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Parish Priest: Fr. Kevin McLoughlin Assistant Priest: Fr. Thomas Clarke (Prison Chaplain) Rev. George Hamer

Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles 28th June 2020

Father Kevin’s Desk Today we celebrate two of the greatest saints in the Church’s calendar, St’s Peter and Paul. They are two giants who have sometimes been described as heroes of the Church and with good reason. Peter a simple fisherman who would become the (rock) on which Jesus would build his Church and Paul a Jewish elder (Saul) and a one time enthusiastic persecutor of the Church, including the execution of Stephen our first martyr. Hero might well be a word associated with these two men but both, I am certain, would refute such a claim. They might not dispute their heroic achievements including their own martyrdom but they would instantly declare that what they achieved was done only in response to the grace of God and the Holy Spirit working in them. Never in a million years would either of these two ordinary sinners ever have believed that they would receive and later respond to an amazing call from Jesus transforming their lives and the lives of millions of others.

In the life of both Peter and Paul we witness the amazing power of God’s love. It is a transforming power able to convert even the most hardened hearts into hearts blazing with zeal and enthusiasm for Christ. Just like our own Pope Francis successor to St. Peter, who likewise fills us with enthusiasm for Christ who in one of his earlier inspiring homilies said that; “Christians are called to be revolutionaries changing the world one heart at a time”. Pope Francis even urged us to leave the comfort of our parishes to spread the Good News with others. Go out to meet those who “live without hope and are immersed in a profound sadness, trying to escape by thinking they will find happiness in alcohol, drugs, gambling, the power of money and promiscuity etc…but who only end up sinking deeper into the abyss.”

At this moment due to the coronavirus, we are not yet able to go out freely to meet with new people as in the past, we can however, still consider how to live this call of Pope Francis in our own way because it is the very same call made by Jesus to Peter and Paul and to each of his disciples. It is the same call he now makes to you and I……Lord give to us and to all Christians the grace, courage, generosity and zeal to answer your call and to change our world…….. one heart at a time………Amen.

God Bless Father Kevin We remember in our prayers We remember in our prayers those who have died recently and whose funerals are soon to take place. Ann Fitzgibbon (Funeral, Tuesday 30th June) Anne Murphy (Funeral, Wednesday 1st July) Gilbert Corke (Funeral, Tuesday 7th July) Joan Commons (Funeral, date to be confirmed)

In accordance with social distancing rules, only close family should attend the funerals.

A message from Father Kevin and Father Thomas – Towards the reopening of our Churches

As the newsletter goes to print this weekend, we have the following information.

Subject to a risk assessment for each church, - and meeting all of the criteria in the said risk assessment – the Archbishop has authorised that churches can reopen for the public celebration of the Mass from Monday 6th July, with restricted numbers and one metre social distancing rules in effect.

The permission also includes provision for the celebration of Baptisms, Confessions, Funeral Services and Marriages with certain restrictions and alterations in place to limit numbers and ensure safety.

Early next week, we will make contact with those parishioners who kindly volunteered their services to help, so that we can coordinate our response and actively prepare to reopen.

Thank you for your patience, we will continue to keep you informed via the newsletter and website in the coming days and assure you of our prayers and best wishes for each of you and your families.

Churches in our Pastoral Area open for private prayer At this time Our Lady and St. Philomena’s and Holy Name remain closed for private prayer. Only two churches in every pastoral area are being allowed to open at this stage.

The churches and times in our Pastoral Area are:

Blessed Sacrament: 11.00am - 1.00pm Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday Our Lady Queen of Martyrs: 11.00am - 1.00pm on Tuesday and Thursday

Mary’s Meals Mary’s Meals is a charity that has the main aim of ensuring every child receives a nutritious daily meal in a place of education. They have asked to share this short video message recorded by Mary’s Meals founder Magnus MacFarlane- Barrow. Please click here to watch the video. For more information on Mary’s Meals please see the website https://www.marysmeals.org.uk/ A Message from the Metropolitan Archbishops of the Catholic Church in England

Dear Brothers and sisters in Christ,

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

On Tuesday we heard the announcement that, from the 4th July this year, places of worship will be able to reopen for prayer and services. We welcome this news with great joy. Since the lockdown began, members of all faiths have faced restrictions on how they have been able to celebrate important religious festivals. Our own experience of Easter was unlike any other we have known. Now, in our churches, and with our people, we can look forward again to celebrating the central mysteries of our faith in the Holy Eucharist.

