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Catholic Community in Cheltenham
Served by the Diocese of Clifton Registered Charity Number 233977
Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Psalter Week 1
8th February 2015
Page No. 134
‘He cured many who were suffering from diseases of one kind or another’ (Mark: 1:29-39)
“the only true riches
are those that make us
rich in virtue”
St Gregory the Great 10 St James Square, GL50 3PR 01242 523737
St Thomas More Princess Elizabeth Way, GL51 7RA 01242 573128
Parish Priest:
Canon Bosco MacDonald VF
Assistant Priest: Fr Frank Wainwright
Fr David McDonald
Deacon:
Rev. Robin Littlewood
Pope st Gregory the great
Parish Websites:
www.stgregorys.org.uk, www.stthomasmorechurch.org.uk
Schools:
St Gregory’s RC Primary School, St James Square GL50 3QG
St Thomas More RC Primary School, Lewis Road, Hesters Way GL51 OHZ
All Saints’ Academy, Blaisdon Way, Cheltenham GL51 OWH
Sacred Hearts Moorend Road, Charlton Kings, GL53 9AU
01242 524932
of Jesus and Mary
Parish Priest:
8th
9th
10th
11th
12th
13th
14th
Sunday
5.00pm (Sat
5.30pm (Sat)
8.15am
9.30am
10.30am
11.15am
4.15pm
6.00pm
Monday
11.00am
Tuesday
12.30am
7.00pm
Wednesday
9.30am
10.00am
Thursday
9.30am
7.00pm
Friday
9.15am
9.30am
Saturday
9.30am
10.00am
Fr Paul Brandon Parish Website: www.sacredhearts.org.uk
Mass Times this Week
Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
St Thomas More
People of the Parish
Sacred Hearts
Marriage Care
Sacred Hearts
People of the Parish
St Gregory
Private Intention
Sacred Hearts
Kate Durkan RIP
St Gregory
Dinah Mary Swain RIP
Sacred Hearts
Mass in Polish
St Gregory
People of the Parish
Weekday in Ordinary Time
St Gregory
Requiem Mass for
Mr Leslie Gardiner RIP
Memorial of Saint Scholastica, Virgin
Sacred Hearts
Requiem Mass for
Bridie Dullak RIP
St Gregory
Rita McPartland RIP
Weekday in Ordinary Time
St Gregory
Julia B. Caravana RIP
Sacred Hearts
Private Intention
Weekday in Ordinary Time
St Gregory
In Thanksgiving
Sacred Hearts
Leslie Gardiner RIP
Weekday in Ordinary Time
Sacred Hearts
George Bishop RIP
St Gregory
Margaret (Peg) Guest RIP
Feasts of Saints Cyril, Monk,
& Methodius, Bishop, Patrons of Europe
St Gregory
Holy Souls
Sacred Hearts
Private Intention
Exposition and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament: Prayer before the
Blessed Sacrament at St Gregory’s: Saturday 10.00am-11.00am; Thursday
10.00am-3.00pm ending with Benediction; Sacred Hearts: 1st Friday of the
month, 9.15am-12.30pm.
Sacrament of Reconciliation: St Gregory’s Saturdays 10.00am; St Thomas
More 4.15-4.45pm. 1st Thursday at STM 5pm Confessions in Polish. Sacred
Hearts Thursdays 7.30pm and Saturdays 10.30am. Also by arrangement
with the priests.
RCIA Journey in Faith: Every Thursday, 7-9pm in the Presbytery.
Baptisms: By arrangement with the Parish Office.
Cheltenham Catholic Adults: 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of the month. Contact
Margaret 07515 805015 or Damian 07908 105787.
55 Club: After 9.30am Mass, in Old Priory (alternate Thursdays). Next
meeting: 19th February. “The story of ‘K’ Shoes”. Speaker: Mr Gerard
Anslow.
Choir Practice: In Church, Thursdays at 7.00pm. New members welcome.
Contact John on: 07769 675323.
NOTHING BUT DRUDGERY?
