St. Augustines Church

St Augustines Church and Office 1 Langcliffe Drive, Heelands, Milton Keynes MK13 7PL

Dear Friends, As you know, many of the government guidelines which have been in place over the last year changed on Monday, 19 July. There is to be a change in tone from legislation to encouraging personal responsibility. This seems to be a helpful next step. Since last July, when public worship resumed, our own policy has been one of gentle reintroduction, rather than whole-scale immediate change and I hope that will remain the case as we enter this final phase. The Bishop’s Conference of England and Wales have produced some practical guidance about how we might take the next few steps. It seems sensible, however, that we continue with most of our current practices for the time being and take a fuller look at things in September. Thanks very much for your continued patience. With Blessings, Fr Francis, Fr Stanley, Fr Brendan, Dcn Klaus, Dcn Jon

Live Streamed Mass on Sunday at 8.30am

We are now streaming Mass live at 8.30am from St Augustine’s, this will also be available to watch later in the day. To subscribe to this new channel click here. This replaces the weekly recorded Mass.

Sunday Morning Mass at St Bede’s  Just to remind you that the  Sunday morning Mass time has moved to 8.30am. This will allow greater flexibility with the Sunday Mass schedule. Thank you to the people of St Bede’s for your generosity. We will review how things have been working at Christmas. Sunday Evening Mass at St Augustine’s  We have gradually increased the number of our Sunday Masses as needs have required.  We have begun to celebrate Mass again on Sunday evening at St Augustine’s at 6.30pm. This will continue to increase the opportunities to come to Mass at different times across the weekend.

ST AUGUSTINE’S FEAST DAY CELEBRATIONS – 29th AUGUST There will be an opportunity to mark the feast day at St Augustine’s on Sunday 29th Augustbetween the 8.30 am Mass and the 11.30 am Mass with some cakes and drinks. This is a chance to celebrate not only one of our patrons but also an opportunity to celebrate the ability to celebrate our faith once more in public.  There will also be an opportunity to discover more about some of the groups that are present at St Augustine’s and maybe even a chance to join them! More details to follow – but please save the date!!!

ST JOHN VIANNEY, PATRON SAINT OF PRIESTS This Wednesday, the Memoria of St John Vianney will be celebrated. St John Vianney was a French Catholic Priest and was canonised by Pope Pius XI in 1925.  He is the only Diocesan Priest ever to be canonised and is known as the patron Saint of Priests. Please remember our Priests in your prayers, especially today! St John Vianney – Pray for us!

MISSION APPEAL – THANK YOU! The Religious Sisters who joined us at the Sunday Masses across the St Barnabas Cluster last weekend have sent a letter of thanks for the warm welcome they received and also the kindness and generosity you showed to them during their visit.  It was great to hear of the wonderful work that they achieve throughout the world in spreading the saving message of Jesus Christ. Please continue to pray for these heroic men and women who have left everything to bring others to Christ!

CATENIAN ASSOCIATION An international brotherhood of Catholic men, the Catenian Association provides practicing Catholic laymen and their families with friendship, social activities, and support through an international network of local branches or ‘Circles’. To find find out more information visit our website: https://www.thecatenians.com/find-a-circle/  or email: membership@thecatenians.com  or contact Richard Golden: (01908) 503331

RECYCLING

“(to live simply) is not a lesser life or one lived with less intensity. On the contrary, it is a way of living life to the full.” Laudato Si paragraph 223

Trash Nothing:
Trash Nothing offers an opportunity to give away your unwanted items, and to freely obtain things you could use. There are so many exciting things on offer – subscribe and start looking.
https://trashnothing.com/beta/
Old Clothing 
Whether reusable or not, any condition or brand, can be left in Marks and Spencer stores with clothing departments. If reusable, they will be sent to Oxfam. If not reusable, they will be recycled into new materials.
Ikea
Ikea offers to buy back unwanted furniture to lessen waste which would otherwise go to landfill.                                                                                                                                                                             Laudato Si Group

Gluten Free Hosts All churches within our St Barnabas Cluster of parishes have gluten free hosts available for communion for those people who need them. Please have a word with one of the stewards before mass and they can help you with the practical arrangements.

REST IN PEACE Please pray for those who have died and those whose Funerals will be taking place over the next few weeks.  May they rest in peace. Ann Bodley RIP – 2nd August Alex Williams RIP – 4th August Mary West RIP- 12th August

MONEY MATTERS A number of people have once again enquired about ways in which they can support the work of our parishes financially.   (1) STANDING ORDER VIA YOUR OWN BANK You can set up a standing order for donations to your parish using either your on line bank account or in branch. The information required to make the donation is as follows:Bank: NatWest Sort Code: 60-06-11 Account Name: 46898093 Account Name: Northampton Roman Catholic Diocesan Trust Payment Ref: **Please enter the Parish Name and Area**  (2) CALL THE FINANCE OFFICE AND DONATE OVER THE PHONE Every Tuesday between 10am – 4pm, a member of the Diocesan Finance Team will be available for you to donate to one of our Parishes over the telephone. To donate simply call 01604 712065 with your debit or credit card details. The money will go directly to the parish that you designate.

With Blessings during these times,

Frs Francis, Stanley, Brendan and Deacons Klaus and Jon

Email addresses and contact numbers

• Parish Secretary, Gillian Mcintyre Tel 01908-221228
• Father Francis Higgins francis@mk-cluster.co.uk
• Father Brendan Seery brendan@mk-cluster.co.uk
• Father Stanley Orazulike stanley@mk-cluster.co.uk