St. Edmund Campion Church

 

Readings

	First Reading		Sirach 15:15-20		He has not commanded anyone to be ungodly.
	Responsorial Psalm		Ps 119		R/ Blessed are those who walk in the law of the Lord!
	Second Reading		1 Corinthians  2:6-10		A wisdom God decreed before the ages for our glory.
	Gospel		Matthew 5:17-37		It was said those of old; But I say to you.

 

Mass Intentions

	Monday 16th February		9:30am		Maureen Lahiff
	Sunday 22nd		9:30am		James & Mary Reddy
	Saturday 28th		6:15pm		Margaret O'Donnell

HOUSE BLESSING: House blessings (also known as house healings, house clearings, house cleansings and space clearing) are rites intended to protect the inhabitants of a house or apartment. It is also there asking God’s protection and blessing upon each member of the family. In Christianity, house blessing is an ancient tradition dating back to the early days, that is usually performed by a priest who sprinkles holy water and blessed salt as he walks through every room of the house, accompanied by the occupants of the house, whilst praying for the occupants. If you would like your home/apartment/room blessed, then please contact one of the priests and a time and date can be arranged. The blessing ritual takes about 20 minutes, and it is lovely if all occupants of the home are present.

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: The First Friday of the month is traditionally a time when a priest visits a home to anoint anyone who is house bound, with holy oil, and to administer the sacrament of Holy Communion. The parish has several people on this list. If indeed, you or someone you know would like a visit from a priest, then please contact Fr. Liam, Fr. Ephraim or Fr. Tom.

FIRST FRIDAY HEALING MASS These special Masses will take place on:

• Friday 6^th March 10am at St. Joseph’s; 7pm at St. Edmund Campion Church; 10am St Thomas More, Twyford

• There will be no healing Mass in April as it is Good Friday.

• Friday 1^st May 10am at St. Joseph’s; 7pm at St. Edmund Campion Church; 10am St Thomas More, Twyford

WHAT IS A HEALING MASS?

Healing Masses are opportunities to directly seek physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual healing. These Masses include a homily that is focused on healing, prayers of the faithful that are directly asking God to heal us, and prayers after communion that are prayed by the Priest to help facilitate greater healing in our lives.

The Mass is the most powerful way that we can seek healing as Christians. Jesus is present in the Mass through the Scriptures, through giving Himself to us in His Body and His Blood, and through our worship of Him. He is the one who heals us. The Mass helps to facilitate the healing that Jesus wants to give to all of us.

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. The course is a 90 minute preparation and guidance. It is held at St Joseph’s the first Tuesday of the month at 7pm. The next meetings are:

• Tuesday 3^rd March 2026
• Tuesday 7^th April 2026

DIOCESAN NEWSLETTER: The Diocesan Mailing is produced every week and contains news, training opportunities and events from around the diocese and wider Catholic Church. The weekly newsletter is designed to bring you the latest information and events, straight to your email inbox. We try to keep it short and sweet (though, occasionally we can't help but get carried away with a great story or a brilliant opportunity). Click or go to the following site to sign up: www.portsmouthdiocese.org.uk

House Masses/Blessings: Father Liam is more than happy to celebrate a House Mass or a House Blessing for any family or group of families who would like it. If you are interested, then please email Father Liam or telephone the Parish Office.

Contact: If you wish to speak to Father Liam in confidence on any matter, please contact him for an appointment. He is always happy to visit your home if so desired. Email: lcummins@portsmouthdiocese.org.uk Telephone: 07776580596

Hospital: If you are going into hospital or know or someone that is, please inform the hospital chaplain on arrival. Please also let Father Liam know so that arrangements can be made for a visit. Please note that under the Data Protection Act, hospital staff cannot disclose patient information. We rely on Parishioners to keep us in the loop.

Housebound: If you know of anyone who is sick and/or housebound please let Ruth (Parish Office) or Father Liam know so that a visit can be arranged.

FIRST FRIDAY: The First Friday of the month is traditionally a time when a priest visits a home to anoint anyone who is house bound, with holy oil, and to administer the sacrament of Holy Communion. The parish has several people on this list. If indeed, you or someone you know would like a visit from a priest, then please contact Fr. Liam.

Lent is a Sacred Season helping you slow down, seek still moments, and behold God’s presence with you in the everyday.

THE HOLY SEASON OF LENT: What is Lent? Lent, the solemn 40-day period before Easter, holds profound significance in the Catholic Church and other Christian traditions. Starting on Ash Wednesday and concluding on Holy Thursday, it is a season of penitence and preparation. The three traditional pillars of Lent are prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Through the three pillars of Lent we journey to develop a closer relationship to God. The 40 days of Lent should be filled with reflection, service and prayer. Lent is an invitation to reflect, repent, and renew one's commitment to living a life of faith, ultimately leading to the joyful celebration of Easter. This year 2026, Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, February 18^th  and concludes on Holy Thursday, April 2^nd. The evening of April 2^nd, we begin the Holy Season of the Easter Triduum:  Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil, Easter Sunday.

