Newsletter – 6th Sunday of Easter – 17th May 2020

By Fr David In Newsletter Blog On May 14, 2020

CATHOLIC PARISH OF CRANLEIGH AND BRAMLEY

6^th Sunday of Easter – 17th May 2020

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I don’t know whether you have ever read the Lord of the Rings by J RR Tolkien but it’s well worth a try.  Mind you, its long, and you will have to use your imagination.  The films are good adaptations but miss out some of the more endearing moments that aren’t central to the trajectory of the plot.

If you are a Catholic and you know that Tolkien was a catholic too it’s tempting to try to identify characters in the plot with figures from the Gospel.  However, the characterization is a little too subtle to directly correlate this character in the plot with this person or that person in the Gospel.

Nonetheless there are a few links we can make that can be illuminating.  If we take Frodo Baggins and his quest to destroy the Ring and with it the reign of evil over the world as the Christian disciple who, essentially good, is nevertheless tempted by sin. The evil powers of the Ring hold Frodo in its sway – he longs to be rid of it but its power over him is too great.  This is a little like sin – do you remember the exhortation in the confirmation service not to give way to the “glamour” of sin?  Frodo’s quest is to go right into the ‘heart’ of evil, confronting it we might say and under the very noses of the forces of evil destroy the Ring and all its power and hold over creation.  It is a mighty quest and Frodo shrinks from it despite knowing in his own heart that it is his quest alone.  However, he is given companions on the journey.  Samwise Gamgee his servant.  Aragorn the strange and scruffy warrior, Gimli a dwarf and Legolas an Elf.  Also, from the world of men, a knight called Boromir whose people have been defying the evil empire for generations.  There is also the mysterious figure of Gandalf – a wizard.  So far, so strange unless you are familiar with this world that Tolkien created.

On the journey that these companions take they are confronted by dark forces, by evil and by some very familiar temptations.  Also, some old rivalries that threaten the cohesion of the group.  The biggest danger comes from Boromir, the noble son of the Steward of Gondor who has been fighting the Dark Lord but whose will and strength is in danger of disappearing.  Might not the powers the Ring possesses be better off utilized for good, he argues.  Instead of throwing it away why not use it but for good.  Even the saintly Aragorn entertains this thought for a moment, as do Gimli and Legolas.

The journey, fraught with peril as it is, soon sees the companions scattered.  The first to leave is Gandalf falling into the Abyss in a battle with the fire of hell itself.  Then the group is divided and Boromir decides to seize his moment.  He first of all pleads with Frodo to let him have the ring “for a good purpose” and then when Frodo refuses, he threatens him.  Frodo escapes to continue the journey alone.

But here Tolkien gives us his masterstroke.  Sam Gamgee who we have taken for a simple, yet dependable fellow joins him.  The Quest can continue and Frodo despite having the burden all to himself has his servant as his companion.  The strength of character of Sam Gamgee is remarkable.  Quick witted he is not.  But he can “see through a brick wall” given enough time.  His most remarkable characteristic though is friendship, affection for Frodo and dependability.  He is like a shadow – always by Frodos’ side never intruding but quietly helping his friend overcome doubts, fears, and distractions to complete the Quest.  He shows great personal courage and strength and an inexhaustible love for his “Master”.  He is a true friend whom Frodo comes to recognize as his greatest friend.  He is no longer a servant but his friend.  Heard that before?

I was put in mind of all this by the Gospel story of Jesus sending us the “Helper” to assist us on our journey of life.  He promises to “be with us until the end of time” and to be “in us” as He is in the Father and the Father is in Him.  He calls us friends, no longer servants, and asks us to observe one thing which is to love as He has loved us – even if that is to lay down our life for our friends.  This “Helper” helps us to finally let go of the glamour of evil that can cloud our judgment and choices.  He stands by us and speaks up for us when we are cowed by forces that seem greater than us.  He is stalwart and non-judgemental and our fellow traveler along the road of life.  We are never truly alone when the Spirit is at work within us.

With my love.       Fr David

Sunday 17 May 2020                         6th Sunday of Easter                       Liturgical Colour: White.

Readings at Mass

Entrance Antiphon                                                                                   Cf. Is 48: 20

Proclaim a joyful sound and let it be heard;

proclaim to the ends of the earth:

The Lord has freed his people, alleluia.

