Category: Saint George’s latest news

On 10th July 2021, 10 children from St Wilfrid’s parish celebrated their first Holy Communion mass. After months of delays due to Covid-19, everyone looked forward to the day with anticipation and we were not disappointed. It was all perfect, the church was beautifully decorated, thank you Jean for arranging the flowers, David spared his free time and was a photographer for the day, all children wore their best outfits and knew exactly what to do. This left us, the parents and families to just sit and enjoy it. None of this would have been achieved without the hours that were put in by our three catechists, Annette, Teresa and Sophie and, last but not least, our beloved Fr Rory. They all put their time and energy into teaching and preparing the children, especially at this difficult time. So, on behalf of all the children, parents and families involved, Thank you!

St Wilfrid’s Celebration Mass 15th August 10.30 am:

This Mass is to celebrate us coming back together as a community.  After Mass refreshments will be available and there will be a tombola to help raise funds.  We are asking for items for the tombola; bottles, alcoholic and soft drinks also any unwanted gifts that are in good condition. Please at this time no bric a brac as we do not have the room to store. Please leave items in the church porch.

The Rosary group will re-start on Monday, 9 August 2021, at 2:30p.m. in St. George’s hall.  Parishioners from both churches are welcome.  Please contact Martin 01323 485474.

Beginning Experience Weekend:  October 8^th – 10^th, Sion Community, Brentwood, Essex. For those who find themselves single again following divorce, separation or bereavement.

Beginning Experience is a weekend programme to help you move from the darkness of your grief into the light of a new beginning.  More details at [email protected] .

St Wilfrid’s Community Lunch at the Treacle Mine – 12 noon on the 5th August:

After our very successful meal together in June, we have decided to have another on Thursday the 5th August at 12 noon at the Treacle Mine. If you are interested, please contact Joan tel: 07873390944.  We invite all our friends from St George’s and St Wilfrid’s and look forward to seeing you there. This Sunday is the very last date you can book a place at this social event.  If you would like to get to know other members of our community then this is a good opportunity to do so.  We look forward to meeting you.  “BON APPETITE” to all of you.

In the Gospel this Sunday, Jesus speaks about food. The two biggest sellers in any bookstore, according to Andy Rooney, are the cookbooks and the diet books. The cookbooks tell you how to prepare the food, and the diet books tell you how not to eat any of it! Orson Wells once said, “My doctor has advised me to give up those intimate little dinners for four — unless, of course, there are three other people eating with me.” Champion archer Rick McKinney confesses that he regularly eats chocolate chip cookies for breakfast. He refers to “the basic four food groups” as a Big Mac, fries, a shake and a lemon tart. A California scientist has computed that the average human being eats 16 times his or her own weight in an average year, while a horse eats only eight times its weight. This all seems to prove that if you want to lose weight, you should eat like a horse. (Sunshine Magazine). — That’s a subject most of us know too much about. A recent survey found that 41% of men and 55% of women consider themselves overweight. In one way or another, many of us are obsessed with earthly food. Think what a difference it would make in our lives if we were equally obsessed with Heavenly Food, the Food that Christ gives us!

It was a time of hope; indeed one of great hope when I entered the seminary with many others over fifty years ago.  May be as my mum might say “we were all young then”.  The war was long over and indeed in time the same will be said of the coronavirus.

The important thing then was good Pope John and the 2nd Vatican Council that he had set in place.  Pope John said “to let some light and fresh air into the church”, which was certainly called for.  In our seminary we were truly blessed with a professor, Fr Seamus Ryan, a great teacher but above all one who inspired.

His focus was the presence of Christ in the life of the church.  He was very good at setting out his subject, particularly when it applied to Scripture and the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.  Highlighting the different ways that Christ is present, beginning with His presence in the assemble of the faithful.  This was tackled in depth, creating a platform for the renewal of the liturgy, and indeed the people of God.  It highlighted the background to the different ministries, that needed to be developed in order to express the life of the church.

When lockdown happened, it revealed what little progress had been made in building a “new generation” and what a poor job we had made of this great window of opportunity.  The question of stewarding arose;  the age requirement being under seventy exposed a lack of parishioners able to meet that demand.  I had to face up to the poor job that had been done to encourage new growth in my parish with the same situation being true of most parish priests.

Now as the window of opportunity returns for a fresh start, with the help of God, we can set sail once again for the future.  It is a time to live and learn, a new generation is needed.  A fresh structure, with greater flexibility and encouragement, in one word “inspiration” is now called for.  We must work together to share, encourage and develop lives of faith, that give witness to our Christian lives which we receive at baptism.  The celebration of the sacraments of First Holy Communion and Confirmation this year gave us a tangible sense of this when the ceremonies took place using the candidates baptismal candles.  At our baptism this light symbolizing the light of Christ was entrusted to us to be kept burning brightly.  Please God, may this be at the heart of our resolve as we return to church with hope and fresh motivation.

May the Lord bless and complete our work, the work of God’s salvation for all.

Diocesan Youth Service – 40^th Anniversary Celebration – 4 September 2021 – Arundel Cathedral – We are delighted to be able to celebrate our Youth Service, which has impacted many people in the last four decades and we want to invite anyone who has ever attended an event hosted by the service to come along and join the festivities.  Whether it was a Maryvale Retreat, a World Youth Day Pilgrimage, Youthgather, Lourdes Redshirts, or you are a member of our new online community BeCome, or one of our other virtual networks, everyone will be welcome to give thanks for all that has been done and to pray for the success of the Youth Service in the future. Reminisce with old friends, and meet new friends in person (not just on a screen!). A thanksgiving Mass will be said by Bishop Richard, followed by a chance to chat over refreshments. Please click here for more information and to register.  

Redundant iPads and Laptops are desperately needed by the Gatwick Detainees’ Welfare Group.   An IT company has agreed to ‘clean’ devices to remove any data. These devices can enable a person whether in detention or after release, to help themselves; to access classes for speakers of other languages, to communicate with friends, family, our staff, their volunteer visitor and to access  resources such as Food Banks and to join our post detention services. Contact Josie at: [email protected].   Thank you.

Volunteers are needed at St Wilfrid`s:  There are forms being handed out after Mass and are available on the table in the church porch, listing the areas where we need your help.  Please consider very carefully as to where you can contribute to the successful running of our church and community, Please return to the presbytery