THANK YOU

Dear Father Malachy I hope this letter reaches you at the right moment. A small encouragement tucked between your many unseen labours Please know that even if you don't always hear it aloud, what you’re doing and chose to do matters. Though I remain anonymous, I am part of this parish and I wanted to say thank you. Thank you for staying- faithful, even when the pews felt a little empty. Thank you for showing up, not just to preach, but to live the Gospel through action; by opening the café, openng Bible study, creating spaces for connection, prayer and warmth. It’s easy to over - look these things in a busy world, but I see them. Many of us do. And they mean more than you may ever know. Thank you also for creating space for others to serve, in a time when many feel disconnected from their faith, it’s a quiet gift to see opportunities open up within the parish, ways for people to take part, however small. That kind of invitation a can mean more than words express. Even if some members of your parish aren’t here all the time, and even if the presence feels scattered or uncertain, please know that your ministry is still reaching hearts. There are many of us who are quietly praying for this parish, even from a distance. People who are not away visible but are still drawing closer to God, slowly, quietly, but deeply. Even when growth feels hidden, I hope you remember that God sees it all. Your words, your witness, your sacrifices. None of it is in vain, Some-of the most life -changing work happens in silence and in stillness. You are creating a space where the holy spirit can move, even when it seems small. Sometimes, the smallest seeds grow into the strongest roots, ones that hold firm through every season. And though the fruit may not be visible yet, God is still working. Please do not lose heart. The quiet things matter to God, the prayers no one hears, the hours no one sees, the love that doesn’t need recognition, It all adds up in eternity. Your faithfulness is planting more than you know. And one day, those seeds will bear fruit in ways only Heaven can measure. May God bless you with strength when you're weary, joy when you’re discouraged, and peace that comes not from outcomes. but from the quiet assurance that you’re walking faith fully with him. Thank you for your patience. Thank you for your leadership. Thank you for staying. With gratitude.  A thankful member of the parish.

A lovely tradition in Catholic and Orthodox Churches is to light a small votive candle as a symbol of prayer. We provide facilities for this in our church. People can ‘light a candle’ and give a little donation, when holy Mass or Prayer before the Blessed Sacrament is not taking place in the church. However, we must take matters of Health and Safety and the matter of Fire Prevention, very seriously. We cannot allow votive candles to be alight in the church when nobody is actually in the church. We must insist on this for very good reasons as I’m sure you understand. A recent serious incident involving fire, in a local Catholic church, highlighted the importance of this. When holy Mass is not taking place or hasn’t yet begun or when Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament is not taking place and if someone is present in the church, please feel free to ‘light a candle’. However, please be sure to extinguish all candles before you leave the church.

Our Olde Forge Cafe has been up and running for some time now. There have been very wonderful signs, during these past months, that the Lord has been working through our efforts in the Cafe, to bring his love and truth to others who don’t yet know him well. Thank you so much especially to everyone who ministers as a Host or Baker. Thank you to everyone who has invited friends, family members, neighbours, colleagues to join them for refreshments in the Cafe. Of course we are delighted to offer our guests free drinks and cakes, while we ourselves offer a donation to cover costs. If you haven’t yet come into the Cafe or if you haven’t yet brought a guest with you, please may I urge you in the name of the Lord and at the request of our Archbishop, to please do so. Every one of us is called by the Lord to bring others to know him. If you do or even if you don’t think our Cafe is the best way to do this as a parish Faith community, nonetheless please take a full and active part in this initiative. In that way we really are trying to fulfil what our dear Lord Jesus is asking of us.

