rosary as a musical composition in three moods: Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious. Joyful because of the birth of Our Lord, Sorrowful because of His death and Glorious because of His triumph over death in the Resurrection. Knox says again: Christ brought joy with Him into the world, and brought it first of all to her, to whom it belonged as as right because she was His Mother. May He, whose life, death and Resurrection has purchased for us the rewards of eternal life, lead us by meditating on these mysteries of the most Holy Rosary, to both imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise. God bless you all!
Msgr Kevin Hale
Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Saturday 1st October St Therese of the Child Jesus (Lisieux), V, D
10.00am Mass Samuel Copeland, RIP (VSC)
5.30pm Vigil Mass The People of the Parish
Sunday 2nd - Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
8am Mass Deceased members of the Strzetelski Family (MS)
9.30am Mass Natalie Slater, RIP (TC)
11.30am Mass Eileen Pearson, RIP (Anniv) (SP)
4.00pm Mass Maureen O’Sullivan, RIP (KPO) - Extraordinary Form
5.30pm Vespers & Benediction
Monday 3rd Feria
9.00am Mass Thomas Henry Gunn, RIP (FM)
Tuesday 4th St Francis of Assisi, Rel
9.00am Mass Intentions of Raymond & Sheila Chantilly, RIP (RO)
Wednesday 5th Feria
9.00am Mass Fr John Caden, RIP (MK)
Thursday 6th St Bruno, Pr
9.00am Mass Clarice O’Sullivan, RIP (KPO)
Friday 7th Our Lady of the Rosary - Harvest Fast Day
12Noon Mass CWL Intentions
12.30pm Exposition after Mass until
12.30pm Holy Hour & Benediction
Saturday 8th October St Osyth, Rel
10.00am Mass Intentions of all Parishioners (JL)
5.30pm Vigil Mass The People of the Parish
Sunday 9th - Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time
8am Mass Lola Collingwood, RIP (GS)
9.30am Mass Denise McDermott, RIP (GD)
11.30am Mass Thomas Patrick Costello, RIP (Anniv) (CC)
5.30pm Vespers & Benediction
Dates for your Diary
Thursday, 10th November
Annual Parish Requiem Mass for those who have died in the past year - 8pm
Thursday 24th November-Saturday 26th November
Forty Hours Prayer before the Blessed Sacrament
Saturday 3rd December
Christmas Bazaar - 10.30am
Friday 16th December
Carol Service (Serving the Homeless)- 7pm
Saturday 6th & 13th May
First Holy Communion Masses - 10.30am
Sunday 18th June
Corpus Christi Procession - 4pm
Saturday 22nd July
Walsingham Centenary Pilgrimage
Our Lady of Lourdes Primary School Open Tour
This will be held on Monday 21st November at 9.30am and 2pm. This is for parents who have a child due to start school in September 2017. Please contact the School Secretary, Mrs Bruce on 01702 475689 to book a place. Parents who wish to apply to Our Lady of Lourdes Primary School for a place in September 2017 should complete the Local Education Authority (LEA) Primary School Application Form and fill in the Supplementary Information Form (SIF) that can be collected from the school.
St Barnabas Society
Next weekend there will be an Appeal at the weekend Masses on behalf of
the St Barnabas Society which offers support to Anglican Clergymen who
become Catholics.
National Shrine of Our Lady at Walsingham
Thank you for your generous donations of £1,036.19 last weekend to support the work of the development of Our Lady’s Shrine at Walsingham.
CAFOD Harvest Fast Day – Friday 7 October
As we approach harvest time and rejoice in the abundance that God provides us, Cafod is starting to work with partner organisations in Bolivia to teach new skills to the people of the vast and inhospitable Altiplano plain to help them achieve self-sufficiency in growing enough food to feed their families now and in the future. This includes skills to create vegetable gardens, greenhouses, wormeries and to install irrigation systems. Money raised from Harvest Fast Day this Friday will help support this work. Cafod donation envelopes are available at the back of the Church. Thank you.
Church Cleaning
If you could spare one hour every 4 weeks to help clean the Church, please leave your name and telephone number in the Parish Office.
Brentwood Catholic Children's Society Annual Draw Tickets
The BCCS works throughout the diocese with schools helping children and their families. Their Counsellors deal with many issues from bereavement to depression and abuse. The annual draw is an enormous part of the Societies’ income and invaluable in the work they carry out. There are draw tickets, costing £1 per ticket, at the back of the church complete with envelopes so you can forward them directly to the BCCS. The tickets are distributed by Knights of Saint Columba – Liam Rand 07952 954833.
Tea Dance at St. Peter's Mazenod Hall
Bruno is organising a Tea Dance to be held at Saint Peter’s Mazenod Hall, Eastwood, on Saturday 15th October starting at 3pm. A classic tea to include sandwiches and cake and the opportunity to strut your stuff on the dance floor to wonderful big band music all for the amazing price £7. If you would like to book tickets please ring Bruno 01702 528766 or email: anthony1.coul@talktalk.net.
Scripture Group
Fr Con Joyce’s Scripture Group will next meet in the Parish Centre 8pm-9pm on Thursday, 6th October. Fr. Con will be talking about the prophets. All welcome.
Knights Organised Community Fayre 22nd October
The Knights of St Columba (KSC) have organised a Community Fayre at Nazareth House, 111 London Road, Westcliff, SS1 1PP on Saturday 22nd October and present will be many local charities, help groups, and local businesses that have something to offer us locally. Open from 10am to 1pm with a fantastic Fair Trade raffle and Fair Trade light refreshments, the exhibitors to date are Sainsburys (Fair Trade range), CAFOD, Essex Savers Credit Union, NF Collins and Son Dairy, SVP, BCCS, Alzheimer’s Society, Southend Association of Voluntary Service (SAVS), Southend Soup, KSC and Hopeworx with more groups to be confirmed. The KSC will be recycling any unwanted spectacles for VisionAid Overseas, unwanted currency, used stamps, and old mobile phones for charity if you want to bring them along and there will be a second hand book stall too. Come and meet some great local people and get some help and ideas whilst having a decent cuppa. Entrance is free.
Charity Film Night
Live Simply invite you to watch the newly released film Risen on Friday
October 14th at 7.30pm in Parish Centre. Refreshments will be on sale in aid of
Fr Dominic’s Calais refugee fund. All are welcome.