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Thank you for your offerings last week of £1477.30. Mass attendances were 747. |
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Sunday 25/10/15 |
Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
6pm Saturday David Wedderspoon RIP (Wedderspoon Family)
9.15am People of the Parish
11.00am Margaret Riley RIP (P Murray)
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Monday 26/10/15
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Feria/SS Chad & Cedd, Bishops
9.30am Refugees & Immigrants (CWL)
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Tuesday 27/10/15 |
Feria
9.30am Jose Cassidy RIP (Mary K)
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Wednesday 28/10/15 |
Saints Simon & Jude, Apostles
9.30am Private Intention (M Jackson) |
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Thursday 29/10/15 |
Feria
9.30am Private Intention (E Cushman)
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Friday 30/10/15 |
Feria
9.30am Bridget & Paul Wiggins
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Saturday 31/10/15 |
Vigil Mass
6.00pm Frank Donelan RIP (Donelan Family)
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Sunday 1/11/15 |
All Saints
9.15am People of the Parish
11.00am Full Recovery of Shenen Betteridge (B Bridle)
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Monday 2/11/15 |
All Souls
9.30am Ernesto & Riva Di Mascio
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Tuesday 3/11/15 |
Feria/ St. Martin de Porres
9.30am Louise Mages RIP (M Howell) |
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Wednesday 4/11/15 |
St. Charles Borromeo, Bishop
9.30am Pat Mulroy Birthday (G Mulroy) (Whole School Harvest Mass with St. James School here in Church)
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Thursday 5/11/15 |
Feria
9.30am Welfare of Poraic Winston (The Jackson Family)
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Friday 6/11/15 |
Feria
9.30am Bill Fry RIP (G Tomkins)
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Saturday 7/11/15 |
Vigil Mass
6.00pm Patrick Meehan RIP (Meehan Family)
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Sunday 8/11/15 |
Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time
9.15am People of the Parish
11.00am Elizabeth Said RIP 1st Anniversary (Said Family)
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Confessions heard Saturday 5.00pm-5.45pm or by appointment. |
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Fr David Writes .. Our behaviour is fuelled by complex internal dynamics. As human beings we do possess unconscious coping mechanisms especially in painful experiences in our lives. Some of us in the face of suffering, be it emotional, physical, mental or spiritual suffering resort to different ways of coping automatically. The most common amongst many is denial. In my time working at the hospice, I have experienced both patients and even their relatives in denial about their medical situation. Most of the time patients in the hospice come into the hospice when all active medical assistance is no longer available and so the person is on palliative care. This signifies that the patients illness is treated mainly for pain management. A lot of time, it was very difficult for me to pastorally care for the patient who is in denial. On one hand you do not want to arouse unreasonable hope of cure because most of the time that is not available but on the other hand I felt that I could not take away the carpet from underneath their feet by taking all their hope away. I used to feel that there was a fine line I had to walk with them. Giving them too much hope will deny them the opportunity to help them prepare for their death both with themselves and also with those they loved. Some to cope resorted to complete denial of the seriousness of their disease and I had to respect that. They get blinded to the fact that their end was imminent and some died like that. It had been their choice.
Another way of describing denial in common language is putting your head in the sand when you need to acknowledge the reality of a painful situation and do something about it. This can happen with a situation at home for example instead of confronting ones spouse on account of a situation, you would try to ignore it hoping that it will go away. It is true that we need to choose the battles to fight and sometimes it is better not to say anything but there are times when things, behaviour need to be challenged. But because of the fear of what might come into the light. Fear of the truth in other words, we put our head in the sand and pretend that it does not exist. It is only in our head. Blindness can come in a lot of different shades and sizes. Coping mechanisms are important for survival there is no doubt about that. But we cannot because of our fear of the truth, live our lives completely protected and guarded all the time. When our eyes are opened at least we have the option to make decisions and choices and take action. In blindness we do not feel responsible and sometimes we do resort to self-pity and helplessness. When we are awakened, when we start seeing, then we need to move from a stance of complacency and take hold of our life in a more mature way.
In todays Gospel passage, we encounter Bartimaeus, a blind beggar who sits at the side of the road. As we know disability in the time of Jesus was considered to be a curse from God because of sin the parents would had committed. A disabled man was an outcast from the community. On this particular day, when Jesus was leaving the city of Jericho, this man, hearing that it was the Rabbi Jesus who was passing by, called out to him. Instead of being overwhelmed by self-pity, Bartimaeus was ready to stop being in denial, in the dark and ask Jesus to regain sight. But those around him, were stopping him. It could be sometimes that the others who would stop us from seeing reality are the internal dynamics I was speaking about before. Part of us would be saying remain in the dark it is better for you. Or you are not worthy to see. Or it is better for you to remain wallowing in self-pity because then you do not have any responsibility. Keep on blaming others, your parents, your husband, your wife etc., for your own unhappiness. These are the internal messages that sometimes block us from facing the truth about ourselves and others. It is more comfortable sometimes. Jesus heard him calling and asked the people around to call him here. When he hears Jesus call to him, he throws away his cloak, leaps up and comes to Jesus in faith, certain that Jesus can liberate him from a world of darkness. His energetic faith is rewarded and continues to show itself. The man who now sees Jesus is a man who now freely follows him of that way that would inevitably leads to Jerusalem the place of Calvary. What are those blockages within ourselves that are keeping us from seeing Jesus who wants to liberate us from our darkness and brings us into the light of the truth? Let us spend some seconds in silence and reflect.
