keeping our Truro Catholic together
Truro Foodbank invites us to follow the principle of an Advent Calendar in reverse – and a month early! They suggest we put a non-perishable item in a box on each of the first 24 days of November. “It would be such a help to Truro Foodbank to have the items at the beginning of December.” says Wendy Vincent, Secretary of the Trustees.
The advent calendar with suggested items can be downloaded HERE
A Working Document for the Synod’s continental stage was published this week by the Vatican. The Document, titled “Enlarge the space of your tent” is a synthesis of the Synodal responses from dioceses in 112 countries around the world. The 45 page work calls for institutional, structural and cultural reform of the Church at all levels, to better incorporate synodality into ecclesiastical life.
This Document is intended to form the basis for further reflection and discernment by 5 continental assemblies. But before that, in keeping with the logic of synodality, it has been referred back to all bishops so that they can organise synodal moments of reading and discussion within their own dioceses. ”we return to the People of God the fruits of the process begun by the consultation in the particular Churches,” said Cardinal Grech the Secretary General of the Synod. He adds that “… it would be nice for each (Diocese) to read the Document with a broad involvement of the People of God”.
Cardinal Grech emphasises that “It is now up to each one of us to enlarge the space of the Tent, that is, to continue the work of listening, dialogue and discernment in this Continental Stage.”
So watch this space…. Meanwhile, you can download and read the Document HERE
This year’s group of 14 pilgrims travelled up from Cornwall to Walsingham on Sunday 16th October and stayed in the Pilgrim Centre. “We left on Saturday 21st – but our coach broke down! We were fortunate to be rescued by the Walsingham minibus and allowed to stay an extra night at no extra expense.”
“While in Walsingham we followed the pilgrims’ programme for two days: (Angelus, Procession to the Catholic shrine about a mile away, time for confessions and Way of the Cross, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, Pilgrim Mass, Rosary, Evening Prayer and Torchlight Procession). Quite an intense programme, But there was still time to explore the village of Walsingham and visit the Anglican Shrine – worth a look – and for excursions to Cromer and Norwich.”
(thanks to Fr David)
Urgently Required: Truro house for refugee family
TCRS (Truro Community Refugee Support) is looking for a home for a refugee family who are rebuilding their lives in the UK. They are currently being housed in a hotel waiting to be relocated.
If you have a house in a state of disrepair, we have a team of volunteers who can support getting it back to a habitable state.
Your rent will be guaranteed for two years with the same team of volunteers ensuring your property remains well maintained.
Contact Diana: 07957863313 or tcrstruro@gmail.com if you can help.
TCRS is local group is bidding to sponsor a refugee family under the Government’s Community Sponsorship scheme. It has reached its initial funding target to meet the Government minimum requirements but is still in need of suitable accommodation.
The group has a very diverse ‘network’ of locals prepared to help a refugee family to settle here. The group includes, among others, doctors and other healthcare workers, teachers, public servants, home makers. Anyone ready and willing to help a “stranger in a strange land” is welcome.
Contact the SVP Truro group (07474-941099) to express your interest in being part of the net — no obligation!
The personal connections that we in Cornwall, and indeed in our parish, have with the war in Ukraine serve to remind us of our bonds with our brothers and sisters in Christ, everywhere. Dr Matthew Barber, son of Tony, left a few weeks ago to start a voluntary placement with UK Med in Chernivtsi, Western Ukraine near the Romanian border.
He is there with a team of English volunteers providing primary health care, from mobile clinics, to refugees from the Eastern war zone. His patients are mainly children and the elderly; many are suffering from psychological stress resulting from their experiences.
Matthew says: “Ukraine is a lovely country, with nice friendly people. The only problem is that I am a vegetarian. They cannot understand that, but are very accommodating”.
We hope our readers will join us in sending Matthew our best wishes and prayers.
Readers who have been unable to attend Mass in person for whatever reason will have been disappointed that many online masses recently disappeared, as our parishes are wrestling with the Data Protection implications of live-streaming.