Collect

Grant, almighty God,

that we may celebrate with heartfelt devotion these days of joy,

which we keep in honour of the risen Lord,

and that what we relive in remembrance

we may always hold to in what we do.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, for ever and ever.

First reading                                                                                            Acts 8:5-8,14-17

They laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit

Philip went to a Samaritan town and proclaimed the Christ to them. The people united in welcoming the message Philip preached, either because they had heard of the miracles he worked or because they saw them for themselves. There were, for example, unclean spirits that came shrieking out of many who were possessed, and several paralytics and cripples were cured. As a result there was great rejoicing in that town.

When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them, and they went down there, and prayed for the Samaritans to receive the Holy Spirit, for as yet he had not come down on any of them: they had only been baptised in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

Responsorial Psalm                                                                                   Psalm 65(66):1-7,16,20

Cry out with joy to God, all the earth.

Cry out with joy to God all the earth,

O sing to the glory of his name.

O render him glorious praise.

Say to God: ‘How tremendous your deeds! R/.

‘Before you all the earth shall bow;

shall sing to you, sing to your name!’

Come and see the works of God,

tremendous his deeds among men.R/.

He turned the sea into dry land,

they passed through the river dry-shod.

Let our joy then be in him;

he rules for ever by his might.R/.

Come and hear, all who fear God.

I will tell what he did for my soul:

Blessed be God who did not reject my prayer

nor withhold his love from me. R/.

Second reading                                                                                        1 Peter 3:15-18

In the body he was put to death, in the spirit he was raised to life

Reverence the Lord Christ in your hearts, and always have your answer ready for people who ask you the reason for the hope that you all have. But give it with courtesy and respect and with a clear conscience, so that those who slander you when you are living a good life in Christ may be proved wrong in the accusations that they bring. And if it is the will of God that you should suffer, it is better to suffer for doing right than for doing wrong.

Why, Christ himself, innocent though he was, had died once for sins, died for the guilty, to lead us to God. In the body he was put to death, in the spirit he was raised to life.

Gospel Acclamation                                                                                  Jn14:23

Alleluia, alleluia!

Jesus said: ‘If anyone loves me he will keep my word,

and my Father will love him,

and we shall come to him.’

Alleluia!

Gospel                                                                                                   John 14:15-21

I shall ask the Father and he will give you another Advocate

Jesus said to his disciples:

‘If you love me you will keep my commandments.

I shall ask the Father,

and he will give you another Advocate

to be with you for ever,

that Spirit of truth

whom the world can never receive

since it neither sees nor knows him;

but you know him,

because he is with you, he is in you.

I will not leave you orphans;

I will come back to you.

In a short time the world will no longer see me;

but you will see me,

because I live and you will live.

On that day you will understand that I am in my Father

and you in me and I in you.

Anybody who receives my commandments and keeps them

will be one who loves me;

and anybody who loves me will be loved by my Father,

and I shall love him and show myself to him.’

Prayer over the Offerings

May our prayers rise up to you, O Lord,

together with the sacrificial offerings,

so that, purified by your graciousness,

we may be conformed to the mysteries of your mighty love.

Through Christ our Lord.

Communion Antiphon                                                                              Jn 14: 15-16

If you love me, keep my commandments, says the Lord,

and I will ask the Father and he will send you another Paraclete,

to abide with you for ever, alleluia.

Prayer for Spiritual Communion

My Jesus, I believe that you are present in the most Blessed Sacrament. I love You above all things and I desire to receive You into my soul. Since I cannot now receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already there,  and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You. Amen.

Prayer after Communion

Almighty ever-living God,

who restore us to eternal life in the Resurrection of Christ,

increase in us, we pray, the fruits of this paschal Sacrament

and pour into our hearts the strength of this saving food.

Through Christ our Lord.

INTENTIONS: Please keep your mass intentions coming!  Mass is still being offered daily and being offered for their intentions as in the above calendar, please join in with the streamed Masses.  Intentions can be emailed to office@cpcb.org.uk.

WEEKLY OFFERINGS: are still welcomed! The best way is to contribute by asking your bank to set up a standing order.   If you cannot or do not wish to donate to parish funds via Standing Order please feel free to drop an envelope into the letterboxes outside parish office and the sacristy door of St Thomas More.