Ash Wednesday - beginning of the Season of Lent.

Ash Wednesday Masses (February 18^th), with the imposition of ash are:

• St Edmund Campion: 9.30am & 7pm
• St Joseph’s: 10am & 7pm
• St Thomas More Twyford: 12pm & 6.30pm

PARISHIONER REGISTRATION We have a new self service registration form. Every parishioner will be required to complete a new form as we are no longer using the previous Parish Registration system. There are separate forms for adults and children.

Adult HFP Mhead Twyford Parishioner Registration Form

Child HFP Mhead Twyford Child Registration Form

LENTEN PROJECT 2026 The following local charities have been chosen for the Lenten Project:

• St Edmund Campion Primary School & Nursery Home | St Edmund Campion Catholic Primary School and Nursery
• Thames Hospice Thames Hospice
• The Brett Foundation The Brett Foundation

There will be second collection each weekend at the end of Mass and other concerts and activities throughout this season. Please support such good charities and causes.

PARISH OFFICE CLOSED Friday 13^th February to Tuesday 24^th February. Please contact Fr Vuni or Fr Elvis - details on the back on the newsletter.

CAFOD Lent Appeal – Family Fast Day 27^th February This Lent, live out the Gospel call to love your neighbour. By fasting and giving what you save, you join in Christ’s compassion and help another family put food on the table. Your   donation can help families around the world grow food in difficult conditions. Collect a CAFOD envelope or donate online at cafod.org.uk/envelope or call 0303 303 3030. Text CAFODLENT to 70085 to donate £10 or join  SECOND COLLECTION for CAFOD Sunday 1^st March.

CONFIRMATION Session 4 will be on Saturday 28^th February at 4:30pm in St Thomas More, Twyford

FIRST HOLY COMMUNION Session 4 will be on Saturday 28^th February at 4:30pm St Edmund Campion school.

WELCOME FR VUNI & FR ELVIS Sunday 1^st March 12:30pm-2:30pm Parishioners are invited to officially welcome Fr Vuni & Fr Elvis to St Edmund Campion after 11:15am Mass. We would appreciate some offers of home baking for this event. Please let Ruth know if you can donate some cakes/baking/nibbles.

NOSTALGIA NIGHT THANK YOU A heartfelt thank you to everyone who attended and supported our recent Nostalgia Night event. Your generosity, enthusiasm and community spirit made it such a special occasion. We are delighted to share that together we raised over £5,500 towards our church refurbishment fund. An incredible achievement! Thank you for being part of it - and for continuing to help our church.

THE BREAKFAST CLUB is starting again on Saturday the 28^th of February at a *new time* of 10am – 12pm at St Edmund Campion. We will be offering:

• Full fry ups £10 - please pre-order
• Bacon or sausage baps £6
• Tea and toast with a range of conserves £4
• Tea/coffee/orange juice all included as always

Tickets will be available after Sunday Masses via Julie or Gareth. For the rest just pop down and we will be able to accommodate. We are also doing the Holy Family Walk afterwards at 1pm if you would like to join (and walk off the amazing breakfast!) Everyone welcome – see you soon

HOLY FAMILY WALK The next walk will be on Saturday the 28^th of February and we will be doing the three greens walk in Maidenhead. Looking to take approx 2 hours. If attending, please arrive by 12.45pm for a 13.00pm start. Meet up/starting point will be St Ed’s car park SL6 4PY. We are holding a breakfast/brunch that morning at St Ed’s starting from 10am-12pm so will be nice to work off some calories after. It would be great for you to join us before. If you have any questions or would like to join our WhatsApp group, please WhatsApp Gareth on 07721 716567. Leaflets in reception.

VISION GROUP - EVERYONE’S A WINNER RAFFLE Huge thanks to everyone who’s donated Dry January bottles and unwanted Christmas gifts - please keep them coming! We’ll be holding our Everyone’s a Winner raffle at the end of February. Tickets will be £5 and every prize will be worth more than £5, so everyone’s a winner!

