MASSES AND OTHER INFORMATION
Please see below, or 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.
REFLECTION
Many times, as Christians we are faced with difficult decisions. But we have been given an inner voice to guide us, namely, the voice of conscience. How well do we listen to this voice? Am I at peace with my conscience? Who can separate his/her faith from their actions, or their belief from their occupations? Who can spread his hours before him, saying, “This is for God, and this for myself, this for my soul, and this other for my body?” He who wears his morality but as his best garment were better naked. Your daily life is your temple and your religion. Whenever you enter into it take your all. Take the plough and the forge and the mallet and the lute, the things you have fashioned in necessity or for delight. And take with you all men. And if you would know God… look about you and you will see Him playing with your children. (Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet)
FIRST HOLY COMMUNION PREPARATION
There will be a meeting on Thursday 12th November at 7.30pm in the Parish Centre, for parents who wish to enrol their children in the 2027 preparation programme. It is ESSENTIAL that parents attend the meeting to receive enrolment forms and a copy of the programme. If you have any queries, please contact Hilary Webb at: humwebb53@gmail.com
INFORMATION ON MASSES IN OUR CHURCH
Please note that there will be NO Masses on the following dates:
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Thursday 29th October
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Friday 30th October
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Saturday 31st October
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Friday 13th November
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Saturday 21st November
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Friday 11th December
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Saturday 12th December
SAVE THE DATE!
As you may now know, at the request of Bishop Philip, Fr Jamie, our parish priest for the last 15 years, will be leaving us at the end of October to take up the parish in Newbury. As a thank you, on Sunday 25 October after 10.15am Mass, we are planning a reception and presentation in the parish centre – ALL parishioners are warmly invited.
PRAY THE ROSARY
Pope Leo XIV invites the faithful to unite in praying the Rosary every day during October, “with the particular intention that wars may cease and that peace may be established among peoples in conflict.” He also asks us “to accompany this prayer with concrete acts of penance and mercy, committing ourselves always to fostering dialogue and reconciliation.”
PRAYER FOR VOCATIONS
O Holy Spirit, Spirit of wisdom and divine love, impart Your knowledge, understanding, and counsel to youth that they may know the vocation wherein they can best serve God. Give them courage and strength to follow God's holy will. Guide their uncertain steps, strengthen their resolutions, shield their chastity, fashion their minds, conquer their hearts, and lead them to the vineyards where they will labour in God's holy service. Amen.
UPCOMING SECOND/RETIRING COLLECTIONS
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The retiring collection on Sunday 18th October (Mission Sunday) will be for Foreign Missions. This is the Pope’s charity, supporting world mission via Missio. Envelopes should be available at the back of the church for your use. You can also find out more and make donations here.
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The retiring collection on Sunday 1st November will be for Bamenda.
WORLD MISSION SUNDAY
The theme for this year’s World Mission Sunday on Sunday 18th October is ‘One in Christ, united in mission.’ It marks the 100th anniversary of this global celebration. In his message for this day, Pope Leo says: “Your prayers and practical support, on World Mission Sunday, will be a great help in bringing the Gospel of God’s love to everyone, especially the poorest and those most in need. Every gift, no matter how small, becomes a meaningful act of missionary communion. I renew my heartfelt gratitude for everything you will do to help me help missionaries throughout the world.” You can find out a lot more and view Pope Leo's message here.
PRAYING WITH POPE LEO DURING OCTOBER
In his prayer intention for October, Pope Leo says: “Let us pray that the mental health ministry be established throughout the Church, helping to overcome the stigma and discrimination of persons with mental illnesses.” Pope Leo's initiative called Pray with the Pope can be viewed here and also his worldwide prayer network for Scotland, England and Wales is available here. Pope Leo also told a group of journalists that we should “Work for peace and seek solutions without weapons.” He said: “Pray for peace, work for peace, less hatred. Hatred in the world is constantly increasing.” “Stability and peace are not built with mutual threats, nor with weapons, which sow destruction, pain, and death, but only through a reasonable, authentic, and responsible dialogue,” he said. His prayer for peace can be followed here.
SALE OF CHRISTMAS PRODUCTS
There will be a sale of Christmas Cards and olive wood products in aid of Friends of the Holy Land on Sunday 8th November.
PASTORAL PROGRAMME FOR AUTUMN
The Douai Abbey pastoral programme for the Autumn is now available here.
OUR PARISH SVP GROUP THANKS YOU
Many thanks to all of you who so generously contributed to the collection to support our work in the community. A total of £1,051.40 was raised which will greatly help us to make a difference to many lives. If you would still like to make a donation, please do so by leaving it in the parish office in an envelope marked For SVP. Thank you.
