Category: Fr Rory Writes

Our parish Churches, St George’s and St Wilfrid’s, are places where we come together as a community to praise and worship God, to thank Him for his blessings, to ask pardon and forgiveness for our sins, and to offer our lives and petitions on the altar. It is our duty  to make our Churches even more holy by adding our prayers and songs to our worship and by giving our time and talents and  treasure in the various ministries. I am appealing this week for you to volunteer your services as welcomers, readers, ministers of holy communion, altar servers and writing the bidding prayers for use at Mass. None of these take up much time. Help and guidance are available if   needed. They are all really needed in the current time and the more volunteers who come forward the lighter the burden on those  already helping. Please speak to Fr Rory or any of those already helping if you are willing to help in any way. I have always said the   personal approach is the best method of finding volunteers so don’t be surprised if you are asked if you would be willing to help in some way. Unfortunately there is not enough time after Mass as you leave church for us to ask everyone personally. I have never    managed to ask more than two on any one Sunday. I became a deacon some 4/5 years after I was asked one day by my Parish priest if I had ever thought about becoming a deacon. My immediate response was “No Father, what is that?” His question led me to eventually say “I will” after training and preparation. The various ministries that I mentioned earlier require nothing like the preparation to become a deacon. You see them in action each week in our churches, so you already know what they do. These ministries are really   rewarding in that one gains a lot by doing one or more of them – so please help us all by volunteering, preferably before Fr Rory, myself or someone else asks you if you would volunteer!
 

Fr Rory writes:        

As our hub meetings continue to unfold, the future ministry should be beginning to emerge.  Our meeting at Our Lady of Ransom Church has taken place and an important focus was placed upon the parish mission prayer, with the emphasis upon the power of prayer for a successful outcome to the plan.                                                                                                                 

Parish Mission Prayer

Loving God,

empower us through our Baptism,

to live as vibrant and welcoming communities,

centred on the Holy Eucharist.

Inflame us

with your Holy Spirit,

to encourage others to a personal relationship

with Jesus Christ.

Recognising all things as your gift to us,                                             

to be treasured and shared with love,

give us a heart for the poor,

a passion for justice,

a concern for creation,

so that all may live with peace and dignity.

Our Lady and All the Saints Pray for us 

Amen

                                 

The nourishment that we receive

Antiphon, let the hearts that seek the Lord rejoice.  Letter to the Romans “If God is for us, who can be against?”.

Through the week as we celebrate the mass, nourishment is provided to keep our faith alive and help it develop and grow.  To this end our communities have tried to work with one another to do this.  The challenge is now.  So with the help of God we will be able to respond to our changing times and become all the better for it.  From the blessing of the graves, and the occasions that are available to us will help us to survive and grow.  Ten years after celebrating our first mass in the new church, we may give greater attention to St George’s church, which so enriches our story.  It is so important that we continue to give life to our story.

Month of the Holy Souls

Gone before us, marked with a sign of faith.

While growing up in Ireland, I sometimes heard it said “the family that prays together and plays together, stay together”.   Recently we have been blessed by good experiences with the holy memorial and beautiful requiem mass service for Sheila Jury, and followed by a quiz night with memorable moments.  The team that won the prize for best name, brought some special excitement by the way they participated in the evening – credit where credit is due.

There is a very special occasion to look forward to on Friday 12th December in Hailsham; Comedy and   Carols.  This event deserves a lot of attention and communication, but above all, personal invitations.  So often we are so dependant upon a few doing so much.  Hopefully another event could be ever so enjoyable and rewarding, an occasion of remembrance with music and fellowship, remembering the many treasured members of our community who have died.  Bill O’Rourke stands out, as I remember an occasion that he lead, and it was a very memorable evening, with music and dance.

This year is coming to a close, believe it or not, and best foot forward for the coming year.  Let us continue working together, with just a bit more hope and good reason to be confident that the work that is taking place is the best way to go, and with the help of God, more persons working together will bear fruit.

Fruit that will last.

Fr Rory writes:                                          

 Simple & Sincere.                                          For the love of God.

The harvest is great but the labourers are few, ask the Lord of the harvest.

