Just another WordPress site

Category: Pew Sheet

  • News for Christmas & New Year

    The Holy Family, a model of love.

    A new year means turning over a new leaf.

    When I was younger I remember thinking that we had to go our and find a leaf to turn over. I was irritated because I couldn’t write on the leaf and physically turn it over. So I made my own leaf and wrote on it all the things I was going to do that year.

    I was going to be better behaved. I was going to stop ‘answering back’. I was going to be a better son. 

    In many ways my behaviour in those years was born out of the fact my family was broken through divorce. I lived out the reality of hurt and pain that for years coloured my understanding of what a family was supposed to be. 

    When people talked abut the perfect family I would laugh at them, “there’s no such thing”. Even though I went to chapel every week nobody ever told me we had the perfect model of  family before us all the time – The Holy Family. 

    A model of motherly love, of fatherly sacrifice, of a family who held together in the darkness and for whom God (quite literally!) was a the centre of all things.

    Our families are all different. They are broken in many ways, they are big and small, over the top, quiet, difficult, fun. Loud, noisy, difficult, quiet.  The Holy Family experienced all of these things and endured them. 

    Sometimes that is what we must do as well. Endure. Be obedient and open to what God is calling us to do in our families and make sure above all things God is right in the heart of them. 

    It doesn’t matter that we don’t always get it right, what matters is that God is there in the middle of it all. 

    Then, when things do go wrong, there’s a chance that something beautiful may come out of it. 

    Fr. Matthew

    Downloads

    Bulletin for 24th December – 7th JanuaryDownload

    Readings for Sunday 24th December

    Readings for Sunday 31st December

    Other news

    Services for the next two weeks and for Christmas Day are listed on the pew sheet and on the website. Do try to come to the carols and crib service at 3pm on Christmas Eve. It’s a lovely service that will warm your heart ahead of the big day.

    Midnight mass will be as usual at 11:30pm on Christmas Eve – a powerful service to welcome and celebrate the incarnation of Jesus Christ!

    All of us at St. Anselm wish you a very merry Christmas and a prosperous and blessed New Year. 

    There will be a special announcement at Mass on the 7th January.

    Please support the church generously this Advent through your giving. stanselm.matthewcashmore.com/giving

  • News for 17th December

    Carols, & powerful joy of Jesus!

    As I sit to write this week I am smiling as I think of singing out loudly at the Ace Cafe this morning.

    We left St. Anselm at 8am and arrived at the Ace to tea, coffee, and bacon sandwiches (well I did!)

    A group of people who had never met congregated and started to practice Hark The Herald Angels Sing 

    We were lucky to have a great guitar player with us and even luckier to find someone who could play the drum. I say drum… it was an upside down empty tub of Hellmann’s mayonnaise!

    We did not sound glorious. 

    We were not note perfect, we were gruff, out of tune and by any professional standard – a very poor choir. 

    But the smiles on our faces were enormous! The simple act of singing together brought out joy that was hidden somewhere deep down inside. Somehow, singing of the coming of Jesus enabled us to see one another in this joyful light and to put aside the usual London reserve. 

    People watched us as they munched their own breakfasts and builders and businessmen alike looked up and smiled – and even joined in!

    The reason we were singing was part of a BBC Radio London series on carol choirs across London and how they make people smile and feel included.

    I love these moments of pure Christian joy when the love of Jesus is shown in it’s simplest form… joy.

    Be joyful this week amongst the business ahead. If you feel yourself getting grumpy… just sing a carol!

    Fr. Matthew

    Downloads

    Bulletin for 17th DecemberDownload

    Readings for Sunday 17th December

    Other news

    The Indian Orthodox church who use the church on Sunday afternoons have invited us to join them for carols by their children and some refreshments THIS Sunday 17th December, 3pm – 5:30pm. Fr. Matthew & Fr. Josiah will be in attendance.

    Holy Hour will be at 5pm on Sunday and I really encourage you to come to this last one before Christmas. An hour in front of the Blessed Sacrament will put you in exactly the right place for the busy period ahead.

