I am sure that for most of you in our parish the feast of Christmas is being celebrated with the closest members of your family. I am sure that for many of you the celebration will continue into the New Year. The family is the basic cell of human society. If relationships are strong within the family, then its members are enabled in turn to form strong loving relationships outside the family.
When we look at the Holy Family, we see where the basis of their strength lay. They all had a deep love of the Father and they were continually aware of the Father's love for each one of them. In other words, because they were loved they were then capable of giving love themselves. We are the same - if we experience love then we can reach out in love. If we don't experience love in our own lives then it is going to be so much more difficult to reach out in love to others. This is why it is so important for children to experience love in their own homes from their own parents and extended family. This is why this season of the year is such an important time for families to have some quality time together.
I would like to express my thanks to all the members of the parish for the great support you give to the parish. So many visitors say to me what a friendly parish we are at St Joseph's. My thanks also to all who have made this such a lovely Christmas in the parish. The services were all very special, helped so much by our readers, musicians and so many others. The churches were really well prepared which contributed so much to our enjoyment of the festive season. My special thanks to all from the parish who were involved in the Christmas lunch in the parish centre. It did involve a lot of work, but it was worth it to see so many people who would otherwise be on their own have such a good time together here at St Joseph's.
Finally, on a personal note, I would like to thank you all for such generous Christmas offerings. If the size of your offerings is a mark of your appreciation, then I feel very much appreciated by the members of this parish.
Fr Tom
Today's gospel begins with a journey. The journey of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth. Mary went so that she could be with someone who could share her joy and understand the meaning of that joy. She also went so that she could be of help to Elizabeth for the birth of her child.
I am sure that many of you will be travelling to be with your loved ones and share the joy of this season with those you love most.
The coming days will be particularly busy in our parish. First of all there will be the preparation of the churches, getting them ready so that they will reflect the festive season that we celebrate and are enjoying.
There will be the Christmas liturgies that I hope will reflect the joy that we share at this special season. My thanks to all who are involved in the liturgy and through whose efforts, make our services so special particularly at this time of year.
On Christmas day, St Joseph's will again host the Churches Together lunch. This as we know is a very big task and does demand a lot of planning and organisation. I have to say that it gives me great pride in the people of our parish that so many of you are willing to change your plans to help with the lunch so that no-one will have to be on their own.
My wish for all of you is that this season will be a time of celebration and joy. That you can celebrate with those who mean most in your lives and that all of us may in some way hold on to that spirit going into the new year.
Today's liturgy has a certain upbeat tone about it. The first word of the introit is Rejoice and why do we rejoice? - the Lord is near. The psalm tells us to "sing and shout for joy". If that is not enough St Paul tells us that he wants us to be happy. So all about our Mass there are lots of very positive words. The call to us is to look outside of ourselves and let go, and to place Christ at the centre of our lives, nothing else really matters.
I wonder how this fits into how we are feeling at the moment? It is easy for us to get carried away at this time of the year and get involved in all sorts of things that have nothing to do with the season and certainly do not bring us happiness. We need to take stock and realise what we are about and what this time of the year is all about. St John was asked what they must do. He is very quick and clear of what was expected of them. Look outside of yourselves, not your needs but the needs of others. We will not be happy by just looking after our own needs - we need to realise that we are not the centre of the world. Everything does not revolve around us and if we think that it does then we are only going to be unhappy. We need to see that there is a world out there with all sorts of needs and we have to do our part to reach out and play our part in making that world a better place.
We live in a world where so many people are still looking for meaning in their lives. If we live out this season in a proper way then not only will we find God for ourselves but we can be instruments in leading others to God and bringing meaning to their lives.
Today’s liturgy brings us the figure of St John the Baptist. He sort of rushes into our lives bringing his message of preparing the way of the Lord. There is a freshness and urgency about him. He calls us to repent and to start now - there is no time to waste. There is also a certain simplicity about his message. For him, the way ahead is very clear and only one thing matters, that is making way for the Lord. Apart from that nothing else really matters. How different John is from us and our world. At this time of year what do we hear of from people except how busy we all are and how many things there are to do. When did any of us last meet someone who was really happy and enjoying the preparation for the coming of Jesus among us? Sometimes it does us all good to take a step back and ask ourselves what it is all about. Why is everyone rushing about? Why are so many people unhappy at this time of the year? The answer is that we forget what it is all about - Jesus becoming man and sharing our life and condition.
