Weekend Mass Schedule
Saturday Vigil Mass 18.00, Sunday 09.00 & 11.00
Advent & Christmas Services/Events at Sacred Heart, Cobham 2024 - All welcome!
Sunday 1st December Advent Evening Prayer & Benediction 15.30 (every Sunday during Advent ending Sunday 22nd December)
Saturday 7th December Parish Christmas Bazaar (10.00 -13.00 in the Parish Centre)
Sunday 22nd December Parish Carol Service 18.00 (followed by Mince Pies & Mulled wine in the Parish Centre)
Christmas Eve - Tuesday 24th December
Children's Crib Service 16.30 (for children aged 0-7 please note this is not a Mass)
First Mass of Christmas 18.00
Carols before Midnight Mass 23.30 (Mass at Midnight)
Christmas Day - Wednesday 25th December
Mass at 09.00 & 11.00
A Parish of the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton
SACRED HEART CATHOLIC CHURCH
In the city of Rome there was a virgin named Cecilia, who came from an extremely rich family and was given in marriage to a youth named Valerian. She wore sackcloth next to her skin, fasted, and invoked the saints and angels, beseeching them to guard her virginity During her wedding ceremony she was said to have sung in her heart to God and before the consummation of her nuptials, she told her husband she had taken a vow of virginity and had an angel protecting her. Valerian asked to see the angel as proof, and Cecilia told him he would have eyes to see once he travelled to the third milestone on the Via Appia and was baptised by the Pope. Following his baptism, Valerian returned to his wife and found an angel at her side. The angel then crowned Cecilia with a chaplet of rose and lily and when Valerian’s brother heard of the angel and his brother’s baptism, he also was baptised and they then dedicated their lives to burying the saints who were murdered each day by the Prefect of the city. Both brothers were arrested and brought before the Prefect and executed after they refused to offer sacrifice to the gods. As her husband and brother-in -law buried the dead, Cecilia spent her time preaching and in her lifetime was able to convert over four hundred people, most of whom were baptised by the Pope. Cecilia was later arrested and condemned to be suffocated in the baths. She was shut in for one night and one day, as fires were heaped up and stoked to a terrifying heat - but Cecilia did not even sweat. When the Prefect heard this, he sent an executioner to cut off her head in the baths.
Just before we get to Advent, we always hear “apocalyptic” readings about the end of the world. The first reading today from the book of Daniel and the Gospel fit into this category, as does the Book of Revelation. Apocalyptic writing is a particular type of literature that was popular in Jewish and Christian circles from about 200 B.C. to 200 A.D. Such literature originated in times of persecution and crisis when Jews or Christians were severely threatened. It offered readers the assurance that God would ultimately overcome Satan despite the horrors of the present time. (The Left Behind series of books and movies is a modern-day equivalent to such ancient writings.) Apocalyptic literature is known for its extravagant symbolism (“the stars will be falling from the sky”), supernatural visions (“They will see the ‘Son of Man coming in the clouds’”), natural disasters (earth quakes, famine, fire) and symbolic numbers (seven, 12, 666), none of which are meant to be taken literally. Scholars agree that the point of these types of readings was to encourage followers to stand firm in their faith despite threats to their lives, and to look forward to Christ’s return in glory. It’s encouragement we can all use with the seemingly unending onslaught of “little apocalypses” in the news this year. Questions of the week • Jesus’ language in the Gospel reading today is very different from most of his other teachings and sayings. What your main takeaway? • Given the above explanation of apocalyptic writing, do you find it comforting and strengthening or off-putting? Why?
