HERE IS THE NEW BISHOP OF PORTSMOUTH

Bishop Philip Egan, 8th Bishop of Portsmouth on the day of his Episcopal Ordination at St John's Cathedral, Portsmouth. No less than 18 Bishops, four Archbishops and Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor were present in the tightly packed Cathedral on Monday of this week to celebrate a most beautiful Mass. A video of the Mass and Ordination can be found on the Diocescan website at www.portsmouthdiocese.org.uk along with downloads of the service sheets et al.

After the Mass we were all invited to the Wardroom of H.M.S. Nelson for a reception.  It took Lisa no time to seek out one of the Officer's caps and pose for this picture! 





Later we returned to the Cathedral to take part in Evening Prayers during which Bishop Philip consecrated his life to the Heart of Christ in line with his chosen motto 'IN CORDE JESU'

                              Many thanks to Cathy for the photos and for this report

BLESSING OF THE NEW OAKHAVEN CHAPEL

On September 18th the Right Reverend Jonathan Frost, Anglican Bishop of Southampton, blessed the new Oakhaven Chapel in the presence of ministers and members of the other Christian churches in Lymington.    The keen-eyed among you will spot Fr Danny!
                                                            our thanks to Oakhaven for the use of this photo

CONFIRMATION MARKS A VERY SPECIAL DAY

Thursday 27th September was going to be a special day anyway.     It is the feast of the great Saint Vincent de Paul, specially noted in the parish of Our Lady of Mercy and St Joseph because of the small but active SVP conference which meets there once a fortnight.
So the members of this conference, actively supported by Fr Danny, had decided to mark their feast by having a coffee and cake morning, to which all parishioners were invited, in the Parish hospitality rooms.

                                                                           photo by Frances
But the big surprise was that Frances' husband Den had asked to be confirmed at Mass that morning, so there was a very special reason to celebrate.   Congratulations, Den, from all of us, you've done so much for us and we're delighted to have you so completely with us in everything we do! 

OAKHAVEN’S TREE OF LIFE IS BLESSED

                                                                                                           photo by Frances
Earlier this week Oakhaven’s Tree of Life was blessed in a Service of Blessing and Remembrance conducted by Rev Kate Wilson.     Her words were:

Dear Lord, bless this tree and all that it stands for:
A memorial to those we love but no longer see here on earth;
A tribute to the loving care given by Oakhaven Hospice Trust both here at Pennington Chase and in the wider community; and
A symbol of hope for the future care to be bestowed on those who are in need of our care.

Each leaf has the name on it of a past patient of the hospice, and after the blessing was over the names were read out.

OUR LADY OF SORROWS - September 15th

Jesus, my son what have they done to you?

This is the sword of sorrow spoken of,

Which now has pierced my grieving heart clean through

Knowing you bore this agony for love.

I hear you beg forgiveness for the crowd,

Hear you cry out in deep despair and fear,

And in my grief my heart cries out aloud,

That God has not forsaken you, He’s here.

Although you hang there like some common thief,

I am your Mother and you are His son,

And though this passion is beyond belief,

You and I know that You and He are one.

Jesus, my Son, would I could be with You,

My love is yours, my broken heart is too.

                                                                           Ros Browne

Thanks, Ros, for this fine sonnet specially written for last Saturday’s memorial.    

PROFITABLE COFFEE MORNING FOR AMNESTY

This week’s coffee morning was taken over by the members of the local branch of Amnesty International.       Here Simone is tempting a passer-by to enter by showing her some of the lovely homemade cakes which had been donated to raise funds for their organisation.

All the work that was put in by this charming crew and their supporters was justly rewarded, as a total of £190 was  raised for this very worthy cause.

HOUSE MASS FOR MARY’S NINETY-FIRST

                                                                                                                                    photo by Frances

Last Thursday Fr Danny celebrated Mass in Mary’s flat on her 91st birthday.     Why only four candles left on the cake?      Did you blow away the other eighty-seven, Mary?

PARISHIONERS VISIT LOURDES AGAIN

Several members of the Parish of Our Lady of Mercy have visited the shrine this year.    This view of it shows the crowds continually moving to and from the Grotto, which is on the right of the photo with the statue of Our Lady in the niche where Bernadette saw the apparitions.

It is difficult at times to fully comprehend the numbers who go to Lourdes.    This photo shows the congregation at an International Mass in the Underground Basilica.     The tiny brown rectangle in the middle of the photo is the altar, which is in the centre of the Basilica.    Although you cannot see them, there are as many people on the other side of that altar as there are on this side, and the whole seated congregation totals about a quarter of the number of visitors entering the Domaine each day during the summer season.

Much further down the Gave are the new Stations of the Cross, beautifully sculpted in white marble, which were  completed and installed earlier this year.

LIVERPOOL'S METRPOLITAN CATHEDRAL

Members of Our Lady of Mercy Parish have also visited the Catholic Cathedral in Liverpool this year.    This view is of the front entrance with its striking glass steles facing the top end of Hope Street, which has seen so much ecumenical activity in recent decades.

The Cathedral, which was designed by Lutyens, was originally intended to be the largest Cathedral in the world.   The crypt was completed by 1939, but by the time the War was over common sense had prevailed and a less gigantic but very fine building was erected. 

  The huge crypt remains as a reminder of the intended ambition of the Catholic community of Liverpool.

Less recent, but no less striking than the Stations at Lourdes are those in the Cathedral.   They are the work of  sculptor Sean Rice and were donated to the Cathedral by the late Archbishop Derek Worlock.

MAY THEY REST IN PEACE

It is with great sadness that we have to record the death of Winifred (Wynn) Calvert, a popular and much-loved member of our Parish.      

Also this week we grieve at the passing away of Anthony Ennis, a longtime parishioner who was also a dedicated subscriber to the Association for the Propagation of the Faith.  

We send our sincere condolences to their relatives and friends, and promise to remember them in our prayers.   

I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE

"I am the bread of life sent from above,

And those who eat of Me shall have that life,

Will know the fullness of My Father's love,

And know no more of heartache, grief or strife."

We are so far removed from those words said

By Christ himself when He was here on Earth;

We never saw or heard Him.  We have read

His words, however; we believe their worth.

But why?  when those who heard Him were upset,

And argued, doubting Him?  Still He proclaimed,

"My flesh and blood will give you life," and yet

Their protestations left Him unashamed. 

We may wish we'd been there; if we had,

Then would we have believed, or thought Him mad?

Our thanks to Ros Browne for this splendid sonnet, which she composed for the twentieth Sunday.    We’re sorry we couldn’t publish it during that week.   

ST ANNE'S - VERY MUCH ALIVE IN THE LORD!

Thanks, Mary, for the photos and caption.

FIFTY-TWO HAPPY YEARS TOGETHER

Clare and Peter celebrate their anniversary by cutting a cake for the members of the Friendship Club, some of whom are shown in this photo wishing them joy and good health for many more years.    And so say all of us!

IT’S NOT ALL WORK AND NO PLAY!

Lisa, Rita and Fr Danny get away from it all to enjoy the flume at Thorpe Park.
                                                                        Our thanks to John S for transmitting this super photo.