In a moment of depression, Job captures that
terrible feeling we all get from time to time: maybe
this world is all there is, and all our yearnings, our
plans and our hopes are in vain because there is no
God nor any spiritual reality. We are here, Job
says, just for the drudgery, and our lives are little
better than pressed service. Sadly, there are plenty
of Jobs around today. Take a look at many of the
faces on the trains and buses, people on their way
to work who are about as enthusiastic as a
condemned prisoner before a firing squad. Listen to
the conversations in the pubs about salaries and
pay rises, as if nothing else mattered. Agonize
alongside those who cannot find work and whose
day is sixteen hours of listlessness. Saddest of all,
go to the gravesides and crematoria, to people who
have lost loved ones but who have no belief in God
or the afterlife. It all seems so bewildering, so tragic
and so without meaning. Job speaks about days
which pass but which leave no hope behind, of a
life which is just a breath, and of eyes which never
again will see joy. All rather depressing stuff, isn't
it? But very real. Mature Christians also go through
these phases of doubt about faith. In fact, a person
who has never had second thoughts about the
world, the meaning of life and the existence of a
loving God would have a very untested faith. It's
OK to wonder; it's allowed to ask questions; it's part
of faith occasionally to feel that you might have
made a mistake. Far from destroying faith, these
uncomfortable thoughts are a sign that faith is still
alive, and that deep down inside we are not
prepared to paste over the cracks when experience
confronts our desire to believe. For mature adults,
doubt is not seen as an affront to faith, but as a
potential growth point and as a sign that our faith
has not lost its critical capacity to search and
question. Although Job often gets a bad press, we
have to remember that his doubts and depression
only served ultimately to confirm him as a man of
faith. He realized that life and loving was a cruel
game if there was no God, no spiritual life, nothing
beyond the here and now. Job's troubles only
taught him what Jesus would teach centuries later: I
have come that you may have life, and have it to
the full. There is more than meets the eye.
Finance
Last week’s offertory collection came to: £1331.41
(STG); £349.01 (STM) which includes £64.05 from the
Kerala Community. Last week’s collection for the
Catholic Youth Service raised £403.85 (STG) and
£64.05 (STM).
Thank you for your support and
generosity.
Baptism
Congratulations and welcome to Maia Rose and Cian
James Purdon who were baptised at St Gregory’s last
weekend. We welcome them into the Church, and offer
our love and prayers to Maia, Cian and their family.
Stations of the Cross
During the season of Lent, Stations of the Cross will be
on Wednesdays at 7pm at St Gregory’s, and also on
Sundays at 5pm at St Gregory’s.
Lent Contemplative Prayer
During Lent, starting on Monday, 23rd February, you
are invited to join us on Mondays, between 2pm and
3pm at 54 Alstone Croft, GL51 8HA, for a period of
quiet prayer, followed by a period of reading the
Sunday Lent gospels as Lectio Divina. Phone Maryse
on 237605 for details.
First Confessions
Will be held on the 21st February, 7th and 21st March.
On those days approximately 25 children will be
receiving this Sacrament from 10.00am, ahead of
regular parishioners. Please pray for our children as
they take this important step.
40 Days for Life
As in previous years, the Cheltenham 40 Days team will
hold vigil in front of the Cheltenham General Hospital
between 8:00am and 6:00 pm. Please do support us
with your prayers, any form of daily fasting that is
appropriate for you, and if you can do it at all, do come
and pray with us in front of the hospital. By persevering
in this, we plead with God to convert our nation's heart
and to make us respect every human life from
conception to natural death.
St Valentine’s day ‘Stitch and Pray’
On Saturday, 14th February, 2.00 until 5.00pm in the
Old Priory. Bring along your own stitching craft, such as
sewing, knitting and crochet for a skill-sharing session.
All welcome. Homemade cakes assured! The quilt
raffle will be drawn. If you haven’t had the opportunity to
buy a raffle ticket yet, the quilt will be displayed and
tickets sold after 9.30 and 11.15 Masses today.
Fish & Chip Supper
On Friday, 20th February at 7.30pm in St Thomas More
Centre. A fish and chip supper and a small quiz for
£7.50. Tickets on sale after STM Mass or from
Marianna on 528427.
