Dear Brothers & Sisters
Many thanks to all who watched last Tuesday on the occasion of the Ordination of our two new Auxiliary Bishops to our Archdiocese. Please keep Bishop Timothy and Bishop Richard in your thoughts and prayers as they begin their new ministry.
Year 6 Leavers Mass – took place on Friday 19th at 10.15am and we wish the children the very best of luck for the future and thank all the teaching staff and school community and parents. May you all enjoy a relaxing and peaceful summer holiday.
My Sincere thanks to Our Lady of the Wayside parish who joined with Friary parishioners to hold a youth club event on the evening of Friday 19th July.
Little Church and Tiny Church are taking a break until September. Thanks for all your hard work in making our Little Church such a great success.
Thank you to the parishioners and volunteers who helped and participated in the Cemetery Mass on Saturday 13th July.
Thank you to all the parishes who participated in the church football at The Friary on Sunday 14th July and thank you to all those who organised and supported this enjoyable event
Fr.Biju scj Parish Priest
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SCJ News: Olton
Thank you to everyone who supported and helped with the wake and Mass for the late Reigan Jose who’s twin brother Fr Edwin is a Sacred Heart Father. He will arrive in India Lunch time today and the funeral will take place at 5pm Sunday evening (Indian time).
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FRIARY SNIPPETS
St Peregrine Prayer Group Join us on Friday 26th July for our meeting in the Day Chapel at 2pm and tea and chat afterwards.
Knit? Sew? Crotchet? Please can you help to make poppies for a Remembrance Day Display? See the posters in the narthex, any design welcome. Please hand in any poppies to the piety stall where simple patterns will be available.
The Friary Craft Group would like to thank the craft group at the Church of St Mary and St Bartholomew for selling some of our items at HamptonFest in aid of our Church Organ Fund
Health & Safety: the Diocese has told us:
* to review all the key Friary H & S areas covered by law by July 31. A huge task!
* These include 1. General Risk Assessment 2. Fire Risk 3. Asbestos 4. Electrics 5. Gas 6. Legionella 7. Tree Safety 8. Oil Heating 9. H & S Training.
* Before seeking outside firms we’d like to know if we’ve any parishioners qualified & suitably insured who’d be able to help. Tom Stockwell is Diocesan H & S Manager who deals with these things (0121 230 6289) * But please speak to Fr. Biju or Steve Roper first if you’re qualified in one of these areas. With prayers & good wishes Fr. Biju Antony SCJ & Steve Roper Health & Safety Officer
To all who are going on holiday I wish you all a peaceful and relaxing time away. Coming back refreshed for new beginnings.
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Marriage matters: Sixteenth Sunday in ordinary time
(Jeremiah 23:1-6 Ephesians 2:13-18 Mark 6:30-34)
Walking alongside or away? Jesus, the Good Shepherd, experienced rejection: many “walked with him no longer”. This offers us some consolation, when despite doing our best to pass on our faith in Jesus and His Church to our children, we, their ‘shepherds’, experience them drifting away from the faith. God loves our children unconditionally, and we need to continually ‘hold them’ in our love
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Big thanks to the secret army of cleaners who unseen keep our church tidy during the year: Week beginning July 21st Group F
We need more ministers! Can you help? We’d like to commission new Eucharistic Ministers (both for church & for the sick) plus Readers & Welcomers at Sunday masses. If you’d like to know more please speak to Fr.Biju or contact parish office.
Maryvale Institute….What’s happening? * A new venture between the Diocese & St Mary’s University, Twickenham, (SMU) * 3 Maryvale courses validated by Open University & Liverpool Hope University will migrate to Twickenham
* Higher Institute of Religious Sciences (HIRS), will remain at Maryvale .
* 2 Maryvale programmes, (Bachelor of Divinity & Licence in Catechetics degrees) are recruiting for academic year 2024-25.
* Great demand for Maryvale programmes
* Plans afoot to share Oscott’s IT site and facilities plus face-to-face teaching there
Please pray for David Marshall RIP - 1st August at 10.15am, Nuala Jones and Reigan Jose RIP May they rest in peace.
Flame of Love of The Immaculate Heart of Mary UK Conference. This year we are in Ampleforh Abbey in Yorkshire, 2nd to 4th August. Full weekend cost £200 - £220, meals and accommodation included (bring packed lunch). Register here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/912110516107?aff=oddtdtcreator
Charity Carol Concert Saturday 7th December 2024 St Augustine's RC Church Solihull Town Centre. Tickets on sale in September at St Augustine's £5 per ticket. Sponsor opportunities for local businesses £50 for a full colour A5 advert in the concert brochure. To place a sponsorship please visit the desktop version of the website: www.rainbowshackevents.co.uk/sponsor-an-event
Prisoners' Sunday falls on 13th October 2024 this year. Thank you for your support for our annual Prisoners' Sunday appeal in previous years! People in prison and their families can easily be marginalised and isolated in our communities. Our work remains as important as it has ever done. We continue to respond to Jesus' challenge, 'I was in prison and you visited me.' I would like to invite you to continue to support our work: Contact me if you would like to attend our online See the Impact sessions in which we explain more about our work - with the help of our frontline staff and volunteers, and people with lived experience of the criminal justice system. You could alternatively send a representative from the parish instead. We will hold one via Zoom on Friday 26th July at 11.30am to 12.15pm. All welcome christopher.dunne@prisonadvice.org.uk 07710 170 942
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REGULAR ACTIVITIES IN OUR PARISH HALL
Monday Zumba 1.30 - 2.30 & 7 - 8pm
Tuesday Latin & Ballroom Dancing 10.30 -12 noon & 7.30 - 9.30pm. Yoga 5:45 - 7:00pm
Tuesday U3A (2nd Tuesday, monthly)
Wednesday Stroke Club 9am - 1.30pm. Slimming World 2.30 - 8.30
Thursday Zumba 11am - 12 Noon. U3A Quiz (2nd Thursday monthly) Fitness Pilates (term time) 6.30 - 8.30pm
Friday Yoga 10.45am - 12.00 noon
PARISH CENSUS: Please fill in details online or manually. Info? Email:
martin.hayden@oltonfriary.org.uk or call office 0121 706 0505.
