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Parish Newsletter 4.12.2022

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SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT (YEAR A)

Go to: Parish Notices | Upcoming Events | Masses & Intentions | Parish Donations Portal | Ways To Donate | Our Facebook Page | Our Youtube Channel

Parish Priest: Fr Anthony Dampson
Assistant Priest: Fr Marek Balawender

Parish Notices

MASS CHANGE Please note there will be no 9.30am Mass on Thursday, 8th December in St Andrew’s, there will be an Induction Mass for Fr Anthony and Fr Marek at 7.30pm in Our Lady of Peace.

LIGHT THE ADVENT CANDLE Each weekend of Advent we will be singing one verse and refrain from a Hymn at the beginning of Mass as the Advent Candle is lit. Each week the verse and lyrics are dedicated to the candle being lit and will be advised in the Bulletin.

Second Sunday of Advent
Light the Advent candle, two:
think of humble shepherds, who
Filled with wonder at the sight
of the child of Christmas night.

Refrain
Candle, candle, burning bright,
shining in the cold winter night;
candle, candle, burning bright,
fill our hearts with Christmas light

SMA FOUNDERS DAY APPEAL Bishop David, in entrusting the pastoral care of “Our Lady of Peace and Saint Andrew’s” Parish to the Society of African Missions (SMA), has authorised an annual appeal in support of the SMA’s missionary work around the world, particularly in Africa. In its ministries in Africa and the United Kingdom the Society provides for the Spiritual and practical wellbeing of those entrusted to its care. Your donation towards their missionary works will enable the SMA British Province to provide funds for:

  • The training of SMA missionaries (there are 300 in training presently).
  • Well digging projects in Nigeria & Liberia.
  • School scholarships for children in need.
  • Support to African Dioceses, as well as parishes staffed by British Province personnel in Nigeria and Liberia.
  • Inter-religious dialogue initiatives in Egypt and Northern Nigeria.
  • Peace initiatives in Kenya & Tanzania.

Please pick up an envelope from one of the Welcomers or at the back of the Church and return any donations, gift-aided or not, to Mass on Sunday, 11th December. God bless you for your generous support of the missions.

THANK YOU The family of the late Maria Czajka RIP wish to say “thank you” for your kindness, support and good wishes shown to them over the last few weeks. May God bless you all.

CHRISTMAS FLOWERS There will be a retiring collection this weekend for the flowers for Christmas. Our flower ladies who do the flowers each week produce beautiful displays and work hard throughout the year. Please be as generous as you can.

CHRISTMAS SERVICE TIMES Leaflets are available in the Church porches, please take home a copy which gives details of all the Christmas Service times.

ADVENT ‘Walk with Me’, a Journey of Prayer for Advent books, are available in the Church porches, priced £1.

LAUNCHING OUR LADY OF PEACE AND ST ANDREW’S GIVING TREE Similar to last year when we first introduced the Giving Tree, we have linked up with Burnham Care & Share and the SVP charities supporting the refugees from the Ukraine. This is a chance to give freely to those who cannot afford much this year. Once again, the tree is covered with labels from which you can select to purchase a gift or two to donate. Simply select a label, purchase a suitable gift, wrap and leave under the tree before the deadline of 15th December with the label attached. Your gift does not have to be expensive. Something small and thoughtful will be very much appreciated. Please check out the posters for details. Thank you to everyone in our parish for your continued generosity and kindness.

OFFERTORY The collection for 27th November amounted to £658.89. This amount does not include the Offertory giving through the Donation plate and Standing Orders. The amount for the Donation plate will be advised over the next few weeks. We are very grateful for your continued support.

TEA AND COFFEE refreshments are available each Sunday after the 9.30am Mass.

COFFEE SHOP is held at St Andrew’s every Saturday morning from 10.00am – 12.00non. It is open to everyone, please pop in and enjoy tea/coffee and cake!