With help of God; let us focus upon the Kingdom of God.  The focus remains the same, the labourers are few.  Moments of Grace are so important, and as you read, our moments of grace are so special.  My greatest failure is expressed in the appeal for Special Ministries.  The constant reality is that the labourers are few.  The Requiem Mass for Shiela Jury was very special, and great thanks to the funeral helpers who worked so hard to provide the event.  Another bonus, Annette has been given a date for her surgery.  The incredible amount of work that she does, sometimes without much support, leaves us very short while she is recuperating.  We wish her a speedy recovery, and like Lulu make a remarkable recovery.  All our thanks is not sufficient, but we remain ever so grateful.  The other items help us to realise how important our newsletter has been as a great platform to help us communicate within our communities.  We hear a lot about it, “to be vibrant communities”.  A constant work that will dictate the outcome for our future.  Other special moments, a call for prayer and thanks for Gary’s dad and the long list, who we remember each week in the newsletter, which is constantly updated.  Constant moments, “Month of the Holy Rosary”, nourishment.

Fr Rory writes:        

Father,                                                Son                                       and Holy Spirit. 

A work in process.  Progress was made at the meeting last Monday at OLR.                                                                                             Our Parish Priest, Fr Kevin has sent us the following information:-

NEW PARISH UPDATE

Our New Parish will operate from 2 Hub centres (the Eastbourne end and the St Leonard’s/Hastings end). We already have an excellent Leadership Group up and running in each Hub, made up of clergy and lay reps from each church. When we reach     Advent, end of November, we will have a Single  Newsletter for all churches in each Hub; all our Catechists will be working together across churches to deliver Sacramental programmes; we will have Stewardship Groups in each Hub, expertise drawn from across our churches, to oversee care of our many buildings in a strategically joined-up way; we will be consulting with you all about revised New Mass Schedules in each Hub, taking account of fewer priests and giving good variety of times for everyone. Please keep all this work in your prayer, and for more detailed info see: https://eastbourne-stleonards.org.uk  God bless,  Fr Kevin (on behalf of the clergy team)

Father,                                                Son                                       and Holy Spirit. 

A work in process.  Progress was made at the meeting on Monday at OLR.                                                                                            

Our Parish Priest, Fr Kevin has sent us the following information:-

NEW PARISH UPDATE

Our New Parish will operate from 2 Hub centres (the Eastbourne end and the St Leonard’s/Hastings end). We already have an excellent Leadership Group up and running in each Hub, made up of clergy and lay reps from each church. When we reach Advent, end of November, we will have a Single  Newsletter for all churches in each Hub; all our Catechists will be working together across churches to deliver Sacramental programmes; we will have Stewardship Groups in each Hub, expertise drawn from across our churches, to oversee care of our many buildings in a strategically joined-up way; we will be consulting with you all about revised New Mass Schedules in each Hub, taking account of fewer priests and giving good variety of times for everyone. Please keep all this work in your prayer, and for more detailed info see: https://eastbourne-stleonards.org.uk  God bless, Fr Kevin (on behalf of the clergy team)

Vibrant Communities,     Vibrant Communities,               Yes, Vibrant.    

Our parish priest, Fr Kevin, continues to highlight our need to be vibrant, and hearing from progress in the diocese in establishing now the new order that is intended to be in place, we must focus our efforts.  Good work has taken place over the years, but now we are at the point of deliverance and facing a challenge.   

The saying is “the proof of the pudding is in the eating”.  We need to continue to develop our responses, so far the preparation for the sacraments of reconciliation and holy communion has got off to a good start.  Last week a good suggestion for caring for the housebound; increasing opportunities to receive holy communion and praying together.  We now have an item from Fr Kevin for next weeks bulletins.  Please continue to pray and work for our future.   

                  “By the grace of God                                   with the help of God”

The Rosary Group at St George’s, faithfully, quietly, constantly over the years gathered to pray and share time together each Monday early afternoon.  This has been invaluable and leaves a great legacy of shared memories and company.  It now lends to something most important for us in facing the challenge for the future.  Suggestion has been raised to Fr Rory, that this could be a valuable opportunity for the elderly to receive Holy Communion in the church to begin with, and then they could join together for the rosary and teas in the hall after the service.

We will also have celebrated the anniversary of the Diocese at Ardingly Showground.  At this time we can hope that it will be a great celebration of our life in the Diocese.  When I entered the seminary, it had just been established, seeing as a good opportunity for a future of its own, freeing it from the clutches of the Diocese of Southwark. 

Father, Son and Holy Spirit,                Jesus, Mary and Joseph

Pray and pray constantly and never loose heart

As we begin a new year with the visit of the Relics, and a very important fruitful meeting with leaders from our two communities at St George’s and St Wilfrid’s.  Please God, we are off to a great start.  A true sense, I hope and pray we have very dedicated hard working core members of our faith communities ……. With a constant underlining true sense we need more persons to step forward and help, my constant prayer is that we are on our way with the help of God.