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SCRIPTURE
READINGS
|
Isaiah |
10:34-43 |
| Psalm |
117 |
| Colossians
|
3:1-4 |
| John |
20:1-9 |
THE
MYSTERY OF FAITH
"Let
us proclaim the Mystery of Faith!" These words
spoken by the celebrant at Mass following the consecration
of the bread and wine invite us to unite our voices
in acclaiming the reality of Christ's redeeming
work now brought before us in the miracle of the
Mass. The Easter event (the Paschal mystery) is
intimately united to our celebration of the Eucharist
and every Mass is an Easter proclamation. For this
reason we should be filled with joy when we approach
the Sacrament at Communion. In the words of Pope
Benedict: “The mission for which Jesus came among
us was accomplished in the Paschal Mystery. On the
cross from which he draws all people to himself
just before ‘giving up the spirit' he utters the
words: ‘it is accomplished'. In the mystery of Christ's
obedience unto death, even death on a cross, the
new and eternal covenant is brought about. Human
sin was redeemed once and for all by God's Son.
In the Paschal Mystery our deliverance from evil
and death has taken place. In instituting the Eucharist,
Jesus spoke of the ‘new and eternal covenant' in
the shedding of his blood. This, the ultimate purpose
of his mission, was clear from the very beginning
of his public life. When, on the banks of the Jordan
, John the Baptist saw Jesus coming towards him,
he cried out, ‘Behold the Lamb of God who takes
away the sin of the world!'. It is significant that
these words are repeated at every celebration of
Holy Mass when the priest invites us to approach
the altar. Jesus is the true Paschal lamb who really
gave himself in sacrifice for us and thus brought
about the new and eternal covenant. The Eucharist
contains this radical newness, which is offered
to us again and again at every celebration.” ( Sacramentum
Caritatis , 9)
The
Church too must experience in her own members this
saving death, this resurrection to new life. We
pray for this in our present distress when the Church
is afflicted with the scandal of sin. “Why be a
Catholic?” people may ask. We do not have to list
the catalogue of reasons. It is enough to point
to the Mass. Everything we believe in is made present
to us in this outpouring of grace. The Church will
always be the Body of Christ on earth, but it is
a body made up of sinful members. We pray for its
purification. As we rejoice in the celebration of
our redemption, let us renew our commitment to the
Eucharist as the source and summit of our Catholic
lives. Here is where the Church is reborn. Here
is where it finds forgiveness for its sins. Priests
and people alike are one at the altar in receiving
this power from above. Each time we celebrate this
great sacrament we proclaim the death and resurrection
of Christ. We are united with the risen Lord and
we share his divine life. Through him, with him
and in him, we are able to live lives that will
give glory and honour to God.
Fr
William Pearsall SJ
WALSINGHAM
The
annual parish pilgrimage to Walsingham will take
place on SATURDAY MAY 29 th
. This
year's pilgrimage will be in memory of Philip O'Brien,
our Parish Council chairman, who died last summer.
The
coach leaves from 114
Mount Street
at 8.30am
. Lunch
on arrival is booked for 12.30pm
. After
lunch we will visit the Anglican Shrine with some
free time in the village. At 2.15pm
we
assemble in Friday Market Place and from there make
the pilgrim walk along the Holy Mile to the Slipper
Chapel for Mass at 3.30pm
.
Fr
Dominic Robinson will be leading the group. Cost
for the day including lunch is £30. Cheques
payable to Farm
Street
Church
or
contact Joan Hammett on 0208 657 6367 (after 6.00pm
) or
email farmstreet@rcdow.org.uk
.
If
you have never been to this historic pilgrimage
site, this is a great opportunity.
SHROUD
OF TURIN
An
exhibition on this fascinating subject is taking
place at Westminster Cathedral from APRIL 11th to
19th. There are lots of visual displays with full
commentaries. Admission free. See posters for details.
MUSICAL
RECTOR
The
Rector of St Georges Church, Hanover
Square ,
is a graduate in music and puts his skills to use
in aid of this historic Mayfair
church.
Hear the Reverend Roderick Leece at the piano with
Wendy Hiscocks, soprano, in an evening of Brahms,
Fauré, Britten, Puccini and others this THURSDAY
APRIL 8th at 7.30pm
. Admission
free. Collection in aid of the church restoration
project.
