Pastoral Letters
As we continue the Christmas festival on this New Year’s Day, celebrating the Solemnity of Mary Mother of God, I would like to wish you, your families and friends the peace and blessing of Christmas. In the words of the Scriptures: “May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord let his face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord uncover his face to you and bring you peace.”
Read more about The Feast of the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God »
At the beginning of Advent this year, when we gather for Mass, we shall be using the new translation of the Roman Missal. This will be the case not only in England and Wales but throughout the English-speaking world. The Mass will remain the same but parts of it will sound different.
On Wednesday, with the Blessing and Giving of Ashes, we enter the season of Lent. These forty days of prayer, fasting and almsgiving prepare us for the celebration of Easter – the central Feast of our Christian Faith.
During Pope Benedict’s visit to our country last September, he met with four thousand young people and their teachers at what was called the ‘Big Assembly’. He was also able to speak and pray with many more students and their teachers through television screens in school halls and class rooms. The Pope spoke about the importance of young people in the Church and about the vocation and ministry of teaching.
I wish you, your families and friends a joyous and peaceful Christmas. As St Paul says may the message of Christ in all its richness find a home within you. I send particular greetings to those people who for one reason or another are away from their families; to those who are experiencing family difficulties and to all who have suffered the death of a family member during the past year, especially in the armed forces.
I was talking to a group of young people in St Augustine’s College, Trowbridge and saying to them that Pope Benedict described his visit to the United Kingdom as a pilgrimage. A pilgrimage is a journey with purpose. We go on pilgrimages to places which we regard as special because in those places we believe we can discover the presence of God. Pilgrimages are journeys we do with others, not alone. We support one another. Together we discover and celebrate the presence of God and find out more about ourselves and our fellow pilgrims. Pilgrims witness to who they are and what they hope to become.
A couple of weeks ago I presented our vision for the future organisation of parishes. Many people from throughout our diocese joined me in the Cathedral for a liturgy of the word.
Some of you may have seen on the diocesan website a photograph of Pope Benedict and myself in which I am pointing out to the Holy Father the size of our diocese. I was telling the Pope that our diocese is a mixture of urban and rural areas with a growing population, where we are welcoming an increasing number of Catholics from other countries, who are enriching the life of our parishes and contributing to the wellbeing of the wider community.
This coming week, with the other Bishops of England and Wales, I shall be taking part in the Ad Limina visit to Rome.
I would like to wish you, your family and friends the joy and peace of Christmas. I hope this season is a time for renewing and strengthening family life and friendships. As I do so I am mindful of the people in Cumbria whose homes were damaged and destroyed by the recent floods. For them this Christmas is not what they would have planned or wanted. I also remember families and friends who have lost people close to them during this past year, especially through the conflict in Afghanistan. Please remember them all in your prayers as well as those who have been injured in war.
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