The Prime Minister has announced further widespread restrictions in England beginning on Thursday 5 November. The Government have published their New National Restrictions Guidance on their website. Whilst there was no formal announcement on Places of Worship by the Prime Minister, there is clear guidance on this website that places of worship will be required to end all acts of collective worship, except for funeral ceremonies. In response the following statement is issued by the President and Vice-President of the Bishops’ Conference.
"The announcement of a new ‘national lockdown’ in England will, we know, bring hardship, distress and suffering to many. We must hope and pray that this is an effective strategy against a growing pandemic which has tragically taken so many lives already and threatens so many more. Faith communities have played a vital role in sustaining personal, spiritual and mental health and encouraging vital charitable activities, which support hundreds of thousands of people in all sections of the community, especially the most vulnerable. That critical service towards the common good of all is created and sustained by communal worship and prayer. Part of this selfless giving has been a strong ethic of responsibility in the way in which we have reopened our churches so that essential worship has been enabled. Our communities have done a great deal to make our churches safe places in which all have been able to gather in supervised and disciplined ways. It is thus a source of deep anguish now that the Government is requiring, once again, the cessation of public communal worship. Whilst we understand the many difficult decisions facing the Government, we have not yet seen any evidence whatsoever that would make the banning of communal worship, with all its human costs, a productive part of combatting the virus. We ask the Government to produce this evidence that justifies the cessation of acts of public worship. To counter the virus we will, as a society, need to make sustained sacrifices for months to come. In requiring this sacrifice, the Government has a profound responsibility to show why it has taken particular decisions. Not doing so risks eroding the unity we need as we enter a most difficult period for our country. The Prime Minister has stated that the draft legislation will be placed before Parliament on Monday 2 November. Members of Parliament will have the opportunity to discuss the issues and vote on the proposed national restrictions. In this short timeframe, questions can be raised with our elected Members of Parliament regarding the cessation of public common worship. They are in a position to require the Government to publish the data that drives the decision to cease public worship under these restrictions." Cardinal Vincent Nichols President Archbishop Malcolm McMahon OP Vice-President The Archbishop of Birmingham has asked, if we are able to do so, that we consider emailing our MPs. If you attend Mass at SS Peter and Paul or St Michael, the MP to contact is Stuart Anderson ([email protected]). For St Bernadette, please contact Gavin Williamson ([email protected]) Our two Seminarians in Rome, Dave and Toby are in Assisi today and they prayed for all of us at the tomb of Blessed Carlo Acutis. Between 2015 - 2016 Toby spent a year at SS Peter & Paul's as a pastoral assistant whilst he discerned his vocation to the priesthood. He is now in his 5th year at the Venerable English College in Rome and, God willing, will be ordained a deacon next summer. Dave spent a year at SS Peter & Paul's similarly discerning his vocation from 2016-2017. He will be known to more of you because that was the first year of the amalgamation of our three parishes. Dave then spent a year at the Royal English College in Valladolid in Spain before moving to the Venerable English College in 2018. He is now in his third year of seminary. Many of you will remember when he received the Ministry of Reader online at SS Peter & Paul's earlier in the summer. As they have prayed for us, let us keep them in our prayers! After praying at the tomb of Blessed Carlo, Dave and Toby also visited the new Youth Oratory which is dedicated to him. It lies just behind the old Cathedral where he is buried in Assisi. In the background you can see the tower of the Basilica of St Clare. Dave and Toby are looking forward to welcoming a parish youth pilgrimage there. Not to mention a parish pilgrimage for the not so young as well!
THIS WEEK'S BULLETIN is now ready on the Mass Times and Bulletin page. As I write this, I am aware that we may be going into another lock-down. If so, the schedule of Masses on the bulletin will have to be abandoned and we will produce a new schedule of online Masses for this week. This schedule will be posted on this parish news page. God Bless, Fr Mark This Sunday at Midday in St Chad's Cathedral there is a special Mass with Bishop David Evans celebrating Marriages from around the diocese. It includes celebrating milestone anniversaries including those of couples linked to our parish.
