Rules and structures help to guide us that our lives or behaviour be guided in an ordered manner. Without rules we descend into chaos. Jesus proposes the new standards of goodness so that we are in harmony with one another from the deepest of our hearts. From the heart comes intentions, good and evil. When we open our hearts to God, he fills us with his love which in turns radiates from within us to warm up our world. Spirit filled heart produces virtues as kindness, tenderness, mercy, pity, compassion and forgiveness. The state of heart will deeply affect how live. We need therefore to continually strive to be of good heart then goodness will flow from within us allowing us to be authentic disciples of the Lord. Rotten heart will produce rotten fruits whereas good heart will bear good fruits to the glory of God.
First reading (Ecclesiasticus 15:15-20). God has given us freedom to choose to do good or evil, to choose life or death.
Psalm (118:1-2. 4-5. 17-18. 33-34) Response: They are happy who follows God’s law!
Second reading (1 Cor: 2:6-10). True wisdom comes from God and reveals the wonderful things God has prepared for those who love him.
Gospel (Matthew 5:17-37). Jesus proposes new standards of goodness for his disciples.
CAFOD APPEAL FOR TURKEY AND SYRIA Earthquake Appeal CAFOD is responding with support of provision of food, water, shelter, medical assistance and winter kits for survivors. Your donations in recent months have made that quick response possible. Let us join CAFOD in praying for our sisters and brothers affected by the earthquakes and the winter weather. Your support for CAFOD throughout the year allows our Catholic agency to act quickly when disasters strike. For more details visit CAFOD’s Syria Turkey Emergency Appeal online at https://cafod.org.uk/give.
We will have a second collection this weekend which will go to CAFOD for this appeal.
MASS INTENTIONS
Sunday 12th February 11.15 Bernadette Thompson RIP
Monday 13th February 09.30 Dominic Griggs RIP
Monday 20th February 09.30 Intentions of Eileen and John Choules
Thursday 23rd February 09.30 Intentions of Mary Smith.
LENT RETREAT Ignatian Spirituality Centre Glasgow are offering Lives to Inspire Lent Retreat 2023: A Lent retreat looking at people who encourage us to live better, more fulfilled lives. We all know of people whose lives inspire us by their courage, generosity, imagination or brilliance. Christian churches either informally, or formally (like the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches) present us with inspiring people that they call ‘saints’. Over Lent this year we shall tell you a little about the lives of over 40 people, some canonised saints, others renowned for their lives of love and public service. Saints are not perfect people, but they do have aspects of their lives that stand out and are worthy of emulation. For more information https://www.iscglasgow.co.uk/lent23.html
CAFOD A Gap Year opportunity: Are you 18-30, or do you know someone who is? Do you want to develop a wide range of skills including leadership while learning about global justice and inspiring others to use their faith in action? CAFOD, the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, believes in equipping and inspiring young adults to contribute to a more just and peaceful world. Step into the Gap is a fully funded year of volunteering, with food, accommodation, stipend and training within a UK placement plus a Rome and Assisi pilgrimage. Visit the CAFOD website for more information: cafod.org.uk/gapyear
BAPTISMAL COURSE The Baptismal Course is available for all Parents whose child is being Baptised at either St Joseph’s, St Elizabeth’s or St Edmund Campion. Please contact the office of the appropriate Church, for further details. Sunday 5th Feb at 1pm. Monday 6th Feb at 7pm. Monday 27th March at 7pm. All at St. Joseph’s Church.
TEN-YEAR MISSION PLAN – “You Will Be My Witnesses” (from Heather Hauschild)
Thank you to all the parishes and individuals who responded to the consultation about the mission plan. We have had over 60 parish responses and 46 individual responses, of which 5 were from priests, 38 from laypersons, and 3 from groups of parishioners. The feedback will now be analysed to inform the final shape of the plan. A group of clergy and lay people are helping us with this so that the detail can be further tested and refined. The work will include a small number of meetings and comment on the material as it is developed. If any of you have an interest in helping with this aspect of the plan, please let us know via missionplan@portsmouthdiocese.org.uk
ARE YOU NEW TO OUR PARISH? Thank you for your interest in our parish. Whether you're just visiting us for a brief time, looking for a new parish home, returning to the practice of your Catholic faith or are interested in finding out more about the Catholic Church, we are happy to answer your questions, listen to your comments and help you in any way that we can. We are a parish of the Diocese of Portsmouth, and are a very vibrant community, made up of ‘old’ Maidenhead families and relative “newcomers” from all walks of life.
We hope that you find our Catholic parish a caring community that is loving, welcoming and supportive of all.
