Banstead Catholics Come Home, 'Come and See' - A little reminder . . .

I hope you all have a big red circle on your calendar around Sunday 24th October, the beginning of our 'Come and See' initiative.

Please do invite someone you know along to our 'Come and See' evenings; to hear speakers talking about their faith and to have a chat with other parishioners in a very informal setting.

I expect many of us know someone who has become distanced from the practice of their faith; a Catholic friend maybe, a Catholic neighbour or even a member of our own family. This is an opportunity to encourage them to 'Come and See'; to reacquaint themselves with their faith in a social setting in the company of friends.

We have been very fortunate in that Fr Andrew Pinsent has kindly agreed to come and talk to us on Sunday 24th October. Fr Pinsent is co-author with Fr Marcus Holden of Evangelium, a multimedia course on the Catholic Faith. He will talk to us about 'What makes us happy?'

On Sunday 7th November we are delighted to welcome Robin Farrow, a former Anglican Vicar recently received into Full Communion with the Catholic Church, who will talk to us about his own faith journey.

We will also be meeting on Sunday 21st November.

Just in case you'd like to refresh your memory, you'll find a few reasons for Coming Back to the Church here and here.

I look forward to welcoming you on . . .

Sunday 24th October

Sunday 7th November

Sunday 21st November

7pm - 8pm: St Ann's Parish Hall, Banstead

Reasons for coming back to the Church - Part Two

Continued from yesterday; more reasons for coming back to the Church . . .

Reason Five
We want our children to have a solid faith. Sometimes parents return to the Church because they realise that bringing up their children in a culture which promotes 'doing your own thing' often leads to ruin and disaster. We need structures of belief and the sound moral grounding that goes beyond our logic and reasoning.

Reason Six
We return because we want to be healed. Some of us struggle as we carry around deep spiritual wounds. We have difficulty in having a relationship with God because 'bad' things happen; illness, a broken marriage, a bereavement and so. The Catholic Church, while it cannot change these events, can help in the process of spiritual healing.

Reason Seven
We return to the Church because we need to forgive. We often hold a resentment towards an individual how has hurt us; maybe it was a family member, someone who works in the Church or even a priest. The Catholic Church offers us an opportunity to ask God's help in forgiving others, even if the other person doesn't ask for forgiveness or perhaps does not deserve it. When we forgive our hearts are ever more open to God.

Reason Eight
We want meaning in our lives. In our daily busy lives we begin to ask the question, ' Where is my life going?' 'What is my destiny?' We live in a confused world; the Catholic Church offers us a beacon of light and hope and leads us to eternal life if we persevere.

Each of us will have our own reasons for being part of that great body of believers which is the Catholic Church.

The parish of St Ann's invites you to 'Come Home' . . . to 'Come and See'.

Sunday 24th October 2010

7pm - 8pm, St Ann's Church Hall

Reasons for coming back to the Church . . .

I wish to say at the beginning that using the crisis in the Church as an excuse for not practising one's faith is no excuse.

We will always be a Church of saints and sinners; Jesus Christ, on whom the Church is built is Holy and it is to Him we speak, 'Cor ad Loquitor', heart to heart.

Christ is at the heart of the reasons to come home, to 'Come and See'.

Here are a number of reasons that have influenced the decisions of a few people I know . . .

Reason One
Many people 'come home' to the Catholic Church because they have a yearning to receive Holy Communion. This yearning for Holy Communion triggers a recognition of the purpose of Jesus Christ in the other sacraments and this draws them ever more deeply into the practice of the faith. Therefore the Blessed Sacrament is without a doubt the principal reason that people 'come home' to the Catholic Church.

Reason Two
We wish to be part of a believing community. A Catholic community is a group of people who come together in the presence of Jesus Christ, to praise God our Father. We, Catholics, come together at Mass, to celebrate our joys, to grieve, to help each other, to pray and provide support and to gain strength for daily life. As a Catholic parish we offer all this and much more.

Reason Three
We have a desire to help others; Jesus commands us to love God and our neighbour; in helping others we become instruments of God's love.

Reason Four
The Catholic Church is One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic.

'You are Peter and on this Rock I will build my Church'. The Church has been guided by the Holy Spirit and protected from error on issues of faith and morals for over 2,000 years.

To be continued . . .

The parish of St Ann's invites you to 'Come Home' . . . to 'Come and See'.

Sunday 24th October 2010

7pm - 8pm, St Ann's Church Hall

An invitation . . .

'He said to them, Come and See.

They went with Him then and saw where He was living;

and they were with him all that day . . ' (John 1:39)

Fr Míċeál and Deacon Kevin invite Banstead Catholics to come home; to 'Come and See'.

No matter how long you have been away from the Catholic Church you can always 'Come Home'. You can start going to Mass again and become part of our parish community who are ready to welcome you with open arms. God is inviting you to 'Come and See', to begin again, to grow in your faith now more than ever before.

You may already be feeling a strong inner desire to look once again into the Church - that yearning, that desire is God Himself inviting you back. God NEVER forces, He ONLY invites. God will leave the decision to return to the Catholic Church to you.

There are many reasons for coming back to the Catholic Church. Christ is at the heart and centre of the many reasons to come home, to 'Come and See'. Every person's experience in returning will be unique, depending on what speaks to his or her heart . . . 'Cor ad Cor Loquitor'.