Jubilee Year of Mercy and Rembrandt. Pages 5 & 6 Christmas Blessings

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Conrad Lamb
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Issue 88 INSIDE ST MICHAEL S NEWS Jubilee Year of Mercy

Michael s and St Paul s Pages 5 & 6 Christmas Blessings

.. And the angel said to them, Do not be afraid.

for all the people Luke 2:10 More inside On page 4 Main

1 Issue 88 INSIDE ST MICHAEL S NEWS Jubilee Year of Mercy and Rembrandt Page 3 Christmas 2015 School Reports: St Michael s and St Paul s Pages 5 & 6 Christmas Blessings PLUS One year on... And the angel said to them, Do not be afraid. For, behold, I proclaim to you a great joy, which will be for all the people Luke 2:10 More inside On page 4 Main picture: The recently restored crib. Inset: Christmas Fayre stall at St Michael s School for Pender s Project.

Page 2 IN BRIEF with Mgr Jim Overton Boundary Walls: The re-pointing of the church boundary walls has completed the landscaping of the area in front of the church.

It has been suggested that planting some small shrubs along the walls facing the narthex would be a lovely feature - your suggestions would be most welcome.

We offer our congratulations to our gardeners Gavin Boyle, Jim Archer and Michael Glynn and thank them for all their hard work in looking after our gardens so well.

The Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy was inaugurated by Pope Francis on the 8 December 2015, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady, and continues until the Feast of Christ, the King

He wishes each one of us to come to a true moment of encounter with the mercy of God that is, to a deeper understanding and experience of God s mercy in our own lives and in the lives of our families.

2 Page 2 IN BRIEF with Mgr Jim Overton Boundary Walls: The re-pointing of the church boundary walls has completed the landscaping of the area in front of the church. I am sure that you will agree that the bricklayers did an excellent job. It has been suggested that planting some small shrubs along the walls facing the narthex would be a lovely feature - your suggestions would be most welcome. Best Kept Place of Worship Prize: St Michael s Church was awarded the Borough of Spelthorne s Third Prize for the Best Kept Place of Worship. We offer our congratulations to our gardeners Gavin Boyle, Jim Archer and Michael Glynn and thank them for all their hard work in looking after our gardens so well. Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy. The Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy was inaugurated by Pope Francis on the 8 December 2015, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady, and continues until the Feast of Christ, the King on 20 November Mercy is a very strong theme in the teachings of Pope Francis. He wishes each one of us to come to a true moment of encounter with the mercy of God that is, to a deeper understanding and experience of God s mercy in our own lives and in the lives of our families. As a parish we will celebrate the Jubilee Year of Mercy with, among other things, From the Register October December Baptisms: Jessica Cochrane, Sylvie James, George Williams, Avery McGinnes, Elsa Hannington, Darcie Wheeler, Alexis Pavia, Jacob Peat, Evelyn Barnes, Oscar Rendell, Joey Corner, Marcus Werens, Theo Norfor, Gabriel Marshall, Olivia Kielbowicz, Carolina Velasquez Bastidas, Sienna Coates, Yara May Deaths: Tom McNulty, Jude Kathan, Anne Khan, Daniel Evans, Dominic Regan Marriages: Thomas Shanks and Rebecca Whythe St Michael s News Christmas 2015 In Brief A Pilgrimage to Westminster Cathedral to walk through the Cathedral Holy Door. The Holy Door is a symbol of opening to the fullness of God s love, and invites us to pass through as a sign that we wish to experience God s mercy and take it to others. During the Year of Mercy we will do our best to keep our own church open every day until 6.30pm or 7.00pm to provide opportunities to pray asking God for the power of his mercy to come into our personal and community life. Organ renovation and repair: The work on the organ is nearly complete. It was a very large undertaking! The new casing is being made and will be installed in the early part of next year. A great number of you have told me how much you like the opening up of the window in the organ loft. It not only reveals a lovely feature of Gilbert Giles Scott s original design but also brings in much more light into the church. Above: Workman take a short break to pose for photo. Bottom left: The Tubes await fixing. Bottom right: The now exposed rear window. Finally, I wish you and your families a very Blessed and Peace-filled Christmas. I pray that 2016 will be a year of blessing for all of us.

