25th Week in Ordinary Time, 21st - 28th September 2019

Saturday 21st September (C) Twenty-Fifth Sunday Day of Prayer for the Harvest. First National Mass Count .			Wednesday 25th September
6.30pm	SAID.  Bertha Crump R.I.P.			No Mass on Wednesdays
				09:00am St. John Vianney Bexleyheath 09:00am Our Lady of the Angels, Erith
Sunday 22nd September			Thursday 26th September St. Cosmas and St Damian, Martyrs, Memorial
09:00am	SUNG: Eddy and Mary Etheridge T.G.		10:00am	Tom Roberts R.I.P.
10:30am	SOLEMN. Geraldine Roser R.I.P.		12:00noon	Lunch Club in the hall Today
Monday 23rd September St. Pius of Pietrelcina (Padre Pio), Priest, Memorial			Friday 27th September St. Vincent de Paul, Priest, Memorial
10:00am	Ian Kilgannon R.I.P.		10:00am	Brian Newton R.I.P.
Tuesday 24th September Our Lady of Walsingham, Memorial			Saturday 28th September
10:00am	No 10:00 Mass Today		10:00a.m.	No 10:00 Mass Today
	09:00am St. John Vianney Bexleyheath 09:00am Our Lady of the Angels, Erith

Saturday 14th September - 6.30 p.m. – Florence Dias R.I.P.
Sunday 15th September - 9.00 a.m. – People Of the Parish
Sunday 15th September - 10.30 a.m. – Margaret O’Regan R.I.P.

We pray for the soul of Eleonora Brogna who died on
Saturday 17th August 2019.
Eternal rest grant unto her O Lord and let perpetual light shine upon her. May her soul and the souls
of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

National Mass Count

The General Secretary of the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales requests the figures for the National Mass
Count in advance of the Pastoral Statistics forms that are filled in each year.
Please note that the count (mass attendance)will take place over the next 4 weekends and begins next Weekend
21/22nd September 2019.

Catechists and Helpers

Catechists and helpers are needed for the First Holy Communion and Confirmation
Programmes 2019-2020. Please see Fr Jonathon for further details.

St. Thomas More First Holy Communion & Confirmation Application Forms

Application forms now available from the priest after mass.
Closing date for application: Sunday 27th October 2019. No exceptions.

School Application Forms

Come to the parish office between 9.00. and 9.30 a.m. on either Monday, Tuesday, Thursday or Friday.
Or contact Katie in the office to make an appointment. Please note, you must bring your child’s Baptism
certificate to this appointment. Forms cannot be signed without this document.
*Duplicate replacement copies can be arranged. Please contact Katie in the office for details.

Children’s Liturgy

Volunteers needed! If we don’t find any volunteers by October Half Term, the frequency of the Children’s Liturgy may have to be reduced.
Please contact Fiona 07951308981.

Wednesday Club

The next Wednesday club will be on Wednesday 25th September in the hall.

Thursday Lunch Club

Lunch Club this week on Thursday 26th September.

STM Social Club

Friday Night Entertainment – Nearly Diamond - Friday October 4th 2019

8.45 p.m. – 11.00 p.m. All the family welcome.

Halloween Disco – Saturday 26th October 2019 - 7.30pm – 11pm

Excellent entertainment by Glee J, with the whole family welcome.
£6 tickets with prizes for the best costume for both adults and children.

The club requires more bar staff. Please contact Bob for further details.
For bookings, enquiries or raffle donations please contact Bob Penny on 0208 304 7909

Home Mission Sunday

Thank you for last Sunday’s second collection. We raised £165.32 for Home Mission Sunday.
This collection provides the bishops of England and Wales with resources to support Home Mission,
the spread of the gospel in our own country. This money enables a breadth of work to be done
in support of parish evangelisation.

The Spiritans (Holy Ghost Fathers) British Province

The Holy Ghost Fathers will celebrate mass next weekend and make an appeal regarding
their mission. There will be a second Collection for The Holy Ghost Fathers.

Afternoon Tea at St Thomas More.

On Sunday 29th September between 3 – 5pm there will be a Parish afternoon tea party in
aid of the Catholic Fellowship of the Disabled. (HCPT) £5 per person.
Please contact Tony Brooke for further details, 07833707016

Macmillan Coffee Morning

Sunday 29th September, 9.00 a.m. – 12 noon in the hall. See the poster in the porch.

Congratulations Eddy and Mary Etheridge

Congratulations to Eddy and Mary Etheridge on celebrating their 60th Wedding anniversary.
May God bless your marriage in the years to come.

40 Days for Life

From September 25th to November 3rd, you are invited to join other Christians for 40 days of
prayer and fasting for an end to abortion. You are also invited to peacefully pray outside the Mary
stopes Abortion Centre or come to the launch on the 24th September, 7-9pm at Holy Family catholic
Church Hall, Bicknor Rd, Maidstone. Contact Rebecca Luton 07956111909.