MISSIO UPDATE OF FUNDS banked this year so far, including a count last week of £741.62., and two cheques forwarded earlier this year to Missio Head Office at Eccleston Square, amount to £2,969.79., and there are still a number of boxes with money yet to be counted and banked before Christmas. We are so fortunate to have a Parish of real friends whose kindness never ceases to surprise me and sometimes astounds me. I am personally proud to have people to help me by giving of their time so unstintingly and readily to help count cash and distribute the necessary paraphernalia which crops up throughout the year. Needless to say I am very, very grateful to all of them. Kind regards to all, Dominus vobiscum, John.

RED BOXES are still being gathered apace! Thank you for bringing in those now received. This week we are distributing liturgical calendars – next week new boxes (sanitised against winter bugs) will be available for collection after all Masses.

ST ANDREW’S 300 CLUB The annual St Andrew’s Day £100 draw was held after the beautiful joint service last Thursday. The winner is No 14 Ted and Shirley Godly. The next draw will be the Winter one at the beginning of January, if you would like to join the 300 Club, please contact Shelagh on 07941 432706.

BAPTISM COURSE Deacon Michael will be holding a Baptism course, via Zoom, on Monday, 5th December between 6.00pm and 8.00pm. This course is for ‘first time’ parents who wish to have their child Baptised over the next few months. Both Parents and Godparents are required to be at the course. Please contact Yvonne via email on office.ourladyofpeace[AT]northamptondiocese.org to register to join.

CONFIRMATION 2023 ENROLMENT If you are interested in your son/daughter receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation next year and they are in the academic Year 8 or 9, then please register your interest to confirmationolop[AT]gmail.com. Registration will close on 11th December 2022.

MASS INTENTIONS If you wish to book a Mass Intention please place the intention in an envelope, write the name of the person(s) who the Mass is for, whether Deceased or Intention, also the name of the person who is offering the Mass. This will avoid any disappointment on the Mass intentions not being offered on the requested date(s).

ROSARY GROUP The Rosary Group recite the Rosary after 9.30am Mass each morning in Our Lady of Peace Church. Please join them if you can.

PARISH PRAYER LIST Please remember all those who are in our Parish Prayer list book, which is placed on the Altar at each Mass. If you wish to add a name to the list please obtain the permission of the person and write the name in the book.

CONFIRMING OUR PARISH NAME In discussion with Bishop David recently, it has been decided to firm up the name of our combined Parish by combining the two names together in a new logo. Going forward we are ‘Our Lady of Peace and St Andrew’s’. The Bishop is happy with this slight amendment as it helps in some way for people to understand that we are truly one Parish and not two separate entities. You will see the new logo appearing across the Parish in future.

NEW CONTACT INFORMATION
Our Lady of Peace Parish Council Chair: ppcc.olop[AT]northamptondiocese.org
Our Lady of Peace Safeguarding Representative: safeguarding.olop[AT]northamptondiocese.org
Our Lady of Peace Head of Finance: financechair.olop[AT]northamptondiocese.org

GOING INTO HOSPITAL? If you wish to receive the Sacrament of Holy Communion and Anointing of the Sick before going into Hospital please let us know. A visit can be arranged from Fr Anthony or Fr Marek.

PARISH OFFICE Yvonne, as Parish Secretary, will be working in the office on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, from 9.00am to 2.00pm. For all Parish matters please contact Yvonne via email on office.ourladyofpeace[AT]northamptondiocese.org or telephone the Parish office on 01628 605764 and leave a message.

PERSONAL FINANCES Are you struggling to pay bills? Are you in debt? For free advice and help phone Stepchange for free advice, telephone 0300 303 5300 or apply online.

SLOUGH FOODBANK are appealing for more donations, the cost of living crisis has resulted in fewer donations and more clients and they are having to use their funds to buy food themselves to meet the current demand. The following link will take you to a list of items which they need. https://slough.foodbank.org.uk/give-help-2/foodbank-wishlist/

ST GILBERT’S MISSION PROJECT still continue raising funds. Small plastic bottles are available in the Church porches for any loose change you would like to donate to the St Gilbert’s Mission Project. Please return full bottles to Our Lady of Peace.

