Father Paul Townsend

Lent
For all who believe in Jesus, the call of Lent invites us to renew our baptismal covenant. Lent is a "joyful season" when we pay particular attention to the great gift of Baptism. It is an opportunity to open our lives in a new way to that share in Jesus' death and resurrection which Christian initiation brings. We are urged to do this in three ways. The first is by looking at our works of charity in order to find ways to be more generous and compassionate. The second way is to give more time to our relationship with Jesus in prayer. Finally, we are asked to fast and to deny ourselves some of the gifts of creation so that we might see more clearly the "abundant, free gift which comes to us through Jesus Christ" (Romans 5: 12 - 19).

Ash Wednesday
Ash Wednesday will fall on the 28th of February. Mass times will be as follows -
7.00am - Sacred Heart Church
9.30am - Sacred Heart Church
9.30am - Church of Our Lady of Walsingham
11.00am - St Philip Howard Church
7.30pm - Sacred Heart Church.

Ash Wednesday is a day of fasting and abstinence. Catholics between the ages of eighteen and sixty may take one full meal and one light meal only on this day. Those over the age of fourteen must abstain from eating meat. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the season of Lent, a time of preparation, prayer, almsgiving and fasting.

Lenten Lunches
Churches Together in Portchester
Weekly, ecumenical Shoppers' Services and Lenten Lunches will be held at the Methodist Church in Castle Street, Portchester, each Wednesday from the 28th of February. Each Shoppers' Service will begin at midday and will be followed by the Lenten Lunch at 12.30. Catholics from Portchester will be organising these on the 14th of March and on the 4th of April. All are welcome.

The Rite of Election
On Saturday the 3rd of March, ten people from our community will join hundreds from across the diocese to take part in the Rite of Election and Call to Continuing Conversion at the Cathedral. These ten people have been meeting each week since the summer in preparation for becoming members of the Catholic Church. At this ceremony, Bishop Crispian will call by name each to celebrate the Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and the Eucharist at the Easter Vigil. After the Rite of Election and Call to Continuing Conversion, the ten "Elect" will be presented to the parish at the 11.00am Mass on Sunday the 4th of March. A beautiful photograph of this group, kindly taken by David Armour, is on display at the entrance to the church. After the 4th, the names of the Elect will be inscribed in a special book which will be displayed in the Sacred Heart Church. Please keep the ten preparing to become members of our Church and their sponsors from our parish and their families in your prayers -

Wayne Roxburgh	Jon Ward
John Coghlan	Colin Gallaugher
Dave White	Lisa Roxburgh
Kara McLarty	Lisa Catterall
Justine Symes	John Phillips

Lenten Hunger Lunches
All are most welcome to share in a light lunch which will be served each Friday during Lent in the Sacred Heart Hall. The Lenten Hunger Lunches will be served from 12.30pm on Friday the 2nd, the 9th, the 16th, the 23rd and 30th of March and on Friday the 6th of April.

Reflections on the Lenten Gospels
Father Paul will lead three evenings of reflection on the Gospels for the Third, Fourth and Fifth Sundays of Lent in the Sacred Heart Church from 7.30 until 8.30pm. All are most welcome to these enjoyable reflections which will take place as follows -
Friday, 16 March - The Samaritan Woman
Friday, 23 March - The Man Born Blind
Friday, 30 March - The Raising of Lazarus

Morning Prayer
During the season of Lent, Morning Prayer will be said each weekday morning in the Sacred Heart Church at 9.15.

Ecumenical Evenings
There will be an opportunity to take part in a series of evenings to explore with other Churches the 'strands of mission' endorsed by Churches Together in England. All are welcome - to listen, to talk, to pray together and share ideas and then refreshments. The evenings, from 7.30pm to 9.00pm, will be as follows -

Thursday, 8 March Holy Trinity, Fareham	Seeking to Transform Unjust Structures of Society
Wednesday, 14 March St Columba, Fareham	Proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom
Thursday, 22 March Sacred Heart, Fareham	Teaching, Baptising and Nurturing New Believers
Tuesday, 27 March Methodist Church, Fareham	Responding to Human Need by Loving Service
Monday, 2 April United Reformed Church	Safeguarding the Integrity of Creation

THE UNION

Our calling as Christians is to stand out from the crowd and lead it lovingly ~ not to follow it blindly. Jesus has not called us and given us the truth to let it lie fallow. He has called us and given us the truth so that we might share it with the rest of the world and become a beam of light in the darkness of our own society. Unless we do this, unless we speak out against sins such as injustice, prejudice, violence, sexual immorality, abuse and exploitation, then we simply become another blind person on the way to an inevitable fall.