GIFT AID GIVING
In the last 6 months we received £14,156 for Gift Aid from HMRC, representing about 20% of our total income as a parish. Thank you. However, as a result of changes to Diocesan record keeping and a change to our charity number we need to obtain an updated Gift Aid declaration from you. Without this we will be unable to continue to claim Gift Aid on your donations.
The diocese have developed an online form to make the process of obtaining valid Gift Aid Declarations easier. You can access the form here, or on the diocesan website, where the form can be found on the Support Us tab by choosing Gift Aid from the drop down menu. Filling in the form takes only a few minutes.
If you prefer, to fill out the paper-based Gift Aid Declaration, send a request to accounts.abi@portsmouthdiocese.org.uk and, once completed, return it to the Parish Office.
If you have any questions or need any help completing the form please contact Carole Sawyers on accounts.abi@portsmouthdiocese.org.uk or contact the Parish Office with your name and phone number.
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.
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.
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 Wednesday morning 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.
DIOCESAN NEWS
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
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.
PARISH SURVEY - CENSUS/REGISTRATION
We have started a new Parish survey, and all parishioners need to fill in a census form for each member of your family. Even if you only attend Mass at the Parish occasionally, please still fill out a form as the survey also takes this into account. Take note that there are different forms for adults and children. The QR codes are included above so feel free to complete the census as soon as you can. If you cannot use the camera on the phone, you can click on the QR code above to get to the form. Forms are also available at the back of the Church. There will also be volunteers on hand to help you capture your responses electronically if this would be helpful. Take time to consider the volunteering section as we really need everyone in the Church to take on something so that our beautiful Parish can continue to grow and thrive. Thank you for your help with this.
THANK YOU
Your generous donations totalling £882.19 from the Family Fast Day will help more children stay in school. Children like Tayla in Zimbabwe, where CAFOD’s local partners worked with her community to install a solar-powered water supply. To find out more about the work that your generosity at Fast Day makes possible visit here.
DIOCESAN EVANGELISATION FORMATION DAY
We already have a Parish Evangelisation Cell (PECS) in our parish, but everyone is invited to join the Diocesan morning of prayer, inspiration, teaching and fellowship as we discover how Parish Evangelisation Cells (PECS) can enrich parish life. This will take place on Saturday 31st October, from 9:30am – 1:30pm at Christ the King, Reading. PECS are small, welcoming groups of parishioners who meet regularly to pray, reflect on Scripture, build friendships and encourage one another to live and share their faith. They offer a simple way to help people grow closer to Jesus, support one another and reach out to others with friendship and faith. Come and discover how these groups can deepen prayer, friendship and faith, strengthen parish community and mission; and build our confidence in our faith. Everyone is welcome, whether you are curious, active in parish life, or wondering more about how PECS could benefit our parish. To register and to get more information please click here, or email ffm@portsmouthdiocese.org.uk
PILGRIMAGE - ST PAUL IN MACEDONIA
A 9-day pilgrimage in April 2027 following St Paul from his arrival in Europe in AD 49/50 (Acts 16:9 - 18:18). Visiting not only Phillipi, Thessaloniki, Bereoa, Athens and Corinth but also the sacred mountain area of Meteora and the Delphi Oracle. St Paul brought the Joy of the Gospel to a pagan culture and the Jewish Diaspora, daring to challenge and inspire. He was rejected, scoffed at, punished and imprisoned, and yet the Christian communities he founded and loved became the cornerstone of Christianity in Europe. A brochure is available here and for more information, please contact Della Shenton on dspilgrimages@gmail.com or 07808 957604.
NEW CATHOLIC SECONDARY SCHOOL
Since the closure of OLA School in August 2025, a core group of parishioners have been working diligently to acquire the site to enable the re-establishment of a Catholic Secondary school. The school has to be independent until the education system enables a transition to a state funded school. The full proposal for the school can be read in the Prospectus which can be found here. More briefly, Bishop Philip's, and other endorsements of the proposal can be read separately here.
The group is now looking to recruit benefactors who will support the project financially which is a major undertaking. Please keep them and their work in your prayers so that the objectives can be achieved.
BIBLE STUDY SESSIONS
Bible study sessions resume for another six sessions which will be running on Tuesday afternoons from 2pm to 3.30pm in the parish centre, beginning on Tuesday 6th January. For more information please email: evangeliseabingdon@outlook.com
'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.
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.
NEW TO THE PARISH? OR CHANGED ADDRESS?
We warmly welcome all new parishioners. 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.