Young Adult Mass In September Young Adults across the diocese are invited to start the new academic year at one of our Masses on:
Thursday 4th at Saint Barnabas Cathedral, Nottingham
Thursday 11th at Saint Hugh of Lincoln’s church, Lincoln
Thursday 18th at Saint Joseph’s church, Derby
Thursday 25th at Holy Cross church, Leicester (Mass at 6:10)
Arrivals from 6.00pm with Mass from 6.30pm and some social time afterwards. For more info contact charles.archer@dioceseofnottingham.uk
Making a neighbourhood impact: Tuesday 9th September, 7.00pm The next ‘Mission Lab’ from Caritas and Adult Formation showcases a kaleidoscope of services which parishes can offer the local community. Project St Thomas in Spalding offers soup and sandwiches, befriending, beginners’ IT, money management for young people, singing and much more besides. Let them inspire you about what your parish can offer the wider neighbourhood. Register for the series at bit.ly/mission-lab
Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Our Lady of Fatima and relics of Saints Jacinta and Francisco: Saint Barnabas Cathedral, Nottingham will host the Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Our Lady of Fatima and relics of Saints Jacinta and Francisco on Sunday 12th and Monday 13th October, in commemoration of the Centenary of the Five First Saturdays devotion. The Visitation will include a procession and enthronement of the Fatima statue, followed by Mass; opportunities to venerate the saints’ relics; praying the Rosary for world peace; and talks and videos about the Fatima messages. A book table with devotional materials will be available, and attendees can enrol in the Brown Scapular devotion. For further details visit: worldfatima-englandwales.org.uk or email: membership@waf-ew.org.uk
Marriage Care: Are you interested in training and volunteering as a Relationship Counsellor with Marriage Care? This Catholic organisation specialises in relationship support and is currently looking for those who would be interested in training via the Certificate in Relationship Counselling (CRC) course, and looking for volunteers for the marriage preparation service prior to the CRC selection. To find out more visit: www.marriagecare.org.uk or email: volunteer@marriagecare.org.uk
The Mary Potter Heritage Centre is delighted to take part in this year's Heritage Open Days Festival. Visit the Centre at 32 Regent Street, Nottingham NG1 5BT, on Saturday 13th September, from 12.00 noon to 5.00pm. It’s a wonderful opportunity to learn, discover and explore the life and mission of Venerable Mary Potter and The Little Company of Mary Sisters through interactive screens, quotations, and artefacts.
Join the welcome and celebration for the National Jubilee Pilgrimage of Hope on Saturday 13 September
Pilgrims on the National Jubilee Pilgrimage of Hope will soon set out from across the country towards our diocese, converging at Nottingham Cathedral. Several of our parishes are offering hospitality along the way. Let’s give the pilgrims a warm welcome at their journeys’ end on Saturday 13th September. 3.00pm onwards: Pilgrims arrive. The Cathedral will be welcoming the public for one of its planned Heritage Open Days, with CAFOD’s Jubilee Icon on display. 5.00pm Thanksgiving Liturgy for the Pilgrimage, to which all are welcome. 6.30pm Mass as usual. 7.30pm Ceilidh to welcome the Pilgrimage of Hope. All are warmly invited to a celebration Ceilidh in Cathedral Hall to welcome the Jubilee pilgrims. Mancunian Irish folk trio ‘Ride On’ provide the music. Tickets, including a ploughman’s supper, are £10 and available from the Cathedral Office (cash or bank transfer only): email cathedral@dioceseofnottingham.uk and notify any dietary requirements. Book early to avoid disappointment!
The pilgrimage culminates on Sunday 14 September with Solemn Mass in the Cathedral at 11.15am for the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.
For further details of all the Jubilee pilgrimage activities visit https://bit.ly/pilgrimage-welcome.
Bishop Patrick has received a letter from Friends of the Holy Land, thanking parishioners for their generous donations through the Crib Offerings 2024.
Friends of the Holy Land letter
UK March for Life 2025: On Saturday 6th September the annual march for life will take place in London. Join with thousands of others from all over the UK who believe that all life is sacred, as we march through the streets of London to the Houses of Parliament. The Walk is peaceful, legal and always spiritually uplifting. There will be a coach from Nottingham, picking up from Good Shepherd Arnold and Cathedral Derby Road, costing adults £30, unwaged including students £15, under 16s £10. To book on the coach or for more information contact Marie (marielangford@live.co.uk, 07948 151264). ''Truly I tell you, whatever you did for the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.'
The Martyr-Saints of the North-West, Friday 12th until Sunday 14th September is a weekend studying some of the Reformation-era martyrs of the North-West region. Part-retreat, part-biographical, the weekend will be led by Monsignor John Allen of Salford Diocese, who has recently published a history of the diocese with a foreword by Eamon Duffy. For more information and to book: https://christianheritagecentre.com/events/the-martyr-saints-of-the-north-west/
CAFOD Runners in Leicester: Anyone interested in running a half marathon or 10k in Leicester on Sunday 26th October, please contact nottingham@cafod.org.uk
Assisted Suicide: Whilst praying that assisted suicide doesn’t become law, as an expression of practical support parishioners in our diocese last autumn raised over £10,000 through second collections to support the work of the 18 hospices across our diocese. These institutions provide superb care for those coming towards the end of life, and help families to accompany their loved ones at such a difficult time. By supporting hospices in this way, as Catholics we are putting into practical action our prayers for a respect and a dignity of life, from conception to natural death.