    Services for next Sunday and for Christmas Day are listed on the pew sheet and on the website. Do try to come to the carols and crib service at 3pm on Christmas Eve. It’s a lovely service that will warm your heart ahead of the big day.

    Midnight mass will be as usual at 11:30pm on Christmas Eve – a power service to welcome and celebrate the incarnation of Jesus Christ!

    Please support the church generously this Advent through your giving. stanselm.matthewcashmore.com/giving

  • News for 10th December

    Holy Hour, desiring God.

    Last week we began our Advent dedication of Holy Hour on Sunday evenings. 

    It was really lovely to share an hour of silence with you all before the Blessed Sacrament and to pray in earnest for the life of the parish. 

    As I sat and prayed I was moved by a prayer of St. Anselm that I commend to you all this second week of Advent.

    “Let me seek you by desiring you, and desire you by seeking you; Let me find you by loving you, and love you in finding you.”

    Prayer is a DOING task. It is not something we do when all else fails, but something we DO expecting it the change things. 

    In praying we expect God to turn up. 

    I think a lot of people struggle with that part of prayer. 

    Prayer can sometimes feel like shouting into the void, but time and time again scripture shows us the great and real power of prayer. 

    The only way to understand the power of prayer – and the deep love that God has for you – is to DO it, and to DO it desiring what God has planned for you and those around you.

    Holy Hour is not a time to sit quietly and collect your thoughts – good though that can be.

    It is a time to concentrate on desiring God, of seeking God in your life and in that desire and seeking – in prayer – finding God’s love (and plan) for YOU.

    Fr. Matthew

    Downloads

    Bulletin for 10th DecemberDownload

    Readings for Sunday 10th December

    Other News

    During Advent we will hold a ‘holy hour’ before the Blessed Sacrament this Sunday at 5pm (please note the time change). 

    NEXT week is our special mass led by our wonderful Children. They will offer the readings, the prayers and a little something especially for Christmas. Please do come along and support them, and maybe bring some new friends.

    The Indian Orthodox church who use the church on Sunday afternoons have invited us to join them for carols by their children and some refreshments THIS Sunday 17th December, 3pm – 5:30pm. Fr. Matthew & Fr. Josiah will be in attendance.

    As we move towards planting a new church at The Ace Cafe in the new year we’ve been asked to provide a choir for BBC News on the 14th December at 9am at The Ace to sing out the morning news with Hark The Herald Angels Sing. There will be a minibus leaving St. Anselm at 8am on Thursday and we will have breakfast together after the carols before returning to Hayes.

  • News for 3rd December

    Holy Hour, time before Christ.

    As we start Advent we’re introducing a new service on Sunday afternoons at 4pm. Holy Hour. 

    What is a Holy Hour? Why is it important? How can it help us connect with Jesus?

    A Holy Hour is a time of silence in prayer and contemplation before the Blessed Sacrament. 

    It was a Bishop in the USA who first introduced me to the idea of a Holy Hour,

    Bishop Fulton Sheen said that the purpose of the Holy Hour—a sustained, uninterrupted hour of prayer in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament—is to encourage a deep personal encounter with Christ. 

    “Looking at the Eucharistic Lord for an hour,” he wrote, “transforms the heart in a mysterious way.” 

    In Advent we wait, we hope, and we look. 

    The Holy Hour enables all three of these things and trains our hearts to wait on the Lord, to hope in the Lord and to Look upon the Lord. 

    For each one of us those things will manifest in a different way. 

    What does waiting on the Lord mean to you? Ask this question before the Blessed Sacrament. 

    What does hoping in the Lord feel like for you? Ask this question before the Blessed Sacrament.

    What does looking on the Lord prompt you to pray for? Ask this question before the Blessed Sacrament.

    You’ll be able to join in this special time online as well as in person, but do try to find at least one Sunday in Advent to come in person and experience the powerful presence of Jesus.

    Fr. Matthew

    Downloads

    Bulletin for 3rd DecemberDownload

    Readings for Sunday 3rd December

    Other news

    Christmas concert with The Yiewsley and West Drayton Band is on Friday 1st December at 8pm, in St. Anselm. Ticket costs £5 and are available on the website.   

