Newsletter 377 2nd July 2023

PARISH NEWSLETTER FOR ST. JOSEPH’S (MAIDENHEAD)
& ST. ELIZABETH’S (COOKHAM)

13th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

A simple Cup of Water

 

The examples are stark in the gospel today: about not preferring mother and father to Jesus; about how, in our care for others, we care for Jesus, and how, in our neglect of others, we neglect him.

We need to go beyond the practical example to finding out what is central in our lives and how we see God as central. When God is central, our love can be in the smallest of services to people, like ‘the cup of cold water’.

Jesus is not central outside our humanity, and our human relationships. In the real needs of ordinary people, we meet his needs. We give the ‘cup of cold water’ to the person who needs it, not just to Jesus. It’s like many stories in the gospel of Jesus helping those in real need. This is the central point of faith.

We help in simple ways. This is what Pope Francis refers to in his encouragement of simple love, ‘like the warm supper we look forward to at night, the early lunch awaiting someone who gets up early to go to work. Homely gestures. Like a blessing before we go to bed, or a hug after we return from a hard day’s work. Love is shown by little things, by attention to small daily signs which make us feel at home. Faith grows when it is lived and shaped by love’ (September 2015). 

Recall a time when someone helped you in a small way. Be grateful.
Offer yourself to do the same when you can.

Make me, O Lord, a channel of your peace and love when I see the needs of others.

Readings:

1st Reading: Kings 4:8-11. 14-16

Psalm: 88:2-3,16-19  I will sing forever of your love, O Lord.

2nd Reading: Romans: 6:3-4.8-11

Gospel Acclamation: Alleluia, alleluia! Open our heart, O Lord, to accept the words of your Son. Alleluia!

Gospel: Matthew 10:37-42

URGENTLY NEEDED (Training provided!)

Contact the Parish office if you would like to sign up for:

– altar servers (see more here)

– readers for Sat 6.30pm and Sun 8.00am mass

– 1 volunteer to help with alter linen, 4x/year

– children’s liturgy helpers

This Weekend:

CHILDREN’S LITURGY MEETING  –  a reminder that there is a short meeting with drinks for all Liturgists and helpers this Sunday 2nd July, immediately after the 11.00 a.m. mass in St. Elizabeth’s Room.  Please bring your diaries and your family and friends!  Any parishioners with comments or suggestions are invited too and new helpers are very welcome and much needed.  Contact Tricia Weeks on 01628 627265 or email [email protected] for further details

2nd Collection: Peter’s Pence In the first year of his Pontificate, Pope Benedict XVI stressed the proper meaning of this offering: “‘Peter’s Pence’ is the most characteristic expression of the participation of all the faithful in the Bishop of Rome’s charitable initiatives in favour of the universal Church. The gesture has not only a practical value, but also a strong symbolic one, as a sign of communion with the Pope and attention to the needs of one’s brothers and sisters; and therefore your service possesses a refined ecclesial character”. It is an offering that may be small, but is of great symbolic value: It expresses the sense of belonging to the Church and love and trust for the Holy Father. It is a tangible sign of communion with Him, as Peter’s Successor, and also of attention to the needs of the most disadvantaged, for whom the Pope always cares.

NEXT WEEKEND:

Shauna’s Farewell Party! 

We will all miss Shauna when she leaves the Parish to move back to Ireland. She’ll always have a place in our hearts!! Say goodbye on 9th July after the 11am Mass. This will then be followed by a Pilgrim’s walk to St Elizabeth’s. 

Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA)

Sign up by Friday 1 Sept 2023!

This programme is widely used in many parishes throughout the Diocese. RCIA is both a learning and teaching programme that aims to help those who would like to know more about the Christian faith from a catholic perspective and might be thinking about becoming a Catholic. To be a full member of the Catholic Church you need to complete the process of Christian Initiation, which is when you have been Baptised, Confirmed and made your First Holy Communion. 

The RCIA Programme will begin with the completion of the ten-step programme of the Alpha course run at Windsor. (Sept-Nov 2023). RCIA (Jan – April 2024). Talk to one of our priests. More information is online and on leaflets found at the entrance of the church. See also: here

PILGRIMAGES/ WALKS

The Vision Groups of St Edmund Campion and St Joseph’s are offering opportunities for all in the Maidenhead area to meet those who pray in the various churches of St. Edmund Campion, St Joseph’s or St. Elizabeth’s:

  • 9th July with a walk from St Joseph’s Church after the 11am Mass. There will be an opportunity to meet over refreshment and for those of you who would like to, to join us for a walk to St Elizabeth’s. Refreshments on 9th will before the walk and is very special as it is also Shauna’s farewell party before leaving the parish and moving to Ireland.
  • 30th July. After the 9.15am Mass at St. Elizabeth’s, to walk to St. Edmund Campion church. Hospitality from 12.15pm onwards.
  • 3rd September. After the 11.15am Mass at St. Edmund Campion Church, walk to St. Joseph’s.