For us who share the Christian message, this is the time for us to give a lead and by living our faith in a joyful way we can show the world what this season is all about. It is about Jesus, of Him sharing His life and we following in His way. About sharing our lives, being generous and helpful and making life better for others. The more we can reach out the more we will find happiness and fulfilment in our own lives. We don’t need to follow the ways of the world; we can in fact lead the world into new ways.
Today begins the new church year with the celebration of the first Sunday of Advent. As we begin a new year it is a chance for us again to put our lives in order, to prepare the way of the Lord.
Before we start the preparation for the coming of Jesus in human form, the liturgy today draws our minds to the end. To the second coming of Jesus, when He will come to claim His kingdom. It is like reading a book and starting at the last chapter to see where the story ends, and then when we know where the story ends it is safe to go back and read all of it.
At the time of the gospels the faithful were awaiting the second coming of Christ within their lifetime. It was only as time went on that they came to realise that the end would not come to everyone at the same time. Each one of us needs to get on with our own lives knowing that the end could come at any time. The essential attitude for us is that of watchfulness and being ready for whatever comes. Gradually as advent progresses, the light of Jesus will light up our lives.
Today we begin with one advent candle being lit. Each week we will light another candle to remind us of the gradual coming of the light of Christ into our lives.
What we do in church should guide us as to what we do in our homes - a gradual preparation, slowly building up to the great celebration of Christ's coming. The advent calendar should be our guide doing a little each day building up to the great day when we celebrate Christ's coming among us.
Today, the last Sunday of the year, we celebrate the feast of Christ the King. At a first glance it seems an unusual title to give to Christ, because I am sure that for most of us the title of king brings thoughts of power, privilege and influence. At no time during His life did Christ ever exercise any of these things that we associate with royalty. He never held any public office or have any people who were under His authority so we look on Christ as a different type of king.
He came among us to carry out the will of His Father and that will was that Christ through His suffering would bring salvation to all mankind. He was always aware of the love that the Father had for Him. It was the knowledge of that love that gave Christ the security to carry out His mission. The life of Christ was a life of service first to His Father and then to all those that the Father had sent Him to serve. We can speak of Christ as king in the service that He gave in carrying out His duties. If we are serious about following Him we need to follow His way and His sense of values that inspired His life.
It would be foolish for us to think that the way of Christ is easy. The reality is that it is far from easy because the way of Christ is very often the opposite to the way of the world. We all like to get recognition and acceptance from the world. If we wish to follow Christ we will have to make choices and some of these choices may make very little sense to the world. Above all we need to be seen to be faithful to our call of love of God and neighbour. If we can do that then today we can celebrate Christ as our King.
We have had a wonderful summer that has gone on and on. All around us now we see the signs that we are moving into winter. The days are now so much shorter; the trees have shed their leaves and it has got much colder. We have to face up to the fact that winter is on the way.
Today as we come to the end of our liturgical year, our readings remind us that just as nature is constantly changing, our own lives are too. The world as we know it is passing away. Our time here is limited. We may look on this with great sorrow or we may look on it as a sign of great hope.
Christ puts the facts before us and we would be very foolish people if we ignored them. All of us have a limited time here in this world; the time will differ for each one of us but the certainty is that we will all have to face death and then a new world.
Our Christian belief is that life after death will be with Christ who now shares His life in the fullness of the Trinity. We know that we are already in part in the life of the Trinity but after death we will enjoy that life in a complete way. So our preparation for life after death starts now and the life that we will have after death will be a continuation of our present life.
We don't just sit about waiting for death but we should live our lives as a preparation for eternal life, doing the things that will prepare us best for the fullness of the life of love after death. It would be very foolish people who use all their energies in things that in the context of eternal life are worthless. Christ gave His life for others; He made life better for other people. If we are to follow in His way, we should also think of others and do our part in making the world a better place for other people.
