Dates for your Diary
Sunday 26th November—Sea of Voices Annual Christmas Concert—3pm Parish Centre
Monday 27th November—Journey in Faith (RCIA) continues—8pm Newman Room
Thursday 30th November—Saturday 2nd December—Forty Hours’ Prayer
Sunday 3rd December—Parish Bazaar
Friday 15th December—Carol Service—Serving the Homeless
Monday 22nd—Saturday 27th July 2024—Parish Pilgrimage to Lourdes
Brentwood Diocesan Yearbook 2024
The 2024 Diocesan Directory available this week from the back of the Church—£2.95
SVP Christmas Party
A Christmas Party! Your parish SVP (Society of St Vincent de Paul) Conference is delighted to announce the date and place of its annual '"Christmas Party" to which all senior members of the parish are most warmly invited!
Our "Christmas Party" is being held in the Parish Centre on Saturday, 9th December, commencing at 2pm and concluding at 4pm! Carols, good company and Christmas fare will pleasantly ease you into the seasonal spirit!
If you—or someone you know—would like to join us on this happy parish occasion please call/text Francis O'Brien on 07845 874331. You will be most welcome!
Parish Christmas Bazaar - Sunday 3rd December, 8.45am - 1.00pm
Our Annual Parish Bazaar is next weekend and we need your help and generosity. If you have any unwanted gifts, toiletries, bottles, raffle prizes or bric-a-brac that you would like to donate, please leave them in the Old Baptistry.
If you would like to help on the day, please contact us.
Sue Lawford—07816 141492
Angela Clements—07940 183452—email angelaclements47@gmail.com.
Raffle tickets are now available at the back of church after all masses, or from the Parish office. Please return money and ticket stubs to the Parish office.
Journey of Faith—RCIA
RCIA will meet on Monday, 27th November and is specifically for those who are not Catholics but who are enquiring with a view to finding out more about the Catholic Faith and Reception into the Church. These evenings begin at 8pm, are held in the Newman Room of the Parish Centre (the door is beside the Memorial Garden) and usually last just over an hour. Names may be given in advance to Fr Kevin or the Parish Office.
Repository Throughout Advent
Please take a few minutes to visit us and browse our selection of Christmas cards and Calendars, plus a nice selection of Advent Calendars for the children. We also have a selection of Christmas candles and small religious items for children and adults. If you don’t see what you are looking for, please ask one of the volunteers for help, and we also look forward to seeing many of you at the Parish Christmas Bazaar.
Office Clerk - Cathedral House
To provide effective and efficient support in relation to administration requirements at Cathedral House.
Hours: 21 hours per week 09.00 until 17.00 (Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays).
Start Date: December/January 2024
Salary- £13 per hour
Apply by sending a CV and covering letter (no longer than A4) hr@brcdt.org
Closing date for applications is 5th December 202
BIN A TIN FOR VIN
The St Vincent Centre is doing wonderful work in Southend helping the poorest amongst us.
You can help the food bank there by bringing a tin of something with you when you come to mass and putting it in VINNIE'S BIN, which will be in the OLD BAPTISTERY.
This will be emptied twice weekly.
St. Vincent de Paul Society(SVP), Our Lady of Lourdes & St. Joseph
St Bernard's High School Open Evening
St Bernard’s High School—A Catholic Academy for Arts and Science
Open Evening for Prospective Year 12— Thursday 30 November 2023—7.00pm to 9.00pm
We would be delighted to welcome to our Sixth Form Open Evening prospective students who are interested in joining St Bernard’s High School’s Sixth Form in September 2024
We welcome applications to our mixed Sixth Form from students of all faiths and none, who meet our entrance requirements and are seeking a school with a Christian ethos.
‘St Bernard’s High School is a welcoming, inclusive school’. Ofsted 2023
‘Leaders have high expectations of pupils in terms of learning and behaviour. Pupils live up to these expectations.’ Ofsted 2023
‘St Bernard’s High School is an outstanding Catholic school - attainment and progress of students is outstanding’ (Diocesan Inspection, 2017)
www.stbernardswestcliff.org.uk, Milton Road, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex SS0 7JS
Our Lady of Ransom Catholic Primary School
Supply Teachers
We are looking to build a team of Supply Teachers. Please Contact Mr Parascandolo via info@olorcps.net for further details.
The Governing Body is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. These appointments are subject to satisfactory references, medical and enhanced DBS checks.
Our Lady of Lourdes PTA
Our Lady of Lourdes Primary School and Nursery are very excited to announce that we have joined up with ‘Leigh Trees’ in their school fundraising scheme. If you are going to buy a Christmas tree this year buying one from Leigh Trees will raise funds for our school.
Simply buy a real Christmas tree, online or in person, and YOU get £10 OFF, and the school PTA will also receive £10 commission for each tree sold.