You are welcome to attend Mass in your own church or join in the Mass of the hosting Community. Details of the walk can be obtained from Carolyn Foster: 

[email protected].

 

We are looking for young people aged 16+ who would be able to dedicate their participation in the pilgrimage to supporting some of our less agile pilgrims. Our support team each year assists some of our pilgrims by pushing wheelchairs, extending a supporting hand, assisting at mealtimes by carrying plates to tables from the buffet once the pilgrim has chosen their meal, and by extending the ministry of welcome to all our pilgrims. No assistance with personal care is required at any time. The pilgrimage is a rare opportunity to immerse yourself in your faith whilst serving others and enjoying the social aspects of a holiday. Those who have joined us in the past have said that they found the experience inspiring, their faith deepen and the ability to be in a place of peace awesome. Our pilgrimage will cost Youth Pilgrims £699. On 17th July, we will fly direct from Bournemouth airport to Tarbes Lourdes and return on 21st July. There is a familiarisation day for youth pilgrims followed by a pre-pilgrimage gathering for all pilgrims on 24th of June at Milner Hall, Winchester Hall.Lourdes Youth Helpers | Cloyne Diocese

Nurse needed. Are you a nurse?  Would you be available to travel to Lourdes for the 17-21st July 2023 if so, we would love to hear from you.  We need a nurse to support our pilgrim team during our Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes this year.
To join or find out more, please contact Canon PJ Smith (pilgrimage director): [email protected] or call 07780 221686.

90th anniversary of the Apparitions, 70th Anniversary of ‘Pilgrimage GB’) and for the Feast of the Assumption.  A coach will leave from St. Edmund Campion Church, Maidenhead SL6 4PY.  Accommodation and full board (including travel and excursions): staying at the Hospitalité is £420.  (Single room supplement +£100).
The Hospitalité is very spacious and can accommodate all pilgrims, especially those who are sick, disabled or elderly.  It also includes a full catering and medical staff.  (There is a hotel next door for £650 sharing and single room supplement +£200). Fr. Liam Cummins (St. Edmund Campion Parish) will be the Spiritual Director for this pilgrimage and has been going to Banneux since 1996.
If you are interested and would like more information or to reserve a place before June 30th, please contact Lisa Pirie, pilgrimage director, on 07500288384 ([email protected]);    or Father Liam, on 07776580596 (email: [email protected] ). The GB pilgrimage has been going for 70 years and it looks like this will be the last official trip from England, so get on board!

 

Dates for your Diary

Available for all Parents whose child is being Baptised at either St Joseph’s, St Elizabeth’s or St Edmund Campion. The course is a 90-minute preparation and guidance. It is held at St Joseph’s the first Tuesday of the month at 7pm. Future sessions are: Tues 5th September

Each First Friday will see a ‘Healing Mass’ being celebrated alternatively at St. Joseph’s Church and St. Edmund Campion Church for 2023. We bring together all our needs and especially asking God’s healing spirit upon people and situations in our parish. You are very welcome. Sacrament of Reconciliation and Anointing with Holy Oil will be available.

7th July: 10am & 7.30pm masses celebrated in St Joseph’s Church 

4th August: 10am & 7.00pm masses celebrated in St. Edmund Campion

We are all invited to stand in solidarity with small scale farmers in Africa, Bangladesh and around the world to support their Right to use, exchange and save their own seeds and seed varieties in order to protect their “Way of Life”.  You will be invited to sign a letter to the World Bank, in support of this, on the weekend of 15/16 July.  

Thank you

in the parish hall, St Edmund Campion with tea and cake. This is a further opportunity to meet others who are grieving after a bereavement, to share with one another and to consider whether you feel the need for individual or small group support.

 Food and drinks after. All are welcome!  

 

In light of last year’s highly successful BBQ, we have decided to have another one this summer. It will be held at Colby Gardens, Maidenhead. Tickets will be available for sale this coming weekend after each mass. The cost of each ticket is £25 and includes a 3 course meal, with meat from the BBQ. Vegetarian options will also be provided. Please bring. your own drinks. All proceeds will go to our new mission in Chhattisgarh , North India. Please call Millie on 07957594646 for ticket sales or for further information. 

