St. Edmund of Canterbury & St. Thomas More
Today we rejoice. Today we give God praise. Today, we raise our hearts and voices in worship and adoration of God, the Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ. For today the promise made to the Virgin was fulfilled: ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God’. In appearance like every other baby born of a woman, this baby was God’s Son. This baby was all that God desired a human being to be – one who could reflect, without the distortion of sin, the glory of God.
The birth of Jesus of Nazareth heralded the birth of a new humanity – a revolutionary evolutionary leap resulting in a new creation. Just as Adam was the head of a fallen humanity, Jesus is to head the new humanity. Today we celebrate Jesus’ birth, but also our own. Jesus said to Nicodemus: ‘Truly, truly I say to you, unless one is born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of heaven. Understandably Nicodemus didn’t comprehend until the Lord explained: ‘unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit’. This is why on Christmas Day we rejoice in our heavenly birth too. This grace, this gateway into the Christian life, is also the door through which we pass for the kingdom of darkness into the glorious light of Christ.
Today a whole new creation has come into being and we are united to this incredible grace and blessing through the sacrament of our baptism. Through the Word becoming Flesh, through the Eternal Word of God becoming man, God proved his profound love for every one of us – God so loved the world that he gave his One and Only Son. As we give each other gifts today, we remember the greatest gift of all: the birth of Jesus, the new creation through whom we have become sharers and partakers in the life of God, even unto eternal life.
HODIE CHRISTUS NATUS EST
Dear Friends in Christ, The Nativity of the Lord, 2022
I warmly welcome you all here this weekend for the Christmas Masses. A very special welcome to all visitors to our parish this Christmas; it’s wonderful that families are all able to get together at this very special time of the year. I trust and pray that you will have a wonderful holiday season and a very special & holy Christmas. On behalf of the Parish I welcome four seminarians from the Pontifical North American College in Rome. One is a Deacon and the others are in the first and third year’s theology. My thanks to those who have kindly donated food stuffs and deserts while the boys are here!
I would like to thank everyone who has helped to prepare for our Christmas Masses this year. Our Altar Society, who have worked so hard in keeping our Church pristine throughout the year; all of our Eucharistic Ministers & Readers. Our Sunday Mass Greeters; Our Choir Director Sue Farrow – the Choir & Contemporary Music Group; Our Master Of ceremonies and all of our Altar Servers; my thanks to Veronica Short who has helped me in the Sacristy at all of our masses throughout the year. Thank you one and all!
I would like to take this opportunity of thanking the many parishioners who have sent Cards and Christmas Greetings and gifts during this Blessed Season. I pray for the whole parish community over this sacred time, that you will have the opportunity to spend time with your families, and that you will also have a good rest and be refreshed for a New Year. I know that many parishioners have gone away for the Christmas holiday this year, enjoy your time with families and friends, and have a safe journey home! Wishing you all a very Happy & Holy Christmas & Prosperous New Year for 2023. Keep safe and well and always be kind and loving to one another.
God Bless You All, with Love & Christmas Peace,
CHRISTMAS MASSES 2023: Please note all the times of the Christmas Masses this year. This Christmas Eve – Saturday 24th December the evening Christmas Masses will be at 6.00pm, this is a Family Mass with Christmas Tableau acted out by the little children. There will be a 10.00pm Mass, preceded by Sung Carols at 9.45pm. This will be a sung Choral Mass with Choir. – I encourage people to attend this Mass, as the numbers were quite low last year.
On Christmas Day Sunday 25th December Masses will be celebrated at 9.00am & 11.00am which will be a Sung Mass. Please make a very special effort to attend Holy Mass at Christmas. There is no more fitting way to welcome the Saviour Christ Child into our lives than the celebration of the Holy Eucharist.
YOUR CHRISTMAS OFFERTORY: Is your personal gift to Fr. John, and makes up the major part of his salary throughout the year. Please use your parish Gift Aid envelopes, as we can then claim back the relevant Tax on your offerings. There are also Gift Aid envelopes in the porch of St. Edmund’s. With grateful thanks for your continued generosity!
ELECTRONIC CHRISTMAS OFFERING: This year, as always, envelopes will be available for us to make our Christmas Offering, which, as you know, is an opportunity in every Catholic Church for parishioners to make a Christmas gift to their Parish Priest, which forms the major part of their salary. This year our Christmas Offering can also be made electronically. We just need to transfer the money to the parish account with the reference ‘Xmas offering’. Please quote your ‘Gift Aid number’ also. Any questions please ask Iain McLay (bloggeriain@gmail.com). The details of the bank account are: Sort Code: 40-13-22
Account Number: 11019651
Account Name: Catholic Church Loughton St Edmund.
FEAST OF ST STEPHEN: The traditional annual Altar Servers Mass with enrolment into the Guild of St Stephen for new Altar Servers will take place on St Stephen’s Day, Monday 26th December at 11.00am. This is always a very beautiful celebration, and I encourage as many parishioners as possible to attend. This is also an invitation to the whole parish community for any of our young people to become Altar Servers. There’s no greater honour than serving the Lord at Holy Mass
A VERY BIG THANK YOU: Once again a very big thank you to the whole parish community in your incredible support for our Annual Gran Draw and Hampers. We have worked out that the overall amount with donations Gift Aided will come to £5,104.00. This is Incredible! THANK YOU! This year the money will be used for the utilities, heating lighting, Gas for the parish.
MASS INTENTIONS – DECEMBER 2022
| Sat 24th Christmas Eve | 6.00pm | Tommy Luby RIP (R Walsh)Family Christmas Mass with Tableau |
| CHRISTMAS MASSES | ||
| Sat 24th Christmas Eve | 10.00pm | John & Mary Harvey RIP (Fr John)Carols Before Christmas Mass at 9.45pm |
| Sun 25th Christmas Day | 9.00am | David Faud RIP (The Faud Family) |
| Sun 25th Christmas Day | 11:00am | Peter Smith RIP (Paul Falco) |
| Mon 26th St Stephen | 11.00am | Peter Burns RIP, Bill Warnes RIP & All Dec’d Servers of Parish. (David Knott) |
| Tues 27th St John | 10.00am | Tylor Fallon RIP (Marie Corrigan) |
| Wed 28th Holy Innocents | 10.00am | Fr Kieran Dodd RIP (Rosemary & Ian Johnson) |
| Thur 29th S Thomas Beckett | 10.00am | Peggy Kliber RIP (Ewa Michalik) |
| Fri 30th | 10.00am | Paddy Bacon RIP (Bacon & Potter Families |
| Sat 31st New Year Eve | 10.00am | Charles Wescott RIP (Pat & Margaret) |
| Confessions 11am – 12Noon or on demandVigil Mass for Sunday. Confessions at 5.30pm | ||
| Sat 31st New Year Eve | 6.00pm | Mary Jamieson RIP (Kathy & Mark Munro) |
| Sun 1st New Year Day | 9.00am | People of the Parish (New Year’s Blessing of Families) |
| Sun 1st New Year Day | 11:00am | Pietro &Luigia Tisi, Albert & Odila Maton RIP (Ferdi & Diana Tisi) |
Please kindly put your Mass requests in early for anniversaries etc., this is to avoid any disappointment if a particular date has already been booked,
Parish Phone No: 0208 508 3492 Email: loughton@dioceseofbrentwood.org
The Brentwood Diocesan Trust Registered Charity No. 234092
St Edmund of Canterbury 