MASSES AND OTHER INFORMATION
Please visit the Mass Times page for more information on Mass times and other events, or click here.
PARISH OFFICE OPENING HOURS
The parish office opening hours are from 8.15am to 12.15pm Tuesday to Friday. Closed on Bank Holidays. The office will be closed on Friday 28th November.
REFLECTION
Today we honour Christ as our King. We honour him best however, by helping to spread his Kingdom. We should do this collectively, as members of the Church, and also individually. Christ wants us to be messengers of his love to others, but especially to the poor and needy. On the cross, Jesus endured insults and mockery. Yet his heart remained open, even to his enemies. He absorbed all the violence, transferred it, and returned it as love and forgiveness. One’s pain can so easily turn into rage, so that one wants only to lash out blindly at whoever happens to be within range. From the depths of his own pain, Jesus reached out to comfort the thief. Some people are like sugar cane, even when crushed in the mill, what they yield is sweetness. Jesus stretches our capacity for compassion. He challenges our idea of love. The pity is that it often goes unused. By our love, people will know that we are followers of Christ the King.
SHORT JUBILEE REFLECTION
The season of Advent is fast approaching, and begins at the end of this month. As we enter this season and the Jubilee Year draws to a close, we have one final opportunity to reflect upon the theme of the Jubilee as Pilgrims of Hope. The Jubilee year is a time of mercy, praying for our loved ones, praying for and helping those in need, and also praying for the souls in purgatory. By doing this we bring hope to others and to ourselves, as we have been given the chance of not only accepting God’s mercy, but also of following Christ’s example by extending God’s mercy to others. Advent will be a very good time for us to reflect upon our own relationship with God and neighbour.
ADVENT WREATH MAKING
You are invited to join us at St Edmund’s School for a free Advent Wreath Making Session on Tuesday 25th November at either 9am or 3.15pm. Come together in the spirit of the season to create something beautiful and meaningful. Light refreshments provided, and adults and children welcome. Places are limited, so please book by email: office.3856@st-edmunds-rc.oxon.sch.uk or phone: 01235 521558 or use the link to an online form here.
BIBLE STUDY
Beginning on Tuesday 4th November from 2pm to 3.30pm in the parish centre, and running for 6 sessions before Christmas, you are all invited to Bible study sessions on the Gospel of St Mark. If you have any queries, email: evangeliseabingdon@outlook.com
CHRISTMAS TEA FOR SENIORS
Aged 60 or over? Then you qualify! And you are invited to the Christmas Tea on Saturday 13th December at 2.30pm in the parish centre. Pass the news around! To help us with planning and catering, please can you sign up on the sheet at the back of the church as soon as possible. Many thanks.
CHILDREN'S MASS - VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
We will be celebrating our next Children's Mass at 10.15am on Sunday 7th December, which is the 2nd Sunday of Advent. We will be asking children to help us with welcoming, the offertory procession, the collection and singing, and would also like some children to read the First and Second Readings (taken from the Lectionary for Masses with Children) and the Bidding Prayers. If your child would like to read a reading or prayer, then please email Fiona Semple at reception@st-edmunds-rc.oxon.sch.uk and she will send you the words so that your child can practise. Thank you in advance for your support!
SAVE THE DATES - ADVENT AND CHRISTMAS
The season of Advent begins next Sunday 30th November. You might like to put the following dates in your diary:
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CIA Christmas Carol Singing in the Market Place on Saturday 13th December from 10am. Any musicians who would like to join in, please email Debra McKnight (dhmcknight@aol.com) for details of the carols and keys. There will be chairs for those who would prefer to be off their feet. Bring along your Christmas hats and bells to this wonderful celebration of Christmas. After the Carol singing the Abingdon Pastors will be offering hot pasties and drinks to all.
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Our own Parish Carol Service will be on Sunday 21st December at 4pm in our church. Do come along, and please do bring your children.
LENT 2026 - PARISH CHARITY FUNDRAISING
During the season of Advent, the parish pastoral committee (PPC) ask you to think about charities which we could raise funds for during Lent 2026. Ideally, we would like to fundraise for two charities – one local/UK based and one worldwide. We are only able to consider registered charities. Please give this some consideration and send your suggestions (with details of the charity) to the parish office by Monday 5 January 2026. Thank you.
SUPPORT THE FOODBANK
We cannot miss the fact that food prices have risen and are still rising. As a parish, we encourage you to please continue to support those who cannot afford enough food - through the Abingdon Food Bank. For practical reasons, and because nearly all supermarkets now have collection points as you leave their premises, it is easier for you to place your donations there, so please do not leave your contributions in our church. You can find out what is needed, the location of collection points, and also make a money donation, here. Thank you.