Our mission is to grow in the image of Christ through the Holy Spirit, to be formed by the Word and our prayer, to use our gifts to welcome those who are here and reach out to those who are not. We invite you to join us as partners in the mission. Together, let us get to know Christ better and to make Him better known.
May God Bless you wherever you are and thank you for exploring our website and newsletter.
Please stop by the parish office to introduce yourself! We would love to meet you.
FIRST FRIDAY HEALING MASS Each First Friday will see a ‘Healing Mass’ being celebrated alternatively at St. Joseph’s Church and St. Edmund Campion Church for 2023. We bring together all our needs and especially asking God’s healing spirit upon people and situations in our parish. You are very welcome.
3rd February. 10am and 7pm Mass celebrated at St. Joseph’s
3rd March. 10am and 7pm Mass celebrated at St. Edmund Campion.
5th May. 10am and 7pm Mass celebrated at St. Joseph’s.
2nd June. 10am and 7pm Mass celebrated at St. Edmund Campion.
WORLD DAY OF PRAYER - for people of Taiwan. This annual international service will take place at The Salvation Army Church at 2pm on Friday, 3rd March. Address: East Road SL6 1PJ. All are invited. A collection will be taken for charities nominated by WDP. Refreshments will follow the ecumenical service. Please car-share to aid parking. Thank you.
Parish contact: Angela de Souza at StEC, Bel Flynn at StJ/StE
Portsmouth Diocesan “Don Bosco” Boys Camp - 23 to 29 July 2023
We are delighted that this camp will be going ahead again this summer for boys of secondary school age. The camp will be at St. Cassian’s, Kintbury. There will be plenty of sport, outings, competitions and fun and games to ensure that boys will have a fantastic few days. This will continue to take place within the context of the celebration of the Catholic Faith, including daily Mass and morning prayer. The cost of the camp is £230 (part bursaries may be available on application).
In addition, we are holding a Bosco Experience/Reunion on Sunday 5 March 2023 from 2 to 4pm at St. Peter’s Church, Jewry Street, Winchester SO23 8RY. This is for boys currently in Year 6 up to Year 11. This is a chance for new boys who want to find out more and have a ‘taste’ of the Bosco Experience and for those who have been on camp to meet with old friends. Fun activities and a chance for parents to find out more and sign up for camp. Booking is essential. To find out more or to reserve a place, please email dbcamps@portsmouthdiocese.org.uk
PARISH COLLECTION Please continue to support your parish, its activities and outreach programmes by contributing to the weekly collection via the 'baskets' and/or Contactless. It is very positive that a lot of our parishioners, over the course of the pandemic, switched their contribution from cash to Bank Transfer.
NB: If you want to set up a direct debit or standing order (or even make a one-off donation) the account details are:
Account name: St. Edmund Campion Maidenhead
Sort code: 30-93-04
Account number: 00882551
CHILDREN’S SUNDAY LITURGY Children from the age of 4 can attend. Please put your child’s name on the register as you go into the church for Safeguarding purposes.
TODDLERS GROUP Every Termtime Friday 8.45-10.45 in the Parish Centre.
FIRST HOLY COMMUNION CLASSES As you are aware, the First Holy Communion journey is in three stages. Stage One, was simply coming to Mass for the last number of months and participating in the prayers and singing, and being comfortable with the journey of liturgy. At the end of each Mass, the candidate for First Holy Communion received a stamp to show their attendance. This will continue. However, the family/child will need to show their attendance by showing the priest or catechist their Mass Attendance Card. If there is consistency, then the child will be invited into Stage Two of the programme, which are the classes. If not, and there seems no interest in Mass attendance, then the child and family will be asked to postpone the reception of the Sacrament for another year.
STAGE 2 The next class for the First Holy Communion Programme is on Saturday the 25th of February, at 4.45pm at St. Edmund Campion School. We continue to pray for them.
A REFLECTION ON LENT Come and listen to Fr. Kevin Hughes MHM as he gives a reflection on this season, which starts on Ash Wednesday - 22nd February. There are 2 opportunities available!
Saturday 11th February at 10.00 am at St. Edward's Parish Centre, Windsor
All welcome - start your Lenten preparation early!
FLOWER ROTA We are very short of flower arrangers at the moment, the new rota is coming out as soon as possible. Please could you contact Carolyn on candrfoster@btinternet.com if you can help. While you do not need to be a professional, some flower arranging experience would be helpful. Only three weekends a year are required.
FOODSHARE Are you an NHS, Emergency services or a Blue Light worker. Foodshare is now operating a shop, so if you're struggling to make ends meet, for a cost of £10 per visit you can "buy" a trolley of food. Call 01628 262711 for fast and fuss free support.