St Michael s News Christmas 2015 Year of Mercy Page 3 Prayer For The Jubilee Year Of Mercy Lord Jesus Christ, you have taught us to be merciful like the heavenly Father, and have told us that whoever

3 St Michael s News Christmas 2015 Year of Mercy Page 3 Prayer For The Jubilee Year Of Mercy Lord Jesus Christ, you have taught us to be merciful like the heavenly Father, and have told us that whoever sees you sees Him. Show us your face and we will be saved. Your loving gaze freed Zacchaeus and Matthew from being enslaved by money; the adulteress and Magdalene from seeking happiness only in created things; made Peter weep after his betrayal, and assured Paradise to the repentant thief. Let us hear, as if addressed to each one of us, the words that you spoke to the Samaritan woman: If you knew the gift of God! You are the visible face of the invisible Father, of the God who manifests his power above all by forgiveness and mercy: let the Church be your visible face in the world, its Lord risen and glorified. You willed that your ministers would also be clothed in weakness in order that they may feel compassion for those in ignorance and error: let everyone who approaches them feel sought after, loved, and forgiven by God. Send your Spirit and consecrate every one of us with its anointing, so that the Jubilee of Mercy may be a year of grace from the Lord, and your Church, with renewed enthusiasm, may bring good news to the poor, proclaim liberty to captives and the oppressed, and restore sight to the blind. We ask this of you, Lord Jesus, through the intercession of Mary, Mother of Mercy; you who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen. The Return of the Prodigal Son is an oil painting by Rembrandt. It is among the Dutch master s final works, likely completed within two years of his death in Depicting the moment of the prodigal son s return to his father in the Biblical parable, it is a renowned work described by art historian Kenneth Clark as a picture which those who have seen the original in Leningrad may be forgiven for claiming as the greatest picture ever painted. Rembrandt, The Return of the Prodigal Son, (Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg) Public Domain

Page 4 St Michael s News Christmas 2015 Pender s Project Pender s Project: Highlights of our first year by Tina Gale and Nicola

Individual people within the parish and throughout the community have been very generous with their time, effort and money, also

We also thank you all for your continuing support in our next and final year which ends in November 2016.

Date Event/Type Amount A big Thank you to all those who pledged money for this good cause.

Table Top Sale 180 Mar 15 St Pauls 8339.

4 Page 4 St Michael s News Christmas 2015 Pender s Project Pender s Project: Highlights of our first year by Tina Gale and Nicola Deeks So much has happened. It has been hard work but very rewarding. Individual people within the parish and throughout the community have been very generous with their time, effort and money, also by donating their skills and possessions for us to auction off. A Huge THANK YOU goes to them. We also thank you all for your continuing support in our next and final year which ends in November Thank you and God keep you in his heart. Merry Christmas and Happy 2016! X runner Water Wipeout Challenge So we are getting there! Date Event/Type Amount A big Thank you to all those who pledged money for this good cause. Julie Ware Ramble raises cash for Pender s Project Dec 14 Craft Fayre 157 Jan 15 Foreign Coin 253 Feb 15 Cake Sale 251 Mar 15 Table Top Sale 180 Mar 15 St Pauls May 15 Car Wash 275 June 15 Auction 3338 July 15 Goan Evening 470 Aug 15 Maggie Laurence 948 Aug 15 Mary and Frances Bowe Sep 15 Antiques Fayre 339 Oct 15 Quiz Night and Cakes Nov 15 Craft Fayre 190 Nov 15 Donation June to date Buy a Brick 1182 Total so far Target 40,000 Mary and Frances Bowe s on the Richmond Ramble Over 500 raised from Quiz and cakes

St Michael s News Christmas 2015 School Report - St Paul s Catholic College Page 5 St Paul s host annual Senior Citizens Christmas Party by Alicia Willoughby, Head Student With Christmas fast

celebrate with. In order to make sure that we did not forget the true meaning of Christmas, we arranged a party for the elderly in our community.

5 St Michael s News Christmas 2015 School Report - St Paul s Catholic College Page 5 St Paul s host annual Senior Citizens Christmas Party by Alicia Willoughby, Head Student With Christmas fast approaching, everyone at St Paul s Catholic College has been in the Christmas spirit and sometimes it can be easy to forget that not everybody gets to enjoy Christmas as they may not have anyone to celebrate with. In order to make sure that we did not forget the true meaning of Christmas, we arranged a party for the elderly in our community. On Friday 4 December, after weeks of planning and organising, 80 guests attended this wonderful event. The afternoon was celebrated with party food, mince pies (kindly donated by Greggs), raffles, bingo, and entertainment from the school choir and the London Irish AASE team. The sixth form students had an incredible time sharing the day with the community and each year, our parties get bigger and better thanks to all of the wonderful donations we receive. It was a pleasure to organise this event and it was so rewarding to see all of our guests leaving with such amazing smiles. Success in recent Section 48 Diocesan Inspection by Ceri Bacon, Headteacher St Paul s recently had a Section 48 Diocesan Inspection, where five inspectors came into the school for two days. They looked principally at RE and the Catholic Life of the school and I am delighted to say that we were graded Outstanding in every category! The report has been published and is available to read on the St Paul s website. As ever, our students were a real credit and the inspectors were effusive in their praise of how kind, thoughtful and articulate our students are! Views from parents, regularly collected at parents evenings and information evenings, were given to the inspectors which really helped them to see how hard we all work together in partnership to make sure that the children get the best possible education at St Paul s.