Today the second collection is taken for Bamenda. Many of you will be aware that Bishop Crispian visited Bamenda, our twinned Diocese in Cameroon, in January. The Bishop and Archbishop Paul of Bamenda re-affirmed their commitment to the link between the two Dioceses.
All the people the Bishop met; priests, teachers and health workers, but most of all the ordinary members of the parishes and congregations, were well aware of the link between Portsmouth and the Diocese in West Africa and were enormously grateful for the help that they have received in the last year.
All of the money raised by parishes, schools and individuals goes directly to projects that have the support of both the Archbishop of Bamenda and the Bamenda Committee in Portsmouth. We have helped build churches, parish halls, health centres and schools as well as providing funds for catechists and training programmes of various kinds. For all projects, a contribution is expected either in money or "in kind" from the local people so that they do not come to rely on charity but have local ownership and pride in these joint ventures.
Donations amounting to £70,000 have been distributed to Bamenda projects this year. This is a wonderful exhibition of the generosity of the people of the Portsmouth Diocese. Please continue to give generously to this most worthwhile work of love and fellowship.
Today we celebrate the feast of All Saints, giving thanks to God for all those who have gone before us, and who now enjoy the complete happiness of heaven. These are the ordinary people who never did anything that will be recorded in history but who led good honest lives and are now reaping the reward.
During the month of November we tend to remember our dead, especially those souls in Purgatory. It is important to pray for those of our loved ones who have gone before us. They loved us while they were in this life and I believe that their love for us does not end after death.
Next Saturday, 8th November, we will have a special mass in St Joseph's for all those who have died. The mass is open to all who wish to come and remember their dead. What is special is that we read out the names of those whose funeral service took place from this parish in the last year. The names will be read out and the relatives will be invited to come forward and light a candle. If there are other members in the parish who have lost loved ones in the past year, I would also invite them to come to that mass and light a candle and remember their loved ones in that special way. We are all united in that we have all lost loved ones and we all need the support of each other.
Today in Portsmouth Bishop Crispian will celebrate Mass to mark the Silver Jubilee of Pope John Paul II and the beatification of Mother Teresa. We are all invited to join our prayers with the Bishop as he gives thanks for the lives of these two great church leaders.
When the history of the end of the Twentieth Century is written Pope John Paul will be seen as one of the major players. He was one of the major figures in the collapse of the Soviet Union. Mikhail Gorbachev has testified that nothing would have happened in Eastern Europe as it did, without the Pope's intervention. The Pope hoped that this new found freedom would lead to a great spiritual revival rather than the quest for materialism that swept through the world.
Pope John Paul was the great travelling pope visiting so many new parts of the world. Those among us who were around at the time will never forget his visit to this country and the marvellous gatherings up and down the country.
I am sure that it is a sadness to all of us as Catholics that for many the Pope is such a figure of hate. Maybe this should not surprise us as he has set himself and the Church as a counter culture against the materialism of the western world.
Today we rejoice that the life of Mother Teresa is being acknowledged. She dedicated her life to the support of the poor and the homeless; she helped many people to have at least some quality of human life. Clearly she could not banish all poverty and hunger, but she did lead the way. The best way that we can honour her memory is to continue her work of care for the disadvantaged of this world.
One of the tasks that the diocesan council has set itself is to draw up a diocesan strategic plan. The reason for the necessity for such a plan is that the decline of priests, that up to now has been gradual, will in the next ten to twenty years become dramatic. In twenty years we will have at most, only half of the present number of priests working in our diocese. For a start, this will mean a large reduction in the number of Sunday masses. But what about the present number of parishes and mass centres? If we maintain the present number then we will have to look at other ways of staffing them. Will we go down the road of ordaining more deacons or will we train lay administrators and full-time catechists? We could of course allow nature to take its course and allow our numbers to be left to decline - I am sure that no-one would want that to happen. There is not a clear road ahead and the Bishop on his own, cannot change the situation.
We can face the above problem as hopeless and wait for the inevitable decline to happen and blame others for doing nothing. Or we can see the problem as an opportunity for all of us to work together to find a new solution and look for new ways of doing things and of being a church.