PARISH SAFEGUARDING REPRESENTATIVE Máirín Comfort is our Parish Safeguarding Representative. The role of the Parish Safeguarding Officer is to provide support, advice and information on all matters concerning the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults in the parish. If you have any queries, please contact Máirín via the Parish office safeguarding.olop[AT]northamptondiocese.org.

THE UNIVERSE CATHOLIC WEEKLY Is true to its mission of being “a light to guide the world, and a mirror to reflect it” Keeping Catholics informed about their faith, and bringing them ever closer to God. In order to keep our high standard going and maintain a strong weekly Catholic voice at a time when it is much needed in the world, please consider taking out a subscription. We have an excellent website full of trustworthy articles and an online shop with all subscribers receiving a 10% discount. Order your Digital 4 weeks free introductory offer by calling Michelle on 07436 617650, or email: michelle.jones[AT]universecatholicweekly.co.uk

Upcoming Events

ROSARY GROUP The Rosary Group recite the Rosary after 9.30am Mass each morning in Our Lady of Peace Church. Please join them if you can.

SHEKHINAH PRAYER GROUP meet online weekly on Wednesdays from 7.00pm to 8.30pm via Zoom. Catholic teachings on different topics and Lectio Divina (Praying the Scriptures) are handled on alternative weeks. If you are interested in joining the group please contact Yvonne via email: office.ourladyofpeace[AT]northamptondiocese.org and a link will be sent to you.

THE DIVINE MERCY APOSTOLATE, London is holding a Divine Mercy Advent Retreat at The Holy Child and St Joseph’s RC Church, Shrine of Our Lady of Guadulupe, 2 Brereton Road, Bedford MK40 1HU on Saturday. 10th December from 2.00pm to 4:.0 pm. The Retreat will include teachings on the Message of Mercy, Holy Mass, Hour of Mercy with Adoration and Benediction and Veneration of the Image of Merciful Jesus. Please call Millie on 07957 594646 for more information.

TIME FOR A CLEAR OUT The Catholic Women’s League are holding a Handbags, Scarves, jewellery, Gardening/Recipe Books stall at St Andrew’s Christmas Fair on Saturday, 10th December from 10.00am-2.00pm. If you have any of these items in good condition to donate we would be delighted if you could drop them in the boxes in the porch at Our Lady of Peace Church before Thursday, 8th December. Monies raised will go towards charities supported by CWL including our own Burnham Care and Share. The support of our wonderful Parish is always hugely appreciated.

CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION 16th December at St Anthony’s Church. We have a wonderful event planned with not only choirs performing but also some special solo singers and a group who will be coming along to help us celebrate the Festive season. With songs including The Christmas Song, Rocking across the Christmas Tree, Oh Holy night and Last Christmas – it promises to be a spectacular event! You can order the tickets from their website.

SAVE THE DATE – ANNOUNCING THE SENIOR CITIZEN’S CHRISTMAS TEA PARTY Mark your diaries – all senior citizens of our Parish are cordially invited to the Christmas Tea Party which takes place on Saturday, 17th December 2022 from 2.00pm-4.00pm in St Andrew’s Shared Church, Cippenham. Pick up your invitation from the back of the Church after Mass from next weekend. Please note that transportation can be provided on the day to and from the party. We are looking forward to an afternoon of scrumptious food, great entertainment and lovely company. Hosted by the SVP and supported by the CWL.

YOUNG ADULTS BRUNCH event on Saturday 17th December 2022, 11am-3pm. NYMO are hosting an extended Young Adults Brunch, with Adoration, Faith Formation, Food, Fellowship, Mass, and two amazing guest speakers, Joanna Bogle, and from the US, Meg Hunter-Kilmer. (Be sure to bring a Bible with you!) We invite you to join us for this free event, from 10am to start the day with Adoration, at Our Lady Help of Christians church, Castel Street, Luton LU1 3AG from 11am-3pm (Adoration from 10am and Mass at 3pm are optional to attend). For full details on location and times, please see nymo.org/brunch. Age 18-35.