YOGA CLASSES Next Yoga Class is on Tuesday the 21st of February at 11.00. Everyone is welcome, new to yoga or with some experience. Classes are free but, if possible, a donation for charity will be appreciated. Contact Rachel at wellhappyyoga@gmail.com or the parish office.
SVP are still looking for donations for the Asylum Seekers please. If you have any of the following we would be very grateful for them. Namely new underwear for men, women or children; men's clothes and shoes/ trainers particularly joggers and warm tops (small, medium or large but no bigger please); any deodorant, moisturiser or perfume for men or women; suitcases. Please bring them to the parish office or ring 07749 917134 for collection. If you would like to help or find out more please get in touch. Thank you to everyone who has helped so far with the appeal for phones and laptops. These are still needed too
PILGRIMAGE TO WALSINGHAM For over 75 years, the UCM, (Union of Catholic Mothers), has made an annual Pilgrimage to Our Lady's Shrine in Walsingham, Norfolk. This year, the Pilgrimage takes place on Monday 3rd to Tuesday 4th July.
We are planning to organise a coach from St Joseph's Church car park for Parishioners to join UCM members from around the country, in Walsingham. This is open to any adult Parishioners of all churches in our Parish area.
At this early stage, I am only asking for names and contact details of any Parishioners interested in joining this Pilgrimage. Costs are likely to be about £200 per Pilgrim, but will depend on the final cost of coach hire.
To find out more about the Shrine, please go to walsingham.org.uk and look at the website. (Mass is live-streamed from the Basilica, every day at 12:00.) NOTE: There is an Anglican Walsingham website as well as the Catholic one
We have activities planned for later this year and would be happy to hear from you if you would like to get involved or have an idea of your own. Please contact Sarah Bowden (bowden.sarah@googlemail.com).
LIBRARY We have a parish library located in the foyer of the Parish Centre. One bookcase is dedicated to Theology/Religious books, another bookcase to Fiction/Non-Fiction and a third smaller bookcase to children's Bibles/Bible stories etc. Please feel free to borrow/swap.
If you would like to donate, we can only accept books that are in excellent and clean condition. Thank you and enjoy.
FOODSHARE We are a collection point for Foodshare. Our collection area is just inside the porch doors, but if you leave food outside, out of hours (in a bag or other covering) the building is regularly checked. Foodshare are currently really in need of tinned vegetables and tinned meat, amongst all the regular donations.
APPOINTMENTS If you wish to speak to Fr Liam or Fr Ephraim in confidence on any matter, please contact either one for an appointment. They are happy to visit your home if so desired, adhering to social distancing guidelines.
HOUSEBOUND If you know of anyone who is sick and/or housebound, please let Sarah (Parish Office), Fr Liam or Fr Ephraim know so that a visit can be arranged.
FOR PRACTICAL PURPOSES, FOR THE COMING MONTHS
Father Ephraim will be the ‘link person’ for pastoral matters concerning the parish of St. Joseph’s and St. Elizabeth’s. He will also be chaplain to St. Mary’s school.
Father Liam will be the ‘link person’ for the parish of St. Edmund Campion and will be chaplain to St. Edmund Campion school.
Fr. Ephraim and Fr. Liam are on call each day and will serve our community as best they can. You can call either of them on their mobile numbers, contact them via email or visit them at St. Joseph’s Presbytery. As we enter a new liturgical year, the four or five weekends of a month will see the same priest celebrating Mass in that particular parish. So, for January, Fr. Liam will preside at weekend Masses at St Joseph’s & St. Elizabeth’s and Fr. Ephraim at St. Edmund Campion. The following month they will swap around.
THE WELCOMING MINISTRY (Mass Rep) is dedicated to helping all parishioners and visitors enhance their worship experience at Mass by making them feel welcome and included in our Eucharistic celebration, helping them connect with our parish, and participating in the numerous ministry opportunities offered at St. Edmund Campion. The Mass Rep is the ‘overseer’ in ensuring that the various ministries during Mass are fulfilled. Further, they are there to help you with any queries.
We thank our mass reps:
6:15pm Saturday: Reena K. 9:30am Sunday: Elvira E-M & Shirley F. 11:15am Sunday: Julie C.
ADMISSION INTO ST EDMUND CAMPION SCHOOL AND NURSERY is based on Mass attendance for some categories. In our parish, we have an attendance card available from the table in the church lobby. Every time you come to Sunday Mass please get your card stamped. For information on the current Admissions Policy see the school's website, www.st-edmund.org.uk.
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