The date for this year’s Parish Christmas Bazaar is Saturday December 7th,
The musings of one of God’s smallest creatures on events in and around the Parish over the past seven days . . . . A reasonably hectic week once more around The Presbytery as things begin to ‘heat up’ for our annual Parish Christmas Bazaar. If you’ve not yet managed to collect your FOUR books of Grand Draw Tickets to sell to family, friends, and work colleagues please make a point of collecting them as you leave Mass this weekend (don’t forget, if you fill in the ticket stubs correctly and you sell the first ticket drawn out you too win a prize! Last Sunday afternoon at 15.30 we celebrated the annual ‘Blessing of the Graves’ at Cobham cemetery. This took the form of a short outdoor service near the entrance to the cemetery chapel followed by parishioners going and standing at the graves of their loved ones for Fr D to locate them; then he would bless each grave with holy water whilst saying a prayer over the grave. Afterwards there was tea and scones on offer at the Parish Centre. On Monday Cobham was ‘playing host’ to Fr D’s Ministry to Priests Support Group - slightly lower numbers than usual as one member has just had a hip replacement operation and was convalescing in Rustington. After Morning Prayer, Mass, and Exposition on Tuesday Fr D was heading off to St Michael’s (Ashtead) for the November Deanery clergy meeting. Fr D had hoped more information would become apparent concerning the bishop’s Pastoral Plan for our local area (Epsom) but this was not the case. In the evening Fr D spent time with the parents of this year’s First Reconciliation candidates - preparing them for what they were going to be doing with their children on Saturday morning. One remaining session to go now before the ‘big day’ when they meet the Lord in the sacrament of Reconciliation - remember to keep both the candidates and their families in your prayers as this approaches. Following Morning Prayer and Mass on Wednesday Fr D was able to spend a little time thinking ahead to the advent season (Evening Prayer & Benediction; Reconciliation Services; Advent Homilies; Parish Advent Carol Service). In the evening he met up with the Parish Finance Committee to look at the third quarter’s finances and whether or not we are on track with our projected budget at present. Thursday, after Morning Prayer and Mass, Fr D was down at the diocesan office in Crawley to write up the Sentences for three marriage cases that he judged last Friday . . . . .
Welcome to the Parish of the Sacred Heart
The Parish of the Sacred Heart is an active Roman Catholic community within the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton for those living in the environs of Cobham, Stoke D’Abernon and Oxshott. Comprised of people from all walks of life, from different age groups and diverse cultures the Parish is an active community offering spiritual and pastoral support in the Catholic tradition. If you are thinking about coming to live in the area or are already in residence you are very welcome to join our community you can be assured of a welcome, being offered a wide range of spiritual and educational support. We also run a thriving Sunday school providing Religious Education for children from four to fourteen years of age and provides preparation for the Sacraments of First Reconciliation, First Eucharist and Confirmation.
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Quote of the week
"The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives
fully is
prepared to die at any time - Author unknown
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Our very latest news updates and information about Parish activities.
Now that we have completed all the updated mandatory ‘Barring & Vetting’ checks for our Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion we hope to recommence offering the chalice to parishioners at our weekend Masses from Saturday 4th January 2025. The Church teaches that under the species of bread alone a communicant receives the full grace of the Eucharist. The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us, “For pastoral reasons this matter of receiving communion has been legitimately established as the most common form in the Latin rite” (No. 1390). Yet the Catechism adds that “the sign of the Eucharistic meal appears more clearly” when Communion is given under both species.