FLAME is a national event on 4th March 2023 at Wembley Arena. It’s aimed at those aged 13 -25 and we are taking two coaches down from the diocese with various pick-up points. It is always a great day to celebrate as part of the wider Church and we have managed to secure costs for a ticket, t-shirt and travel for £49. Booking details can be found on our website and further details including previous videos of the event can be found www.cymfed.org.uk/flame. Details for these and all other events can be found on our website www.nymo.org.

SUBMISSIONS FOR THE PARISH WEBSITE OR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER can be sent to Yvonne. Items on paper and print are also accepted and can be given to Yvonne, Fr Anthony, or delivered to the Presbytery.

A PARISHIONER HAS VERY KINDLY OFFERED TO PRINT AND DELIVER COPIES OF OUR WEEKLY BULLETIN to those unable to attend Mass each week, this would only be posted through the letterbox. If you know of anyone who would like a copy delivered, please contact Yvonne via email or contact the Parish office on 01628 605764. Please obtain the permission of the Parishioner to provide their address to Yvonne.

MASS BOOKINGS Kindly drop off your intentions at the Presbytery, place it in the donation box in the Church or give it to Fr Anthony. You can still make a request for Masses by email and telephone.

PARISH ONLINE PRAYER SERVICE A dedicated email has been set up for you to send prayer requests. The email address is: prayerministry.ourladyofpeace[AT]northamptondiocese.org Meanwhile, let us continue to support and pray for one another in the parish.

Parish Donations

FINANCES We are extremely grateful, not only for your financial support, but also to the volunteers who help in so many ways for the Church to remain open for Masses.

Your valued ongoing support to the Parish can be made through the following options:

  • Donating by phone: ‘Giving Tuesday’ – Telephone Donation In addition to the online donation facilities currently available, the Diocese has begun a ‘Giving Tuesday’. Each Tuesday between 10:00am and 4:00pm, you can call this number, 01604 712065, and donate to your parish.
  • Online Donation We are now using a new provider ‘Invest My Community’ who work with other Catholic Diocese, schools and charities. You can access our online giving page via the donate button on our Diocesan Website or by using the following link https://northamptondiocese.org/donate/ If you would like to use this facility to make your regular, one off donations please ensure you indicate this along with the name of your parish, and any other message detail in the ‘Public Message’ box. Please note this information is not made visible to the public.
  • Standing Order via donor’s own bank: You can set up a standing order for donations to your parish using either your online bank account or in branch. You can also make a one-off payment to the parish. The information required to make the donation is as follows:
    Bank: NatWest.
    Sort Code; 60-06-11.
    Account Name; 46716203. Account Name; RCDN Our Lady of Peace.
    Payment Ref: Our Lady of Peace, Slough.
  • Standing Order using the form: https://northamptondiocese.org/wp-content/uploads/GAD-general-June-18-v2-revision.pdf You can complete the standing order form for donations to your parish with the option to Gift Aid. Please indicate on this form if you are not a tax payer but would like to set up a standing order only. There are two sides/sheets to this form, it should be printed, completed, signed and returned to our Parish office, we will then forward to central offices at Bishop’s House for processing at a later date. Please remember to state which parish this standing is for i.e. ‘For the benefit of Our Lady of Peace, Slough Parish’ section at the top of the form. Banks will require 7 working days from receipt of these forms to activate the request so please ensure the start date reflects this 7 day period to ensure the S.O. can take effect.
  • There is also a donation box in Our Lady of Peace for Mass intentions, offertory, donations, etc.
  • Contactless Donations 💳 We have installed ‘Digital Collection Plate’ contactless terminals in the Churches, allowing you to donate using a contactless debit/credit card, NFC smartphone or watch. Simply enter the amount you wish to donate and hold your card (or NFC device) to the reader. You can also opt-in for Gift Aid to increase your donation by 25%. If you are a UK taxpayer then donating with Gift Aid means that we can claim an extra 25p for every £1 received.
  • Parish Donations Portal 💳 After a successful trial of the physical digital collection plate in our Churches, we are pleased to announce that a web portal is now available as a queue-free alternative. Either use the link (Gift Aid giving is available using one-time registration): https://portal.mydona.com/assets/webPay/index.php?cid=419 or with your QR code reader mobile app, scan the code in the printed newsletter, click on the link to mydona.com, and it will give you the same options available on the Digital Plate in Church. Also look out for the DONATE HERE sign with QR Code in the Church. Thank you.
    N.B. To access this service, select links titled: Parish Donations Portal.

