Newsletter_Apr18

I remember when I was about 12 years old, we had a set book in our English classes at school called “In the Steps of the Master”. It was by H. V. Morton, a well known travel writer of the time, who had written books like “In Search of Scotland”. In the book we had, he applied his skills to the Holy Land. The only thing I remember from the book is where he comes across a shepherd who leads his sheep rather than drives them and who calls them by their name. He was reminded of Jesus' words, “The one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock; the gatekeeper lets him in, the sheep hear his voice, one by one he calls his own sheep and leads them out”(John 10: 2-3). The scene where the grieving Mary Magdalen recognises the risen Jesus when he says' Mary' (John 20: 16) also comes to mind.

My other memory is from the Easter of 1978, when I went to Rome and saw in the Catacomb of San Callisto a fresco of the Good Shepherd and was told by our guide that it was in the most ancient part of the Catacomb and was one of the most popular images of Christ amongst the persecuted Christians of Rome in the early years of Christianity. ‘ The Good Shepherd Who lovingly carries the lamb on His shoulders to the flock that are pastured in Paradise signified to the Christian the reason for his hope in eternity'. It reminds me of Our Lord's parable “What man among you with a hundred sheep, losing one, would not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the missing one till he found it? And then, when he found it would he not joyfully take it on his shoulders . . (Luke 15: 4) This is an image of the Lord who knows each of us individually and loves us and takes care of us individually.

What does this image of the Good Shepherd say to us today here in central London, where we see no sheep or do we? There is another passage, this time in Mark's Gospel, “So, as he stepped ashore he saw a large crowd; and he took pity on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd” (Mark 6: 34). Maybe this picture we do recognise to fit so many of the people we meet in this London of ours; sheep without a shepherd; lost and with no sense of where to go. It takes us back to the introduction to this Sunday's Opening Prayer, “Let us pray that Christ our shepherd will lead us through the difficulties of this life.”

The annual parish pilgrimage to Walsingham will take place on SATURDAY MAY 29th . 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 and returns to the same spot at around 8:30pm. Fr Dominic Robinson will be leading the group. Cost for the day including lunch is £30.

Cheques payable to Farm Street Church. For further information, contact Joan Hammett on 0208 657 6367 (after 6.00pm).

The London Marathon takes place today and there are 29 runners for Jesuit Missions. It is still not too late to sponsor them. Visit www.gbjm.org/marathon .

The runners will be arriving at 114 Mount Street at the end of their efforts where they will be welcomed and looked after. Remember them in your prayers.

Our children's programme continues to grow but we have lost some of our catechists this year and we need new volunteers. The work is very enjoyable and rewarding and only requires being with the children on Sunday mornings (not necessarily every Sunday) and special occasions. Training will be provided by the team. If you are interested, contact Patsy Cummings pcummings@rcdow.org.uk.

There will be a collection at the doors in support of the training of seminarians at Allen Hall, the Seminary of the Westminster Diocese. Please be generous in your response to the generosity of these men who are offering themselves to the priesthood. And please pray for them. Copies of the Seminary magazine are available at the doors.

Churches Together in Westminster is happy to announce the next venues for this popular programme of visits. Anyone is welcome to come along to join Christians from other churches for a tour, a talk, refreshments and fellowship.

JULY 14th: Notre Dame de France (the French Church, RC), 5 Leicester Place, off Leicester Square

SEPTEMBER 7th: Bloomsbury Baptist Church, 235 Shaftesbury Avenue, WC2, off New Oxford Street.

We are very grateful to our team of volunteers who look after the door and telephone at 114 Mount Street during the evenings. It is an easy job and involves contact with lots of interesting people. The hours are from 5pm to 8pm and you will be fed. If you could do this regularly (weekly) or on an occasional basis (once a fortnight or even once a month), please let Fr William know.

The Jesuit Community has disposed of the Community car and now has an indoor parking space available for annual lease. The entrance is in Farm Street close to the church. For details contact the House Manager Marian Campbell: 020 7529 4804.

Sat June 12th : Readers (this includes weekday readers as well as those on the Sunday rota)

Sat September 18th : Welcomers (greeters, coffee and bookshop helpers and night receptionists)

Archbishop Vincent Nichols will be ordaining Jesuit candidates to the Diaconate at the 11am Mass. All are welcome.

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.

At the 6:15pm Mass we welcome the St Patrick's Gospel Choir. St Patrick, Soho Square, is closed for a year for major works. The Gospel Choir performs a variety of musical styles.

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 .

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!

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.

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.

The aim is to improve our skills when listening to ourselves, and to others, and perhaps also to God.

For those involved in pastoral work in which issues such as boundaries, roles and relationships, power and protection of vulnerable people may be an issue. It will focus not just on "good practice" (do's and don'ts) but also the "character" of the person involved in pastoral care. Suited to anyone in parish ministry or working with people in any helping capacity.

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 .