You can buy online at LeighTrees.co.uk using our personalised Code: olol10 or visit LeighTrees at the A127 Christmas Tree Farm, 579 Prince Avenue, Westcliff on Sea SS0 0JJ, simply mention you are supporting Our Lady of Lourdes Primary School. Trees are available from mid-November with deliveries FREE to all SS postcodes from the end of November.
Many thanks for you support, OLOL School PTA
St Bernard's High School Vacancies
Reprographics and Display Technician Urgently Required
Part-time 25 hours per week 8.00am-1.30pm Monday-Friday (hours negotiable) Term time + 1 week
Scale 7-12 (pro rata)
The school is urgently looking to recruit a Reprographics and Display Technician ideally from 17 November 2023. We are looking for someone organised and adaptable to ensure the smooth running of our Reprographics Department.
The Governing Body is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff to share in this commitment.
If you are interested in this position, please fill in the support staff application form found on our website under https://www.stbernardswestcliff.org.uk/about-us/vacancies/ and email it to recruitment@stbernards.southend.sch.uk
Exam Invigilators required - as soon as possible
Current Hourly Rate: £10.50
Invigilators should be reliable, responsible, and able to follow instructions in a calm and sensible manner.
A flexible approach to working hours is essential and full training will be provided.
We welcome applications from all denominations or none.
The Governing Body is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff to share in this commitment.
If you are interested in this position, please fill in the support staff application form found on our website under https://www.stbernardswestcliff.org.uk/about-us/vacancies/ and email it torecruitment@stbernards.southend.sch.uk
Note: CVs will not be accepted.
Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
Dear friends in Christ
During these final weeks of the liturgical year, the Church calls us to consider the eternal truths.
Dear friends in Christ
During these final weeks of the liturgical year, the Church calls us to consider the eternal truths. These truths are of immediate relevance to our souls. As we read in the Second Reading of today's Mass, our encounter with the Lord will arrive without warning, like a thief in the night. No matter how prepared we think we are for its arrival, death always takes us by surprise. In today's Gospel the Lord teaches us that we must spend our earthly life in such a way as to win Heaven.
Jesus compares our time on earth to a long-term leasing arrangement. For it will be as when a man going on a journey called his servants and entrusted to them his property; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. The owner knew the capacity of each of his servants. The meaning of the parable is crystal clear. We are the servants. The talents are the qualities God has bestowed on us - our intelligence, our ability to love, our power to make others happy, temporal goods ... The journey of the master signifies the duration of our life. His unexpected return signifies our death. The settling of accounts is our judgment. The banquet is Heaven. The Lord frequently reminds us in the Gospels that we do not own what we have. We are stewards entrusted with God's property. A day will come when we shall have to give an account of our behaviour. Let us examine our whole approach to the gifts we have received from God. Do we think of ourselves as stewards, or do we live under the illusion that we are the true owners of what we possess?
When a life comes to an end, perhaps we may think something like a candle has gone out. But we should also see death as the time when something like a tapestry has been completed. We have watched this tapestry being made from the reverse side where the design of the artwork is blurred and the knots and twisted loops of the needlework are prominent. Our Father God contemplates the tapestry from the good side. He is pleased to behold a finished work that manifests a life-long effort to make good use of time.
Next weekend we celebration the Kingship of Christ on the final Sunday of the liturgical calendar; it is also National Youth Sunday, so there is a focus on the place of our young people within the family of the Church. This is followed later that week with the annual days of Solemn Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament—the Forty Hours' Prayer. You can find the lists for Watching during those days at the back of church.
God bless you!
Msgr Kevin Hale
Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
Liturgy:
Readings of Year A
The Nicene Creed
Preface of Sunday 6
Saturday 18
Dedication of the Basilica of Ss Peter & Paul, App
5.30pm Vigil Mass Rene Bragard, RIP Anniv) (RB)
6.30-7.30pm: Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament & Confessions
Sunday 19 November
Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
8am Mass Intentions of Rosemary Mann (RM)
9.30am Mass Donesha D'Cruz, RIP (AJ)
11.30am Mass The People of the Parish
5.30pm Vespers & Benediction
Monday 20
Feria
9am Mass Frank Maguire, RIP (MM)
Tuesday 21
The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
9am Mass Joe Rodgers, RIP (F&JO’B)
Wednesday 22
St Cecilia, V, M
9am Mass Holy Souls
4.45pm Body in Church Yvonne Ashwell-Rivens RIP
Thursday 23
St Clement I, P, M
9am Mass Lilian & Jim Fegan, RIP (JC)
3pm Requiem Mass Yvonne Ashwell-Rivens RIP
Friday 24
St Andrew Dung-Lac, Pr & Cops, Mm
12Noon Mass Maureen Regan, RIP (CR)
Saturday 25
St Catherine of Alexandria, V, M
10am Mass Lola Collingwood, RIP (PC)
10.30-11.30am: Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament & Confessions
5.30pm Vigil Mass Maria Keen, RIP (DL)
6.30-7.30pm: Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament & Confessions
Sunday 26 November
Our Lord Jesus Christ the King
8am Mass The People of the Parish
9.30am Mass Meg Cheeseman RIP (AE)
11.30am Mass Nora Thompson, RIP (DT)
5.30pm Vespers & Benediction
We Pray for the Dead on their Anniversaries
Fr John Harden, Fr James Linburgh, Mgr Edward Watson, Canon Martin Hancock, Agnes Fitzgerald, Emily Hariet-Upcroft, Boleslaw (Charlie) Czogalik, Peggy Ingham, Finbar Hayes, Ada Mundy, Brian Slattery, Josephine Phelps, Paul Pearman, William Shanahan, Rene Braggart, Victor Gubbins, Anne Jordan, Patricia Breslin, William Lewis, Harry Stanley, Constance Dobson, Enos (Alan) Ash, Tina Kentish, Jonathan Marshall, Kathleen McKee, James Carns, Dr Harry Maher, Thomas Mulholland, John Holmes, Bernard Harvey, Elizabeth Watson-Lamb & Marie Wilkes.
