OUR LADY QUEEN OF PEACE

Below is a list of Advent Reconciliation services happening across our Deanery. Father Tony will be joining Fr Graham on Thursday evening (18th December) at St Peters to hear confessions.

Advent is a solemn, penitential season. Traditionally there are no flowers in the church during this time, however, one of the flower arrangers explains what you will see at CTK in Steyning during Advent:  1st Sunday: the advent wreath is blessed and the first candle is lit  2nd Sunday: a simple arrangement of green foliage on the altar and the porch  3rd ‘Gaudete’ Sunday: a joyful day, variegated foliage is added to bring in some colour. Arrangements are added to the window sills.  4th Sunday: coloured berries are added as the preparation nears completion.  Finally on Christmas Day, the birth of Jesus, and the flowers are added to complete the arrangements and bring joy to all.  You can still donate to the Christmas Flowers fund at masses this weekend. Thank you for your support.

It is not every week that we celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation. You might be thinking that Gaudete Sunday is an unusual time to do this. But, every sacrament is an encounter and a meeting with Christ whom we wait to meet when He returns in glory. Every sacrament is joyful and we should be looking forward to seeing Him as He really is. In the sacraments "God comes to save us", as He did when He was born for us, as Isaiah reminds us. So the sacraments are about salvation. We can prepare for Christmas as we prepare for meeting Jesus by "establish (ing) our hearts for the coming of the Lord is at hand".  What does this mean if not looking at our lives, examining our consciences, making a good confession and receiving absolution from a priest. This is not dreadful but another opportunity for God to save us. Our hearts and souls are purified that we may see the things of the Spirit and the Kingdom of God more clearly. Jesus tells His questioners to tell John the Baptist what they "hear and see". Jesus then tells them the things to look for, the signs of the Kingdom of God inaugurated by the very presence of Jesus. Look for these things in your own life and then you will come face to face with Jesus with whom we come face to face in the sacraments. What do you see? With my prayer for you and your intentions in Advent. God bless you. Fr Graham

If any children of the parish would like to take part in the mimed telling of the Gospel on Christmas Eve, please speak to Mrs Carter on Sunday, or contact the office: adurvalley@abdiocese.org.uk , so we can get an idea of numbers. Thank you. There will be mince pies and mulled wine served in the Parish Room after the mass. All are welcome.

Times of the Christmas masses at OLQP:

Bishop Richard issued a new Pastoral Plan for the Diocese The Word Who is Life: The Call to Mission in January 2024. The Plan marks an important new stage in the development of diocesan parish structures, with the 11 former deaneries of the Diocese becoming 11 new parishes. Two new parishes have been established this year; Brighton & Hove (14 September) and Guildford (29 November). Weybridge will be inaugurated on 7 December. To find out more about the Pastoral Plan, visit the diocesan website: www.abdiocese.org.uk/diocese/pastoral-plan .

Dear brothers and sisters, The Prophet Isaiah, writing some 800 years before the birth of Jesus, looks forward to a time when there will be peace and justice. His prophecy, which we hear in today’s first reading, speaks of openness to those gifts that we now recognise as the gifts of the Spirit, of mercy and justice for those who are oppressed, of total harmony for all of creation. In the Gospel this weekend, we find the last of all the prophets – John the Baptist – speaking out against the oppressors of his day and warning them of the coming of the Messiah, the Christ, whose message St Paul preaches to the Romans in a way that reflects the prophecy of Isaiah – for Christ has come that all may live in harmony. At a time in our own history when we see so clearly that this message of peace and justice, of harmony between peoples and across the whole of creation – itself, God’s gift to us – is in peril, let us pray fervently for a renewed openness to the gift of peace. Let us pray for the recognition of the dignity of every person, especially on the part of all those in positions of power. May the world hear the warnings of John the Baptist and be open to the gifts of the Spirit and the peace that is Jesus’ gift to us. With every blessing,  + Richard

Thank you for the generous support and welcome shown to Fr Hugh last weekend. If you missed the chance to donate, you can visit their website: www.missionariesofafrica.org.uk/donations , or you can make a transfer directly to their bank account: Account name: Society of Missionaries of Africa Account number: 82296731, Sort code: 60-21-07 Reference: OLQP Adur Valley, BN43 5WG

I do not think that you would like Saint John the Baptist to be your parish priest. I may be wrong, but I think he might have upset many of you with his direct speech. But what he said would be true. Many came to him in the wilderness out of curiosity, some to ridicule him and some would have been religious groupies not wanting to miss out. Some came in sincerity, wanting to change their lives and repent. It was of course, to prepare the way for Jesus, who was to baptise with the Holy Spirit and fire - look at Pentecost. But many would have seen this event as a one-off and an end in itself. If it didn't work, then find something or someone else to fix my life. Religion is not an end in itself but worship of God unites us with God who is the beginning and the end of all that is. The sincere would have been small in number. They were prepared to meet Jesus and out of this small number, like a shoot from a stump, grows the beginning of the Church. The Church is never what you think her to be, and she may have to say things that we find uncomfortable at times or consoling at others. But the Church is called to be and is a "signal for the peoples". A sign and taste of what is real, eternal and true and still preparing the way for the Lord in His second coming in glory. With my daily prayer for a really blessed Advent. God bless you.  Fr Graham