If you would like to participate online with this special Mass, please click the link below. The October Rosary that is listed in the bulletin for October 21st is not correct. It is this Thursday the 15th! The Online bulletin will be corrected. Please share this information with your friends!
At the beatification of Blessed Carlo Acutis on Saturday it was announced that his feast day shall be on October 12th, the day he died and was born into Eternal Life. As our new parish patron this means that from now on October 12th will be our parish Feast Day. This means that our new parish will be blessed by the prayers of a great panoply of Saints! SS Peter & Paul Apostles, St Michael the Archangel, St Bernadette, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Blessed John Sugar, Martyr, and now Blessed Carlo Acutis, the first millennial to be beatified. As we have not received the new official Mass prayers for the feast, we will be using the "Common of Men Saints for one Saint" from the Lectionary and the Liturgy of the Hours. To download the prayers and readings for Mass today click the button below: Prayer in Thanksgiving for the Beatification of the Blessed Carlo Acutis
Oh Father, we give you thanks for the ardent testimony of Blessed Carlo Acutis, who made the Eucharist the core of his life and the strength of his daily commitments so that everybody may love You above all else. Confirm my faith, nurture my hope, strengthen my charity, in the image of young Carlo who, growing in these virtues, now lives with You. Grant me the grace that I need … I trust in You, Father, and your Beloved Son Jesus, in the Virgin Mary, our Dearest Mother, and in the intervention of Blessed Carlo Acutis. Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be The Beatification Mass will be in the Basilica of St Francis this afternoon at 3.30 pm our time (4.30 pm in Italy). You can access this live through the Vatican youtube Channel or EWTN Europe or the Franciscan Channel. This weekend's bulletin is now ready to download from the 'Mass Times and Bulletin' page.
Please also read all the information about Venerable Carlo Acutis on the news item below this one.
Yesterday we began our Novena of prayer in preparation of the Beatification of Carlo Acutis, If you forgot to start yesterday, it is not too late to join us today as we pray together across our three church communities to our new parish patron. To join us, please click the link below: Below you can watch the video from yesterday in Assisi where the bishop formally began the veneration of his tomb in preparation for the Beatification next Saturday. Obviously it is not possible for us to travel to Assisi at the moment but there will be a special Online Mass that morning from SS Peter & Paul's at 8.00am October 10th. It is possible to visit his tomb online through out website and join with the pilgrims who are praying there. Please click on the link below:
The bulletin is now ready to download on the Mass Times and Bulletin page. You will notice the item about Track and Trace. We have created a page on our website explaining how to use the new NHS Track and Trace App for your Smart Phone. To access this page, click the button below.
As you may be aware, some parishioners recently received email messages from an account impersonating Fr Mark asking them to buy online gift vouchers. Given the current climate, now more than ever is the time to be vigilant in regard to phishing emails. The rise in unemployment globally has increased the chances that more people might turn to cybercrime as another way to make money using software that is readily available on the internet, greatly increasing the chance of an attack.
Churches are a high target due to the volume of sensitive data we hold and due to the fact that they are aware of the level of trust people have in their parish priest, church volunteers and staff members. Phishing emails are one of the main methods hackers are currently using. A "phishing" email is an email that is made to look like a genuine message from someone (such as your parish priest) that is engineered to trick you into giving away money or revealing your passwords. The majority of phishing emails look like an official email asking the you to act on an instruction - such as asking you to buy gift cards or send money to them online. Sometimes, scammers may ask you to click a link that takes you to what appears to be a genuine password reset page but once those credentials have been entered they are in the hackers hands. Once your credentials have been captured, within seconds the hackers software will have added your credentials to a list of other captured credentials then attempt to access as many other services as possible with that username and password to see which are accessible. Be wary of any website or service that asks for your credentials. Check the web address is genuine for the service you are connecting to. If you get an email that doesn’t look right or are unsure about something, please get in touch and the parish will investigate. Remember, no one would ever need to know your passwords or ask you to buy vast quantities of online gift cards. If someone is requesting them, it’s likely to be a scam. Many thanks, Aaron (Online Content Manager)
In his address, Pope Francis encouraged the international community to seize the COVID-19 pandemic as a time of choosing. This will be the second time Pope Francis has addressed the General Assembly. The first time was in person, exactly five years ago, on September 25, 2015. It will be the sixth time a Pope has addressed the UN, following Pope Paul VI in 1964, Pope John Paul II in 1979 and 1995, Pope Benedict XVI in 2008. The full text of the statement can be read below by clicking the "read more" button.
