Dear Friends in Jesus Christ,

I am writing this letter to all our parishioners; all our lay faithful and all in our schools’ communities. To everyone of good will, and to anyone searching for God, and to all who seek to know his Son Jesus Christ. I say to all of you: Come Back! Come back to Mass! Come back to Church for private prayer! Come and visit Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament! You are always welcome – we have missed you!

These past six months have been extraordinary! This pandemic has caused great harm, physically, mentally, emotionally and financially. Sadly, many have fallen sick and some have lost their lives. At the same time our medical staff and key workers have responded incredibly with unconditional generosity and courage. We have learnt to become creative in live-streaming which has taken place from day one. Keeping in touch with our parishioners through WhatsApp, online Newsletters, Phone calls. I have attended the Hospital several times in end-of-life situations celebrating the Last Sacraments. Now our schools, colleges & Universities and many others are returning to work; we must keep up this good work. Let us all keep safe and well. And let us pray to the Lord for an ending to this pandemic, the invention of a vaccine and the restoration of ordinary life.

I take this opportunity of truly welcoming back the many parishioners who have already returned to Weekly Mass. I’m also very aware that many parishioners may still be very nervous about returning. Some are still self-shielding, the sick & vulnerable. Moreover, I am aware that the infection-rate is varying, and there may even be the possibility of facing local lockdowns. For everyone this requires care, prudence and adjustments. As the autumn and winter rapidly approaches, rather than focusing on what we cannot do, let us focus on what we can do, so that the great mission of the Church can continue to move forward, and that the Gospel of Jesus Christ may continue to be preached.

Ultimately, this pandemic has shown us how fragile life can be. We cannot become complacent. It has caused us to review our priorities. For 14 weeks our churches were closed; there was no public celebration of Holy Mass, we have had to face our own mortality and the question of God. I know many people felt bereft of the Sacraments, and especially in receiving Jesus in Holy Communion. Many have followed Mass online and spoke of their hunger and thirst for the Lord. Online has its place; but nothing can replace being present with the worshipping community and receiving Jesus in Holy Communion. ‘Come back to me!’

This is the reason why I invite all of you to: Come back to the Lord to be nourished by his Word & His Sacraments. We have adapted the Church to meet all Governmental & Diocesan guidelines; social distancing, hand sanitisation, face coverings, etc. Sadly, few families have returned to weekly mass, even though the children have returned to full-time education. Please seriously consider your return to the practice of your weekly faith with the worshipping community. The church has now been opened for ten weeks. Jesus said: “The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice, I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27)? What about his promise: “Anyone who eats my flash and drinks my blood lives in me and I in him” (John 6;56)? What about his invitation: “Come follow me” (Mark 1:7)? His offer: “I have come that you may have life and have it to the full” (John 10:10)? Surely, we do not follow Jesus our Lord and Master simply out of habit or duty? No, we follow Him because we love Him. We follow Him because He has called us by name. We follow Him because He is our Saviour. He gave His life for us.

May Our Lord & Our Blessed Lady, our patrons St. Edmund of Canterbury & St. Thomas More, pray for you and protect you. May they obtain for you freedom from fear. May they inspire in you a generous response to the Lord’s call – Come back to me!

With Peace & Love

God Bless you All

Rev Canon John J Harvey

Dear Friends in Christ

It was truly wonderful to see so many of our families returning to Mass last weekend. People are trying their hardest to return to some semblance of normality, but every day the Government are announcing new measures to combat the upsurge in Covid 19 cases. As many people are not adhering to the social distancing rules, there has been a spike this week in our country. Unfortunately, all the negative reporting doesn’t help either; it is invoking an atmosphere of fear and anxiety in many people.

If we are sensible and follow the guidelines, especially with regard to social distancing and warning face coverings, not socialising with friends, we may not have seen for a long time, we can do our bit to help stop the spread of this dreadful disease. As we enter the autumn and winter seasons, and as the cold and flu season is rapidly approaching, it is so important that our Senior Citizens all avail themselves of the Flu vaccine. Hopefully this will assist and help everyone. Scientifically it has been observed that the wearing of face coverings and the washing and sanitising of hands will certainly decrease the likelihood of catching colds and flu, let alone Covid 19. STAY ALERT! Obviously, of late, many people have lowered their guard, hence the increase of cases.

