Today is Red Wednesday. On 22nd November, we will be celebrating Mass at 10am followed by Adoration to pray for the persecuted church in our parish of Our Lady of Lourdes. In the evening there will be the main Red Wednesday national event from 5:45-9pm at St George’s cathedral, Lambeth Road, London SE1 6HR (nearest tube: Lambeth North). To book a ticket please visit https://acnuk.org/event/redwednesday-london/  On Sunday 26th November there will be a coffee morning with cakes in the parish hall to promote the work of Aid to the Church in Need, after the 8.45am, 10am & 11.15am Masses.  If you’re able to donate cakes on the day that would be greatly appreciated. Please remember to wear something red! Please see the posters in the parish porch for further information.

Fr Jerome is leaving us to take up the position of parish priest at St John Vianney, West Green. On Saturday 11 November 2023, there was a mass and presentation to him in the church to thank Fr Jerome for his time, work and witness with us. He will be missed!

RESUMPTION OF PUBLIC MASSES
This weekend we reopen for public Masses here. This is also the case in some of our other deanery parishes. Thank you to everyone for your patience and prayers during this most difficult time. Here at New Southgate the Saturday Masses will be at 4pm and 6pm. Sunday Masses will be 9am, 10am, 11am and 12 noon. Please note there is no 8am Mass - the numbers at the first two Sunday morning Masses were quite low so we have rolled them into one at 9am. Public weekday Masses will generally continue at 12 noon (with the exception of Ash Wednesday). Fr Johnson also celebrates an evening Mass each day 7pm in Malayalam which will also be open. Confessions will resume on Saturday afternoons at 2pm. We still have more work to do regarding Holy Week and are awaiting guidance from the Bishops' Conference and the Holy See. More information in due course.

LOCKDOWN: STAY AT HOME...PRAY AT HOME
Due to the new lockdown, we have reduced the capacity and Masses here at Our Lady of Lourdes because many people should follow the advice to stay at home. You should not come to church if you have any symptoms or if you are at risk. The capacity of the church is now 40 places. Because there is no obligation to come to Mass, you can pray at home or watch online. Please see the new Mass times here:

Monday-Friday
12pm English Mass (online or 40 places in church)
7pm Malayalam Mass (online)

Saturday
6pm English Mass (online or 40 places in church)
7pm Malayalam Mass (online)

Sunday
9am, 10am, 11am English Mass (online or 40 places)

Aid to the Church in Need – Red Wednesday 25th November 2020

In Nigeria, around 400 Christians were killed during the first three months of 2020 as villages were attacked, churches burnt and Christians abducted – one kidnapped seminarian, 18-year-old Michael Nnadi, was killed.  In April, 32 Christians in Kaduna and Plateau States were slaughtered in their homes as they observed a COVID-19 lockdown.

About 1,000 Christian and Hindu women and girls are abducted every year in Pakistan, according to a human rights organisation in the country, called Movement for Solidarity and Peace.

This year, we would like to bring to your attention Maira Shahbaz (pictured above), a 14 year old Catholic girl, who was abducted at gun point by three men on 28th April 2020 in Medina Town, Pakistan. She was filmed and photographed being assaulted and was then forced to convert to Islam and marry one of her abductors.

At what times can I share in the Mass on the live-feed?
From Thursday 5th November, the English Masses will be celebrated at the following times:

Sundays: 10 am
Monday-Friday: 12 noon
Saturdays: 6pm

Funerals will generally be at 10am but please check the newsletter first.

The Masses in Malayalam will be celebrated every day at 7pm.

Will the church be open for private prayer?
Yes, we do hope to open the church for private prayer. We anticipate this will be on Sundays (10.30am-12pm), Wednesdays & Fridays (12.30pm-2pm) initially. Our volunteers will help supervise and clean the church.

By now, you will have heard the good news that churches will be able to resume public Masses from 4th July. This is welcome news for our parish and the wider church. On Friday we will receive written guidance from the Bishops' Conference. On Friday afternoon there will be a meeting of the Council of Deans with the Cardinal and auxiliary bishops, and next week we hope to hold a deanery meeting. In addition to these meetings, parish staff are meeting each day to prepare for this next important step.

We have much to do, and we will be looking for help again from parishioners. We are working hard and as fast as we can to make sure everything is in place to do this properly and safely. Please note that things will be different to how they were before the crisis, and we will all need to be generous in adapting our old habits to the new procedures. Everyone will be relying on the patience and cheerful cooperation of the whole parish. In the next week, we will be able to announce what date this parish will begin public Masses, how they will be organised, and at what times they will take place. Please see this statement from the Catholic archbishops in England for more information:

https://rcdow.org.uk/news/archbishops-message-to-the-faithful-about-the-celebration-of-public-liturgies/

REOPENING OF OUR LADY OF LOURDES CHURCH
From Monday, our church will be open every day, initially from 12pm-2pm. We understand these hours are limited but they will allow us to become accustomed with the new procedures we have been working on. Thank you to all those who have volunteered to help. Our church is a safe and welcoming place for all who want to visit. You might like to pray quietly, visit the Blessed Sacrament, or light candles. If you do come, please bear in mind the following:
•    The church is open for private, silent prayer only. We kindly ask that parishioners do not gather in groups to pray out loud.
•    Please observe the 2m social distance policy.
•    Please use the hand sanitiser on the way in and the way out.
•    There is a one-way system (in through the normal doors, and out through the central doors)
•    The pews are marked where you can and cannot sit.
•    Please don't bring anything with you to leave behind in the church.
•    There are no toilet facilities available, either in the church or the hall.
•    Please note that although our office is now being manned on some days, it is still closed to visitors. We ask that you either phone or email us but please don't ring the doorbell as we will not be able to let you into the presbytery.
Most of all, we are really pleased to reopen the church. We know that many of you will appreciate the opportunity to visit this house of prayer and peace. God bless you all.

Information Update

Thank you to those who joined us online for the Q&A session on Wednesday morning. Here is a summary of the information.

Thank you everyone!

Thank you all for your patience in the current situation, and for all the kind messages and cards we have received in support of our work. Thank you also for being so great at looking out for each other, especially the most vulnerable or isolated. We also want to thank you for your continued financial support of the parish. We appreciate everything that you are doing. Most of all, keep praying!

Please follow us on Facebook for further news, updates and to keep in touch. You can search for Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church New Southgate or @RCNewSouthgate or go to this link: Facebook Page. Please spread the word.