Please refer to the documents linked to below, which set out the implications of COVID-19 on parish and church life.
If you have not already read it, Fr Gareth asks you especially to read his
Pastoral Letter carefully.
We will continue to email out this newsletter weekly, together with the Pew Sheet. If you would like to follow Fr Gareth's Mass on the Facebook Live Stream on Sundays please print out the Pew Sheet to help you join in. The hymns are included to aid your own devotions,
but they will not be sung at Mass.
The order of service for Fr Gareth's weekday Mass is included below. Please likewise print this out for use during the week at 10am.
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HOLY WEEK begins today
Holy Week, the most important week in the liturgical life of the Church, begins today with Palm Sunday, as we commemorate Christ’s Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem. The crowd hails him – ‘Hosanna to the Son of David’ - yet on Good Friday the mob is calling for him to be crucified. Please look out for further emails over the coming week as they will contain orders of service for the principal liturgies over the coming week.
COMPLINE AND HOLY WEEK REFLECTION
Together with the 'standing' documents that will be sent every week during the lockdown, there are two extra files in the 'document' section below. There is the order of service for Compline. This is the order we will be following for Compline at 9.15pm during Holy Week Please download it and print it out so that we can pray together. The other is a reflection on Holy Week without our church buildings by a friend of Fr Gareth's, Nadine Daniel. It is well worth a read.
CHURCH IS STILL ALIVE…
Fr Gareth is live broadcasting simplified Holy Week liturgies on Facebook (tinyurl.com/frgarethjones) from a temporary oratory in The Vicarage. If you have internet access, you might like to join Facebook and ‘friend’ Fr Gareth in order to be able to receive the live stream and thus unite with others in prayer and worship in real time. Many other members of the church family are on Facebook, many having joined since the current crisis began. Please ‘friend’ them too so we can maintain an online church community. Please contact Colin Newman for help accessing Facebook: vicarspa@stmarysilford.org.uk
PUBLIC CHURCH SERVICES
All services in Church buildings have been suspended across the UK until further notice. Please see the documents in the e-newsletter for detailed information about parish and church life over the coming months.
WEEKLY E-NEWSLETTER
If you have internet access, please ensure that you have subscribed to the weekly newsletter via our website www.stmarysilford.org.uk as this contains all the up to date information about church and parish life during this current time.
MIRFIELD RETREAT cancelled
The monastery is closed to guests until at least the end of May. We will be in touch shortly to arrange refunds direct to the bank accounts of those who paid to go.
HOT MEAL
Are you or is someone you know particularly vulnerable at this time and would value having a free hot meal delivered twice each week? If so, please speak to Fr Gareth who will make arrangements for you. This is a community service being offered by the Gurdwara and so all meals will be Indian and vegetarian.
BISHOP STEPHEN WRITES...
Below is a link to an excellent theological reflection about our current situation, and how we might navigate Holy Week in our present situation.
