ASH WEDNESDAY AND THE BEGINNING OF LENT

Thank you so much to everyone who bakes cakes or provides cakes for our Cafe. If you are not yet actively involved in our parish, this would be an excellent way of doing so. I could tell you all about it. Our Cafe is presently open on Tuesdays from 10.30am until 12.00midday, on Wednesdays from 12.15pm until 1.15pm, on Saturdays from 11.00am until 12.30pm and on Sundays following 11.00am holy Mass until 1.30pm. Thank you to our Gardening Group who have kindly offered to provide cakes for Tuesday and Wednesday, each week. That means we only need cakes for Saturdays and Sundays each week. Thank you to the wonderful folks who already provide us with cakes. Please join them. Let me know. Many thanks.

JUNE 2025 1st: 9am Jim; 11am John, Gabriella, Giannina(H) 8th : 9am Lesley; 11am Linda, Regina, Patrick(H) 14/15th : 6pm Paul; 9am Lizzie; 11am Lorenza, Patricia, Maggie(H) 21/22nd : 6pm Ross; 9am David; 11am Angela, Phil, Marian(H) 28/29th : 6pm Margaret; 9am Simone; 11am Carolyn, Lisa. Mary(H) Thank you to our wonderful Ministers of the Eucharist who have accepted the Lord’s invitation to this awesome, sacred ministry, by their willingness to give up their own plans and convenience in order to do God’s will rather than their own. Let us pray for them because they too fight the same personal weaknesses we all have to fight against and they too have to fight the same temptations we all have to fight. God be with them.

JUNE Tue 10: Maggie Wed 11: Collette Thu 12: Lizzie Fri 13: David

“WHO HAVE YOU BROUGHT WITH YOU?”  These are the words of the Lord Jesus to each one of us, every time we come to holy Mass. Please don't be content to come alone or just to come with someone who already comes every week, to holy Mass. Invite and encourage others in your family, those living next door to you, those living down your street, your friends. Do that and the Lord will work through you, probably slowly and bit by bit. Do that, and one day you will hear him say to you, “Well done, good and faithful child of mine. Enter into the joys prepared for you, for all eternity.”

Please do your best to bring members of your family, your friends, neighbours and colleagues who normally have little, if any contact with our Catholic parish, to the Olde Forge Cafe. Please remember that those you bring with you DO NOT give a donation for their coffee and cake. Only us, who are regular members of our parish, are asked to give a donation, each time, to cover the cost of the Coffee machine, coffee beans, heat, light etc. Dear Bakers and those who provide milk, please remember to take your expenses from the donations received.

It is wise to write a Will so that the resources you have when the time comes for you to leave this world, goes to the people and organisations you wish. May I suggest that you might consider leaving a Bequest in your will to our parish or to our diocese or to our priest as well as to other causes. A gift in your will can enable us to continue to help people to know the Lord Jesus and his saving love. What a wonderful legacy you would be leaving behind.

This Bill which to legitimise Suicide will again come before Parliament. Here is a message from Archbishop John Sherrington, the lead Catholic Bishop on matters of Life. The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, which seeks to legalise assisted suicide, is fast approaching its decisive vote in the House of Commons which will likely take place on either the 13th or 20th of June. The Catholic bishops of England and Wales oppose this flawed bill both in principle and in practice. Among the many concerns, we are particularly alarmed by the following: • This legislation would require many hospices and care homes to facilitate assisted suicide. This will put in jeopardy their ability to provide care. Parliament has rejected an amendment that would have allowed institutions to opt out of participating in the provision of assisted suicide.' • The provisions for conscientious objection for health and social care workers are both unclear and inadequate. This problem will not be addressed by proposed amendments. • Safeguards against coercion for the most vulnerable are wholly inadequate, particularly in cases involving coercive control or social pressure. During Committee Stage, the bill's main proponent was unable to confirm whether individuals seeking assisted suicide due to financial concerns or feelings of being a burden would be prevented from accessing it.? Since then, no progress has been made, and many MPs consider the existing safeguards insufficient, with the potential to result in a "terrible tragedy."3 We note the opposition for the bill from key professional bodies including the Royal College of Psychiatrists whose members will be expected to be involved in the process of assessing those who elect for assisted suicide. We have already seen the bill weakened during Committee Stage. In addition, MPs are expected to debate nearly 60 pages of amendments in under 15 hours. The whole process by which this bill has been brought forward and debated is insufficient for such a radical change. We urge Catholics, and all people of goodwill, to contact their MP and ask them to vote against this bill. We also ask you to pray that our representatives choose to protect the most vulnerable citizens of this country when they vote later this month.  You can contact your MP using this this tool. Archbishop John Sherrington Lead Bishop for Life Issues and Archbishop of Liverpool

Our Faith needs to keep pace with our years! As we grow older, so too our loving relationship with the Lord Jesus and with his Church, needs to deepen. The Lord calls each of us to know him better and better, as the years pass by. Our next meeting designed to help us to understand and deepen our Catholic life of Faith will be next FRIDAY, 13th June at 5.30pm, in our Parish Room. NB Normally we hold these meetings on Saturdays but for the next 5 Saturdays I will be mostly out of our parish! Please do come on Fridays. Meetings will last for no more than one hour. We talk about anything and everything you wish. I think you will enjoy and find these meetings helpful.

To Maggie for all her great work as our Parish Secretary. To Tracey for her enormous generosity and for her superbly designed materials for our ‘Prison Chaplaincy’ stall at the diocesan Jubilee event.  To everyone who attended the Jubilee at ‘The Friars’ in Aylesford as our parish representatives.