We Pray for our Sick
Isabel Coombs, Lucy Moreno, Jose Luis Lira, Richard Poole, Pamela Uglietti, Michael Mapson, Deana Ince, Susan Griffin, Gy Rampersaud, Mary O’Sullivan, Ian Spacie, Bobby Newman, Paul Watts, Christine Reid, Rose D’Souza, Jimmy & Pauline Martin, James Fegan, David Lesley, Kenneth Biebuyck, Zach Stokes, Andrew Stokes, Noel Conroy, Marjorie Jay, Paul Sutton, John Murphy, Jennifer Biebuyck, Moira Scott, Jill Yates, Leonora Maguire, Brian Mountier, Renata Butler, Margaret Bartle, Tony Downey, Kristy Monferrari, Fred Ring, Russell Short, Marie Kharas, Garry Pearman, Patricia Ann Darroch, Patricia Vanner, Amy Louise Fox, Sarah Savage, Bill O’Connell, Charlotte O’Neil, Ella Williams, David Kislingbury, Mark Shepherd, Breege McCaffrey, Mark Hartley, John Lavery, Paul Keane, Rosemary Bragard, Pat Lynch, Ben Wilson, Christian Ryan, Tina Doveaston, Addi Brady, Patricia Fleming, Nicky Wigmore, Rose Craft, Patricia Spikin, Sandra Fagan, Edna Wallace, Beryl Dixon, Nick Evans, Vicky Jack, Mary Boyce, Kristin Hallenga, Anne O’Neill, Cheryl Shallis, Justin Stark, Sheila Netherton, David Blyth, Janet Woods, Lynne Hilkene, June Moncaster, Laura & Anne Breen, Breda Lynch, Maria Clark, Roy Widdecombe, Johanna Lynch, Anthony King, Norma McCleverty, Belinda Balazsi, Johnny Poole, Edward Martin, Joanna Luciani, Pauline Wilsher, Simon Marshall, Kriston Barnes, Hugh Isaacs, Dawn Deleigh, Lorraine Hart, Linda Dean, Georgina Cornwell, Antonella McConalogue, Sharon Levill, Annie Holland, Ivor & Joanne Knight, Brian Beresford, Rebecca Peake, Connor Bourke, Mattia Mollica, Bernadette Lane, Irena Solecki, Ianto Bellis, Marguerite Harris, Andrew Exley, Elizabeth McConalogue, Kean Smith, Keith Maliff, Bradley, Florence Hownam & children: Thomas Ball, Liam Davis, Connie Price, Albert Chambers, Fergus Grant, Mary Isherwood, Lucy Price, Frazer Gregory & baby Forest Gallagher.
Sanctuary Lamp
This week the Sanctuary Lamp burns for the intentions of Lucy & Sean Summers.
Please pray for the repose of the souls of
Mrs YVONNE ASHWELL-RIVENS who died on Friday 27th October. Her body will be received into the church on Wednesday, 22nd November at 4.45pm and her Requiem Mass will take place on Thursday, 23rd November at 3pm.
Mrs PATRICIA BOWER who died on Tuesday 31st October. Her body will be received into the church on Sunday, 26th November at 5pm and her Requiem Mass will take place on Monday, 27th November at 10am, followed by committal at Basildon Crematorium.
Mr KENNETH BIEBUYCK who died on 20th October. His body will be received into the church on Tuesday, 5th December at 4.30pm and his Requiem Mass will take place on Wednesday, 6th December at 11am, followed by committal at Upminster Cemetery.
Mrs SUZANNE (SUE) REYNOLDS who died recently.
Mr NICK FLACH who died on Thursday, 9th November.
Requiescant in pace
Responsorial Psalm at 11.30am Mass (Copy)
Prelude: Recit de Nazard —Louis-Nicolas Clerambault (1676-1749)
Postlude: Basse de Cromorne —L-N. Clerambault
Responsorial Psalm