    During Advent we will hold a ‘holy hour’ before the Blessed Sacrament each Sunday at 4pm. 

    NEXT week is Sunday School and we are planning to present a special children’s mass on the 17th December so we will need all the children NEXT Sunday at 11:30am.

    Thursday Fun & Fellowship this Thursday! Come along and play some games and get to know new people. 

    The Indian Orthodox church who use the church on Sunday afternoons have invited us to join them for carols by their children and some refreshments on Sunday 17th December, 3pm – 5:30pm. Fr. Matthew & Fr. Josiah will be in attendance.

    As we move towards planting a new church at The Ace Cafe in the new year we’ve been asked to provide a choir for BBC News on the 14th December at 9am at The Ace to sing out the morning news with Hark The Herald Angels Sing. If you’d like to be part of this please speak to Fr. Matthew. 

    Please support the church generously this Advent through your giving. stanselm.matthewcashmore.com/giving 

  • News for 26th November

    Christ the King.

    When we think of Jesus as King I often wonder if we are missing a great deal of His teaching. 

    Jesus told us time and time again that He wasn’t the King that the Jewish people were expecting – coming with horses and chariots to free them from the rule of the Romans.

    He entered Jerusalem in triumph on Palm Sunday not with horses and chariots – but on the back of a donkey. 

    So why then do we enthrone Him on this very special Sunday? Why do we show him upon a throne, decked out in regal attire and ruling over us as an earthly King?

    The point of this elevation is to highlight Jesus as ‘Christ’ which in itself is a royal title meaning ‘King’ – although of course not in the way that the secular world understands (even Pilate misunderstands it when he called Jesus ‘King of the Jews’).

    It is a way of understanding Jesus as King of Heaven and the world to come. He sits enthroned on David’s throne (Lk 1:30-32) as promised by the Angel Gabriel. 

    The feast today marks the end of Ordinary Time, next Sunday we begin Advent and the start of another liturgical year.

    We end Ordinary Time on a high – with a Feast and a celebration of Jesus Kingship – and a reminder of what Jesus commands us to do in scripture. 

    Jesus commands us to feed the hungry to give drink to the thirsty, to clothe the naked, to harbour the harbourless, to visit the sick, to ransom the captive and to bury the dead.

    How will you respond to Jesus command this advent?

    Fr. Matthew

    Downloads

    26th-November-2023Download

    Readings for Sunday 26th November

    Other news

    Christmas concert with The Yiewsley and West Drayton Band is on Friday 1st December at 8pm, in St. Anselm. Ticket costs £5 and is available on the website.   

    THIS week is Sunday School and we are planning to present a surprise package in December so we will need all the children THIS Sunday at 11:30am.

    Children’s Mass for Winter Term will be on Sunday 17th December at 10am. 

    Thursday Fun & Fellowship this Thursday! Come along and play some games and get to know new people. 

    The funeral of Norma Pigott will take place here at St. Anselm this Wednesday November at 11am.

    The Indian Orthodox church who use the church on Sunday afternoons have invited us to join them for carols by their children and some refreshments on Sunday 17th December, 3pm – 5:30pm. Fr. Matthew & Fr. Josiah will be in attendance. 

    Please be aware that mass will be in the evening on Tuesday and Wednesday this week.

    The prayer list will be re-published next Sunday. If you would like to remain / have a name on the list please be in touch with Susan this week. 

    Please support the church generously this Advent through your giving. stanselm.matthewcashmore.com/giving 

  • News for 19th November

    Times And Seasons

    When you spend years away from friends and you get the opportunity to meet them again you will see some changes in them, and they will also see same in you. We change as time goes on and there is nothing anyone can do about it. 

    Change is part of our existence in this world, and it can either be positive or negative and the cosmos is also not left out, the world is changing day by day. Next week will be the end of the liturgical year and Advent will begin. 

    There are times and seasons, and it is not devoid of change. 