The recent reopening of our churches for individual private prayer was an important milestone on our journey towards resuming communal worship. Our churches that have opened have put in place all the measures needed to ensure the risks of virus transmission are minimised. This includes effective hand sanitisation, social distancing, and cleaning. We remain committed to making sure these systems of hygiene and infection control meet Government and public health standards.

We want to thank everyone within the Catholic community for sustaining the life of faith in such creative ways, not least in the family home. We thank our priests for celebrating Mass faithfully for their people, and for the innovative ways in which they have enabled participation through live- streaming and other means. We are grateful for the pastoral care shown by our clergy to those for whom this time of lockdown has been especially difficult, and, in particular, towards those who have been bereaved. We recognise too the chaplaincy services that have played a vital role in supporting those most in need. Gaining from the experience of all that we have been through, and bringing those lessons into the future, we must now look forward.

With the easing of restrictions on worship with congregations, we tread carefully along the path that lies ahead. Our lives have been changed by the experience of the pandemic and it is clear that we cannot simply return to how things were before lockdown. We remain centred on the Lord Jesus and His command at the Last Supper to “do this in memory of me.” We must now rebuild what it means to be Eucharistic communities, holding fast to all that we hold dear, while at the same time exploring creative ways to meet changed circumstances.

It is important to reaffirm that, at present, the obligation to attend Sunday Mass remains suspended. A significant number of churches may remain closed as they are unable to meet the requirements for opening for individual prayer. Fulfilling these requirements is a precondition for any church opening after the 4th July for the celebration of Mass with a congregation.

Please be aware that there will be a limit on the number of people who can attend Mass in our churches. This will determined locally in accordance with social distancing requirements. We therefore need to reflect carefully on how and when we might be able to attend Mass. We cannot return immediately to our customary practices. This next step is not, in any sense, a moment when we are going ‘back to normal.’

We ask every Catholic to think carefully about how and when they will return to Mass. Our priests may need to consider whether it is possible to celebrate additional Masses at the weekends. Given there is no Sunday obligation, we ask you to consider the possibility of attending Mass on a weekday. This will ease the pressure of numbers for Sunday celebrations and allow a gradual return to the Eucharist for more people.

Moving forward, there will still be many people who cannot attend Mass in person. We therefore ask parishes, wherever possible, to continue live-streaming Sunday Mass, both for those who remain shielding and vulnerable, and also for those unable to leave home because of advanced age or illness.

When we return to Mass there will some differences in how the celebration takes place. For the time being, there will be no congregational singing and Mass will be shorter than usual. None of this detracts from the centrality of our encounter with the Risen Christ in the Eucharist. We ask everyone to respect and follow the guidance that will be issued and the instructions in each church.

“As I have loved you,” said the Lord Jesus, “so you must love each other.” (Jn 13:34) The lockdown has brought forth remarkable acts of charity, of loving kindness, from Catholics across our communities as they have cared for the needy and vulnerable. We have seen love in action through charitable works, and through the service of many front-line keyworkers who are members of our Church. Now we can begin to return to the source of that charity, Christ himself, present for us sacramentally, body, blood, soul and divinity, in Holy Communion. As we prepare to gather again to worship, let us, respectful of each other, come together in thanksgiving to God for the immense gift of the Holy Eucharist.

Yours devotedly in Christ

✠ Vincent Cardinal Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster ✠ Malcolm McMahon OP, Archbishop of Liverpool ✠ , Archbishop of Birmingham ✠ , Archbishop of Southwark

This letter is addressed to the Catholic Community in England; the opening of the Catholic Churches in Wales is devolved to the Welsh Assembly who are still evaluating their position on opening Places of Worship.

Our Lady and St. Philomena's parish group As a parish group we are thinking about a way forward after lockdown. Everything has changed! We have all been made to think how we have done things in the past and how we should do things in the future! We look forward to being back together and moving forward. Whilst we also remember that there are many people, who won’t be back with us, who need to be remembered and their lives celebrated.

As life resumes and some form of normality returns please continue to pray with us. Our prayer intentions this week are:

 Monday Thanks for our health workers who have courageously worked throughout this pandemic  Tuesday Thanks for all those who have supported individuals and communities throughout lockdown  Wednesday Thanks for all the shop workers and delivery drivers who have bravely kept us supplied with everything we needed  Thursday For those who have lost friends and relatives to Covid 19, for whom life will never be 'normal' again  Friday For each of us; that we remain vigilant and mindful and continue to protect others and ourselves  Saturday Our own intentions  Sunday For priests and parishioners

Have a good week everyone, Allison

Restored lives programme From the Pastoral Formation Team: The Restored Lives programme that we use in the diocese for the divorced and separated has planned to deliver their summer training conference on Friday 3rd July using Zoom. It is an ideal opportunity for anyone in the Catholic Church to come and find out more about the course and what’s involved in setting one up both online and in person.