The date for this year’s Parish Christmas Bazaar is Saturday December 7th,
The musings of one of God’s smallest creatures on events in and around the Parish over the past seven days . . . . A reasonably hectic week once more around The Presbytery as things begin to ‘heat up’ for our annual Parish Christmas Bazaar. If you’ve not yet managed to collect your FOUR books of Grand Draw Tickets to sell to family, friends, and work colleagues please make a point of collecting them as you leave Mass this weekend (don’t forget, if you fill in the ticket stubs correctly and you sell the first ticket drawn out you too win a prize! Last Sunday afternoon at 15.30 we celebrated the annual ‘Blessing of the Graves’ at Cobham cemetery. This took the form of a short outdoor service near the entrance to the cemetery chapel followed by parishioners going and standing at the graves of their loved ones for Fr D to locate them; then he would bless each grave with holy water whilst saying a prayer over the grave. Afterwards there was tea and scones on offer at the Parish Centre. On Monday Cobham was ‘playing host’ to Fr D’s Ministry to Priests Support Group - slightly lower numbers than usual as one member has just had a hip replacement operation and was convalescing in Rustington. After Morning Prayer, Mass, and Exposition on Tuesday Fr D was heading off to St Michael’s (Ashtead) for the November Deanery clergy meeting. Fr D had hoped more information would become apparent concerning the bishop’s Pastoral Plan for our local area (Epsom) but this was not the case. In the evening Fr D spent time with the parents of this year’s First Reconciliation candidates - preparing them for what they were going to be doing with their children on Saturday morning. One remaining session to go now before the ‘big day’ when they meet the Lord in the sacrament of Reconciliation - remember to keep both the candidates and their families in your prayers as this approaches. Following Morning Prayer and Mass on Wednesday Fr D was able to spend a little time thinking ahead to the advent season (Evening Prayer & Benediction; Reconciliation Services; Advent Homilies; Parish Advent Carol Service). In the evening he met up with the Parish Finance Committee to look at the third quarter’s finances and whether or not we are on track with our projected budget at present. Thursday, after Morning Prayer and Mass, Fr D was down at the diocesan office in Crawley to write up the Sentences for three marriage cases that he judged last Friday . . . . .
The musings of one of God’s smallest creatures on events in and around the Parish over the past seven days . . . . Once more, a fairly busy week around The Presbytery as Fr D tries to bring several projects to a head before the year end . . . . On Monday evening (coming back from his day off) Fr D was attending the opening of the new Notre Dame School ‘Innovation Centre,’ where he was asked to bless the building. Fr D was extremely impressed with the new facilities now available to the girls at the school. Tuesday morning, after Morning Prayer, Mass, and Exposition, Fr D rushed off to have his annual flu jab (he’d received his latest Covid jab the day before he went off on holiday and he’s due a pneumonia jab next Friday)! Returning home Fr D was chasing up the possibilities of having two electric vehicle points installed in the car park, offering users more facilities. He’s been trying to get things sorted in the same way as St Erconwald’s in Walton and has been trying to make contact with the company that did the job. In the evening, after the half-term break, Fr D met with the parents of this year’s First Reconciliation children to look at the next section of the preparation course. Fr D teaches the parents on a Tuesday evening to ready them for any questions that may arise from the children when they meet (along with the parents) with Fr D on Saturday morning. In this way the parents are able to ‘make good’ on the promise they made at their child’s baptism to be “the first and best of teachers to their children in the ways of faith.” After Morning Prayer and Mass on Wednesday Fr D began work on his parts of the Newsletter for the weekend. He also started chasing up the diocesan IT manager to complete the telephone project that has been ongoing. Some time ago Fr D discovered that the Parish was paying for two BT Business lines (house & office). Nowhere else had he been on business lines before and researching costs he was concerned. In discussion with the diocesan IT manager a plan was hatched to reduce the situation to one telephone line (not BT Business!) and join up the Presbytery and Office so that Sarah and Fr D could actually contact one another without having to phone. Part of the project was done just before we hit the holiday period in the summer (this involved rewiring and setting up wifi access points in each of the meeting rooms in the Parish Centre. Fr D was down at the diocesan offices in Crawley on both Thursday and Friday this week, judging three cases on Friday . . . . .