This year, these Masses will take place at St Chad's Cathedral and will be live streamed. For more information please click below.
The Bulletin is now ready to download from the Mass Times and Bulletin page.
Don't forget Fr Sean's Ordination is this Sunday afternoon at 3.00 pm and you can join in by logging onto the Cathedral livestream channel https://www.mcnmedia.tv/camera/st-chads-cathedral-birmingham You can also participate in his First Mass at St Mary the Mount in Walsall on Monday Evening at 7.00 pm through their website https://stmarysthemount.co.uk/live-stream-channel Please keep him in your prayers as he begins his ministry as a priest in our parish under such strange circumstances.
Now that we have developed a good system for regular cleaning of St Michael's and SS Peter's & Paul's,we can begin the celebration of Baptisms in October. Before you child can be baptised you will need to attend a Baptism Class. This will, however, be a virtual class so that you do not need to leave home in order to attend.
The next Baptism Class will be online on Saturday 19th September at 12.30 pm. If you will to attend, please email [email protected] You will then be sent an information leaflet, the Registration Form and the link to join us for the class on Saturday 19th. Please spread the word to your families and friends about all of this! The bulletin is now ready. Download it from the "Mass times and Bulletin" page.
This week's bulletin is now ready, please go to the "Mass Times and Bulletin" page to download a copy.
As you will have seen at the top of the Home Page we have had trouble with people receiving emails from me making strange requests about money. Please do not respond to these emails and ring me at once. It is always important to check the actual address from where the email comes. My own email address is now one of the new diocesan addresses, so it ends rcaob.ork.uk. Eventually all the parish email addresses will end in this way. We had to wait for a parish name before we could sign up to the new parish system. As we now have a name for the parish, we will be moving over to new email addresses very soon.
The live-streaming at SS Peter & Paul's is now working. The latest camera is now reliable, in that it always comes on when we switch the system on. (The previous one seemed to have a mind of its own!) The new one does not show the whole of the sanctuary and we will look into improving this eventually. For the moment, however, it is a relief that we have picture that is reliable. Once again, thanks so much to all the generous people who provided for the live-streaming fund. Your donations were not just towards the camera, but for the computer, all the wiring that connects it back to the house and all the work that was done to ensure a strong enough internet connection to the property. We have been celebrating Public Mass now at SS Peter & Paul for the last two weeks at 10.15am on Sunday Mornings. There is no need to book in advance this Sunday, just come along and join us! God Bless, Fr Mark
DON’T FORGET, YOU NEED TO BOOK FOR A PLACE AT MASS. FOR ST MICHAEL please ring Sr Lydwin on 01902 341343 between 10.00 am to 5.00 pm on Monday to Friday. FOR SS PETER & PAUL please ring Val on 07934905283 between 6.00pm and 7.00pm on Monday to Friday. If you cannot print off your ticket, you can collect it from a steward outside the church when you arrive for Mass. LIVE STREAMING APPEAL. This was to provide a decent Internet signal by 5G to SS Peter and Paul’s, which has no cable connection from the road, and to cover the cost of all the equipment for live streaming. An amazing £4,012.98 was raised! THANKS SO MUCH TO ALL OF YOU WHO GENEROUSLY CONTRIBUTED. We are using the new equipment this Sunday, Please bear with us if there needs to be any tweaking to get the best results. We still need to work on the antenna for the 5G so the reception might still be variable at times. THERE IS STILL NO OBLIGATION FOR PEOPLE TO ATTEND MASS ON SUNDAYS. You can choose any day of the week to go to Mass and the Bishops fully encourage you to continue praying the Mass by watching it online. DEC Coronavirus Appeal In the UK our struggle against coronavirus has