Prayer Breakfast
The March breakfast meeting will be on Saturday, 7th
March 9.30-11.00am. Jacob Holbrook (Youth Team)
will come and give a talk. All welcome.
Soup Lunch
Will take place at St Thomas More Parish Hall on
Friday, 20th February and the 6th March from 11.30am1pm in aid of CAFOD. Please come along and support
us. Any offer of help would be appreciated. Please
contact Johannes on 07815 496902.
World Youth Day 2016
Applications are now being taken for our Diocesan
World Youth Day Pilgrimage to Krakow, Poland in
2016. If you are aged 16+ by July 2016, visit
www.cliftondiocese.com/worldyouthday and register
your interest online.
National Marriage Week - 7th-14th February
Renewal of Marriage Vows
Parishioners are warmly invited to celebrate their
marriage by taking the opportunity of renewing their
marriage vows at either the 7.00pm Mass on Tuesday,
10th February at St Gregory’s, or the 5.00pm Mass on
Saturday, 14th February at St Thomas More.
An Introduction to Spiritual Directing
Why not come and talk about the possibility of joining
this course? The two-year course starts in September
2015 based at The Marist Centre, Nympsfield, near
Stroud, and is open to clergy and lay people of any
denomination. Come to the Taster Day on Wednesday,
15th April at Nympsfield. Cost £22.00 including lunch.
To book or for more information, please contact Liz
Mitchell on 241311
or Anne
Solom on,
email:[email protected] Limited numbers,
early application advised. Closing date: 30th June
2015, after which we will have a reserve list.
55 Club Meeting
Learn all about the world of ‘K’ Shoes; the once famous
brand name of footwear in Cheltenham, from a former
store manager, by joining us at our 55 Club meeting on
Thursday, 19th February at 10.00am. You will find also
many other interesting topics by invited speakers on our
programme for the year, all of which will prove
enjoyable. New members are always made welcome at
our meetings.
Film Committee Members Required
Sacred Hearts Parish Hall
With the recent addition of a large on-stage screen and
overhead projector, the Hall Committee is seeking
parishioners from Sacred Hearts, St Gregorys and St
Thomas More to manage the regular showing of films
and a film club. If you have experience running such a
venture or a cinematic interest, please contact Dan
Harris ([email protected]; 07880 637 533).
There will be a kick-off meeting on Tuesday, 17th
February at 7pm in the Hall’s committee room.
Children’s Summer Camps 2015
The “Living Your Faith” Summer Camps run by the
Clifton Diocese are running once again. These
residential weeks run in August and are intended to
encourage children and young people to engage in their
faith through fun, games and spiritual input. They take
place in the beautiful surroundings of the Marist
Convent in Nympsfield. Week One 3rd–7th August (Age
7-11) and Week Two 10th–14th August (Age 1216). For more details contact Stephen Spurrell on
07860 849460 or [email protected] .
Prayers are asked for:
Sick: Liz Sawaf, Claire Young, Sean Murphy, Helen
Stanbury, Grace Stevens, Olive Whelan, Bruce Francis,
Jenny Dabrowska, Teresa Patterson, Bernie Warner,
Deirdre Kelleher, Helen Dorothy Gorry, Denise Ellis,
Kevin Dunn, Christopher & Clifford Brown, Margaret
Ellis, Julia & Danny Barr, Teresa & Paddy O’Kelly,
Bridie Ruck, Angela Savidge, Pauline Crosbie, Emily
Cousins, Rey Lluisma, Bridget Garvey, Maddie Read,
Dan Perry, Pete Thacker, Mary Costello, Adrian Davis,
Lisa Partridge, Dillon Bright, Sheila Deneher, Margaret
Byrne, John Flood.
Deceased: Mrs Elizabeth Mary Martin, Patrick
Donovan, Alan Finch and Rose Obera RIP.
Anniversaries: Matt Wojtan, Honoria Christina
Flaherty, Kate Durkan, William Bonehill, Fr Alphonsus
Brennan O’Carm, Mary McGlade, Nicholas Knox,
Josephine Smith, Susan Browne, Stanley Davies.