LENTEN SOUP LUNCH every Thursday during Lent. This will start on Thursday 26^th February 12pm-2pm in the Parish Centre. £6 for soup, bread, cakes, tea/coffee. If you are able to contribute a pot of soup, home baking, bread or butter, please contact Ruth in the Parish Office. All money donated will go to WORK

19^th MAIDENHEAD (HOLY FAMILY) SCOUT GROUP Our very active parish Scout Group provides fun and exciting activities for young people. We are currently in need of some more adults to join our volunteer leadership team for our youngest section. Squirrels are 4 and 5 year olds and enjoy the outdoors, stories, craft and many other activities. If you would enjoy working with young children and would like to know more about this opportunity please contact group@19thmaidenheadscouts.org.uk

OUT & ABOUT a service delivered by a local charity, Alzheimers Dementia Support, is urgently seeking new volunteers to join our bank of volunteers. We deliver outings for people with early-stage dementia whilst providing respite for their carer. We meet on Tuesdays at Cox Green Community Centre before going out for a planned day out. The role requires supporting those attending, helping them engage in the activities, whilst ensuring their safety. We are particularly looking for male volunteers to support the high number of men attending. No assistance with personal care or commitment to cover every Tuesday is required. We promise interesting places to visit along with much fun and laughter. An enhanced DBS is required. If you would like to know more, do get in touch with Sandra Williams our Out & About Service Leader; sandra.williams@adscharity.com Tel 07593 661848

ST JOSEPH’S VISION GROUP Quiz Night & Raffles Saturday 21^st February 7:30pm in  St Joseph’s Parish Centre. Doors open at 7pm. Some pizza and salad included, BYO drinks. £10 per ticket - available from Ruth in the Parish Office.

LENTEN PROJECT CONCERT Saturday 14^th March 7.30pm in the school hall. The 9.30am musicians will perform a wide range of music from pop to classical. Tickets £12 each includes a bread and cheese supper. Bring your own drinks and nibbles. To buy tickets, see the group after Mass, buy via the contactless machine in the porch or email mary@bluestring.co.uk.

Formation Morning for Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communication Fr Anthony Fyk, Director of Liturgical Formation and the Liturgy Formation team invite you to a formation morning at St Peter’s Pastoral Centre, Winchester on Saturday 9^th May 2026 commencing with Mass at 9 am. There will be a welcome session from Fr Anthony, a talk focussing on the Eucharist in the sacred scriptures as well as a session on Lectio Divina: “Living a Eucharistic life – what does it mean to live out the eucharist?”. All Eucharistic Ministers, experienced and new, are very welcome to attend. If you wish to attend, please register via liturgy@portsmouthdiocese.org.uk.

KEYHOLDERS ROTA We are looking for 2 or 3 volunteers to join the existing 7. This will mean you will only be on the rota once every 2 months. If you live local to the church and would like to volunteer to be part of the keyholders rota, please contact Ruth office@stedmundcampion.org.uk

HOSPITALITY SATURDAY after 6:15pm Mass are looking for more volunteers to go on the rota. Please contact Ruth in office@stedmundcampion.org.uk if you would like to join the rota.

NURSERY ADMISSIONS - Academic Year 2026-2027 Children are eligible to join our nursery once they turn three years old. This applies to children born between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024. Parents may submit applications at any time from now until 28 February 2026 for the 2026–2027 academic year. To apply, please visit https://www.st-edmund.org.uk/admissions-1/ to download the Supplementary Information Form (SIF). Completed SIFs should be returned to Mrs Powell in the nursery, together with a copy of your child’s baptism certificate or, if your child has not been baptised, a birth certificate.

MARRIAGE ENCOUNTER “Embrace your life together in Love” Invitation to Couples to get away together and join us for a weekend to discover ways to grow deeper in love for a happier marriage and a happier life ! The weekend draws on Marriage Encounters’ 50 years of wisdom and experience, based on scriptural truths, and might just be the gear change you didn't know you needed or thought possible. Couples welcome whether married or in long term relationships, with faith or no faith. ME Weekend 27^th Feb - 1^st Mar - Swindon - Holiday Inn Express West To find out more or book : Visit our website: wwme.org.uk

WORLD DAY OF PRAYER Friday 6^th March 2pm at United Reform Church, West Street (behind M&S) Maidenhead, SL6 1RL

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.

MASS INTENTIONS: There is a long and venerable tradition in the Catholic Church that the faithful ask their priests to celebrate Holy Mass for particular, specified intentions. An individual may ask a priest to offer a Mass for several reasons: for example, in thanksgiving, for the intentions of another person (such as on a birthday, good health, peace in family life), or as is most common, for the repose of the soul of someone who has died or on their anniversary. This custom, which was well-understood in generations past, is increasingly being forgotten. Since the practice is of immense spiritual benefit to both the living and the dead, and because it also helps to support your clergy and parish, we would encourage you to request that Masses be offered for your intentions. Please contact Ruth in the Parish Office, if you wish to have a Mass celebrated for your intentions. Pope Paul VI said, “The Mass is the most perfect form of prayer!” It has immense power and countless miracles and conversions have occurred throughout the centuries by offering Masses for a specific intention or person. Mass intentions are a great treasure of the Church and have a spiritual weight that is incalculable.