Cost to attend the training course is £5 and they have planned to have a breakout session specifically to discuss the delivery of the course in a Catholic context. You can find more details and tickets at: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/restored-lives-training-day-2020-tickets- 94840330983

Vacancy for Diocesan Schools Officer The Archdiocese is currently seeking to recruit a Schools Officer on a part time basis, working 17.5 hours per week. The salary is £25,652.90 per annum (£51,305.80 Full time equivalent). Informal Enquiries should be directed to Tim Warren, Director for Education on 0151 522 1072.

Full details including a job description and application form are available from the job page of the main website at http://www.liverpoolcatholic.org.uk/ or http://www.liverpoolcatholic.org.uk/200629- Diocesan-Schools-Officer. Closing date is Monday 29th June

The Catholic Universe Newspaper

A free copy of last week’s The Catholic Universe is available from the parish website under “Latest News”

Parish website – Additions this week The parish website is updated regularly throughout the week, additions this week include:  New prayer resources from the Archdiocese of Liverpool: • Reflection for the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, also available as an audio download. Please click here to view or listen • Readings for the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul. Please click here to view • ‘Forty Days and Forty Nights’; a compilation of eighty ecumenical prayers and reflections Please click here to view • Growing Old Grace-fully. Please click here to view • Activity/reminisce ideas from the Alzheimer’s Society, Wigan. Please click here to view

 Click here to view all the prayer resources prepared by the Archdiocese of Liverpool

 To read the latest updates from the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales please click here; updates this week include: • Cardinal statement on resumption of collective acts of worship • Windrush Day: Learn lessons from history to bring about racial justice, says Bishop • Cardinal Vincent Nichols prays for fathers “full of gentle strength and tenderness” on Father’s Day • New directory for Catechesis

 The Feast of Saints Peter and Paul (28th June) E-Missalettes

We remember in our prayers those who have died recently: Joan Commons, Gilbert Corke, Anne Murphy, Ann Fitzgibbon, (Baby) Albie Cooper, Joseph Stone, Anne Eagan, Ellen (Nellie) Cox, Margaret Dunn, Bishop Vincent Malone, Peter Jones, Nora Ellison, Elizabeth Doran, John Phelan, Christine Cavanagh, Mark Lynn, Catherine Young, Rose Anne Cowan, Margaret Rita Woods, Edward Crawford, George Chaderton, Bernard Joseph Riley, May they rest in peace Mass Times, Services & Intentions Saturday 27th June – Sunday 5th July 2020

All public acts of worship in churches have ceased until further notice. This includes all public Masses. Father Kevin and Father Thomas will continue to celebrate Mass in Church, and offer intentions, without the faithful on a daily basis. Masses are normally live streamed Monday to Friday at 10am, as well as Sunday at 11am. Please click here to watch Mass

Saturday 27th Mass (Rodrigo Lopez) Mass (Special intention to the Sacred Heart) Optional Memorial of St Cyril of Alexandria, Bishop and Doctor Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Our Lady on Saturday Sunday 28th Mass (John Lowe, birthday memorial) Mass (Parishioners) SOLEMNITY OF SAINTS PETER AND PAUL, APOSTLES Monday 29th Mass (Peter Coles)

Tuesday 30th Crematorium service – Ann Fitzgibbon Mass (Keith Fitzpatrick Wiggins) Mass (Tilly Macket) Optional Memorial of The First Martyrs of the See of Rome Wednesday 1st Crematorium service – Anne Murphy Mass (Joan Moran, special intention) Optional Memorial of St Oliver Plunket, Bishop and Martyr Thursday 2nd Mass (Catherine Crawford) Mass (Recently deceased) Friday 3rd Mass (Gareth Michael Cowan) Mass (Katie Ord Feast of St Thomas, Apostle Saturday 4th Mass (Margaret Swinburn) Mass (Parishioners) Optional Memorial of St Elizabeth of Portugal Our Lady on Saturday Sunday 5th Mass (Rebecca Carroll) Mass (Stephen Frackleton) FOURTEENTH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME