Newsletter - 5 November 2023
PARISH NEWS
A SYNODAL CHURCH IN MISSION
Dear Parishioners,
A month long Vatican Synod on Synodality, convened by Pope Francis, concluded on 28 October with members approving, a summary report entitled “A Synodal Church in Mission”. It is a calling for greater “co-responsibility” among all believers in the evangelising mission of the Church — and proposes concrete reforms to achieve it.
Last Sunday Pope Francis brought this conclusion into his homily .on the two great commandments - love of God and love of neighbour. Here are a few excerpts.
At the conclusion of this stage of our journey, it is important to look at the “principle and foundation” from which everything begins ever anew: by loving. Loving God with our whole life and loving our neighbour as ourselves. Not our strategies, our human calculations, the ways of the world, but love of God and neighbour: that is the heart of everything. And how do we channel this momentum of love? I would propose two verbs, two movements of the heart, … to adore and to serve. We love God through adoration and service.
To love is to adore. Adoration is the first response we can offer to God’s gratuitous and astonishing love. The amasement of adoration, the wonder of worship, is something essential in the life of the Church, … To adore God means to acknowledge in faith that he alone is Lord and that our individual lives, the Church’s pilgrim way and the ultimate outcome of history all depend on the tenderness of his love.
In worshiping God, we rediscover that we are free. That is why the Scriptures frequently associate love of the Lord with the fight against every form of idolatry. … We must constantly struggle against all types of idolatry; not only the worldly kinds, which often stem from vainglory, … but also those forms of idolatry disguised as spirituality – my own spirituality: my own religious ideas, my own pastoral skills... Let us be vigilant, let we find that we are putting ourselves at the centre rather than him.
To love is to serve. In the great commandment, Christ binds God and neighbour together so that they will never be disconnected. There can be no true religious experience that is deaf to the cry of the world. There is no love of God without care and concern for our neighbour; otherwise, we risk becoming pharisaic. We may have plenty of good ideas on how to reform the Church, but let us remember: to adore God and to love our brothers and sisters with his love, that is the great and perennial reform.
Caterina Schifano, Pastoral Assistant
Focus of the Week
Pilgrimage to Medjugorge
The parish is organising a Pilgrimage to Medjugorje. The dates are as follows :
Fly out from Gatwick Airport on 21 May 2024 at 12:50.
Fly out from Split Airport on 28 May 2024 at 17:10.
The total cost will be £760. A single supplement will apply. A £30 discount will be given to those who book and pay their £100 deposit before the 31 January 2024.
The package includes flights, 23kg hold luggage, transfers to and from airport to hotel, half board at hotel - breakfast and three course evening meal with wine. Staying at The Quercus Hotel - each room has en-suite, fridge, air-con, hairdryer, flat screen TV, phone, etc. Priority will be given to those who have not already attended a parish pilgrimage to Medjugorje.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Gail 07989 879 148 / gail.hewett@hotmail.com or leave details in the parish office.
Sunday Evening Mass
5 November at 5.30pm
The Mass includes music in a relaxed atmosphere, and is followed by the Cockfosters Parish Pub. Sunday evening masses are held on the first Sunday of each month.