Author: Jacky

Fr Rory Writes

Time moves on quickly, and the request from Pope Francis it is time for; and of great importance to the church that we have a Synod.  It is now time to get this underway.  Two key questions for us as we begin A) Why:   Why do we need a Synod?  B) How:  How do we achieve the best outcome possible?, and the steps for us to take to do this.

The latest instalment that we have received is this:-

Synod of Bishops 2023 – not just for Bishops!
Pope Francis has said a synodal Church, in announcing the Gospel, “journeys together:” He asks us “How is this “journeying together” happening today in your particular Church?”

The Pope is asking us to dream what the Church could be, and to walk together into God’s future, where that Church becomes a reality.
Let us pray that we can listen to, and journey together with as many of our communities as possible, so that together we help to build up the Church and pass that message, loud and clear, to the bishops of England and Wales, and then to the Pope himself.

Synod Prayer
We stand before You, Holy Spirit, as we gather together in Your name.
With You alone to guide us, make Yourself at home in our hearts: teach us the way we must go and how we are to pursue it.
We are weak and sinful.  Let us find in You our unity so that we may journey together to eternal life and not stray from the way of truth and what is right.
All this we ask of You, who are at work in every place and time, in the communion of the Father and the Son, forever and ever. Amen.

Hailsham Foodbank

During November they will be having their annual Tesco National collection in Hailsham.  They need volunteers to man the collection point and below you will see the link for people to sign up.  A member of the foodbank staff will be manning collections at all times along with the volunteers.  https://doodle.com/poll/vdttig6n4br5tn5y?utm source=poll&utm medium=link

Enriching Our Catholic Faith

“ENRICHING OUR CATHOLIC FAITH”:  a series of talks at Our Lady of Ransom Catholic Church, Eastbourne. A chance to enrich and deepen our understanding of our faith.

Tuesday, 16th November: ‘The Good Life: can you be a good, moral person and have a fulfilled life -without God?’  Speaker:     Fr Kevin Dring.

Tuesday, 30th November: ‘Jesus: who do people say I am? What the New Testament tells us – also the Early Church’ Speaker: John de Waal.

Monday, 6th December: ‘Gaudete! and the gift of Christian Joy.’  Speaker: Fr Tristan.

Tuesday, 14th December: ‘COP 26 and its aftermath.’ Speaker: Barbara Echlin.

Sessions will be in the Parish Centre (accessed from the church car park) from 7.30 – 8.30pm – with a break halfway for refreshments. All are welcome to all or any of the talks!

St Wilfrid’s Afternoon Tea

St Wilfrid’s Afternoon Tea, Thurs 28th Oct for the over 50’s:  With the sun streaming in, 13 of us sat down to a variety of good home made and prepared food.  We had to keep moving the butter out of the sun! so it would be ok for our homemade cheese scones.  We had a little raffle, 8 prizes, 50p tickets.  After tea a game of “Dog Bingo” which was a laugh, winners picked something from our “Sales Table”.  Menus for our Christmas Lunch at Kings Head – Horsebridge:  Thursday 9th December, were passed around so we could see the very good value for money meal.  We decided  our December meeting, Thursday 30th December would be a special one as it will be the day before New Years Eve.  We will be in party mood with music and all the trimmings for a jolly good time.  It would be lovely to see you there, do try to make it.  Meanwhile our November tea will be at 2pm on Thursday 25th Nov.

Synod of Bishops 2023 – Not Just for Bishops!

Pope Francis says that the purpose of the Synod is not to produce documents, but to plant dreams, draw forth prophecies and visions, allow hope to flourish, inspire trust, bind up wounds, weave together relationships, awaken a dawn of hope, learn from one another and create a bright resourcefulness that will enlighten minds, warm minds and give strength to our hands!  

The Pope has asked all the Bishops, in every diocese of the world, to reach out and listen to all baptised people, young and old, poor and excluded, so that the Bishops can discern what the Holy Spirit is saying to the Church.
(The Lord often reveals the most prudent course to be followed to those who do not occupy important positions in the community, said  St Benedict)
Our Parish will be involved in this work of listening and will be providing more information soon.

Following on from last week

Some good news that was brought to my attention by Joe Roberts.

How do they make Olympic medals from unwanted phones and electronics?  This web link will show a short video:                          https://www.independent.co.uk/tv/news/olympics-medals-recycled-gold-silver-ve50222a5?amp

A behind-the-scenes look has shown how Olympic Tokyo 2020 medals are made from recycled smartphones and electronic devices.  It is the first time in history that the Olympic and Paralympic medals have been made using recycled metals.

“Approximately 5,000 medals have been produced from small electronic devices that were contributed by people all over Japan,” the Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games wrote.

“We hope that our project to recycle small consumer electronics and our efforts to contribute to an environmentally friendly, sustainable society will become a legacy of the Tokyo 2020 Games.”