Here at St. Edmund’s our main objective is to keep everyone safe, that’s why the Government and Diocesan guidelines are in place. Many of you will have already seen the letter I sent out a few days ago. Our parish family is so important, and our love and care and concern for one another are fundamentally at the heart of our parish life. I have made an executive decision to add an additional Mass at 10.00am on Sunday mornings; this is a temporary measure, but hopefully it will accommodate more people and avoid overcrowding and people having to stand outside the church. Also, the one disabled toilet will be open for use. I do ask all parishioners to kindly respect cleanliness measures in the bathroom, there will be hand sanitiser outside the toilet, and soap in the toilet. Please ensure you leave the bathroom in the way you found it. Parents kindly accompany your children, if they need to use the bathroom. Thank you!

Dear Parishioners,

Father John and Robin Bradley (our safety officer) have decided upon some Health and Safety changes. At all times Father and Robin see our safety as a top priority and the changes will help keep us as safe.

There are three changes (each is discussed in detail below):

1.       There will be an additional mass each Sunday at 10am.

2.       There will be a simple system to record contact numbers to help with track-and-trace.

3.       A toilet will be available in the hall, with special measure in place to make it safe.

Father is so pleased that people are coming back to Mass in such good numbers and to help make sure we can keep our social distancing Father has decided to introduce an additional mass at 10am. So, on Sundays we will now have masses at 9am, 10am and 11am. Time is needed between masses for sanitising the church and so Father will do his best to keep the 9am and 10am mass to 35 minutes whilst maintaining the spirituality and prayerfulness of the mass.

With increasing cases of Covid-19 being registered in the country and increasing attendance at mass it is becoming likely that at some stage mass-goers will need to be contacted for track and trace purposes. Father and Robin have decided that we now need to introduce a contact tracing system. This will be very simple and in accordance with GDPR and government guidelines. Each bench in the church will now have a number attached. On arriving at the church each person or family group will be handed a slip of paper and a pen. Parishioners should take their seat and then record on the slip the bench number, their name and a contact number. These slips of paper will be stored in a sealed bag for 21 days and then discarded. They will only be used if Father is approached by NHS Test, Track and Trace and, importantly, it means only those sitting nearby the original case will need to be contacted. It should be mentioned that pens will be specific for each mass and carefully processed so they are Covid-19 free.

Father and Robin have decided that it is now appropriate to open the disabled toilet in the hall. The other toilets will not be open. There will be sanitisers outside the toilet and liquid soap inside the toilet and notices reminding users to sanitise/wash/dry hands carefully and leave toilets in the clean state they find them.

Father John, Robin Bradley and Iain McLay

Dear Friends in Christ

Daily we receive updates on the Covid-19 situation at home and abroad. These are unprecedented times; as this Pandemic has spread throughout the whole world, naturally one’s health and safety always come first. There is still a great deal of fear in some people, even though Governmental guidelines have been put in place. I spoke to someone recently who hasn’t been out since last March. How to regain that confidence and surety once again is a gargantuan task. I am hoping that with the return of our children to school, it will instil hope and confidence in our families.

For those who have returned to the regular practice of faith, you have witnessed for yourselves, that we have put all the Governmental and diocesan guidelines in place in our church in insure your health and safety. Hit and miss appearances at mass is certainly not what being a practicing Catholic is all about! I really believed, perhaps naively, that this Pandemic would have focused everyone’s hearts and minds on what really matters in life, especially in the area of faith; sadly, it appears that I was wrong! Talking to priest friends all over the world, the same scenario exists in their countries as well. During the lockdown, I livestreamed Holy Mass each day. My worry now is that the livestreaming is being used as an alternative to the return to church, or in fact, no contact with church at all. Nothing can replace the actual being present and receiving Our Lord through Holy Communion at Holy Mass. I appeal to all our parishioners, especially our young families, to come back home to the Lord.

There is still quite a lot of space at our Weekend Masses, especially at our Saturday evening Vigil Mass at 6.00pm. Manifestly, as you’re probably aware that face coverings are required, unless you have exemption or underlying breathing problems. This not only protects you but everyone else as well. We do want to regain some semblance of normality once again in our daily and weekly lives. Also there is a speaker outside the Church transmitting the Mass.

In this week’s parish newsletter Ferdi Tisi has made a special appeal for people to support The Brentwood Catholic Children’s Society by taking part in a virtual 2K or 5K sponsored walk during September.

