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St. Mary’s,
 Blackheath
Newsletter: 25th June 2017
Mass times: Saturday: 6.30pm (first Mass of Sunday)
Sunday: 9.30 and 11am and 7.30pm
Monday, Wednesday, Friday: 10am
Tuesday, Thursday: 7.30am
Eucharistic Service: Tuesday 10am
There is a Mass at the Convent on Friday evenings at 6.30pm.
Confessions: Saturday 12 to 1pm
This is the weekend of the Confirmations – Bishop Lynch is coming to administer the Sacrament of Confirmation to 45 young people and 4 adults. Prayers and congratulations for them all. After the Mass we hope to have a celebration in the garden.
Back to the Sundays of Ordinary Time – this week is the Twelfth Sunday in the Church’s year. The green vestments have appeared once again and will be used until Advent. The Scripture readings are from the first cycle on Sundays and this year the gospel readings are taken from Matthew.
Thursday of this week is the feast of the Apostles Peter and Paul and is a holy day of obligations when you are asked to come to Mass. Masses in the Church are at 7.30 and 10am and at 6.30pm.
There is a new Rector at the College in Spain. Monsignor Pardo, whom some of you will have met, is returning to his home Diocese of Gibraltar as Vicar General and the present Vice-Rector, Paul Farrer has been nominated as Rector. His nomination is made by the Bishops’ Conference in Rome, but as this is a Royal College, the appointment has to be confirmed by the King of Spain and it is only then that his formal term of office can begin. This is an historic custom, dating back to the foundation of the College. We take to ensure that it is preserved as we are one of the oldest continuous links between England and Spain. A further task now will be to appoint a new Vice-Rector.
On warm days, the garden is very popular and I am pleased to welcome to children. The inflatable dolphin for the pool has met its doom and I will try and find a new one when I order some more chemicals for the pool. One of the swings on the tree has worn out and needs some new rope. I would welcome some help in attending to this to make sure that it is safe.
Already questions about First Communions for next year. The inscription forms will be available next month and the classes will start at the end of September.
We are planning to open the Church to visitors on Saturday 16th September from 10am to 5pm and on Sunday 17th September from 2pm to 5pm. We are looking for about 10 volunteers who could give 1 or 2 hours to be a welcoming presence in the Church. For more information about volunteering, please contact Sister Marie-Christine at the Convent (marie-christine.berg@orange.fr) of 020 8852 1662 or Mgr Rothon before 30th June. We intend to display some of the treasures of the Church as well as items relating to the history of the Parish so it is important to have guides available.
On the railway, work seems to be concentrating at present on the connection to Blackfriars for the Thameslink services. There will be two lines on the original bridge across Borough High Street to connect with two Thameslink platforms (4 and 5) at London Bridge Station and two lines for Charing Cross trains using the new bridge across Borough High Street with the lines splitting into four tracks to serve two up and two down platforms for the Charing Cross trains (6,7,8 and 9). On the far side of the station, platforms 1,2 and 3 will be used by the Cannon Street services.
An unusual recipe for a sauce to serve with cold meat: peel and grate a Granny Smith apple. Add ½ jar of horseradish, 3 tablespoons of sour cream, ¼ tablespoon of sea salt, ¼ teaspoon of lemon juice. A pinch of cayenne, and if you are really brave, a drop of brandy.
A prayer after Holy Communion: Everlasting Father, we thank you for feeding us with heavenly gifts: by this sacrament strengthen us in faith, build us up in hope and make us grow in love: through Christ Our Lord. Amen.ÂÂ
The boy is now back in England and is enjoying the final weeks of the summer term. I expect that much of the summer will be spent with his grandparents, polishing cars, playing in the garden, and enjoying his food. I must send him a reading list of the summer. Maybe he is still a bit too young for Kafka but not long now before he starts on Hemingway.ÂÂ
Best wishes to you all,
Monsignor Nicholas Rothon.    ÂÂ