On Saturday 6th September the annual UK March for Life 2025 will take place in London. Join with thousands of others from all over the UK who believe that all life is sacred, as we march through the streets of London to the Houses of Parliament. The Walk is peaceful, legal and always spiritually uplifting. There will be a coach from Nottingham, picking up from Good Shepherd Arnold and Cathedral Derby Road, costing adults £30, unwaged including students £15, under 16s £10. To book on the coach or for more information contact Marie (marielangford@live.co.uk, 07948 151264). ''Truly I tell you, whatever you did for the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.'
The CSAN Jubilee of Social Justice will be celebrated in the Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King, Liverpool, on Saturday 20th September, at 12.00 noon, by the Most Rev Malcolm McMahon OP, Emeritus Archbishop of Liverpool, followed by a light lunch and Social Action Exhibition in the Pontifical Hall. See the poster for more details.
40Days For Life between Wednesday 24th September – Sunday 2nd November. Help save lives In Leicester! You can protect mothers and children by joining this worldwide mobilisation to Pray and Fast for an end to abortion, by taking part in 40 Days for life in our community, taking place at Across from Aylestone Road Gardens, Aylestone Road, Leicester, LE2 8PW, between 8.00am and 8.00pm daily. For more details contact Maureen: leicester40daysforlife@gmail.com
The Ascent is coming to the Nottingham Diocese - theASCENT is a three year discipleship process for Catholic young people in years 10-12 who want to embrace their faith in Jesus Christ at a whole new level and learn how to share it with others. At their heart they seek to disciple the few for the sake of the many so that the Gospel may reach the ends of the earth. Bookings are open now, visit www.theascentuk.co.uk/
Nottingham Cathedral has received a £1.69M grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to restore the breathtaking original vision of architect A W N Pugin. Restoring Pugin will revive the Cathedral’s east end, and open up this heritage gem to over 20,000 people across our Cathedral city, and diocese. New tech, community activities, educational programmes, and even a video game (!) are all on the way. Read more on the diocesan website (www.dioceseofnottingham.uk/news) and watch the announcement video on YouTube (www.youtube.com/@NottsDiocese). Please share this great news widely!
Sad news from The Briars: It is with sadness we heard about the passing of John Morgan who served as the Security Guard & Groundsman at The Briars for over 30 years. John, or 'Morgsy' as he was affectionately known, was a constant presence of warmth and welcome for the thousands of young people and staff who visited during this time. He had a way of making everyone feel at home, with a smile, or a story. He was an inspiration for generations of Briars teams and young people. In 2010, John was awarded the Benemerenti medal for services to the Church and is without doubt The Briars’ greatest servant. He will be dearly missed. If anyone would like more details of the plans to celebrate John's life, please contact Hannah Leech - hannah.leech@ololcatholicmat.co.uk
The Christian Heritage Centre’s Christian Leadership Formation Programme is a fantastic opportunity for students in Year 12 / Lower VI, and is now open to applications for 2025. Offering media training, tools for personal development, philosophical and theological study, and a chance to meet like-minded peers and Catholic academics and public figures, the programme offers a certificate validated by Saint Mary’s University, Twickenham. For more information visit www.christianleadershipformation.com
Young Adult Formation Course: If you would like to deepen your faith, grow in community with other 18-35 years olds as well as engage more fully in your parish then the brand-new Young Adult Formation Course run by the Diocese of Nottingham is the course for you. For more information contact charles.archer@dioceseofnottingham.uk or sign up at: https://forms.office.com/e/9qvH5SjRHh
ACN (UK) has launched an Open Letter Campaign calling on Foreign Secretary David Lammy to make persecuted religious communities priority recipients of UK Overseas Development Aid (ODA). They need your help to reach their goal of 10,000 signatures, which will trigger a response from the Government. Please sign their open letter today: https://acnuk.org/our-campaigns/red-wednesday-advocacy-letter. Together, we can help Christians and other religious minorities trapped in modern slavery, extreme poverty and worse.
Caritas Leicester and Leicestershire Advent Calendar: in this Advent season, we are amplifying the reach of some local charities which aim to bring light into darkness. There are, of course, many others. Please have a look and join us in raising hopeful voices. The colour version is at: https://bit.ly/3ZmMGuI, and the black and white version is at: https://bit.ly/40UwnGw
Catechist Formation Pathways – Are you a catechist? Have you thought about being one? The Diocese offers three courses that can be done together or stand alone. Encounter Catechesis provides the foundations of catechesis; Discipleship Catechesis explores a good knowledge of key points of Catholic Theology; and Missionary Catechesis is focused on going beyond sacramental preparation to help form disciples of all ages. To enquire please follow this link bit.ly/formation2425 or email: formation@dioceseofnottingham.uk
World Day of Migrants and Refugees: The Church has been celebrating the World Day of Migrants and Refugees since 1914. It’s always an occasion to express concern for different vulnerable people on the move; to pray for them as they face many challenges; and to increase awareness about the opportunities that migration offers. The theme of Pope Francis’ message for the 110th World Day of Migrants and Refugees is: God walks with His people. The Holy Father reminds us that all of us, God’s people, are migrants on this earth, on our way to the “true homeland”, the Kingdom of Heaven. Migrants are a contemporary icon of this people on a journey, of the Church on a journey, and at the same time, it is in them and in all our vulnerable brothers and sisters that we can encounter the Lord who walks with us.