They may therefore be pleased to know of some that have either continued streaming or have recently returned to streaming, some of them using the (temporary?) expedient of restricting the camera view to the altar area only.
Here are links to some “local” churches that presently offer online masses: St Austell (Fr Michael), Falmouth (Fr Brian) & Helston (Fr Paul), and further afield Teignmouth (Fr Mark).
If anyone would like help finding or accessing any online church services, please contact the SVP Truro Conference who also lend equipment (07474-941099)
Austen Ivereigh gives an insider’s look at the process of producing the National Synthesis in a The Tablet feature here. Registration on the website is required to read the article, but it is free and easy.
Pax Christi, the international Catholic nonviolent initiative, undertook their own ‘listening’ process with participants from 26 countries. The result offers a thought-provoking vision of what a truly peace-loving church community might look like.
For a non-diocesan perspective from an international synodal process on synodality and the church, read Pax Christi’s Synod report here.
“We dream of a Church […] that is ready to move with changes in our society, freed from some of the burdens in the way it works, advancing resolutely towards unity, where people can speak freely, always attentive to the little ones and those who have been cast aside, a praying Church that trusts in her Creator and her Saviour.”
Readers may be interested to compare how Catholics in France have responded to the issues on Synodality.
The French National Synthesis expresses how much people enjoyed meeting together, but acknowledges the difficulty and failure to engage the marginalised and the young. Acknowledging too the fear of change on the part of some laypeople and many priests, it summarises 3 key findings from the dioceses:
First is the widespread conviction that sharing and meditation on the scriptures needs to play a more important part in strengthening both personal and community life
Second is the need for the church to give credible signs of God’s goodness and the dignity of all the baptised, especially in its ministries, governance and liturgies.
The third key finding is the widely shared hope that the church must be a better example to the world of living as brothers and sisters in Christ. It should be more open and welcoming, less judgmental; it must nurture a culture listening and dialogue to deepen relationships, between Catholics and with other faiths.
Full report is here
Ginny Young celebrated a significant birthday in style last week, with a huge turnout by family, fellow parishioners, local village friends and hospital colleagues at a surprise party master-minded by her sons and daughter. The large number of parishioners was a good reminder of how being church is being a family
As you can see, it really was a surprise to Ginny, who was stunned when she walked into a hushed and waiting crowd in the hall!
There has never been a more important time to care for the planet. Decades of aggressive farming techniques have destroyed ecosystems, endangered species and done great damage to creation.
The Green Abbey initiative at Sclerder Abbey starts with sustainability in mind and provides an opportunity to discover permaculture, in practice and theory, in the prayerful atmosphere of the Abbey.
Everyone is welcome to join in this ecological adventure. As you can see below, prayer is one of the four pillars of this project, but people of all faiths and none are equally welcome. The Green Abbey stands on four pillars
Pillar 1: work in the abbey and its grounds
As we are at the start of this project, there is lots of groundwork that needs to happen
– preparing the land for growing vegetables, developing sustainable techniques, learn ing what crops thrive here – and much more!
There are also ongoing jobs like tending the well-established orchard, cooking meals and helping around the abbey.
Help is also needed with setting up a database to analyse inputs and outputs for the project.
Pillar 2: community life
If you’ve been involved with Chemin Neuf before, this won’t come as a surprise! We want to live out this project as a community, learning from one another and enjoying the fraternal way of life. This includes meals together, opportunities to share and the possibility to meet people from different backgrounds.
Pillar 3: prayer
All are invited to join in with our rhythm of prayer. This involves daily offices, a weekly prayer group and times of guided personal prayer. Our spirituality is rooted in both the Ignatian tradition and Charismatic Renewal, so these feed into our ways of praying. We want to seek God in all that we do, remembering that we are stewards of His creation.
Pillar 4: formation to become better stewards
Whilst you will be living out permaculture in practice, we also want to equip you with some ecological theory (and theology, for those interested). This might involve meeting others who are further on the permaculture journey, watching relevant documentaries and visiting local projects. And it’s not just one-way. We want to learn from you too!
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