Bank Details for Standing order to HSBC below:

RCD A&B Cranleigh and Bramley Parish (written exactly like that)

Offertory account number is 11126466, sort code 40-05-20.

Coronavirus Appeal:
A message from CAFOD’s Director

Christine Allen has recorded a special appeal for help continue CAFOD’s work during this coronavirus epidemic.

The link is here:  https://youtu.be/YX_xRH11glM

As millions in developing countries face devastation because of coronavirus, CAFOD’s Director Christine Allen shares an urgent message.

Donate to the Coronavirus Appeal

In the current circumstances we are all responding to the needs of our families, friends and neighbours. I want to ask you to help our neighbours in some of the poorest countries of the world.

Their situation is very tough – catastrophic for those in urban areas or refugee camps where chronic overcrowding allows the virus to spread quickly. There is a lack of washing facilities and inadequate healthcare. Social distancing means hunger. There is no safety net when people lose their jobs and income.

Coronavirus is exposing the shocking inequality that has long existed in our world. It will have a lasting and disastrous impact on the economies and livelihoods of those who already live on the edge.

CAFOD is responding quickly. Guided by our local experts, we are helping to limit the spread of the virus through prevention messages, health advice, and providing water, soap and toilets.

Yet in the face of this pandemic we need a concerted effort. Thank you if you have given to our recent Lent appeal – but we need to scale up our support to make a significant impact.

“Coronavirus is exposing the shocking inequality that has long existed in our world. It will have a lasting and disastrous impact on the economies and livelihoods of those who already live on the edge.”

Christine Allen, CAFOD Director

All around the world CAFOD’s partners, local experts and Caritas agencies are responding and need your help.

Please help CAFOD to support them, now and over the months and years to come.

Please give to this special CAFOD Coronavirus Appeal. Please tell your friends, family, school and community about the importance of responding to those in desperate need around the world. Remember them in your prayers.

Your support does make a massive difference, so please give. Thank you.

Christine Allen
Director, CAFOD

300 Club Winners

April 2020

1^st         Christopher Weeks

2^nd        Naimh Harmsworth

3^rd         Mrs M Fox

May 2020

1^st         Elizabeth Badman

2^nd        Eileen Koblintz

3^rd         Brenda Culliford

Gift Aid Donation Statements for Tax Year 2019-2020

During this week parishioners who are in the Gift Aid scheme in the parish should have received an email with their Gift Aid Donation Statement attached. Due to the current situation I have emailed your statement, as long as I have an email address for you, even if you have previously received a paper copy.

Please let me know if any of the following apply:

1. You have not received your statement by email.  Because I have to send the statements through the Diocesan online GiftWise system, I am unable to see if an email gets rejected (probably due to an incorrect email address).  If so, please let me know your correct email address.
2. You have not received your statement by email.  I may not have an email address for you.  I do have one for the vast majority but there are a few gaps.  If you would be happy to receive your statement by email in future, please let me know your email address.
3. You have received your statement by email, but in future would prefer a paper copy, please let me know.  Although emailed statements are far easier from my point of view, you may have a good reason to revert to a paper copy.
4. If I don’t have an email address for you, you should have received a paper copy, either hand-delivered for local ones in Cranleigh or by second-class post.  Again, please let me know if you don’t receive your statement.

Contact details – trish@charters.eu.com or 01483 271314 or 07835452898.

CORONAVIRUS – HELP IF YOU NEED TO SELF-ISOLATE
The spread of Coronavirus (Covid -19) will present difficulties for many in Parish.  We are working with people and organisations to provide help and information to support our community.

If you would like a phone conversation with someone, we can buddy you with a like-minded person – please telephone or email the Parish office and we will do our best to support you.

If you need help – If you are self-isolating  and need assistance, please phone the Parish Office on 01483 272075 and we will do our best to connect you to someone who can help. We can’t provide medical advice.

Volunteers – If you are able to spare time to help those self-isolating then please send an email with your details to office@cpcb.org.uk  In doing so you consent to us holding your details and passing them to a parishioner in need of help.

Updates – We will be posting updates on the Cranleigh & Bramley Parish website www.cpcb.org.uk  Remember Coronavirus is highly contagious.  Please take every precaution to ensure you are only spreading kindness! Avoid physical contact (2m distance).  Wash your hands regularly and leave any items on the doorstep.