The musings of one of God’s smallest creatures on events in and around the Parish over the past seven days . . . . Since arriving back from his holiday at 22.10 last Saturday evening Fr D has been ‘playing catch up’ throughout the week . . . . . Monday Fr D spent most of the day unpacking and putting all the clothes he took out of the boxes on wheels through the white boxes in the utility room. Once they were ready most went back into the wheeled boxes and back on top of the wardrobe in the spare room and others into the cupboards and drawers in his bedroom. After celebrating Morning Prayer, Mass, and Exposition on Tuesday morning Fr D started to open all the post that had built up over three weeks (- a considerable amount); deciding what needed to be dealt with immediately, what could wait for consideration, and what could just be dumped because it was junk mail. In the middle of this he went off to Esher for his monthly lunch with Fr Ruslan from Walton-on-Thames (where he caught up on some unexpected clergy moves that were announced whilst he was on holiday). Coming home he continued to work through the amassed post until he made a sandwich before taking himself upstairs. On Wednesday, having celebrated Morning Prayer, Mass, and a decade of the Rosary after Mass, Fr D managed to get to the end of the post build up. He then went back over the letters that required some thought and dealt with them accordingly. He did not go down to the diocesan offices in Crawley because he had an electrical engineer coming from the supplier to reploace the Church/Parish Centre electricity meter. Although the old one had only been fitted the week after Fr D arrived in the Parish it turned out not to be a ‘smart’ meter and required readings to be manually sent it all the time. It has now been replaced by one that does all the recording itself. In the evening Fr D let the members of the Christmas choir into the church for one of their regular practices. Having celebrated Morning Prayer, Mass, and a final decade of the Rosary for the month of October, Fr D was working on his homily for the Holy Day of ‘All Saints’ and this week’s newsletter. On Friday Fr D received an email reminding him that next Sunday (10 th ) the 11.00 Mass goers will need to take account of the fact that access to the car park will face some restrictions because of the Remembrance Day Parade - this begins at 10.15 and usually disrupts arrivals and departures . . . . .
Parish Priest Notices
Important items highlighted by Fr. Daryl. These will contain news elements & important requests
The traditional November Dead List is now available in the narthex for entering the names of those who have died over the past year into our Parish Book of the Dead. Make sure to enter full names and dates of death. These should then be placed into a Mass Offering envelope (on inner left hand wall as you leave the church) entering ‘Holy Souls’ and your name on the envelope, placing the Dead List inside along with the Mass Offering (£10 for Holy Souls). These can then be posted through The Presbytery letterbox.
Next weekend we will be asking ALL parishioners to take four books of Christmas Grand Draw tickets to sell to family, friends, and work colleagues over the next few weeks. The Grand Draw is the major money spinner of the Bazaar and is a way of ALL taking part.
As a Parish community we need to try and ‘up the numbers’ of our very dedicated church cleaning team. At present, the team presently meets on a Tuesday morning (after Mass and Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament - 11.00) to tidy and clean our church building so that it is prepared ready for our weekend Masses. The work involves hoovering the sanctuary, side chapel, Reconciliation room, quiet room, and sacristy carpets; sweeping the main seating area floor and the narthex area; dusting the benches; and cleaning the church toilet. If you think that you could offer your assistance in this way please contact Sarah in the Parish Office with your details. Remember - many hands make light work!
ALL Catholics are urged to contact their MPs as soon as possible to stop the legalisation of Assisted Suicide now going through parliament. Our nation stands on the brink of a major change in how we treat human life, particularly the lives of the most vulnerable. If this radical proposal to introduce assisted suicide passes, thousands of vulnerable lives will be at risk. Over the coming years. Mounting evidence from the small number of places around the world that have legalised assisted suicide shows that these laws are incremental, that safeguards do not work, and that the changed law can have devastating consequences. It is therefore vital that this Assisted Suicide Bill is defeated on Friday 29th November. To ensure that the Catholic voice has as big an impact as possible PLEASE would all parishioners take one of the postcards this weekend to complete and send to our local MP in good time before the vote on 29th November. We only have days left to stop this terrible change to our laws!