Our church grounds boast a rather striking crucifix. It was hidden away at the back of the garden. As you will see, I have moved it forward, closer to the front of the garden, where it is much more visible and prominent. St Paul says, “We preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Gentiles but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, the power and the wisdom of God, to save us.” Our Archbishop John asks every parish in the archdiocese of Southwark and every parishioner in every parish, to do everything possible to help the Lord Jesus to be better known and loved especially anyone who doesn’t yet know the Lord. This is called ‘Evangelisation’. Moving the crucifix to the front of our garden means it is very visible to hundreds if not thousands of people every day, passing along Limpsfield Road in cars, vans, trucks, on buses or as pedestrians. When they see the crucifix, many will wonder what it means and that moment of wondering gives the Lord a chance to speak to their hearts! The crucifix isn’t in good condition, at the moment. It has been damaged by the trees and the ground which it has occupied, over the years. I’m hoping that we can properly and fully repair both the image and the cross. Incidentally, the symbol of Jesus actually hanging on a cross, which is the normal symbol used by Catholic and most Orthodox Christian Churches, is called a ‘crucifix.’ The symbol of a cross, without the image of the Lord hanging on the cross, is usually simply called a ‘cross’ by members of Protestant Christian Churches. May the symbol of Our Lord being put to death on a cross, showing the depth of his love for everyone, help people who gaze upon it, to know that the Lord Jesus offers them his saving love.  Jesus says, “Come to me all you who labour and are burdened and I will give you peace, for I am meek and humble of heart and you will find rest for your souls.”

August Tue 19th: Lisa Wed 20th: Phil Thu 21st: Claire Fri 22nd: Lorenza

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.

OLDE FORGE CAFE BAKERS/PROVIDERS ROTA AUGUST 2025 2: Sophie Golding 9: Anderson 16: Giannina 23: Chinwe 30: Gerry Murphy Please, if possible, could you provide enough cakes for the whole of each week. Thank you to everybody who is helping to provide cakes. To avoid having too many cakes, Coral mentioned to me that non-perishable cakes can be safely stored in the Cafe for a short while. When it is your turn to provide a non-perishable cake, please bring your cake to the Cafe a few days before the date of your turn. OLDE FORGE CAFE - HOSTS ROTA AUGUST 2025 2: Kim, Manuel 3: David, Giannina 5: Gardening group 6: Admin’ group 9: Phil, Simone 10: Collette, Maggie 12: Gardening group 13: Admin’ group 16: Jim, Vanessa 17: Patricia, Lizzie 19: Gardening group 20: Admin group 23: Paul Mould, Lorenza 24: Marian, Mary 26: Gardening group 27: Admin’ group 30: Lesley, Maggie 31: Regina, Patrick Please note that for each of the above dates when the Cafe is open, one of the two Hosts has been trained in the use of the new coffee machine. Please would that trained person be the only person operating the machine and also please train the other person in its use. Many thanks. Thank you to everybody who acts as a Host. If an unexpected emergency occurs on the date you are scheduled to be a Host, please don’t worry about the Cafe. No need to try to find someone to ‘stand in’ for you. There is no need whatsoever to ‘swop’ with someone! We are not a Business, having to stay open to make money! - we open when and if we can. We take this role of ‘Host’ as a Vocation from the Lord to be his Missionary and his Prophet. Actually, the Cafe has, at times, functioned well with just one Host. The success of our Evangelisation Cafe depends on us. The more we speak to others of our Cafe, inviting them to visit us, the more successful it will be. Please invite members of your families, your friends, your neighbours and colleagues. Please check when it is your turn to be a Host (or a Baker!). Please see this role as a Calling, a Vocation from the Lord which you are generously telling the Lord you will do”. Thank you so much for your trust in the good Lord

Forgive me for raising the issue of parish finances, but I need to alert you to how we must finance our parish and manage our financial resources, if we are to continue as a viable parish. We pay a monthly levy to the diocese of £1,110.59. We also pay a monthly Health and Safety levy of £118.43. Monthly charges for electricity are around £200.00 These are just a few basic monthly costs. Our general monthly expenditure is well in excess of these amounts. Our weekly Collection is presently around £450.00. As you will appreciate then, our present weekly income is not covering our normal weekly expenses. Please may I suggest that every adult member of our parish give a minimum of £15, each week, in our Collection. If you are in personal financial hardship, please just disregard this suggestion. If you are in a reasonable or good financial position, please give more than this suggestion. We live in a relatively affluent area, so our finances should be secure. In addition to a Current Account, we also have a Savings/Loan account. I am reluctant to take anything from that account to pay our normal bills. The Savings/Loan account is there in case we face any unforeseen, sudden, emergency call on our finances or for any special projects we might have. That said, we are about to incur a debt of almost £8,000 to replace our very poor church Sound System with a much-needed new system. We will have to take that cost from our Savings/Loan account.  In this weekend’s first Scripture Reading at holy Mass, we were given an inspiring example of generosity prompted by trust in the providential care of God. In this very practical matter of how we manage our parish financial resources, please be generous.