A Day with Mary at The English Martyrs, Strood.

On Saturday 28th September there will be a day of instruction, devotion and intercession, based on the message given at Fatima in 1917.
• 9.15 a.m. Fatima DVD presentation in the church hall
• 10.30 a.m. Entry procession of Our Lady. Angelus. Crowning. Sung Litany Mass in honour of Our Lady. Celebrant and preacher: Fr Tom Lynch.
• 12.15 p.m. Lunch Break (Please bring packed lunch).
• Exposition and procession of the Blessed Sacrament, The Five Joyful Mysteries, Sermon on Our Lady by Fr Linus Clovis, Rosary of The Seven
Sorrows of Our Lady, Silent adoration, Meditations on the Passion of Our Lord.
• 3.30 p.m. Tea Break
• 4.15p.m. Sermon on Our Lady by Fr Linus Clovis, Five Glorious Mysteries, Act of Consecration, Benediction, Enrolments in the Brown Scapular
and Miraculous medal.
• Finish 5.30p.m.

70th Anniversary of the Return of the Carmelites to Aylesford Priory.

Thursday 31st October, Vigil of All Saint’s, 12 noon Mass at Aylesford Priory, presided by Archbishop John Wilson.
Contact Anne Pass 01622 717272 for further info.

Day of Renewal at St Georges Cathedral, Southwark. Saturday 5th October 2019, 9.45 a.m. – 4.45 p.m. Come and hear the powerful witnesses, sharing how the Holy Spirit empowered them in their ministries. ‘A Great Cloud of Witnesses’ Hebrews 12:1 and healing service: led by Fr Angelus Houle. Mass: Main Celebrant Archbishop Emeritus Kevin McDonald • Fr Mark White – Organiser of Annual Priest’s Charismatic Retreat. • Veronica Williams – Mother’s Prayers International Outreach. • Paschal Uche – Seminarian. • Pam Nelson – Rachel’s Vineyard. • Fr Bart Dudek – Parish Priest, Walderslade.

Dear parishioners

Thanks to Dave and all the cooks who made such a splendid lunch at the lunch club last Thursday. Have you ever been? It’s a great way to get together. They say a family that prays together stays together, but just as important for community and unity is eating together. The gospels tell us how often Jesus taught and ate with people. In the prayer he gave us we ask our Father for our daily bread. And in the mass Jesus commanded his church to celebrate together he said that he would be present with us for all time. This is especially important nowadays with both parents working and the distractions of individual devices in which families may not even come together to watch TV. Eating together is a sacred duty in our families. Jesus will be in your midst as you eat together as a family and don’t forget to acknowledge him with a prayer of thanksgiving before you eat. When tragedy strikes us, we soon realise it is the ordinary everyday activity of eating together with our loved ones that are among the most special events in life. Eating together is sacred… that’s why Jesus left us the mass and we receive his Body and Blood, his very self, at Holy Communion. But parish life is an extension of family life: yes, we are family. A good parish prays together: listening to each other, responding to the prayers at mass in unity together with the words the church gives us and not our own versions (reminder: do NOT join in with the priest for the opening words of mass ‘In the name of the…, but respond with ‘ Amen’ and please stop saying ‘thou and thee’ when the word is ‘you’ ). We are also encouraged as a parish to say the Rosary together: please put in your diary the following and bring your family: AN HOUR WITH MARY: Parish Rosary on Rosary Sunday. Prayer intention to the Mother of the Poor for Bexley Night Shelter. With hymns and readings.4.00 p.m. Sunday 5th October 2019 You could also join me and bring your family to The Rosary Crusade of Reparation, Saturday 12th October. It’s leaving Westminster Cathedral at 1.45 and processes through the streets to the London Oratory. I’ll be taking the 12.22 train from Bexleyheath. Bring your family. Also you could join us for the St Thomas More Autumn Walk on Saturday 26th October. More details of all these to follow. Finally, back to food: A parish which eats together will also stay together. Come along to the Lunch club on Thursday lunchtime: contact Katie in the parish office for more details. Don’t worry if you’ve never been before and you’re on your own and think you don’t know anyone: it’s very welcoming and if the worse comes to the worst you can always sit next to me. And if you have been before but not been along for a while: welcome back! Try and make a commitment to joining us once a month even if you can’t come every week. I also thank all of you who’ve had me round for lunch, tea or dinner. That’s meant a lot to me and has been a great way to get to know you. In peace and unity, Fr Jonathon

Counters for 29th September 2019: Rukee Perera and Melissa Goes *2nd Mass Count

Second collection next week 28th/29th September – The Spiritans (Holy Ghost Fathers).

	The Catholic Church of St Thomas More. 420A Long Lane, Bexleyheath, Kent, DA7 5JW
	Tel: 020 8303 2189
	Email: bostallpark@rcaos.org.uk
	Parish Priest Fr. Jonathon Routh Email: jonathonrouth@rcaos.org.uk
	Sunday 09:00 Readers Rota