Thank you for any help you are able to give and God bless.

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Masses & Intentions

December 3rd – December 11th

Sunday Readings: Year A.
Weekday Readings: Cycle I.

Universalis – Daily Mass Readings (updates automatically).

Live streaming of Sunday Mass at Our Lady of Peace can be found on
Facebook: ourladyofpeacecatholicchurchburnham and YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCegtpwudlmz48G-m3gPNy4Q

December 3rd – December 11th

Saturday 3rd December | ST FRANCIS XAVIER, Priest
10.00am Our Lady of Peace – Holy Souls
Saturday 3rd December | SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT
Mass Readings (Year A)
6.00pm Our Lady of Peace – Paul Sherriff RIP (Cafferty); Bolek Kempson RIP (Eleanor)
Sunday 4th December | SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT
Mass Readings (Year A)
9.30am Our Lady of Peace LS – Thanksgiving, Kidd Rapinet Slough(Rodrigues); Theresa Bottesi RIP (1st Anniv.) (Bottesi family); Terry Portwain RIP (Bryant); Michele Di Gangi RIP (2nd Anniversary)
11.30am St Andrew‘s – Deacon George Brooker (7th Anniv.) (Brooker); Deceased members of the Leone family; Armando Al Puerto & Dominga Al Puerto RIP (Dickel); People of the Parish
Monday 5th December
9.30am Our Lady of Peace – Confirmation candidates, Parents, Grandparents & Godparents (Rosary Group); Richard & John Kempson RIP (Kempson)
Tuesday 6th December
9.30am Our Lady of Peace – Prisoners & families and conversion on indifferent hearts (Rosary Group)
Wednesday 7th December | ST AMBROSE, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
9.30am Our Lady of Peace – High number of suicides of young members of Travellers community (Rosary Group)
Thursday 8th December | IMMACULATE CONCEPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
Mass Readings
N.B. No 9.30am Mass today.
7.30pm Our Lady of Peace – Induction Mass for Fr Anthony & Fr Marek; Thanksgiving Kuthokathen family (Kuthokathen); High number of suicides of young members of Travellers community (Rosary Group)
Friday 9th December
9.30am Our Lady of Peace – Tharakan family (Kuthokathen); Saman Abbas RIP (Dishonoured her father) (Rosary Group)
Saturday 10th December
10.00am Our Lady of Peace – Holy Souls
Saturday 10th December | THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT
Mass Readings (Year A)
6.00pm Our Lady of Peace – Cardinal Ernest Simoni Int, living Martyr of Albania (Rosary Group)
Sunday 11th December | THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT
Mass Readings (Year A)
9.30am Our Lady of Peace – Eric Bragger RIP (Rodrigues); Deceased members of the Leone family; Kathleen Galea RIP (Galea); Italia Clementoni RIP (4th Anniv.) (Wieckowska)
11.30am St Andrew‘s Michele Di Gangi RIP (Boundy); People of the Parish

Notes:
LS = Mass livestreamed on Facebook and Youtube.

Liturgy Office resources:
Calendar notes for 2023 (PDF)

Our Lady of Peace Church – Lower Britwell Road, Burnham | SL2 2NL
St Andrew’s – Elmshott La/Washington Drive, Cippenham, Berks | SL1 5RE

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