Page 6 St Michael s News Christmas 2015 School Report - St Michael s The Carol Service at Westminster Cathedral by Andrew C, Marco, Renee, Isabelle, Grace, Harry M, Christina, Sophie and Isaac On

When we set off to the station, in Christina s Mum and Dad s car and also Harry s mum s car, we left Isaac by accident but Christina s mum went back to pick him up from school.

6 Page 6 St Michael s News Christmas 2015 School Report - St Michael s The Carol Service at Westminster Cathedral by Andrew C, Marco, Renee, Isabelle, Grace, Harry M, Christina, Sophie and Isaac On Thursday 10 December, the Liturgy Leaders went to Westminster Cathedral: Christina, Isaac, Harry, Renee, Grace, Marco and Andrew, with Altar Servers, Isabelle and Sophie. When we set off to the station, in Christina s Mum and Dad s car and also Harry s mum s car, we left Isaac by accident but Christina s mum went back to pick him up from school. When we were all at the train station, we had a talk about train safety. We waited for eleven minutes for the train and as we boarded it, we were excited for Westminster Cathedral and we had a laugh. As we were about to get off the first train, we looked at the gap we had to cross it was huge! We waited for only a few minutes for our next train and there was another big gap to get over! The walk to Westminster wasn t very far. We were there in no time. We all dressed up in costumes from the nativity; to get in the spirit of Christmas. Although it was fun dressing up, I think some of us died a little inside! When we entered the Cathedral, it was GIGANTIC! There were a lot of other schools but none of them were DRESSED UP! It was very fun but instead of a normal Mass, there was a Carol Service that told the Nativity Story of baby Jesus. At the beginning, we sat down and sang our first carol, O little town of Bethlehem and we stood up to sing it. After that an Angel named Penelope, played by Vanessa Bowers, came on stage and told the story of Christmas. Then the Angel introduced her friend, Angel Gabriel, played by Henry Bauchkam and we sang our next carol, The Angel Gabriel. Penelope continued her story. She told us that Mary was blessed by God and was told by Angel Gabriel that she would give birth to the Messiah and she would name him Jesus. She told us that Mary was engaged to a man named Joseph and he was shocked. Then, Penelope told us that Mary and Joseph went on a donkey and then we sang the next hymn, Little Donkey a real donkey! After that, Penelope told us more of the story and in the story. Then there was a real sheep walking down the aisle. After a few more hymns, when we were singing We Three Kings, Marco and Harry gave the money to Cardinal Vincent Nichols. They walked down the aisle with other children. Finally, we sang Hark the Herald Angels Sing and Penelope ran down the aisle; she had to take a phone call. It was from angel Gabriel. After that, we looked around the cathedral; we looked at the many chapels and we looked at the FAKE camel! The chapels were glorious and there many after Saints; like St Andrew. We also WENT TO THE Blessed Sacrament Chapel and we prayed there for a little while. When we were leaving, we took a photo with the Cardinal. Then we went to the train station to get back to school. We sprinted to the train but there were no seats; we had to stand up! When we were waiting for the second train back, the one with the big gap, we waited for minutes and then we went inside. We sat down and ate our lunch. It was a great day! We all had a fabulous time. We were so lucky. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity. Thanks to: Philomena Meddelton (for accompanying us and driving us to the station), Lindon Rodrigues (for driving us and accompanying us for most of the journey), Maria Rodrigues (for driving us) and a big thanks to MISS KNIPE!

St Michael s News Christmas 2015 Adult Faith Formation Page 7 Adult Faith Formation @ St Michael s Thank you to all those who completed the parish survey.