A
NEW FILM ON THE CARMELITES
“NO
GREATER LOVE”
After
ten years of correspondence, director Michael Whyte
was given unrestricted access to the enclosed Carmelite
community of nuns hidden away in Notting Hill, in
the centre of London
. The
result is a unique and beautiful insight into the
world of prayer, contemplation and the shared life
of faith. These are the sisters, by the way, who
make the altar breads we use here at Farm
Street
– a wonderful daily link between us! The film will
be on general release from April 9th. Check the
London
cinema
listings.
REFLECTION
DAYS FOR VOLUNTEER GROUPS
We
are very grateful to all our many volunteers for
the dedication they bring to serving our church.
To help in their formation and training we are offering
the opportunity for a half-day of prayer, reflection
and practical matters for our major volunteer groups.
If you are in one of these groups please put your
date in your diary. The days begin at 10am
and finish at around 2pm
.
Sat
April 17 th : Catechists
Sat
June 12 th : Readers (this includes weekday readers
as well as those on the Sunday rota)
Sat
September 18 th : Welcomers (greeters, coffee and
bookshop helpers and night receptionists)
Sat
September 25 th : Ministers of Holy Communion.
Please
see any of the clergy for details. We realise that
there are “unattached” volunteers and we will try
and serve them also.
DATES
FOR YOUR DIARY
A
DAY WITH MARY SATURDAY APRIL 24th
We
are happy to welcome this popular devotional event
once more here at Farm
Street .
Opening procession: 10am
. Mass:
11am
. Devotions
throughout the afternoon. Finish 4.30pm
. All
welcome!
FLORES
DE MAYO SATURDAY
MAY 8th
Led
by the Farm Street Filipino Community, this celebration
in honour of Our Lady begins with a procession into
the church at 2pm
followed
by Mass and devotions. Benediction and final procession
at 4pm
. All
are welcome and this is a great event for children.
SUMMER
GARDEN PARTY SUNDAY
JULY 4th
This
is our annual social get-together with lots of food
and drink and good fellowship. We call this our
Open Day and we make a special effort to introduce
new friends to our church. The event takes place
in Mount Street Garden and begins at noon , finishing
with a tour of the church at 3pm and ending with
Benediction at 4pm .
ST
IGNATIUS MASS AND CELEBRATION FRIDAY
JULY 30th
The
Feast of St Ignatius, Founder of the Jesuits, is
celebrated on the 31st, but in order to ensure that
as many as possible can be with us for the Mass
and reception, we are having a Vigil Mass on Friday
at 6pm
. The
choir will be performing, there will be a guest
preacher and we will be gathering Jesuit alumni
and alumnae from all over the world. A very special
event!
LIVING
THEOLOGY 2010
A
“long weekend” of the Living Theology Summer School
will take place at Allen Hall (the Diocesan seminary
located in Beaufort
Street ,
Chelsea
, on
the grounds once occupied by St Thomas More and
his family) from July 9th to 12th. Choose from a
variety of courses in theology, ethics, the Bible,
prayer and other topics. See www.livingtheology.org,uk
for full details or contact Fr Dominic Robinson
SJ at the Mount Street Jesuit Centre.
MOUNT
STREET JESUIT
CENTRE
WHO
DO YOU SAY THAT I AM?
The
Mystery of Jesus Christ
Wednesdays
from 14th APRIL to 2nd JUNE, 7 – 8.30 pm
Led
by Fr DOMINIC Robinson SJ
The
question Jesus put to his disciples has been asked
of Christians (and others) for over 2000 years.
The module begins with the life of Jesus and his
message and proceeds to an overview of how the Church
has attempted to answer the question of the identity
of Jesus Christ. Later on in the course we reflect
more deeply on the centrality of our faith in the
cross and salvation and, finally, consider some
contemporary issues for the study of Jesus Christ
in today's multi-faith context.
A
GOD WHO SPEAKS
Reading
and Praying the Old Testament
Saturday
17th APRIL and 24th APRIL, 11am– 4pm
Led
by BRIAN PURFIELD
The
aim is to introduce participants to the writings
of the Old Testament in order to help them to recognise
God's revelation contained there and its continuing
relevance in Christian life today. Particular attention
will be paid to the different types of literature
that make up the Old Testament and to the diversity
of images of God. The significance of the covenant
and the centrality of the Exodus experience for
the people of Israel
will
be highlighted.
Details
of these programmes can be found in the leaflets
at
the doors of the church.
If
you would like us to put on a course or a one day
workshop on a particular topic of interest to you
now is your opportunity to make your requests.
Please
use Gift-Aid envelopes for your donations if you
are a UK
Tax-payer .
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