 

 A peaceful guided retreat day for anyone who needs a break. Retreat directed by Dr Judith Thomas. St Katherine’s Retreat House, Henley-on-Thames RG9 6NN. Maximum of 50 people. For booking and more information contact: 01628 628274 or email [email protected]. Full details here and in flyers in the church.

SVP Maidenhead will be holding a musical evening on Friday 6th October from 7.30pm at St Edmund Campion.  Proceeds from the evening will be split equally between the local branch of Care4Calais, a volunteer-run asylum seeker charity and SVP Maidenhead – to help sustain and expand the support given by SVP to those in need, including local people who are lonely, sick, housebound or just struggling to cope.

Tickets are available now at £7 per person.

.

This is a cash only event and drinks and snacks will be available to buy from a Donations Bar

In the meantime, we would love to hear from anyone who would like to take part, whether you’re a singer or if you play an instrument, solo or part of a group – this informal event is about getting local people involved and giving those who are interested a chance to perform while raising funds for a worthwhile cause.

 

 

For event planning, interested musicians (instrumentalists or singers) who get in touch will have a place reserved in the programme and we’ll need to do this on a first come first served basis until we have a full programme (likely to be around one hour each half plus interval).

If you would like to take part, please contact Peter (St Edmund Campion) on 07976 625 813 or Siobhan (St Joseph’s) on 07816 445 416. Thank you for your support.

Our Parishioners

is running the Windsor Women’s 10k on 23rd Sept 2023 in support of Uganda Hands for Hope Charity. If you would like to support, please see: https://www.globalgiving.org/fundraisers/46580/

together with her best friend, Caron, are doing a fundraising road rally trip driving from Cape Town to Zambia to raise funds for a home for people with profound physical and learning disabilities in South Africa.  Claire’s mum Helen and her Dad Carl used to take all the catholic residents to church every Sunday and Helen eventually ran the home for 14 years whilst living in SA.  There are 84 residents (a number of whom are HIV orphans), many of whom have been abandoned as a result of their profound disabilities and they desperately need funds not just for basic necessities but for disability equipment (many of the residents are sitting in wheelchairs without wheels).   Any support would be greatly appreciated and the funds will go directly to the parents association to ensure all money is spent directly on meeting the residents needs.

https://gofund.me/7f53a5ba

RESOURCES

Magnificat: This is one of the best publications around for following scripture readings for daily Mass and every Sunday. There are also many interesting articles to help you in your spiritual life. If you would like a copy please get in touch with Shauna in the Parish Office to arrange. We can leave in the sacristy or post out to you. The Magnificat is only £5 per month.

 

Day by Day: Available in the church at all times. Please leave the £1 in the candle box. 

Library: We have a parish library located in the corridor of the Parish Centre. This is dedicated to Theology/Religious books. Please feel free to borrow/swap. 

St Joseph’s Church Repository: is open after 11am every Sunday. We have lots of cards, candles, rosary beads, statues and many more religious gifts on sale. If a Sunday does not suit to visit, then please phone the office on 01628 783988 and we can arrange a time that best suits.

Are you a budding journalist? Or someone with some time to spare?
We are looking to relaunch the biannual Parish Magazine. 
Please contact the Parish office for more details!

Vacancies – We currently have some exciting opportunities across the Diocese for an Estate Manager, IT Manager, Choral Director, and Parish Administrators. See here

Other information and links

Missio If you have a Red Box which is ready to be emptied, please bring it in over the coming weeks.  

If you’re away from your church or the Diocese, you can still keep in contact with all the latest news from the Bishop or the Diocese via: E- News  (subscription service available)

Twitter @PortsmouthRC

Facebook @PortsmouthRC @StJoMaidenhead

Are You New To Our Parish?

Thank you for your interest in our parish. Whether you’re just visiting us for a brief time, looking for a new parish home, returning to the practice of your Catholic faith or are interested in finding out more about the Catholic Church, we are happy to answer your questions, listen to your comments and help you in any way that we can. We are a parish of the Diocese of Portsmouth, and are a very vibrant community, made up of ‘old’ Maidenhead families and relative “newcomers” from all walks of life.

We hope that you find our Catholic parish a caring community that is loving, welcoming and supportive of all. Our mission is to grow in the image of Christ through the Holy Spirit, to be formed by the Word and our prayer, to use our gifts to welcome those who are here and reach out to those who are not. We invite you to join us as partners in the mission. Together, let us get to know Christ better and to make Him better known. May God Bless you wherever you are and thank you for exploring our website and newsletter. Please stop by the parish office to introduce yourself! We would love to meet you.

Code: SI: Special Intention, RIP: Rest in Peace, A: Anniversary, FM: Foundation