DOUAI ABBEY AUTUMN PROGRAMME
There are a number of workshops and reflection days being offered at Douai Abbey in Reading this Autumn. More information is available here, or you can email: pastoral@douaiabbey.org.uk
COPIES OF JUSTPEACE
Copies of the current edition of Justpeace, the newsletter of Pax Christi, the International Catholic Movement for Peace, are on the table at the back of church. The front-page article on the Church's teaching on nuclear weapons is by Bishop Nicholas Hudson, Chair of the International Affairs Department of the Catholic Bishops Conference. Please take a copy if you wish. Further information about Pax Christi can be got from its website here or from Anne Dodd by emailing: peteranne@aol.com
CATECHISM IN A YEAR
Fr Mike Schmitz from Ascension Press has produced a 365-day podcast entitled "The Catechism in a Year". Fr. Mike Schmitz guides listeners through the Catechism of the Catholic Church, providing insight, explanation, and encouragement as the Church's teachings are explored, following a reading plan inspired by Ascension's "Foundations of Faith" approach. Listeners can follow along with any recent version of the Catechism and can find the reading plan on the Ascension website. More information is available here.
CAR PARKING
​With the very restricted parking space available at the church, please use alternatives if you can, so that those who are less able may use our car park. Thank you for your understanding.
Abingdon Community Fridge fights food waste by redistributing surplus food from local businesses and members of the community. The Abingdon Community Fridge is open to all. For more information visit their Facebook page here, or email info@abingdoncommunityfridge.org.uk
They are located at Hadland Road Community Centre, OX14 3YH and open on:
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Mondays: 4.00-4.30pm
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Thursdays: 1.00-2.00pm
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Saturdays: 10.30-11.30am
The Community Fridge is in need of funding to continue its work (hire of hall, insurance, food safety training for volunteers, etc.). To donate, please use this link here, or contact margaretdhancox@gmail.com
PARISH NEWSLETTERS
Items for the newsletter should be sent to the parish office (abingdon@portsmouthdiocese.org.uk) by the Wednesday of each week please. Copies are available in the church and on this website here. Please keep contributions as brief as possible and please take newsletters home with you. Thank you.
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DIOCESAN NEWS
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To keep up to date with the news of the Diocese and the Bishop please follow on:
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E- News: use the link here. (subscription service available)
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Facebook: @PortsmouthRC
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Twitter: @PortsmouthRC
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The Diocese website: https://www.portsmouthdiocese.org.uk/
If you would like to share news with the rest of the Diocese, please contact: communications@portsmouthdiocese.org.uk
GIFT AIDING YOUR MONETARY DONATIONS
If you aren't doing so already, please consider gift aiding your donations – it makes them all the more worthwhile, because if you tell us that you pay tax in the UK, then we can claim back 25% from the Government - that's 25p for every £1 you give! You can do so by filling in the yellow form available at the back of the church or online on our website here. Thank you.
JOB VACANCIES IN OUR DIOCESE
All current vacancies in the Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth can be viewed here.
ADVENT COLLECTION FOR THE HOMELESS
The season of Advent begins next Sunday 30th November! Traditionally, we support the homeless at this time, and this year we will do so by offering monetary support to The Gatehouse, Oxford, which supports Oxford’s homeless community. They offer a wide range of free services and activities to adults who are homeless, vulnerably housed, on low or no income, or simply looking for company from their drop-in community centre in Woodstock Road. They are heavily dependent on grants and donations from the local community to fund their services. You can find out more about them here. Our parish will be supporting them with a special second (retiring) collection on Sunday 14th December.
PARISH AGM REPORT
Our parish annual general meeting took place on Sunday 16th November in the parish centre. You can see some of the many things that go on in our parish by viewing the report - which you can do by clicking on the image above.
FLOWERS - URGENT HELP NEEDED
We urgently need some volunteers to prepare flowers for the Masses here in our Church. We are currently a group of only eight members and are dependent on two people each week to help. This can be difficult during the holiday season or if illness occurs, as the responsibility then falls to one person to do all the vases. If you work part time or have recently retired, could you help on a Thursday or Friday, once a month, for a couple of hours? It isn’t necessary to have any experience in flower arranging, just a willing heart, as we will support you. If you are interested, we invite you to meet our group and share afternoon tea with us on Wednesday 10th December from 2 to 4pm in the parish centre. We will be offering a few tips on how to arrange a Christmas vase of flowers. Please contact Jo Milham on jo.milham@tvmoxford.co.uk Thank you.
PRAYER FOR VOCATIONS
Loving and Generous God, it is You who call us by name and ask us to follow You. Help us to grow in the love and service of our Church as we experience it today. Give us the energy and courage of Your Spirit to shape its future. Grant us faith-filled leaders who will embrace Christ's Mission of love and justice, and inspire us to know You better and to open our hearts to hear Your call. Amen.