https://forms.office.com/e/dHWqGN3HG2
Safeguarding: Our Parish follows correct safeguarding policy & practice at all times. Safeguarding Parish Reps: Carol Foster & Maureen Treanor: sg.oltonfriary.solihull@rcaob.org.uk Diocese Rep: Claire Reay: safeguarding@rcaob.org.uk Call 0121 230 6240 for any concern or query
The Parish operates in accordance with Statutory Safeguarding Guidance and the National and Archdioceses policies & procedures at all times. Our Parish Safeguarding Representative is Carol Foster and Maureen Treanor. They can be contacted at: sg.oltonfriary.solihull@rcaob.org.uk or alternatively the Diocesan Safeguarding team can be contacted on 0121 230 6240
safeguarding@rcaob.org.uk if you have any concern.
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Security Please do not leave any belongings unattended in the benches while receiving Holy Communion as there has been a recent incident.
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PARISH GROUPS—Please check your information posted on the Parish website. Any updates/corrections/alterations, please email the parish office.
SOLIHULL/HEARTLANDS HOSPITAL Please ask hospital Switchboard for on-call Catholic Priest 0121 424 2000, & they will call the duty Priest. Catholic Chaplain at Solihull & Heartlands is Fr Roger Raven. Data Protection law means visit from priest must be actively sought. He doesn't have access to patient files.
CAR PARK - Please be considerate when parking/manoeuvring your car and please note the disabled parking bays are for the use of those with disabled badges, there is no parking in either the Community and Staff designated areas and the front & rear of The Friary Residential block. When parking on a Sunday, please do not park on or drive over the grass adjacent to the gate leading into the graveyard. Only authorised cars to park at other times, by arrangement with the Parish Priest.
HALL BOOKINGS from external groups, particularly regular users are a useful income toward the upkeep of the Church. If access is needed to hall or kitchen during these times, please liaise with the Parish office or Community first.
CREMATION PLOTS (newer area) Following previous notes re- borders & stones barred for H&S danger to graveyard volunteers; please also note that plots are set out in vertical strips, in plots for two. So borders & stones added around memorial tablets are encroaching on the space of a loved one, and should be removed.
GOING TO HOSPITAL -Please let your parish priest know if you’re going into hospital. On admission ask for the Catholic chaplain as Chaplains no longer receive names of Catholic patients unless they opt in.
SECURITY NOTICE - Please ensure Friary doors are kept closed & locked when necessary. If you attend a meeting please make sure that the last one out has secured the outside doors. The front door should not be left on the hook unattended. Besides Church security, the Friary is home to priests & brothers who need to know they are safe.
CHARITY COLLECTION BOXES for SVP and St Basil’s charities are built into the left and right hand sides, at the back of the Church. Built-in boxes can be found in the narthex for St Anthony’s bread (used to help the poor in the local area) and Holy Souls (used for Mass intentions for Holy Souls).
FLOODLIGHT DEDICATION—You are able to have the Church floodlit in memory of someone. A suggested donation is £10 a week, the name of the person in whose memory it is in would appear in the newsletter. Forms are available in narthex, or from parish office.
THE SICK OF OUR PARISH - If your name or the name of a friend or relative was on the parish list of prayers for the sick, and you would like that name to remain on the list, would you please contact the Parish Office on 0121 706 0505. Data protection law obliges us to ensure that you or your friend or family member has consented to being on the list, as it can be seen by many, (e.g. church notice board) and is available for anyone to pick up. We make great efforts to ensure the church abides by new data protection and privacy law.
VISITORS - If you wish to gift aid your offertory donation, white visitor envelopes are available in the narthex.
VEHICLE CRIME ALERT - The neighbourhood Policing Team would like to draw your attention to an increase in vehicle crime in the area. 5 crime reduction tips—ALWAYS close the windows and doors in your vehicle, DON'T leave any valuables on display and where possible do not leave ANY valuables in the vehicle such as Satnavs, Mobile Phones, Wallets, Purses, Bags or iPods, ENSURE your registration plates are fixed using 'anti tamper screws', KEEP your car keys in a safe place in your house.
SAFEGUARDING - In this parish there have been strict guidelines in place for several years for the protection of children and vulnerable persons. Anyone with a concern about safeguarding issues should ring the Diocesan Safeguarding Office on 0121 230 6240.
KEEP YOUR VALUABLES SAFE - Please do not leave bags unattended in Church, even at Communion time. Bags and valuables should not be left on display in cars as this can present a target for thieves.