entered the next phase, but in many of the world’s poorest countries the fight has only just begun. CAFOD has joined forces with the Disasters Emergency Committee to help millions of vulnerable people whose lives are at risk as the coronavirus pandemic spreads across refugee camps and countries suffering conflict. You can contribute at cafod.org.uk/coronavirus or 55 Westminster Bridge Road, SE1 7JB or 0303 303 3030 FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTIONS This is a difficult time for many people but if you are able to continue giving an offering, please consider paying directly into the parish account. Please follow the directions on our website. It is now possible to make donations to any of our three churches directly through our Website. Click the ‘ MY CHURCH OFFERING’ the button on the Home page for more details. SVP support - if you or anyone you know is in need of support particularly during this pandemic please contact Sr Lydwin or David Spinks at 07544960402. 'Free School Meal' (FSM) Children A car with its boot open will be parked outside St Michael's Church for one hour EVERY Tuesday 1-2, Thursday 10-11 and Saturday 10-11. All donations will be gratefully received by The Well (Wolverhampton Food Bank). Alternatively, much-needed supplies can still be taken to the Good Shepherd Ministry via 2, Richmond Rd WV3 9HY or Food Bank via The Vicarage 21A, St Jude's Rd WV6 0EB. For further information please phone 340479. This week 70kg of food/ toiletries and £30 cash have been given to The Well. Thank you so much! If anyone needs a food parcel please phone 07932 609625 between 1pm -5pm and speak in confidence to a member of the Catholic Women's League to make arrangements. FOR THOSE WHO ARE SICK: Cliff Whittall, David Souberry, Ben Sherry, Holly Burke, Mason Kavanagh, Paula Box, June Abbiss, Peter Holmes, Alice Stevens, George Brown, Chris Starkey, M Mary, Thomas Mackin, Stephen Briggs, Hilary Elsden, Katherine Poole, Teresa Mitchell, Ann Bayley, Helen O’Brien-Coleman, Mary Abbiss, Peggy McHale, Patrick Quinn, Fred & Celia Norton, Jean Hollingshead, Margaret Stokes, Leah Nixon, Pat Pool, John Dolan, Liam Dolan, Marie Looker, Lorna Ciraulo, Pat Eades, Helen Porter, Mary Kirby, Sheila O’Toole, Tony McGinn, Brendan Bleakley.
FOR THOSE WHO HAVE DIED RECENTLY: Marie Therese Lennox, Taofik Sekoni, Jenner Martin, John Barratt, John Stanley, Dorothy Stephenson May they rest in peace. A primary teacher, children's liturgy catechist and mother of four children from the Dunkeld Diocese has, since the lockdown started, been creating children's liturgy videos so that children can still have access to some form of children's liturgy sessions. The Facebook page she has created to share resources on is called 'Children's Liturgy during Lockdown' and has weekly videos for each Sunday as well as craft ideas for children to have a go at which link to that Sunday's Gospel. The videos are just 10 minutes long, with a children's version of the Gospel, short explanation as well as little song, prayer and something for the children to make to help remind them of each week's Gospel message. She will carry on creating these videos for sometime after the re-opening of churches. YouTube link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtC6kaDVVVg
Now that I am doing more public masses and funerals, it means that there is not always a Mass available to be heard by telephone. On the days when there is not an online Mass, the Knights of St Columba have set up a Dial-a-Mass for those who are unable to participate in the celebration of the Mass via TV or Livestreaming.
The Mass will be available on such days from 12 noon each day and will last about 45 minutes, being available until midnight the same day. It will cost as little as a local call and the phone number is: 01642 130120. Please tell your friends who do not have access to the internet. Many thanks, Fr Mark |
InformationThis page page displays the latest announcements. For regular weekly news, please ensure you also read the Parish Bulletin, which is available on the Home page. For previous versions of the Bulletin, click here. Archives
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