Some things are clear for us as Catholics. We cannot hope to keep our catholic faith alive without regular mass. We also need to continue to work within the framework and perimeters of the universal church. I am sure that no one in this parish would want to go ahead in ways that would be divisive and may ultimately lead to division.
The first step we all need to take is the continual renewal of our own lives under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We need to place prayer at the centre of our lives.
If anyone in this parish would like to contribute to the debate then you can write to the secretary of our own pastoral council or write directly to the secretary of the diocesan pastoral council.
Last week was a busy week for me and it meant being out of the parish for three diocesan meetings. It is always difficult when three meetings fall in the same week. It makes the task of balancing my responsibilities to the parish and trying to make a contribution to the life of the diocese more difficult.
Spirituality: I belong to a small diocesan group whose task it is to help develop the spiritual life of the diocese. We try to be a resource group, not so much to do ourselves but to enable others to be able to do so. In the past a lot of the work was the development of weeks of guided prayer. We make lists of spiritual directors, who are available. In general we try to draw to the attention of the diocese the importance of spirituality in the renewal of our lives. One area where I have been drawn recently is doing some work with students for the priesthood. Exploring their spiritual journey with them.
Priest support: More than ever before, priests work in parishes without the support of another priest. In the past it was usual to have two or more priests working together in parishes. The need of support from fellow priests is very important even though we (priests) all know and appreciate how much help and support we receive from our parishioners. There are some areas where we need the support of each other as priests. There is a diocesan structure where support is offered.
Diocesan Pastoral Council: The council is made up of representatives of all the deaneries, lay and clergy as well as diocesan officials. It is under lay chairmanship. The purpose of the council is to be a forum where the concerns of the diocese are aired and addressed. At present the council is involved in developing a diocesan plan for the future of the diocese.
DEANERY PASTORAL COUNCIL
Work is now under way for the establishment of a Deanery Pastoral Council. A full meeting of the old council members took place a few weeks ago and from that meeting a small working group was set up to draw up draft guidelines for the new pastoral council. Their first draft will be on the notice boards from today. I would welcome any comments.
The next deanery meeting will take place in Windsor on Tuesday November 4th. We will need three delegates to serve on that council and I would like to hear from anyone who would be willing to represent our parish on it.
A lot of people ask why we need a deanery pastoral council.
Could it not be left to the clergy as it always was?” First of all, we now have far fewer clergy than we did in the past and it looks as if we will have even less in the future. Secondly, if we are to work collaboratively, we need to continually work together - clergy and laity. As local parishes we have many things that are of mutual interest to all of us and we can be of great support to each other.
We also have to realise that the church as it is organised at the moment is going to change. As far as we can see at the moment, in the not too distant future not every parish in this deanery will have its own priest. This will mean that the priests will have to be deployed differently. I am sure that as a local church, we need to be involved in managing that change. We would not expect someone to come from Portsmouth and tell us how things should be. I am sure that future planning is best done with local discussion as well as discussion with the diocese in Portsmouth.
Disability Discrimination Act
When I think back on my own attitudes to disability, I have to say how ashamed I am when I think of how ignorant and disinterested I was on the whole area of disability. The whole area of including those with disabilities never even crossed my mind. It is not much of a consolation to realise that my attitude rather that being exceptional was in fact, typical. It is also humbling for us all as a church that by and large the gradual change for the most part has been by people outside the Christian family. It is sad for us to think that it has taken legislation to convince many of us of the need to change. The act does not come into law until October 2004 but I hope that all the parish will feel that now is the time to act and we should not wait any longer.
Already a lot of work has been done in the parish, led by Robert Bell, in making us aware of the needs of the disabled. We can no longer be happy to leave all this work to the interested few. It is the task of all our community.
I am sure that no-one in our community wants our parish to be left behind in complying with this new legislation. I feel that we should show our good will and do all we can immediately. Clearly we have a difficulty with St Joseph’s sanctuary because of the number of steps, so for the moment we cannot do much with our Sunday masses. For weekdays, I am proposing that we would have Mass on a special altar down on the floor. This will give access to the sanctuary area to everyone. I hope that those among us who are not very keen on change will be generous in welcoming this change so that all who come will be able to exercise their ministry and not feel excluded.