In speaking out against sin, however, we must also be careful to avoid the type of hypocrisy that Jesus goes on to talk about in today's Gospel. We must try to be an example for others rather than be judgmental towards them. We need to remove the plank from our own eyes so that we can see clearly enough to take the splinter from the eyes of another. A negative, judgmental, critical attitude towards individuals is not only unhelpful, but immensely destructive. People today, especially children, tend to react better to encouragement rather than criticism. Therefore, by encouraging others to do good by our own example rather than criticising others for doing bad, we can avoid hypocrisy as well as falling into the pit.

Fashion Show and Clothes Sale
There will be a Fashion Show and Clothes Sale of ladies and children's clothes on Tuesday the 6th of March at 7.00pm for 7.30pm at St Anthony's Catholic Primary School in Primate Road in Tichfield. These clothes are all chain store surplus, from firms such as Marks and Spencer, Debenhams, BHS, Richards, Adams, Mothercare as well as many others. Tickets for this event cost £2.50 for adults but admission for children is free. Ticket price includes a glass of wine or a soft drink. To obtain your ticket, please call Elizabeth Evans on 01329 231448. Elizabeth writes, "This is a must for every follower of fashion! Make a feeline for the catwalk and a chance for a purrfect bargain!"

Religion and Ethics
The BBC has launched a new web site which can be found at www.bbc.co.uk/religion This site gives news and information not only about Christianity and the Catholic Church but the six largest faith communities in this country. There is an item called "A Good Week for Cardinals" with information about the 200th anniversary of the birth of Cardinal Newman, the creation of the new Cardinals in Rome this week, an explanation of the ceremony, of why a Cardinal's robes are crimson and the significance of his hat falling from the ceiling of the cathedral, of how a Pope is elected as well as biographical details and a photo gallery of the College of Cardinals. The web site also offers up to date news and analysis on religious and ethical matters as well as history, beliefs, customs, worship and being able to listen to "Thought for the Day".

Accommodation Needed
A young Italian lady who has recently moved to this area and who is working in Down End is seeking accommodation in Fareham. If you are able to help, please telephone Vitalba Montanaro on 02392 362490.

Parish Barn Dance
A Parish Barn Dance will be held at St Jude's School on the evening of Friday the 16th of March. Live music will be provided by "The Turks Town Troopers" with Caller David Slater. Tickets are £6.00 or £5.00, if booked before the 9th of March. Numbers are limited. Supper is included. There will be a licensed bar and a raffle. To obtain tickets and further information, please call Graham Stanton on 01329 284057.

Teaching at Oaklands
Oaklands has vacancies for September 2001 for teachers of English, Art and Modern Languages. If you are interested in finding out more, please call the Deputy Headteacher, Mr Martin Lewis, on 02392 259214.

Liturgy and Music in Fareham
Mary Watson is to relinquish her role in leading the choir and playing the organ in this parish at Easter. This will mean some changes in the form and style of worship in the St Philip Howard Church in particular. Rosemary Farrell has very kindly agreed to lead a small group of singers and instrumentalists at the 6.30pm Mass on Sundays. This group will practise each Monday evening from 7.30 until 9.00 in the St Philip Howard Church. If you sing or play a musical instrument and are interested in joining Rosemary's little band, please call her on 01489 564576.

Keyboard Players
Keyboard players are needed to assist at practices and at some services. If you are interested, please contact David Cockshoot on 01329 283785 or Cindy Sherman on 01489 582672 for more detailed information.

Celebration Banquet
There will be a celebration banquet on Saturday the 3rd of March at 7.30pm at the Fareham Community Church. This banquet will celebrate our unity as Christians as well as the first anniversary of The Well. Tickets cost £4.00 each (or £2.50 for children) and are available from The Well at 116 - 118 West Street, Fareham, telephone 01329 318731.

25 February 2001
8th Sunday of the Year
The Year of St Luke

Teaching Vacancy
St John's Cathedral Catholic Primary School in Portsmouth is seeking an enthusiastic and committed Catholic teacher for the post of Key Stage 2 Manager. For more details, please call Miss Catherine Hobbs on 02392 821055. The closing date is the 21st of March 2001.

