Congratulations to all our newly-Confirmed young people!

Yesterday evening represented a milestone in the lives of some of our young parishioners.

Our Confirmation candidates, who have been preparing for this day since October, were all kitted out in their 'Sunday best' as they made their way to St Joseph's Church, Epsom accompanied by their families and friends.

The youngsters were confirmed by Bishop Kieran together with other young people from our Deanery.   As you can tell by the photo, they all look very happy to have made this commitment, taking on for themselves the promises that were made on their behalf by their Godparents when they were baptised.

We look forward to their playing a more active part in parish life. 

Please keep all our young people and their families in your prayers as they continue their journey of faith.

Papal Address to our Bishops in Rome . . .

Some time ago I mentioned that I had been asked to complete a questionnaire from Bishop Kieran to enable him to gather information about parishes in the diocese for his ad Limina visit to Rome. This visit has recently taken place. Fr Seán Finnegan has posted the text of the Holy Father's address to our bishops on his blog Valle Adurni. Rather than duplicate it, I recommend you follow the link here to read it for yourself.

What is the purpose of the ad Limina?

Listed below is an explanation taken from the web site of the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales:

There are three important parts to the ad Limina:

1. The pilgrimage to, and veneration of, the tombs of the Apostles Peter and Paul.

2. A personal meeting with the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI.

3. Meeting and conversations with the various departments of the Roman Curia (the administrative offices of the Holy See)

Well done St Ann's! . . .

Along with other priests in our diocese, in my inbox yesterday was an email requesting information about our parish to help our Bishop in his preparation for the Ad Limina visit to Rome in January.

In taking a few moments to look at the questions and give answers, I couldn't help but notice from what I had written what a lively, vibrant, engaged and engaging parish we have here at St Ann's.

We have excellent, committed catechetical teams, youth leaders, prayer groups; a fantastic choir and musicians and a very dedicated organist and musical director etc. etc. . . . the list goes on. We have a prayerful community with regular Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, Rosary and Benediction, and Stations of the Cross; good numbers at weekday Masses, participation in the Prayer of the Church on a regular basis and there are many more signs of a healthy parish.

I just thought I'd write a few lines to congratulate everyone and say, 'Keep up the good work. We're doing all right here in Banstead - now let's double our efforts!'

Update: If you 'double click' on the collage of photos at the top of the page you'll be able to see a larger version.

Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes . . .

Today is the beginning of our Diocesan Pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes.

Let us pray for Bishop Kieran and all those joining the pilgrimage, about 800 in total; sick and able-bodied pilgrims, doctors, nurses and helpers, including several pilgrims from our own parish.

We ask the intercession of Our Lady of Lourdes:

O Holy Virgin, in the midst of your days of glory,

do not forget the sorrows of this earth.

Cast a merciful glance upon those who are suffering,

struggling against difficulties,

with their lips constantly pressed against life's bitter cup.

Have pity on our rebellious hearts.

Have pity on our weak faith.

Have pity on those we love.

Have pity on those who weep,

on those who pray, on those who fear.

Grant hope and peace to all.

Amen.

Ecce Sacerdos Magnus . . .

Many congratulations to Bishop Kieran on the occasion of his Episcopal Election.

As we prayed in today's preface,

' Christ give the dignity of a royal priesthood

to the people he has made his own.

From these, with a brother's love,

he chooses men to share his sacred ministry

by the laying on of hands.'

We wish him abundant blessing and many graces.

Veni Sancte Spiritus . . .

Today we enjoyed a wonderful celebration at St Joseph's Church, Epsom when Bishop Kieran conferred the sacrament of Confirmation on 114 young people from our Deanery including 22 from our own parish.

Like First Holy Communion which we will be celebrating at St Ann's in the next few weeks, Confirmation is a marvellous celebration, not just for the young people involved but also for their families and catechists who have guided and supported them in their journey of faith bringing them to this happy day; and for the whole parish community.

We look forward to the newly-Confirmed taking a full and active part in the life of the Church and of our parish.

More photos of the Going Forth celebrations

Thanks to Rosemary for forwarding these lovely photos of the cake with some of the children and Bishop Kieran.

Going Forth Mass with Bishop Kieran

Yesterday our usual 10.00am Mass was also the 'Going Forth' Mass for our First Holy Communion children - 39 in all. We were very lucky in that Bishop Kieran was able to be with us for the occasion to preside at Mass.

One lucky child receives a blessing from Bishop Kieran after Mass.

It was difficult to get a good photo in church with all the excitement afterwards. Here is one effort, with apologies to those children who have not quite managed to squeeze into the shot. If anyone has any good pictures and they would like to email them to me at the parish address, then I'll be happy to include them on the blog in the next few days.

Here is a shot from the balcony which gives you an idea of the difficulty in obtaining a clear photo!

After Mass we all went into the hall to enjoy the beautiful cake made by Sue Towersey. These young men were obviously having a good time.

And here is the cake in question. Luckily I took a photograph before it was taken over to the hall, otherwise it would just have been a photograph of a plate full of crumbs!

It was good to see all generations of our parish family enjoying the occasion.