In the city of Rome there was a virgin named Cecilia, who came from an extremely rich family and was given in marriage to a youth named Valerian. She wore sackcloth next to her skin, fasted, and invoked the saints and angels, beseeching them to guard her virginity During her wedding ceremony she was said to have sung in her heart to God and before the consummation of her nuptials, she told her husband she had taken a vow of virginity and had an angel protecting her. Valerian asked to see the angel as proof, and Cecilia told him he would have eyes to see once he travelled to the third milestone on the Via Appia and was baptised by the Pope. Following his baptism, Valerian returned to his wife and found an angel at her side. The angel then crowned Cecilia with a chaplet of rose and lily and when Valerian’s brother heard of the angel and his brother’s baptism, he also was baptised and they then dedicated their lives to burying the saints who were murdered each day by the Prefect of the city. Both brothers were arrested and brought before the Prefect and executed after they refused to offer sacrifice to the gods. As her husband and brother-in -law buried the dead, Cecilia spent her time preaching and in her lifetime was able to convert over four hundred people, most of whom were baptised by the Pope. Cecilia was later arrested and condemned to be suffocated in the baths. She was shut in for one night and one day, as fires were heaped up and stoked to a terrifying heat - but Cecilia did not even sweat. When the Prefect heard this, he sent an executioner to cut off her head in the baths.
Just before we get to Advent, we always hear “apocalyptic” readings about the end of the world. The first reading today from the book of Daniel and the Gospel fit into this category, as does the Book of Revelation. Apocalyptic writing is a particular type of literature that was popular in Jewish and Christian circles from about 200 B.C. to 200 A.D. Such literature originated in times of persecution and crisis when Jews or Christians were severely threatened. It offered readers the assurance that God would ultimately overcome Satan despite the horrors of the present time. (The Left Behind series of books and movies is a modern-day equivalent to such ancient writings.) Apocalyptic literature is known for its extravagant symbolism (“the stars will be falling from the sky”), supernatural visions (“They will see the ‘Son of Man coming in the clouds’”), natural disasters (earth quakes, famine, fire) and symbolic numbers (seven, 12, 666), none of which are meant to be taken literally. Scholars agree that the point of these types of readings was to encourage followers to stand firm in their faith despite threats to their lives, and to look forward to Christ’s return in glory. It’s encouragement we can all use with the seemingly unending onslaught of “little apocalypses” in the news this year. Questions of the week • Jesus’ language in the Gospel reading today is very different from most of his other teachings and sayings. What your main takeaway? • Given the above explanation of apocalyptic writing, do you find it comforting and strengthening or off-putting? Why?
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PRAY FOR OUR BISHOP RICHARD MOTH
As a Parish we encourage our community to pray for our shepherd, Bishop Richard as he leads our Diocese.
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CHURCHES TOGETHER, COBHAM - invites you to the Bible Society’s “Bible Course” this autumn, running from September 26/27 for 8 weeks. The course takes participants through the books of the Old and New Testaments, explaining how they fit together and a bit about their content. The course is designed around a series of videos and a participant’s book, and is free of charge. Day time meetings will take place at St Mary’s Hall, Stoke D’Abernon at 14.00 on Thursdays from September 26 th . Evening meetings will be held at the Cobham United Church at 20.00 from September 27th . To sign up to take part in the course email: paul.fisher@abdiocese.org.uk Indicating the names of the attendees, and whether you wish to attend the evening sessions or afternoon sessions.
Illuminate your life in Christ with ‘Lighthouse’ 12th October 14.00 at St Joseph’s Church, Epsom. Lighthouse is an afternoon of renewal for the Arundel and Brighton Diocese brought to you from the Charismatic Diocesan Service of Communion (CDSC) team. The theme is ‘These are the signs that will be associated with believers’ (Mark 16:17) and during the afternoon we will explore faith and signs with talks from excellent speakers, worship together, receive the sacrament of Reconciliation, be inspired by excellent teaching, be immersed in the Holy Spirit, receive prayer ministry from our experienced and gifted prayer ministry team, and meet friends both old and new. Doors open 13.30 and the afternoon will culminate with the 17.30 evening Mass.
Bishop Richard - A talk on Mary leading us to Her Son
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Vocations
Are you feeling increasingly compelled to spend time with Jesus? Do you find that your time is spent seeking him and all things connected with him?