Please become a virtual walker if you can. BCCS do wonderful work with children and they really need our help. You can download the sponsorship form here and, as well as sending the sponsorship money by cheque, you can pay the sponsorship online here https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/Team/virtualfunwalk

Click here for newsletter: 22nd Sunday of the Year 2020

Dear Friends in Christ,

 As our children return to school this week, and for many the first time since last March, there still may be a certain amount of apprehension about the ongoing Covid 19. Obviously, these are uncertain times for everyone, and we are all trying our best to regain some semblance of normality in our lives. Education is so very important for our children, and they have already lost several months of vital learning. Manifestly, it is going to take some time to get back all the lost learning. I ask all our parents to trust your schools, headteachers and staff to have your children’s best interests at heart, and they will do everything to ensure their health and safety. I would like to welcome back our Headteacher, Staff and chidlren to St. John Fisher Primary School this week. This has been a very unsusual year for everyone; and the education of our chidlren is now the main concern. There will a lot of work over these next months.  Also congratulations to our A Level and GCSE young people. As they also return to School, and begin their Universities. We wish the best of luck as they continue their education during these difficult times.

 

    Likewise, in returning to school, I would also appeal to our parishioners, especially families, to seriously consider returning to Weekly Mass. It has been very noticeable that very few families have returned to the practice of their faith, even though we resumed regular Weekly Mass from the 4th July. All the Governmental & Diocesan guidelines are in place with regards social distancing and sanitation of our Church after ever Service. Your health and safety is our main concern. We do ask all our parishioners to kindly wear face coverings during Mass. I know this is inconvenient, but this not only protects you, but also others as well. If you feel that your beginning to display symptoms, and feeling unwell, most certainly STAY AT HOME! Testing is free on the NHS. As we’re about to enter the Autumn and Winter seasons, when colds and flu are prevalent, it’s vital that we all keep safe and well.

 

    Sadly, as I mentioned last week, walking up the High Street, I have personally witnessed the lack of Social distancing, non-wearing of face coverings. We’re not invincible, and if you’ve had Covid 19, you know it is quite unpleasant and can be life threatening for some. Keep safe and well!

Click here for newsletter: 21st Sunday of the Year 2020

Dear Friends in Christ
Once again it was really heartening to see so many of our parishioners slowly
returning to Sunday Mass. As people are getting a little more confident about
going out, I would encourage all our parishioners to seriously think about your
lives of faith. The one thing this pandemic has taught us is that without God we’re nothing. As families have spent a lot of time together during lockdown, it’s given us the opportunity to reflect on what truly matters in life. Family will always top the list. Health – obviously with so many people getting sick this year, and continuing to do so, everyone needs to take seriously the implications and consequences of this pandemic. We need to protect ourselves, but we also need to protect each other. The one thing that has really saddened me personally is that I truly believed that this pandemic would have focused most people’s lives of faith; I’ve spoken to many priests at home and abroad, and we have concurred that for many, sadly faith hasn’t played any part in this pandemic. This is a real tragedy!

I personally haven’t been out a lot over the past five months; but I was really shocked this week to witness for myself the lack of social distancing taking place in our high street; in restaurants, coffee shops, supermarkets, etc; and even the ignoring of wearing a face coverings. None of us are invincible; all the Covid deaths have shown us that. At the Church we have adhered to all the Governmental & Diocesan guidelines; our main objective is to keep everyone safe & healthy. But if this doesn’t continue outside of the church, then we should not be surprised with a second wave in the autumn and winter. My observations over the past weeks are that you’re probably safer at Church than on the High Street. As people slowly resume their daily lives and routines, it is also imperative that the faithful people of God get back to the regular practice of faith.
Please wash your hands before coming to Church. Use the sanitisers available, wear your face covering, and follow the direction of the Stewards to maintain social distancing. Families can sit together in their bubble.
Keep safe & well!

Click here for newsletter: Assumptiuon of the BVM 2020

Dear Friends in Christ 

What is the ‘New Normal?’ If any of you have been out this week, you would have noticed that life is trying to return to some semblance of normality. I’ve seen many people making their way to the Gym next door, the swimming pool is open; restaurants and coffee shops are open, pubs are open; most shops are now open. I see groups of young people walking along the street together; parents out with their children; museums and places of interest are opening. Many parishioners are going away on holiday, both home and abroad; but sadly, very few families have returned to Sunday Mass. The hardest thing during the lockdown was to walk into an empty church every day; I have celebrated Holy Mass every day since 23^rd March, even when I had Covid 19 myself. And now that all places of worship have opened, it is mainly our middle-aged and older parishioners that have returned to Sunday Mass. As I stated a couple of weeks ago, it’s very easy to get out of the habit of attending Church. Please think seriously about this. If you have started to do many of the other things I listed above. I would strongly recommend you also return to Church.

Here at St. Edmund’s, we have taken all Governmental & Diocesan recommendations and guidelines very seriously. Your Health & Safety are our prime concern. Procedures are in place when you attend Church to protect you. (You’re probably safer here than going to the Supermarket). It goes unsaid, that before you leave home that you should thoroughly wash your hands. Hand sanitiser is available as you enter the Church. It is now mandatory that you wear a face covering. A one-way system enables you to take your seats from the outside aisles. Alternate benches are closed facilitating social distancing. There is no ‘sign of peace’; no physical contact with another person, excluding the ‘family bubble’.

