Today is the 50th day of Easter with our celebration of Pentecost, the beginning of our Church. Today’s Scripture readings remind us that Pentecost is an event of both the past and the present. The same Spirit that inflamed the Apostles, is also at work today in us. The Spirit is that Paraclete (a Greek word that is translated as…
THE SEVENTH SUNDAY OF EASTER The Acts of the Apostles 1: 12-14 John 17: 1-11 I am tempted to call this Sunday, ‘In Between Sunday.’ This is because if we look back to Thursday we celebrated The Ascension of Jesus and if we look forward to next Sunday we will be celebrating Pentecost, so here we are in between. Today…
We continue our reading from the Farewell Discourse as recorded in the Gospel of John which we began last week. Today we hear some very reassuring words from Jesus. He tells us that he will ask the Father to send us an Advocate to remain with us. When we use the word Advocate, inevitably we think of lawyers, one who…
EASTER ‘Do not let your hearts be troubled’ JOHN 14: 1-12 As we journey deeper and deeper into the real meaning of Easter a thought struck me that I would like to share with you. I have often found myself reflecting on how wonderful it would have been to be present with Jesus when he spoke with his disciples. There…
The Sanctuary is still providing food to those who need it in these difficult times but unfortunately it is running out very fast. Supplies are desperately needed. We appreciate that shopping is difficult for everyone at this time with long queues and restrictions on how much can be bought but we would like to put an appeal out to the…
LUKE 24: 13-55 Very often when I am trying to prepare something whether that be a homily, talk, lecture or a lesson I ask myself one fundamental question, ‘how can I make this as simple as possible for people to understand?’ Jesus, somehow, always managed to do this, whilst at the same time allowing people to access the infinite love…
St Thomas the Apostle has long been regarded as the patron saint of doubters. This is fitting for someone who refused to believe that Jesus had risen from the dead until he had actually seen Christ himself standing in front of him showing the wounds of his Crucifixion. We can all identify with Thomas. It is hard for any of…
There have been enquiries about continuing to financially support the church at this time. Obviously, those with standing orders are not affected, but for anyone else, if you wish to set up a standing order then here is the link to the relevant diocesan webpage: https://www.birminghamdiocese.org.uk/pages/FAQS/category/finance-resources You will then need to contact the parish for the bank details”. olw.shirley@rcaob.org.uk
EASTER 2020 ‘The Light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it’ (John 1:5) John 20: 1-9 In his book ‘The God of Surprises,’ (1) the late Gerard Hughes SJ makes the point that we cannot control God. Yet, at times, it is true that all of us fall into the trap of expecting God to behave in…
Dear Fathers Dear Deacons You will be aware that in his Address to the Nation last night the Prime Minister outlined further necessary steps to be taken to combat the spread of the Coronavirus. The Government has mandated the closure of all shops selling non-essential goods, including clothing and electronic stores, and other premises including libraries, playgrounds and outdoor gyms,…