7 St Michael s News Christmas 2015 Adult Faith Formation Page 7 Adult Faith St Michael s Thank you to all those who completed the parish survey. There were some very helpful suggestions made and these will be used to assist the parish in planning future faith formation events and programmes. The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) The parish currently has ten participants who are exploring the Catholic faith together. RCIA is not merely a new way to prepare adults for baptism; baptism is only one step. RCIA helps adults to grow in their relationship with God, become familiar with Catholic teachings and practices, get acquainted with people in the parish community and get involved in service within the community. I consider it a huge privilege to be invited several years ago to become a parish catechist with particular responsibility for RCIA and Infant Baptism catechesis. It is the privilege and responsibility of all believers to hand on the Catholic faith to future generations. If you feel God is calling you to this important vocation as a catechist for either RCIA or Infant Baptism and would like to find out more please do not hesitate to contact me. Bible study/prayer There has been an expression of interest among some parishioners to come together in their own homes once a month for prayer and faith sharing. This will be an opportunity for fellowship and reflection and is open to all those who wish to get to know others in the parish community better, and deepen their engagement with scripture at a spiritual level. The parish is looking for three families who are willing to act as hosts for these meetings. The monthly meetings will be arranged by each group to suit their lifestyles. It is envisaged that once a year all the families will come together for a retreat day. If you are interested in attending a group, and/or being a host family, to study the bible and pray in a friendly and relaxed atmosphere please let me know. At the time of writing I have two families who have volunteered to host the monthly event. If you feel you may be interested but would like more information please do not hesitate to ask me. Sycamore Catechesis Programme Sycamore is a new programme of evangelisation and catechesis developed in the Diocese of Westminster. After Easter, this course will be offered here at St Michael s. If you are aged between eighteen and thirty years old and feel that you would like to develop your faith then the Sycamore programme may be the perfect starting point for you. If you are interested in being part of this programme and/or would like more information about it then please contact me. Mrs Lee Gibson Adult Faith Formation Catechist lee.gibson.2na@btinternet.com Mobile: Christmas Mass times Christmas Eve: 6.00pm; Midnight Mass 11.00pm (Carols at 10.30pm) Christmas Day: 9.30am; 11.30am (No evening Mass) Boxing Day: No morning Mass; NO Vigil Mass for Sunday (6.00pm Mass at Sunbury and a 6.30pm Mass at Hampton). Sunday, December 27: 9.30am; 11.30am; 6.00pm New Year s Day: 10am

Page 8 St Michael s News Christmas 2015 Poems Christmas So here we are, once again. It s Christmastime, once more! The tree is up and decorated with lots of shiny things.

This artificial picture with its coloured flashing lights, a semblance of a peaceful scene, which of course attracts. A mask of life s reality, with its harsh words and fights.

For just a moment every year, we call time on tyranny and show our love and care for all, working as a team.

8 Page 8 St Michael s News Christmas 2015 Poems Christmas So here we are, once again. It s Christmastime, once more! The tree is up and decorated with lots of shiny things. Coloured items of every kind, adorn the walls and door. Christmas cards, holly wreaths, gold and silver rings. It looks the part, this bright montage. It covers all the cracks. This artificial picture with its coloured flashing lights, a semblance of a peaceful scene, which of course attracts. A mask of life s reality, with its harsh words and fights. But what would we do without this display of perfect harmony, of love and sweetness for a while, to keep us in the dream? For just a moment every year, we call time on tyranny and show our love and care for all, working as a team. But when this ends, there s little left of all this sophistication, of the sweet talk, of hugs and kisses and even admiration. It s then the reality appears once more, with its sad fragmentation and cold harshness of this world rears up, in all its desperation. It doesn t have to be like this! We can easily change our ways. Remember that Christmas is about baby Jesus, and His praise. Of Mary and Joseph at Bethlehem of Angels and of those days, of Heaven calling on us all, to change our selfish wayward ways. Anon Usual service times Sunday Masses Saturday 6:00pm (first Mass of Sunday), 9:30am (including Children s Liturgy of the Word), 11:30am and 6:00pm Weekday Masses Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday 9:15am Saturday 9:30am No Mass on Thursdays Holy Days of Obligation Masses 9:30am and 7:00pm Eucharistic Adoration Saturday 10:00 10:30am Sacrament of Reconciliation Saturday 10:30 11:00am Sacrament of Baptism Normally the second Saturday of the month. Contact Lee Gibson on / or lee.gibson.2na@btinternet.com Regular Events Sundays: Charismatic Prayer Group, St Joseph s Chapel, 7:00pm Wednesdays: Choir Practice, Church, 7:30pm Alternate Wednesdays: Folk Group practice, St Joseph s Chapel, 7:30pm Alternate Thursdays: Ladies Circle, 8:00pm, Parish Centre Saturdays: Antique Fair (3rd Saturday of month) Hope Put a bounce back in your feet, give a smile to all you meet, say a word of greeting, if you dare. Welcome those around you and they will not confound you, with all their worries and their wear. Pass the message to them all, that life can be a ball, as long as you remember to care. Don t ever be complacent, about those who are adjacent, or allow them to get beyond repair. Hope may spring eternal, away from the infernal, especially if you learn to share. Your dreams will not desert you, or aspirations skirt you, if first you think of others who are there. Oremus The Best Things in Life are FREE This magazine is now a FREE publication! And it is our hope that it will continue to be so for many years to come. Everyone who now visits Westminster Cathedral, be they worshipper, pilgrim, wanderer or tourist, is most welcome to take home a copy of its official magazine. For more information and how to subscribe * please call Oremus: or go to Gift Shop On Line: cathedralshop.co.uk and click on Subscriptions. *A small postal charge is made to subscribers. Roger Houlding

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Keywords. Keywords MERCY JUBILEE GRACE LIBERTY OPPRESSION FEAST OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION SECOND VATICAN ECUMENICAL COUNCIL REPENTANT MANIFESTS COMPASSION CONSECRATE ANOINTING Introduction Pope Francis called