The infection rate is extremely high around Wolverhampton at the moment. This means we need to be particularly vigilant when attending Mass. It is very important that people do not gather outside to chat after Mass but return home immediately. As I said in the past, if you see an old friend, wave at them and ring them up when you get home. Remember that there is no obligation to attend on a Sunday. It would be wise to choose to go on a weekday, instead of a Sunday, so that we have do not have too large gatherings while the risk of infection is high.
Although it is a real blessing that the Government is allowing Public Masses to continue during the lockdown, it is important that the elderly and those who are vulnerable should avoid coming to church whilst the the new variant of the virus is so widespread.
Clinically Extremely Vulnerable (January 2021) There are 2.2 million people in England classified as being at high-risk, including those who have received organ transplants or are on immunosuppressant drugs. On checking the NHS website this is the current list of conditions, which fall into this category they are:
With the announcement of a new lockdown for England to curb the rapid spread of COVID-19, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, said:
“The regular practice of our faith in God is a well-established source of both personal resilience and dedicated service to those in need. Such resilience and enduring service are vital in these difficult circumstances. I am glad that no measures have been introduced that would obstruct or curtail this essential source of energy for the common good. Catholic parishes will continue to serve the needs of their local community. In one parish, for example, the provision of food for the needy has increased by 400% since March last year.” The latest lockdown restrictions come into force on 5 January 2021. The government has published its lockdown guidance for England. In terms of Communal Worship and Life Events, the following guidance is provided: You can leave home to attend or visit a place of worship for communal worship, a funeral or event related to a death, a burial ground or a remembrance garden, or to attend a wedding ceremony. You should follow the guidance on the safe use of places of worship and must not mingle with anyone outside of your household or support bubble when attending a place of worship. Weddings, funerals and religious, belief-based or commemorative events linked to someone’s death are all subject to limits on the numbers that can attend, and weddings and civil ceremonies may only take place in exceptional circumstances. We may need to change our Mass Schedule this week depending on the availability of volunteers. Please check this news page regularly so that you know whether a Mass will be taking place. The 9.30am Mass this morning at SS Peter and Paul will be a public Mass and the funeral will take place at St Michael's. The Bulletin for Sunday 3rd January 2021 is now ready to download from the Mass Times and Bulletin Page.
There is a great opportunity to volunteer in the local community with Covid 19 testing, more details are on this bulletin. Happy New Year! There will be a special welcome for 2021 with Praise and Worship at 11.00pm on New Year’s Eve and then Mass at 11.30pm leading into the New Year.
It will be held at SS Peter & Paul Church and it will also be online. The Praise and Worship songs will be led by the students of Wolverhampton University. As there is more interest than expected for this Mass, it is best to book a seat by ringing 07934905283 Wishing you all a very Happy Christmas and many blessings over the Christmas Octave!
The Sundays bulletin is now ready and can be downloaded from the 'Mass Times and Bulletin' page. Please remember it is essential to book a seat for Masses on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. There are not many places left at St Bernadette's or St Michael's but there are still many places left at the Masses in SS Peter & Paul Church.
For all the details of how to book, go to the latest edition of the Bulletin which you can download from the Mass Times and Bulletin Page On Wednesday evening local radio organised and event to sing carols on your doorstep. A few of us decided to join in by socially distancing and standing outside St Michael's. Musicians and readers from SS Peter & Paul Church also put on a virtual Carol Service on Tuesday Evening. You can watch this any time over Christmas and sing along with the carols at home. Simply Click the link below. Also, if you have 20 minutes to spare, the children from SS Peter & Paul School have put on a wonderful virtual nativity play. Have a watch by clicking the button below and brighten up your Christmas preparations!
A message from Fr Mark if you are thinking of volunteering in any way over the Christmas period:
A GP friend of mine in Walsall has asked for help with the role out of the COVID vaccination programme in Walsall. They need volunteers to help at the sites as Stewards and Marshalls. The role will involve assisting patients and helping to direct them around the site. Many of the patients will be elderly and may require limited mobility assistance. Full training will be given and Protective Equipment such as face masks will be provided. Should you wish to volunteer please contact Dr Ryan Hobson at [email protected]. We celebrated the Rorate Mass this morning by candlelight at SS Peter and Paul and online. A Rorate Mass is a special Mass of our Lady celebrated in Advent before sunrise. Rorate is the first word in Latin of the Entrance Antiphon of the Mass: Drop down ye heavens from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness.
We pray to Our Lady today on the feast of Our lady of Guadaloupe, that we may be open to receive in our hearts, Jesus the light of the world. Next week's bulletin is now ready to download from the Mass Times and Bulletin page. The correct phone number for St Michael's is now working again, so you can forget the temporary number.
So, once again the number to phone St Michael's is: 01902 341 343 This week in the gospel we meet John the Baptist whose clarion call is: Prepare the way of the Lord.
The bulletin is now ready to download from the Mass Times and Bulletin Page. Please take note of all the Advent activities that are available, and please do remember that you must book if you wish to attend one of the Christmas Masses. God Bless, Fr Mark The Archbishop has written to us with deep regret and a sense of shame, as a priest of our Archdiocese, has been found guilty of serious offences against a child victim. The offences took place between 2006 and 2009. A copy of the letter can be downloaded by clicking the button below. Let us pray for all who have suffered from abuse, and all who have been affected indirectly by this case.
The Advent Edition of the Sower is now available to download form the button below. Hard copies will be available in the porches of our churches for those who do not have the internet.
We have been told that St Michael's phone number will be restored either this evening or within the next week. This is not exactly helpful. The sisters can be reached temporarily on 01902 342 380. As soon as the original number begins to work, this temporary number will cease to work. There is, however, a further complication, this number is not working with the answer machine so its not possible to leave a message. Many apologies for all of this at such a crucial time!