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY & ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• YOGA CLASSES TUESDAY 17^th FEBRUARY; TUESDAY 3^rd, 10^th & 17^th MARCH at 11am. Everyone is welcome. No charge for the class, just a small donation to charity if able. For more information contact Rachel: wellhappyyoga@gmail.com or the parish office.

• TODDLER GROUP Every Friday in termtime, 8:45am-10:45am in the Parish Centre.

• CHILDREN’S SUNDAY LITURGY - 9:30am Mass Children from the age of 4 can attend. Please put your child’s name on the register as you go into the church.
• THURSDAYS ZOOM  www.tinyurl.com/2hz5axvp 2pm Rosary; 6pm Journey together through Holy scriptures
• INTERESTED IN PRACTICAL ART? Join U3A untutored Art Group. Bring your art materials and join in the fun every first & third Tuesdays 2-4pm in SJ Hall. Contact Peter 01628 674097 for more info
• AGE UK has a series of support clubs/events in the community for older people. https://www.ageuk.org.uk/berkshire/activities-and-events/whats-on---windsor--maidenhead/ or see the church noticeboard for posters
• Throughout 2026 we would like to celebrate the variety of nationalities within our parish through prayer. If you are willing to use your gift of language, from an advisory, spoken or written perspective and get involved with our different tongues programme please contact Deb Woodward on deborah@deborahodea.com
• PILGRIMAGE TO WESTPORT, KNOCK & CO MAYO Escorted Tour to Westport, Knock & Co Mayo, 08^th March 2026. £899.00 pps. Price includes flight from Heathrow or Luton, 10kg hold luggage, 5 nights’ in 4* Castlecourt Hotel, Westport with Dinner, Bed & Breakfast. Full use of leisure facilities. All entertainment, excursions and transport included. Visit Knock Shrine, Ballintubber Abbey, Fr. Peyton Centre & Kylemore Abbey. Irish music nightly. Single supplement on Enquiry. Contact 01268 762 278 or 07740 175557 or email knockpilgrimages@gmail.com.
• MISSALS We have a small number of daily missals and weekday missals available. Daily missals - £70; Weekday - £55. Please contact the office if you would like to purchase one.
• LEGION OF MARY GROUP Fridays 6pm in St Joseph's Church

• ADoRE spiritual mini-retreat 24^th January 10am-1pm on Zoom. "GOD IS LOVE" Register in advance at bit.ly/ADOREJAN2026 More information at www.altonrenewal.com

• Union of Catholic Mothers (UCM) 1^st & 3^rd Tuesdays 2.30 – 4.30pm in St Joseph’s St Elizabeth’s Room

GIFT AID: If you have a standing order or direct debit donation to the Parish and gift aid your donation, please complete a new Gift Aid form. These will need to be completed for all existing Gift Aid Declarations. New Direct Debit and Gift Aid forms are available in the church porch and in the drawers outside the Parish Office. Please return all completed forms to the Parish Office. Thank you to everyone who has completed a form over the last few months.

DONA CONTACTLESS PAYMENTS are now available in the church porch. You can Gift Aid your donation to the church and Second Collections. You only need to put your details in once and all future donations using the same card will be Gift Aided. Donations, Repository, Candles, Mass Intentions can all be paid for using the machine– just select the option on the screen.

WELCOME A very warm welcome to all parishioners and visitors who join us, whether in our Churches of St. Joseph’s, St. Elizabeth’s, St. Edmund Campion or via the live-stream. If you are new to the area, please register as a member of our Parishes. The parish offices are situated at St. Joseph’s Church, Cookham Road and St. Edmund Campion, Altwood Road. Carolyn or Ruth can send you a soft copy of the registration form if you so wish, or pick up a hard copy at the church. The parish office details are available on the website and in the church porch.

REPOSITORY Please see our repository for cards & Mass cards for all occasions. Cash payments in the box on the wall or via the Dona contactless machine (minimum £1 payments).

PARISH COMMUNICATION We have reduced our newsletter to one two-sided A4 sheet. In order to make sure you are receiving up to date communications, please consider signing up to receive information by email. Parishioner registration forms are available in the church porch and in the drawers outside the Parish Office – please complete one and return it to the Parish office.

SCHOOL PLAYGROUND The Reception area playground is not for use at the weekends. Please make sure that children are not entering this area before or after weekend Masses. The staff prepare the area on Friday afternoon so that it is ready for learning on Monday morning. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

FOOD IN THE CHURCH The church is cleaned every Friday afternoon. Recently there appears to be a lot of food debris on the Church floor after weekend Masses. If you or your child needs to eat during Mass, can we request that you please use the Parish Centre. Thank you for your cooperation.

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.

VACANCIES - For job vacancies in the Diocese please see Diocese website https://www.portsmouthdiocese.org.uk/

SUSTAINABILITY

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.

School News

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.