As a parish community, we need to be continually aware of those with disability and to remove all the obstacles that may be excluding them from being fully involved in ministry.
On Thursday 11th September, we had our first meeting of our pastoral council. The first meeting of the year means that we say goodbye to the old members and welcome the new. I would like to record my appreciation to the three founding members who have completed their term of office: Mrs S Beaumont, Mr A Bernard and Mr C Pestridge. As the first members of our pastoral council they were the ones who had to lay the foundations for the way ahead. This meant preparing a new constitution and from that, opening the way to include new members onto the council. I would particularly like to thank Sarah who has been chairperson and Anthony who has been secretary.
Our new officers for the coming year are: Chairperson: Mrs Stephanie Stokes; Deputy Chair: Mrs Pat Pope and Secretary: Mrs Pat Weavers. I know that you all join with me in welcoming them to their new positions. They can only do their work provided that they enjoy the full support of all the parish.
One of the strengths and also the weakness of parish life is that we are dealing with volunteers all the time. If people do not want to help or be involved, then that is their right. However, if we are to have a living strong parish, we know that it cannot happen without the active support of many people so hopefully all parishioners will be involved in some way. Today I invite all of us to make a new positive start to our new year and play our part in the building of our community.
I am sure that there are many in the parish that would like to return to the old ways of parish life where the priest decided everything. Well, we cannot go back as we belong to a church that has fewer priests and will be further reduced in the future. So if we are to grow, we will need more involvement from the parishioners. We also need to recognise that through our Baptism, we are all called to active service in the life of the Church.
I am sure that we can all leave our summer holidays behind us at this stage and start thinking about the real world again. Before we leave the summer, I hope that you, like me, can look back on the best summer that we have had for years with a real sense of gratitude.
We now need to get going again and get involved in the various parish activities. The First Communion preparation has already got under way.
Douai Retreat Day: We have booked a retreat in Douai on Saturday 20th September. This is open to any member of the parish but if I may remind readers and special ministers that when you took on your ministry, you promised to do a retreat. I hope that you still take that promise seriously.
Journey in Faith: Last year we had no take up to our call to the Journey in Faith meetings. I hope that we can do better this year. We are all called through our own baptism to be disciples, to spread the good news of the Gospel. On our own it is very difficult to do this but working together we can reach out and invite others into our community. Our first meeting of Journey on Tuesday 23rd September is an open meeting to which you are all welcome. But more than that, I would ask all of you to think of someone you know to invite to that meeting. It may be someone who is interested in finding out about the Church or it may be some one who wishes to return to church after being away. It is your chance to invite them to our parish.
Today is my last day with you in the Parish. For me it is a day tinged with sadness and joy. Sadness to be leaving but joy at having three wonderful years. When I came to Maidenhead three years ago I was unsure of how I would settle in. Again I found myself as a student with the long learning curve to master. I must admit it daunted me. I had left the security of a career in education and the Presentation Brothers who had been my extended family for almost twenty years. I had embarked on a new journey and I didn't know how it would develop. Almost immediately the people of the parish set about making me feel at home. Your kindness and friendship have been amazing and a credit to you all. Last week's gospel could not have been better. Your religion goes far deeper that mere lip service. Your generosity and genuine concern proved to me that I had made the right choice. The path to priesthood is not an individual one. The community in which you develop is vital to your future ministry and I thank the people of this parish for giving me a sound footing. For the past few weeks I have found myself on "cloud nine". The Ordination weekend can only be summed up as awesome. My parents and family were astounded and honoured by the great welcome you gave them and have not stopped talking about it. It is impossible to thank you all as much as I would wish to and to name you all would take weeks, but your kindness will be forever in my heart. For all the wonderful gifts and cards, thank you so much, your generosity is much appreciated. The greatest gifts a person can take from a place are happy memories and I have them in abundance. Please pray for me as I embark on the new leg of the great journey of life and be assured of my prayers.
Contact Details
Parish Priest: Fr. Tom McGrath, Tel: 01628 783988
Parish Office: 01628 783988 Fax: 01628 776863 (Monday to Friday 9.am to 12 noon)
Parish Centre: 01628 636312 (Monday to Friday 9.30am to 12.30pm)