Parish Pastoral Council
Copies of the Minutes of the last meeting of our Parish Pastoral Council are available at the entrance to the church. Items discussed at this meeting included a parish open meeting, the Care Network, liturgical music, the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults and the Deanery Pastoral Council. The next meeting of this group will take place on Wednesday the 7th of March at the Church of Our Lady of Walsingham. The list of members of our Pastoral Council is to be found displayed at the entrance to the church and in the parish handbook.

Women's Word Day of Prayer
Women's World Day of Prayer will be celebrated on Friday the 2nd of March 2001.

A service will be held in the Church of Our Lady of Walsingham in Portchester at 2.00pm on that day. All are welcome to this service which will be followed by refreshments.

Services will be held in the Church of St Peter and St Paul at the top of the High Street in Fareham at 2.00pm and at 7.30pm. A crèche will be available and there will be refreshments. The speaker at the afternoon service will be Brenda O'Leary and the speaker at the evening service will be Chris a Herne. The theme this year is Informed Prayer, Prayerful Action.

Scripture Study
Father Andrew McMahon ofm will lead evenings of Scripture Study at Park Place Pastoral Centre based on the Gospel of St Luke. All are most welcome to these evenings which will begin at 7.30pm and end at 8.30pm on the following dates -

Wednesday 7 March
Wednesday 14 March
Wednesday 21 March
Wednesday 28 March
Wednesday 4 April

Support from the Web
Helen Andrews, a young member of our parish, has a song called "Springtime" for a local charity in a singer/band competition on the World Wide Web. To find this, go to www.liveanduncut.com and then click on South, South East, England, Hampshire and then Chart. Please listen to Helen's song and, if you like it, vote for it.

What Sort of Person Are You?
Sister Jean and Sister Anne from the Cenacle Convent in Netley will come to our parish on Friday the 9th of March to lead an Enneagram weekend. This journey of self discovery is offered to anyone interested in discerning their personal gifts and strengths. It is enjoyable, enlightening and entirely non-threatening. The Enneagram weekend will take place in the Sacred Heart Hall. It will begin on Friday the 9th of March at 7.30pm until 9.30pm; it will recommence on Saturday the 10th from 10.00am until 4.30pm and then on Sunday the 11th from 10.30am until 1.00pm. The cost per person for the three days is £10.00. Prior booking is essential. It would be necessary to bring a packed lunch on Saturday. Tea and coffee will be available. Information will be given as handouts but bringing personal writing materials would be useful. If you would like to know more, please call Veronica Chadwick on 01489 584250. If you would like to take part in the Enneagram, please contact the parish office.

St Martin de Porres Group
The St Martin de Porres Group writes, "This year's Lenten Appeal is to be called Help Me to Talk. We will aim to fund communication aids for children with little or no speech. The need to communicate is strong in all of us, and for those who cannot talk, the frustration is immense. Please help in any way you can to support this Appeal. Buckets will be at the back of each church after Sunday Mass."

The Sacrament of Anointing for the Sick
Please contact one of the priests if you are going into hospital or have anxieties about your health.

Thanks from CAFOD
Shirley Balfe, the Regional Assistant for CAFOD South, has written to thank the parish for our cheque for £883.11 for the appeal following the first earthquake in El Salvador. Shirley writes, "CAFOD immediately made £168,000.00 available for emergency relief and rehabilitation. Following the second earthquake there it seems that 1.1 million people (one in six of the population) will have been seriously effected. Your gift will be appreciated all the more."

Software for Schools
St Jude's is collecting Software for Schools vouchers and Tesco vouchers. If you have any to spare, please pass them on to the school or leave them at the parish office.

Catholic Children's Society
A retiring collection will be taken at all Masses today for the work of the Catholic Children's Society. This is the Church's Child Care Agency and Adoption Society. If you would like to know more about the work of the Society, please write to the Catholic Children's Society, 49 Russell Hill Road, Purley, Surrey, CR8 2XB. The Society relies on the support of parishes to maintain and develop its services to families and children in need.

Interested in Becoming a Catholic?
A series of meetings and talks takes place each year for those interested in becoming a member of our Church. If you would like to know more, please contact Father Paul, or complete the online form.