New General Data Protection Legislation comes into force on Friday 25 May 2018. This will affect us all. We are now required to both ensure and indeed demonstrate that we know everybody who has access to the vast amount of personal information we hold in the parish, what information they hold, and in which format/s. I know that a great number of you currently volunteer for the parish, or may have done so in the past, and therefore you may well have some personal information at your home or office, in a file and/or on a PC, phone, laptop or other device.
Please could you let either me or the Parish Office know if this applies to you, so that I can let you know what actions you will need to take going forward. The Archbishop is encouraging all of us to help implement these changes, and I thank you in advance for your co-operation. I cannot stress strongly enough the important impact which this new legislation will have upon the parish, and I am mindful of the most severe penalties which may be imposed for non-compliance. Please therefore do come forward, whether or not you think you may be affected. On Good Friday, there will be the traditional collection taken in support of the Holy Places in the Holy Land. Please note that there is NOT a Gift Aid envelope for this purpose. Please be as generous as possible in your support for the upkeep of those places associated with the life, death, Passion and Resurrection of our Blessed Lord round and about Jerusalem
Mass at 10:00 will be followed by Confessions, which will be available throughout the day, and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament until Benediction at 19:00.
Please note that there will be no Confessions on Saturday 31 March. This begins in the early hours of Palm Sunday, 25 March 2018. Please remember to put all your clocks, watches and various gadgets FORWARD ONE HOUR, to avoid coming to Mass an hour late!
Our Money Sunday talk was cancelled last Sunday due to the low numbers following the inclement weather. This will now most likely take place shortly after Easter Sunday. In the meantime, please do come along to collect your new set of envelopes, including those of you who give by Standing Order.
Anybody who wishes to receive an end-of-year letter is asked to contact the Parish Office by means of our Contact Form or by email, 'phone or in person at the parish office. This weekend, Our Gift Aid Organiser will speak briefly at all Masses. New envelopes are now available for collection in the room behind Our Lady’s Altar. There are special smaller sets of envelopes for those who give by Standing Order, so that they may take part in Second Collections. Anybody who requires an End of Year letter should email the parish office. You may contact the parish office using the Contact Form on this web site, or else send an email. If you are interested in joining the Gift Aid scheme, at no extra cost to yourself, please ask for details and forms. If you give by Standing Order, and would like to review your payments, this might be a good time to do so. Thank you all for your generosity towards the work of the Church.
The Reconciliation Service, followed by First Confessions, will take place this Tuesday 20 March 2018 at 19:00 in the Church. Please ensure children arrive in good time. Parents and guardians are asked to wait silently and prayerfully in the Retro Chapel, or as otherwise directed. We expect to be in the church for about an hour.
The Polyphony Choir will be joining us at 16:00 on Palm Sunday for Stations of The Cross. Do come along, particularly if you have not been able to make it to Stations at other times during Lent. Pray the Stations of the Cross by St Alphonsus Ligouri, and sing the beautiful verses of the Stabat Mater. Immerse yourself in the journey Christ made from his condemnation to death by Pilate, to his crucifixion, death and entombment. Imagine yourself in the crowd that watched Jesus, and wonder what it must have been like to witness his journey to Calvary.
Following the most informative presentation last weekend from John Smeaton, Chief Executive of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, and the great interest shown in what he had to impart to us, John will be returning to hold a meeting this coming Wednesday 14 March 2018 at 19:30 in the lower hall.
It is proposed to re-establish a SPUC group in our parish. All those who are interested are invited to attend. The meeting is expected to last for a period of between one hour and ninety minutes. John will be able to expand upon what he told us during Masses, provide appropriate literature and keep us up to date on the many attacks upon the sanctity of human life which take place on a daily basis. Let us embrace the Culture of Life and reject what Pope St John Paul II called the Culture of Death, which seeks to undermine the value of human life at every opportunity. Our Parish Safeguarding Policy has been updated. The revised wording may be found here. It is important that all parishioners, group leaders and volunteers at St. Bartholomew's are fully aware of all aspects of this most important matter.
Due to the inclement weather, it may be necessary to cancel First Holy Communion and Confirmation sessions. Unless you hear otherwise, they will go ahead as planned. You will be contacted by the organisers should cancellation be necessary.
If you are concerned about any parish group meetings, kindly contact the relevant organisers, since meetings may be cancelled and rearranged on an ad hoc basis |
St. Bart's NewsSt. Bart's news, current items of note, and future events!
|