NEWSLETTER INSERTS – WEEKEND 19th – 20th December 2015
Caritas – Diocese of Portsmouth
The new website of Caritas has recently gone live – please see www.caritasdioceseofportsmouth.org.uk. There is information here about recent initiatives, including a trip to ‘the Jungle’ migrants’ camp in Calais and a monthly newsletter from the Justice, Peace and Social Responsibility Team. There are also ways to get involved detailed on the website.
Jubilee Year of Mercy
Bishop Philip has now opened the Door of Mercy at St John’s Cathedral, Portsmouth. There is a second Door of Mercy at Our Lady and St Edmund’s, Abingdon. All are invited to go on pilgrimage to these Holy Doors during the Jubilee Year of Mercy. A plenary indulgence may be obtained. To find out more, including about indulgences, go to: www.portsmouthdiocese.org.uk/holyyearofmercy.
Crib Offerings
This year, with the encouragement of Bishop Philip, our parish will be donating crib offerings to the Friends of the Holy Land. Every penny will help the poorest Christian families, especially in and around Bethlehem, the West Bank, Gaza and Israel, with education, employment, health and housing costs and initiatives. FHL is non-political and ecumenical. For further information, please take a leaflet by the crib and keep our brothers and sisters in the Holy Land in your prayers at this time.
Share Your Story
**Final chance to respond! This survey closes on 1st January** Do you have a family member or friend, over 18, who is baptised Catholic but no longer practises their faith? Perhaps they no longer attend Mass regularly? As part of a campaign to listen to those who no longer practise, Bishop Philip would like to hear from them. Perhaps they feel let down by the Church or have something they would like to say to the Church. Or perhaps they have just drifted away. Whatever their story, they are invited to share it anonymously. The survey is available at www.mystoryshared.co.uk. Encourage them to share their story today!
Keep in touch with the latest news! The Diocese of Portsmouth now issues a weekly e-news with photos, news, and information from around the Diocese. Go to www.portsmouthdiocese.org.uk and add your email address to receive these updates. Are you on Facebook? Like ‘Diocese of Portsmouth’ to get all the latest info as it happens. You can also follow @BishopEgan and @PortsmouthRC on Twitter.
Representatives for SACRE groups needed
These representative are requiredin Hampshire, Wokingham and Southampton.
• Are you interested in young people and their education?
• Are you open to sharing your faith with other people?
• Are you interested in what others believe?
• Could you act as a bridge between the Church and the schools in your area?
The Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education is a group in each local authority area bringing together representatives from different denominations and faiths, teachers and the local authority. Members are unpaid volunteers who give up their time to support RE and collective worship in maintained schools (not only Catholic schools) locally. The role involves occasional local meetings and termly meetings with other representatives from across the Diocese of Portsmouth for mutual support.
What are the duties of the SACRE?
The SACRE's main duty is to advise the local authority on religious education and collective worship for the maintained schools within its area.If you are interested in joining one of these SACRE groups as a representative of the diocese, please contact or ring 01329 835363.