If you still feel insecure or unsure about attending one of our Sunday Masses, why not attend one of the Weekday Masses at 10.00am, Monday – Saturday. Returning to normal is the goal of everyone. But we must also make the effort to achieve this ourselves!

SOLEMNITY OF THE ASSUMPTION OF OUR BLESSED LADY:

Today we celebrate the great Doctrine of Faith, that at the end of her natural life here on each God assume Our Blessed Lady body and soul into heaven. This doctrine was dogmatically defined by Pope Pius XII on 1 November 1950, in the apostolic constitution Munificentissimus Deus by exercising papal infallibility. We proclaim and define it to be a dogma revealed by God that the immaculate Mother of God, Mary ever virgin, when the course of her earthly life was finished, was taken up body and soul into the glory of heaven.

Munificentissimus Deus emphasised Mary’s unity with her divine son and as his mother, she is the mother of his church which is his body; she is the “new Eve” (the term is used three times), paralleling Christ as the new Adam; and by her assumption she has attained the final bodily resurrection promised to all Christians, and the Church has reached its ultimate salvation.^[14] These three plus the Perpetual Virginity of Mary make up the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic church.

The dogma of the Assumption followed from the 1854 definition of Mary’s Immaculate Conception (her freedom from original sin), and both developed from the recognition of her status as the Mother of God, meaning that she, like Jesus, was without sin, preserved from corruption, resurrected, received into heaven, and a recipient of corporeal glory.

Click here for newsletter: 19th Sunday of the Year 2020

Dear Friends in Christ                                                                

 Once again, it was wonderful to see so many of our parishioners returning to Sunday Mass. As people gain their confidence about going out and trying to get back into some routine of ‘normality’, I just want to reassure all our parishioners, that here at St. Edmund’s, we have taken all Governmental & Diocesan recommendations and guidelines very seriously. Your Health & Safety are our prime concern. Procedures are in place when you attend Church to protect you. It goes unsaid, that before you leave home that you should thoroughly wash your hands. Hand sanitiser is available as you enter the Church. A one-way system enables you to take your seats from the outside aisles. Alternate benches are closed facilitating social distancing. There is no ‘sign of peace’, no physical contact with another person, excluding the ‘family bubble’.

 

I make this Special Appeal to all our parishioners, to seriously consider returning to the Weekly practice of faith. Manifestly, many people are returning to other social activities; as gyms, restaurants, pubs social venues, parks, museums, some theatres are now open. Parishioners are also flying abroad for holidays. We are encouraged to be sensible and follow the guidelines. And considering the information available, please know that when you come to Mass on Sunday (which now last for approximately 35 minutes), we will look after you! As from Saturday 8^th August, it is now mandatory to wear a Face Covering in all places of worship. Also, please do not congregate outside after Mass. Thanks!

Click here for newsletter: 18th Sunday of the Year

Dear Friends in Christ 

Last weekend, it was truly wonderful to see so many of you at Sunday Mass. People are slowly gaining their confidence about going out and trying to regain some semblance of normality to their lives. Although this ‘New Normal’ is quite strange, we also cannot become complacent about Covid 19. One of the worrying factors is that there will be a new wave of infections. As you know we have adapted the Church to accommodate social distancing. I would ask all parishioners to adhere strictly to these rules.

This week I have received an updated instruction from the Governmental & Diocesan guidelines; where there is an enclosed space with a large gathering it states that FACE COVERINGS should be worn, which means in the Church; it not only to protect the individual, but also everyone else. Also, in the new guidelines, it has stated that as soon as we leave Church we should not congregate outside or have social conversations, just go straight home. I know this seems somewhat severe, but we are trying to protect everyone from this contagious virus.

I make a very special appeal to all our families to seriously consider coming back to the weekly practice of Holy Mass. Routine is important, especially for our children. The practice of our faith is not something that we just tag on to the rest of our lives, it is fundamental to who we are, and of course, eventually of what we become. Let us all make a very special effort to consider the importance of our faith, especially in these strange times. Life is not a dress rehearsal, we only pass this way but once, and we need to take every opportunity given to us in our relationship with God.

In the past it was noted that a habit can be acquired within 21 days. In more recent studies it said up to 66 days. We were away from Church for a hundred days. As I have stated it’s as easy to get out of the habit as it is to get into it. Manifestly, I believe that everyone must make a conscious effort to try to return to the ‘good habit’ of Sunday Mass