Pope Leo appointed Fr Stephen Wang as sixth bishop of our Diocese on 2nd July. In a video recorded recently: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnVi7K8bWJE  Bishop-elect Stephen offers a simple, practical introduction to prayer. “Prayer is wonderful,” he says, “prayer is so important, but prayer can be hard as well. How many times have people come up to me as a priest and said, ‘Father, I want to pray, but I don’t know how to start. I don’t know what to do, and I feel a bit stuck…’ “I remember the first time I prayed as an adult, I didn’t really know what to do, but I was in my bedroom. I closed my door. I sat on the edge of my bed and… just talked to God and said something like, ‘Dear God, I’m not sure if you're there. I hope you’re listening. These are the things on my heart, on my mind…’”

People across our diocesan community of faith welcomed the result of last Friday’s parliamentary vote on Assisted Suicide, which saw the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill defeated by 286 votes to 270, a majority of 16. Every year, our diocesan Trustees approve a financial contribution to each and every hospice within the Diocese to support the care that they offer to the terminally ill.

The Diocese has updated its admissions policy so that, if a Catholic school is oversubscribed, Catholic applicants may be ranked using a ‘Certificate of Catholic Practice.’ These certificate are issued by a Parish Priest to confirm that a child comes from a Catholic family regularly attending Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation over a substantial period. Catholic families are encouraged to be actively involved in the life of the Parish as part of their own and their child’s faith journey, rather than solely for the purpose of securing a school place. Therefore those who will be applying for their child to have a place in a Catholic Secondary School in September 2028 (and beyond) will need to bring along a passport sized photograph of their child to obtain a ‘Celebrating Attendance at Mass' card from the Parish Office. To celebrate attendance, these cards will need to be stamped after each Sunday Mass (including the Saturday Vigil), starting with the Holy Day of All Saints on Sunday, 1st November, and continuing for one year.

OUR PARISH SUPPORTS THE COBHAM AREA FOODBANK Please can you help local people in crisis by purchasing items on the list below and placing them in the Foodbank’s collection point in the narthex when to come to Mass at the weekend? 

ARUNDEL PILGRIMAGE - Saturday 26th September 10.00-16.00.  A walk in Arundel in honour of Our Lady and St Philip Howard, starting and finishing at the Cathedral, and stopping at the remains of the ancient religious foundations of Arundel for short prayers. The pilgrimage will commence at 10.00 with Mass in the Cathedral followed by a short period of Adoration. We will then meet outside the main door of the Cathedral and walk across to the Fitzalan Chapel, pray by the new statue of Our Lady of Walsingham, pass the site of the Maison Dieu and leave through the Mary Gate into Arundel Park. The lunch stop will be at Swanbourne Lake and we will then walk along Mill Road to the remains of the Dominican Priory next to the Museum. We will visit St Nicholas Church before returning to the Cathedral for prayer at the Shrine of St Philip Howard. There will be an opportunity for Reconciliation and the day will conclude with tea and cake in the Cathedral Centre. All are welcome, no charge. Join for any part of the day. Please bring along a packed lunch and wear suitable clothes and shoes/boots. Part of the route is over uneven ground and country footpaths. Walk length approximately 3 miles. To book please phone Lindsey Stratford (01903 884567) or email: admin@arundelcathedralfriends.uk