Some of you may know that the Sisters' telephone has been paying up for some months. When someone rings, the internet stops working. This has been most unhelpful when someone rings up to book a place at Mass, because the booking system is on the internet! After trying to get this sorted for some months we eventually decided to switch to another telephone company. The switch took place yesterday but we have discovered that they changed the phone number, even though they were instructed to keep the same number. This means that it is not possible to contact the sisters by phone and they can only receive emails if they take a lap top and go and sit in the parish hall! (with no heating!)
We have spend a few hours on the phone today with the telephone supplier explaining how urgently this situation needs correcting because of the booking for Christmas Masses. Hopefully they will rectify the situation as soon as possible. Until then please bear with us! Fr Mark The Bishops of England and Wales met last week and responded to the IICSA Report by overhauling the Safeguarding Structures across all Dioceses, Religious Orders and other Catholic Organisations in the Country. Please click the button below to read the Statement by the Archbishop of Birmingham and documents of the Bishops’ Conference confirming the acceptance of the independent Elliot Report’s recommendations which lay out the changes to safeguarding structures and procedures within the Church which are necessary to ensure best practice.
This weekend, we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King and National Youth Sunday. Many thanks to the young people who will be helping take part in the broadcasting of our Masses this weekend. From St Michael's for the 5.30 pm Mass tonight, from SS Peter & Paul for tomorrow morning's Mass at 10.15 am, and from the University tomorrow evening at 7.00 pm.
The bulletin is now ready to download from the 'Mass Times and Bulletin' page, please note that all the information is there for the booking of Christmas Masses. Don't forget the link to the Advent Feast as a way to prepare your family bubble for Christmas, even now during lock-down. Let's pray that the public celebration of Mass may return in time for Christmas! As you will have seen at Mass this morning, the Diocesan Youth team came to promote their work in the diocese and provided the music and readings for our Mass. At the end of Mass, Lucas mentioned various links so that you can follow up on all that they are doing. The buttons below will take to you straight to all the information you need.
In this Sunday's gospel we hear about the parable of the talents. We pray that despite the restrictions in our lives due to the pandemic, we can encourage each other to to share and develop our God given talents.
In the hope that we may have public Masses at Christmas, we have prepared a new schedule for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day across our three churches. It will be necessary to book seats because the demand will be high and we are not allowed to exceed the set numbers that ensure social distancing. Details of how to book will be available next weekend. As Advent approaches you may be interested in celebrating the 'Advent Feast' with your family or your extended bubble. For more information, click the Advent Resources button below. Over the next few weeks there will be other initiatives added to this resource page so that we can make the most out of celebrating Advent and Christmas this year. The Bulletin is now ready to be downloaded from the Mass Times and Bulletin Page. Please do take note of the completely new schedule for Online Masses and the opening times of the churches for private prayer. Please also note that the Cardinal has asked that we pray each day at 6.00 pm for an end to the pandemic. I have printed the Angelus on the bulletin as this is an ideal prayer to pray at this time each day.
You are invited to a series of zoom meetings promoting dialogue, listening and sharing among people of different faiths in the West Midlands. Please click below for more details:
We have now organised the times for private prayer at each of our Churches during this temporary lockdown.
St Michael Saturday 5.30 pm - 6.30 pm with Adoration and with Confessions available. Sunday 12.00 midday - 1.00 pm with Adoration Wednesday 10.00 am - 11.00 am with Adoration St Bernadette Sunday 3.00 pm - 4.00 pm with Adoration Thursday 9.30 am -10.30 am with Adoration SS Peter & Paul Monday 12.00 midday - 1.00 pm with Adoration Tuesday 12.00 midday - 1.00 pm with Adoration Friday 12.00 midday - 1.00 pm with Adoration Given the Government regulations for the new lockdown, sadly, apart from funerals, there will be no public Masses in the parish for the rest of November. Our Churches will be open for private prayer at set times and Mass will be celebrated daily Online. Funerals will be limited to 30 mourners.
A full timetable for online Masses and prayer times will be available tomorrow evening (Friday 6th November). In the mean time, there will be an Online Mass Friday 6th November at Midday. You can download copies of the regulations by clicking the buttons below. CATHOLIC BISHOPS’ CONFERENCE OF ENGLAND AND WALES
Statement from the President and the Vice-President of the Conference on the National Lockdown Wednesday 4th November 2020 Today, Parliament passed into law the Regulations governing many aspects of activity in the whole of England until 2nd December. These Regulations prohibit the gathering of people for communal worship in churches and other religious buildings. Churches remain open and in use for activities other than communal worship, including personal prayer and support for those in need. Funeral Masses and funeral services may be held. Please refer to the Regulations (for places of worship see paragraph 18) and associated Guidance. Despite profound misgivings it is important that we, as responsible citizens, observe these Regulations, which have the force of law: ‘Remind them to be obedient to the officials in authority; to be ready to do good at every opportunity’ (Titus 3:1). We do this in solidarity with so many others on whom are being imposed restrictions which impact severely on their lives and livelihoods. It is also important to recognise that these Regulations are not an attack on religious belief. However, they do demonstrate a fundamental lack of understanding of the essential contribution made by faith communities to the well-being, resilience and health of our society. At this difficult moment, we ask that, as a Catholic community, we make full use of our churches as places of individual prayer and sources of solace and help. We must sustain each other in our patterns of prayer, joining a national shared moment of prayer each day at 6pm, and observing the Vigil of Christ the King (21st November) as a day of prayer for the ending of this pandemic. And we encourage you all in your practical service and support of each other and those around you in need. This pathway of prayer and service is the royal road we are to take as a gracious witness in our society today. Cardinal Vincent Nichols Archbishop Malcolm McMahon OP President Vice-President |
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