ALMSHOUSE ACCOMMODATION
Christ’s Hospital of Abingdon currently have three vacancies in their almshouses, and are inviting applications from local residents. Please see the notice on our outdoor noticeboard for information on eligibility and how to apply, or look here.
ADVENT SERVICE OF RECONCILIATION
Advent is a time for both spiritual and practical preparation to celebrate the first coming of Jesus as a baby and to look forward to his second coming. To help us, there will be a joint pastoral area Advent Service of Reconciliation at 7pm at English Martyrs, Didcot on Thursday 18th December at 7pm, with an opportunity for individual Confessions.
COUNTDOWN TO CHRISTMAS
If you’re very organised, you may well be thinking of Christmas gifts! Why not find the perfect gift for your loved ones through CAFOD, and help to change lives at the same time. Discover more here.
ALONE ON CHRISTMAS DAY?
Will you be on your own this Christmas? If so, Peachcroft Christian Centre at Lindsay Drive OX14 2RT, invite you to join in for lunch on Christmas Day. You can enjoy a 2-course lunch, entertainment and the company of others, all free of charge. If you or someone you know would like to come, then please get in touch with Fiona as soon as possible via email: christmaslunch25@peachcroftcc.org or phone: 07503 178893.
LIGHT IN DARKNESS
We are encouraged to consider engaging more deeply in this Jubilee Year by joining one of the online programmes supported by our Diocese. There are many options available, which you can find here. As explained in our Diocesan e-News, the range of courses available can help us to hand on the teaching of Jesus with confidence. We can examine contemporary challenges and learn to give credible answers to practical questions. We can also discover not only what the Church teaches, but why the Church teaches as it does, and how that teaching is related to Scripture. We can also learn how to read the Sacred Page – how to go beyond a superficial reading and how to begin to penetrate deeply the Word of God. Through the courses available, we can learn the important practical lessons Jesus teaches us for living out our discipleship more faithfully and more fervently, how to grow in virtue, how to deal with personal struggles, questions, and problems, and more.
JUBILEE YEAR OF HOPE
The Holy Father has designated that 2025 is a year of Jubilee, something which happens every 25 years. This is a time to re-establish a proper relationship with God, with one another, and with all of creation. The theme for this jubilee is “Pilgrims of Hope” and is a year of hope for a world suffering the impacts of war, the ongoing effects of COVID-19 pandemic, and a climate crisis. The following shrine churches have been chosen by Bishop Philip as particular places of pilgrimage within our diocese: St Thomas, Jersey; Bournemouth Oratory; St John’s Cathedral, Portsmouth; St Edmund’s, Southampton; St James and St William of York, Reading; St Joseph’s, Guernsey. You can find information and resources for the year from CAFOD here and from the Bishops Conference of England and Wales here.
'YOU WILL BE MY WITNESSES' PRAYER
O Lord, graciously look down upon us your servants and upon our work to build Your Holy Church here in this place. Enlighten our minds and lead us into all truth as we seek to do Your will. Abundantly bless our labours, that Your Holy Church may serve You ever more faithfully to the glory of Your Holy name. Through Christ our Lord, Amen.
OPEN DOORS
Open Doors takes place on Mondays from 11am to 2pm in the Parish Centre and runs every Monday, except Bank Holidays. We offer tea/coffee, lunch (served at 12.15pm) and friendly conversation to anyone in the Parish or local community who is on their own or would like more company. ​​
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​Can you spare a few hours on Mondays on a rota basis to support our parish community outreach initiative, Open Doors? We need volunteers to help at the sessions (Mondays, 11am to 2pm) serving tea/coffee, chatting to our guests, serving lunch and washing up. If you can help, please contact Berny Pratt on 01235 525257 or complete the form on this page. Thank you.
ARE YOU IN NEED OR WANT TO HELP OTHERS?
For nearly two centuries the St Vincent de Paul Society (SVP) has been seeking and finding those in need and responding in love. As well as visits, we can offer practical and financial help where possible. We always maintain confidentiality. Our SVP members meet every fortnight on a Wednesday evening. If you are in need or know someone who is, do contact our parish SVP group via the parish office and we will see what we can do to help. Equally, if you would like to get involved in any way, please do contact us.
LITURGY WEBSITE AND UPCOMING COURSES
The Diocese now have a Liturgy website, which provides reflection, guidance and a chance to ask questions. You can access by clicking on the image above.
NEW TO THE PARISH? OR CHANGED ADDRESS?
We warmly welcome all new parishioners who have joined our parish in the last year. Please do make yourselves known if you have not already done so, and also let us know if you would like to contribute to parish life in any way. If you have already registered with us, but have changed your address or contact details, please also let us know. Forms and other information are available on our website here to register. Forms and other information are also available in the porch at our church. You can view and download our welcome booklet here. You can also view our latest annual report here.