Upcoming Second Collections will take place
This weekend, 25th October, for Missio which is the Churchs official organ for the support of the Foreign Missions.
Next weekend 1st November, for the Maintenance Fund.
The following weekend 8th November, the annual collection for the Archbishops Administration Fund will take place.
CWL Meeting
The next meeting of the Catholic Womens League will be at 8.00pm on Monday 26th October and will be held at the back of the church. Please come along if you would like to learn more about the CWL.
Drop-In Evening Surgery
Next week, 27th October, I will not be holding a drop in surgery. The next surgery will take place on Tuesday 3rd November between 6.00pm and 9.00pm, in the Parish Office, 281a Crescent Drive. If you wish to speak to me about any matter, please feel free to come along. No appointments are necessary. Fr David.
Holy Baptism
This weekend we welcome Adele and Aidyn Berkimbay-Galvin, their parents Aigerim and Ryan and their godparents Anastasia and Robert.
Reminders - Church Cleaning!
Saturday 31st October Year 6 Parents
Saturday 7th November Year 5 Parents
Saturday 14th November Year 4 Parents
Morning Prayer
takes place Monday Friday at 9.10am. All are welcome to attend.
Month of the Holy Souls
During the month of November we are invited to remember our deceased parents, relatives and friends. At the back of the church there are small slips of paper that you should complete and post into the labelled box. All these slips will then be placed on the altar for the whole month of November and we will remember your loved ones and keep them in our prayers at all the Masses.
Calling all Year 7s and above Christ the King Youth Day!!
Come along to St. Josephs Church Hall, Bromley on Saturday 7th November 2015 (10.30am - 6pm, Vigil Mass) for the chance to reunite with friends, have a barbeque and get involved in events such as music, art and dance. The activities will be organised by the Whitstable Retreat Team and the activities will be followed by Mass at 6pm. Tickets cost £2 and can be bought in advance from the parish office or on the day. For more information on this event, see our website: http://www.bromleydeanery.org/christ-the-king-youth-day-7-11-15/. We look forward to seeing you there!!
Annual Day of Recollection for Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion and Readers
This will take place on Saturday 14th November at Bishop Thomas Grant School, Belltrees Grove, SW16 2HY, registration at 10.30am. The day will be led by Fr. Ashley Beck, from St Edmund of Canterbury, Beckenham. Bishop Patrick Lynch will end the day with Mass at 3.00pm. All Ministers of Holy Communion and Readers are encouraged to attend. Please email or call the parish office so that we can reply with the names of those that are attending.
A Message from St Marys, Crown Lane, Chislehurst, BR7 5PL
The Annual Cemetery Mass and Blessing of the Graves will take place on Saturday 21st November at noon, remembering those buried at Saint Marys and Beaverwood Cemetery. This year, we have had all of the graves reviewed and are in the process of repairing many that pose a safety concern. Unfortunately, we no longer have up to date contact details of all the families of those buried here. A list of graves that require repair will be posted on the St Marys notice board, along with the associated cost. Please email Kelly Robson at office@stmarysrc.org if you would like a copy of this list sent to you.
Date for your Diary
The St James Christmas market will be taking place on the 13th December from 12-3pm. Please see the attached sign-up sheet if you can help. More information to follow
New Church Cleaning Rota
We are proposing to reinstate a rota of volunteers to clean the church each week. If you would like to go on the rota please contact the parish office. Please note - the current rota will still be used until further notice.
St James Logo
If anyone has a printed or digital copy of the shell design which weve used as a symbol for St James before, please could you give, or lend, it to Suzanne or Paula in the parish office. Thank You.
Pondering the Word (Lectio Divina)
A quiet reflective look at the following Sundays Gospel. Mondays 11-12 noon here in the Church.
Safeguarding
The Archdiocese of Southwark is committed to the safety and welfare of children and vulnerable adults. The Diocese co-operates fully with CSAS, the Catholic Safeguarding Advisory Service, which aims to help the Church become an example of best practice in the Safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults, and develop a "culture of vigilance" to ensure that children and vulnerable adults in our care are kept safe from harm.
The Safeguarding Representatives here in our Parish are Paula McCabe and Suzanne Horner, both of whom have received training for this role. If you need to speak to them on any issue, they can be contacted via the Parish Office. Any enquiries will be dealt with in strictest confidence.
Christmas 2015
For information, Christmas cards & Advent Calendars will be available from this weekend either from the repository or (after 9.15am & 11.00am Masses) from a table in the porch.
Altar Servers
If you are interested in becoming an Altar Server, please complete the details below. All children must have received their First Holy Communion and will be required to attend Altar Server Training.
Name of Child. .....
Parent(s) Name
Which Mass do you usually attend? (please circle)
6.00pm 9.15am 11.00am
Email address ...
Contact Telephone no .
Please return to the Parish Office, 281a Crescent Drive.