The musings of one of God’s smallest creatures on events in and around the Parish over the past seven days . . . . Another full week again for Fr D as another set of parents (Tuesday evening) and candidates (Saturday morning) sessions for our First Reconciliation Programme took place . . . . . Also this week, on Wednesday evening, another meeting of what Fr D calls the ‘Shadow (New) Parish Pastoral Team’ took place at St Anne’s, Banstead. At the meeting the clergy present presented their agreed plan on the distribution of the celebration of Masses for the Parish. As reported earlier in the Summer the communities of Effingham and Fetcham will, from November, be left without a resident priest as Fr Charles Howell is leaving to go off on a sabbatical and will not be replaced. Our local clergy had in fact already started getting together to discuss the provision of Mass across the area under the new Pastoral Plan (with meetings in June, July and September) and the news concerning Fr Charles demonstrated how important and timely these discussions were. Whilst there are many aspects of our pastoral life that will need to be considered in the coming months, an important issue that needs addressing early is that of Sunday Mass times. The Mass is the greatest prayer that our Catholic community offers together; practically, for many people, it’s an important weekly moment of contact, albeit often brief, with a priest. As thoughts concerning this began it was important to acknowledge that, in the not too distant future at least two of our priests will move into well-earned retirement, and that this should be factored in. The task was to work on a schedule of Sunday Masses that could be served by eight priests; and after prayer and reflection together, to factor in a little breathing space to allow cover for holidays, retreats, pilgrimage and sickness. It was hoped that there would still be the possibility of retired priests being able to supply but this is not something that can be relied upon. The clergy were also bearing in mind, and trying to include in the schedule, the greatly valued connection between people, place, and priest. Please do pray for bishop-elect Stephen, Fr Charles and each other; that guided by the Holy Spirit, we have the strength and courage to look to the future with confidence as Change Is Coming . . . . . .

The Shrine of Our Lady at Walsingham dates from the year 1061. In that year a Catholic called Richeldis de Faverches, had prayed to the Blessed Virgin for the favour of knowing what she might do to honour her. The Blessed Virgin appeared to the noble a in vision, showing her the Holy House where the Annunciation had taken place, and according to tradition, the replica was miraculously completed in Walsingham as Richeldis de Faverches prayed. It soon became a popular place of pilgrimage, and the Augustinian canons were granted papal approval to build a priory in 1150.  This was England during the reign of the pious king Saint Edward the Confessor. A long list of succeeding kings and queens made pilgrimages to the shrine during the following centuries, including the daughter of Queen Isabella of Spain and wife of King Henry VIII, Catherine of Aragon. It is even said that Anne Boleyn may have once had the intention of visiting the shrine during an unaccustomed moment of piety.

CATHOLICS ACROSS ENGLAND AND WALES WILL MARK EDUCATION SUNDAY THIS WEEKEND - Established 178 years ago in 1848, the day provides an opportunity to celebrate and give thanks to all those involved in Catholic education and to look forward in anticipation to the new academic year ahead. Catholic education is an essential part of the Church’s mission to make the person of Jesus known and loved, and to place him and the teaching of the Catholic Church at the very centre of people’s lives. More than 37,000 children and young people are educated across 73 Primary and Secondary Schools throughout our Diocese, supported by 4,400 teachers and support staff, 721 governors, and many more volunteers, parents, and carers. Reflecting on the significance of the day Bishop Marcus Stock, the Bishop of Leeds and Chairman of the Catholic Education Service, said: “We give thanks to the Lord for the vocations of all who work within the Catholic sector: the teaching and support staff, chaplains, school leaders and governors. It is through their commitment and hard work that pupils and students in our schools, colleges and universities can thrive and contribute to society, through their formation and education. “In the academic year ahead, let us endeavour to give witness to the message of forgiveness, reconciliation and peace in the Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and to pray that our Catholic schools, colleges and universities will be beacons of His good news in our communities.” Our Retiring Collection this weekend will be for the work of the Catholic Education Service who advise the Bishops of England and Wales concerning government legislation in the field of education.

Early in the fourth century, St Helena, mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine, went to Jerusalem in search of the holy places of Christ’s life. She razed the second-century Temple of Aphrodite, which tradition held was built over the Saviour’s tomb, and her son built the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre on that spot. During the excavation, workers found three crosses. Legend has it that the one on which Jesus died was identified when its touch healed a dying woman. The cross immediately became an object of veneration. At a Good Friday celebration in Jerusalem toward the end of the 4th century, according to an eyewitness, the wood was taken out of its silver container and placed on a table together with the inscription Pilate ordered placed above Jesus’ head: Then “all the people pass through one by one; all of them bow down, touching the cross and the inscription, first with their foreheads, then with their eyes; and, after kissing the cross, they move on.”  The feast entered the Western calendar in the 7 th century after the Emperor Heraclius recovered the cross from the Persians, who had carried it off in 614, fifteen years earlier. According to the story, the emperor intended to carry the cross back into Jerusalem himself, but was unable to move forward until he removed his imperial garb and became a barefoot pilgrim.