Newsletter- 3rd Week of Lent
Dear Parishioners
It is good to be back in the parish again after my few days on retreat at Ampleforth Abbey with my brother clergy last week. I have returned to you greatly refreshed spiritually and emotionally. Those few days away gave me a chance to pause and to reflect. As someone who was received into the Church by the Benedictines at Downside Abbey when I was a young man. I value greatly the Benedictine Spirituality and approach to life, theirs is a very balanced approach, never too ascetic but one that balances a love of God with love of neighbour and a gentleness towards self-whilst encouraging one to look outwards to the world and the needs of others. At the heart of the Benedictine charism lies that wonderful sense of generosity and hospitality!
The Lenten Season is a time of conversion of heart, a time to reorientate ourselves towards God and permanently towards the good to be found within each one of us. The parable of the barren fig tree which Jesus recounts in the Gospel for this Sunday 3rd Sunday of Lent, adds a dose of realism to our need for conversion. In it, Jesus recognises the two extremes of the human approach to change. On the one hand, there is the overly casual approach, where anything that we can do today can be put off until tomorrow. On the other hand, there is the overly optimistic, workaholic approach (something I sadly suffer from at times myself!) which tries to do everything all in one go. The parable offers us a more manageable middle ground to these two extremes.
Conversion of heart takes time and a lot of grace. It requires us not only to make up our minds that we want to change, but also that we must be willing to work patiently with God’s help to allow change to happen in our hearts and in our lives. We need to set ourselves on the right road, but we must be patient and merciful with ourselves and with one another, when we have a few “blips” or “false starts” along the way, it always takes a while to get things right! When it comes to living with God, we work to God’s timetable, and not our own! The most important thing though is to take that first step, which is a yes to Christ, a yes to His Kingdom, and a yes to living and loving as He wants us to. But that first step, that yes, must be taken every day – not just each day of our Lenten journey but every day of our lives. Then we will become fruitful people that are fit for God’s Kingdom.
Stations of the Cross – Most Fridays at 7 pm during Lent. N.B. (6 pm Friday 28th March (First Holy Communion candidates and their catechists lead the devotion tonight) and 6 pm on Wednesday in Holy Week (16th April) and 6 pm on Good Friday (18th April).
Extra times of Confession on a Friday (Directly after Stations of the Cross) N.B. (No confessions 28th March nor 18th April).
Important Lent Diary Date: The Bishop’s Jubilee Year Deanery Station Mass, The Immaculate Conception and St Norbert’s church, Spalding, Tuesday 1st April, at 7 p.m.
The Immaculate Conception and St Norbert’s church, Spalding was designated as our Deanery Jubilee church and our deanery will be hosting the Bishop there, when he comes to celebrate a special Lent Station Mass for us all.
I do hope as many parishioners as possible will be able to come to this special evening with the Bishop in Spalding on Tuesday 1st April.There will be No Mass in St Marys Grantham that day.
Programme for the Evening
Adoration – from 6 pm – 6.45 pm
Confessions – from 6 pm – 6.45 p.m.
Station Mass – 7 p.m. – Principal Celebrant and Preacher – Bishop Patrick, concelebrants (priests of the deanery), deacons of the deanery (assisting at the altar).
Refreshments – There will be a chance to meet with Bishop Patrick informally and members of the deanery clergy and other parishioners of the deanery over fellowship and light refreshments in the parish hall, immediately after Mass.
Parishioners attending the evening in Spalding can receive The Jubilee Year Indulgence *(Please see information regarding criteria in this week’s Bulletin).
CAFOD Lent Appeal: You can still collect a CAFOD envelope from church during Lent to make a Lent offering to the work of CAFOD. Please return your envelopes in the weekly collection plate. All donations received will be forwarded to CAFOD after Easter.
Prayers for Pope Francis: Let us continue to keep our Holy Father in prayer each day this week that he may be given strength and courage during his time of sickness.
With prayer and best wishes as we continue our Lenten journey together,
Your parish priest and friend,
Fr Jonathan
2025 23rd March – Newsletter – Download