Category: Latest News

Please pray for the repose of the soul of Bill O’Rourke, who sadly past away on Tuesday.  Eternal rest give to him O’Lord and let   perpetual light shine upon him.  May he rest in peace, Amen.

Apostleship of the Sea – Sea Sunday 14th July

Today is Sea Sunday, when the Church prays for all those who live and work at sea.  Without them we would not have most of the items we buy in the shops.  Today’s second collection is for Stella Maris (Apostleship of the Sea), the Church’s official maritime welfare agency.  It supports seafarers both practically and spiritually.  This collection is vital to enable it to continue its work, so please give generously and remember seafarers in your prayers.  Thank you.  To donate online please visit www.apostleshipofthesea.org.uk

Fr Rory Writes:

Thanks be to God:  I have been given the green light to return to ministry, and for this I am very grateful to God.   Bishop Richard and with him the Diocesan Care Team have given me incredibly good support, and I have been blessed.

My experience has caused me a great amount of painful soul searching time, especially three weeks on the Island of Alderney.  The Lord is compassion and love; but that means we share in His passion.  I had a lot of time to review my faults and my failures, and when you come to that moment in the Gospel when the beam in your eyes needs to be removed, before you can attempt to do anything different,  I was indeed drained and strained.   Then from the Lord came very clearly the message that with the Lord there is mercy and fulness of redemption.  So I seek that mercy and I ask those who have their misgivings for a season of grace.  For those who have been so happy to see me back has been such a help.

When I and others were in the Seminary quite a while ago, we had a time of great hope and expectation.  The 2nd Vatican Council had taken place; a promise of new life and spirit in our church with much involvement by lay people.  I truly believe Bishop Richard’s challenge of what the church will be in 2030 is most important.  Now with the shortage of priests this challenge has to be faced, and with the help of God, though different; the life in both our churches will be strong.

Help Needed Please:  Due to the retirement of one of our wonderful volunteers, The Link Coffee Shop is in need of a volunteer cook to prepare and serve meals.  If this is something you could possibly help with, please pop in to The Link or phone Kay on 01323 441142.  Thank you. The Link Coffee Shop is part of the Crosslink Trust – Churches working together in Hailsham.

United Nations Lunch:  The United Nations Lunch has been a great success again this year, blessed with lovely sunshine.  Thank you to all who supported with their attendance, supply of donated food and items for the tombola.  Thanks to each and everyone who has helped in this event of fundraising for the church.  The final account will be announced later.

The KSC and SPUC invite you to please continue to pray the Rosary for the Unborn.  The intention for July is for the Church, that its witness for Life may touch the hearts of all people.

Pilgrimage of Reparation and Consecration:  Saturday 20th July, West Grinstead.  Mass at 12 noon.  Bishop Richard will be attending during the afternoon.  For further information please contact: Jozef Bubez Tel: 01444 232974, Jayne Lock Tel 07816 422852, Email: [email protected]

St George’s Readers:  Your guides are at the back of the church.  Please collect as soon as possible.  Thank you.

Apostleship of the Sea – Sea Sunday 14th July

Next week is Sea Sunday, when the Church prays for all those who live and work at sea.  There will be a second collection for Stella Maris, Apostleship of the Sea, the official maritime welfare agency of the Catholic Church.  It provides practical and spiritual support to seafarers visiting our ports.  As it is dependent on voluntary donations, please give generously.  For more information about its work, visit www.apostleshipofthesea.org.uk

Deacon John Writes: 

Do you ever stop to try to work out how strong your faith is, how kind we are to those we encounter? In short, how do we rate in those things that make up a good Christian? Of course we won’t always get it right, but neither will we always get it wrong and if we realise this it will help stop us from getting over-confident when we succeed, and from getting too down-hearted when we fail.

Donald Attwater, in his Dictionary of Saints, says that when the Church declares someone to be a Saint: “It does not imply a blanket approval of all a saint’s words and deeds, their opinions, policies, and politics. Saints are not faultless; they do not always think and behave well and wisely. They are people whose personal daily lives were lived, not just well, but at an heroic level of Christian faithfulness and integrity.” They could say in the words of Saint Paul: “I live, yet not I, but Christ lives in me.”

Life really is a series of troughs and peaks and together with the description of a saint as someone who is not faultless should be very encouraging to all of us. This should remind us not to get too depressed or worry too much if we think we are not holy enough. No one is holy enough, but be assured being unholy from time to time is quite normal!

John Wesley gave us some useful pointers to help to get us on the right track so that we can follow the way of Jesus, when he said: “Do all the good you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.”

Our lives will always be a mix of emotions and we have to find a way to cope with them, to get the balance right. I hope that this article will help.

With my love and prayers.