Our Parish is well known for its encouragement of Priestly Vocations and, during the past ten years, has provided pastoral placements for seminarians from Rome, and more locally from St John’s Seminary, Wonersh. These have included Fr Philip Seed on a summer placement, Fr Marcus Holden on a placement followed by the use of St Joseph’s as a pied a terre, and Fr Philip Glandfield, who remained with us for 3 years as Assistant Priest. We have also welcomed Wonersh students who have been placed with us to gain experience by assisting with our Confirmation programme, Youth Clubs or other activities.

The Diocese has asked us to provide a base here for Alan Burgess, a first-year Southwark Seminarian, during his summer and Christman holidays throughout his seminary formation at the Beda College in Rome, starting this summer with his pastoral placement here at St Joseph’s.

Alan entered the seminary in September 2008. A former Anglican, he was received into the Church by Archbishop Kevin during the Easter Vigil 2006. Prior to entering the seminary, Alan worshipped at St George’s Cathedral, which was near to his former home in Waterloo. For 18 years he worked as senior publisher in several London-based medical publishing companies.

On May 6th this year Alan received the Ministry of Lectorate, giving him the right and duty of assisting at the Liturgy of the Word at Mass. This ministry is also the first stage toward eventual ordination to the Diaconate and then to the Priesthood. Generally at the Beda College, it is conferred on students completing their first year of studies. During the second year, the Ministry of Acolyte is conferred. Ordination as a Deacon usually occurs at the end of the third year, with ordination to the Priesthood taking place in the diocese once the seminarians have successfully completed their four year programme.

Week beginning 21st June 2009, 12th Sunday of the Year

Sacred Heart: Deacon John Sampson
St Joseph: Vella family intentions
St John Fisher: Jane Egas
St Thomas More: Rowena’s family
Our Lady (Saturday – Monday): Private Intention / Deacon John Sampson

Find out about our Votive Lamps at the Shrines programme.

Our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, has inaugurated a special ‘Year for Priests‘, which will run from 19th Jun 2009 until 19th Jun 2010. He has chosen this year particularly because it is the 150th anniversary of the death of St John Vianney, ‘the Cure d’Ars’, a famously holy parish priest in France during the 19th Century, who the Pope declares “a true example of a pastor at the service of Christ’s flock“.

The Year for Priests will be a time for priests themselves to strive for greater holiness of life, and for the whole Church to pray for the priests who serve her. Appropriately, the year begins on the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart. The image of the Sacred Heart is a visible reminder of the love of Christ. So too, priests are called to make visible the love of God, through their concern for his people. “I will give you shepherds after my own heart“, promises the Lord (Jeremiah 3: 15). Especially through their administration of the sacraments, but also through the example of their lives, priests are called to make the love of Christ the Good Shepherd a reality in the world of today.

Priesthood then, is a high and challenging vocation. Yet priests are only human, and due to the demands made of them, can often be exposed to temptations of many kinds, or fall short of the high aspirations they should have. For this reason it is essential that all of us pray for priests regularly. In our parish we have prepared a yellow sheet, simply entitled ‘Prayers for Priests’, which is available at the back of Church now, or downloadable here. In union with the other parishes of our Deanery we particularly encourage you to use these prayers on the First Friday of each month (dedicated to the Sacred Heart) and when present at Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament (which takes place in our church, every Thursday and the first Saturday of each month).

Jesus, High Priest, faithful and merciful, have mercy on us

Bishop Kevin’s Pastoral Letter for the Feast of Corpus Christi is now available on our Articles Download page.

Appeal for volunteers and funds

We were all shocked by the scenes of devastation and destruction in L’Aquila, central Italy, caused by the massive earthquake in April. Now, a few weeks later, the media spotlight may have moved on, but the human tragedy and suffering of those affected by the quake is still just as intense.

The plight of the parish of San Raniero in Civita di Bagno, one of the villages close to the epicentre, has been highlighted to us by two of our parishoners who are friends with the local parish priest. This entire Catholic community of 297 people is now living in one of the tent cities outside L’Aquila, their homes and church rendered uninhabitable by earthquake damage and their lives literally in ruins. This is a poor area, largely dependent upon farming and tourism for income. Whilst Italy is a reasonably wealthy country, experience has shown that those impacted by natural disasters often have to wait many years for the help they need to rebuild their lives fully. Indeed many of those whose homes were destroyed by the mudslide in Southern Italy several decades ago are still living in temporary accomodation.

St Joseph’s parish wants to do something practical to help and is launching an appeal both for funds and volunteers with a variety of building skills to help rebuild this community and in particular, its church and presbytery. The formal appeal will be launched at all Masses next Sunday (20th/21st June), but, in the meantime, if you would like more information on how you can help, please contact Felicity and Malcolm Surridge at art@malcolmsurridge.co.uk.

Week beginning 7th June 2009, Trinity Sunday

Sacred Heart: Rita O’Connell
St Joseph: Deceased family members of the Kilmartin Family
St John Fisher / St Therese: Therese Hoey
St Thomas More: This Week of Prayer for Parliament and Government
Our Lady (Saturday – Monday): Sheila Curtis RIP

Find out about our Votive Lamps at the Shrines programme.

A Deacon is Ordained to assist the Bishop and work with his Priests, as part of the three-fold ancient ministry of the Church. His ministry has a triple focus:

1. Of the Word: proclaiming, preaching and teaching;
2. Of the Altar: in Liturgy;
3. Of Charity: in care of the poor and needy, in activating the Social Teaching of the Church, and in administration etc.

In the Bible we read of Deacons being Ordained and established as a permanent Order in the Church by the Twelve Apostles (Acts 6: 1 – 6). St Paul lists the qualities and virtues of those called to be Deacons (after similarly giving those of bishops) in 1 Timothy 3: 8 – 13, and mentions them as an established Order when writing to the Church in Philippi (Philippians 1:1).

The Permanent Diaconate is documented from the time of the Apostles and flourished up to the end of the 5th Century when it experienced a gradual decline in the West, surviving only as an intermediate stage for candidates preparing for priesthood, while it continued in the Eastern Church in its original form. In 1957 Pope Pius XII restored the Permanent Diaconate which was approved in 1964 by Vatican II’s Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium (29).

The deacon in no way diminishes the role of lay people … On the contrary, the deacon’s tasks include that of ‘promoting and sustaining the apostolic activities of the laity’. To the extent that he is present and more involved that the priest in secular environments to foster closeness between the Ordained Ministry and lay activities in common service of the Kingdom of God.

Pope John Paul II, 1993

Week beginning 31st May, Pentecost Sunday

Our Lady (Saturday – Monday): Crishen’s intention, and (deacon-to-be) John-Simon Lawson
Sacred Heart: Sattie & Chaite’s intention
St Joseph: Deacon John Sampson
St John Fisher (& St Therese): Therese Hoey
St Thomas More: This Week of Prayer for Parliament and Government

Find out about our Votive Lamps at the Shrines programme.