    I used to be a very young boy but now I am a growing man, and my life is changing all the time. We must not fear the times and seasons but rather know that it is God who has ordained this, therefore we must allow his will in our lives and make the most out of the opportunities he continues to give us to help in the growth and development of one another because time is not on our side. 

    Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” It is important to note that this is not really about the seasons we have in our world but rather about spiritual seasons with our relationship with God and his pre-determined plan fashioned for every individual or group of individuals under the sun. 

    Dear people of God, there is nothing that will stay the same apart from God so as Christians we must know that it is important to learn to adjust to God’s design and plan concerning our lives and make the most out of it.

    Fr. Josiah

    Downloads

    Bulletin for 19th NovemberDownload
    Readings for 19th NovemberDownload

    Other News

    Christmas concert with The Yiewsley and West Drayton Band is on Friday 1st December at 8pm, in St. Anselm. Ticket costs £5 and is available on the website.   

    Next week is Sunday School and we are planning to present a surprise package in December so we will need all the children next Sunday at 11:30am.

    Thursday Fun & Fellowship this Thursday! Come along and play some games and get to know new people. 

    The funeral of Norma Pigott will take place here at St. Anselm on Wednesday 29th November at 11am.

    Please sign up for Parish Giving (which is a wonderful way to support St. Anselm and helps us claim more money from the government) Go to stanselm.matthewcashmore.com/giving or call the Parish Giving Team directly on 0333 002 1271 quoting our parish number, which is: 230 623 503.

  • News for November 12th

    Remembrance & service.

    Last week I spoke about the sacrifice of service. How in service to God we are called to serve one another and that service often comes with sacrifice.

    In the case of St. Martin he sacrificed his cloak in service to the poor – and in doing so attracted the attention of God who made his cloak whole again.

    On Remembrance Sunday we remember all those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the service of our country and of God. All those men and women who have laid down their lives that we may live in a free and fair society.

    We remember the young men who fought in the trenches of World War 1. 

    We remember the young men who threw themselves at the evil of fascism in the Second World War.

    We remember all those families who lost their loved ones, who lost people through physical injuries or through the pain and torment of mental ill health upon their return.

    We remember that sometimes it is our duty to stand up and to fight for what is right. To stand in the face of evil and to say no.

    The thing about service is that any damage, any loss, is always made whole again by God. 

    Just as an angel made whole St. Martin’s cloak so too will He make our brokenness whole.

    He heals us, He brings us peace, He calls us all to be with Him in Heaven if we’re willing to hear Him and believe in His Son.

    We will remember them. We will be healed.

    Fr. Matthew

    Downloads

    Bulletin for 12th NovemberDownload

    Readings are available in the special order of service for this Sunday in church.

    Other news

    Sunday School THIS WEEK.

    Thursday Fun & Fellowship is back this Thursday! Come along and play some games and get to know new people. 

    The funeral of Norma Pigott will take place here at St. Anselm on Wednesday 29th November at 11am.

    The Christmas Tree and Town Lights turn on will once again take place at St. Anselm, this year on the 16th November at 4pm with a joint primary schools choir concert and the switch on at 4:30pm. The mayor will be with us once again.

    Please sign up for Parish Giving (which is a wonderful way to support St. Anselm and helps us claim more money from the government) Go to stanselm.matthewcashmore.com/giving or call the Parish Giving Team directly on 0333 002 1271 quoting our parish number, which is: 230 623 503.

  • News for 5th November

    Service involves sacrifice.

    When I was small I loved the story of St. Martin. A man who when he met a beggar without clothes in the middle of winter used his sword to cut his own cloak in half to clothe this poor man – an act of instinctive love.

    He was a Roman soldier and became a Christian at a young age. He left the military in the years before 361AD and joined the church. He became Bishop of Tours in 371AD and was known for his opposition to the violent oppression of those who disagreed with the State.

    But, it’s the story of the cloak that continues to grab the attention. After he had cut his cloak he went to bed that night and experienced a vision – Jesus came to him in his dream dressed in the cloak that he had given to the beggar and said “Martin, who is still but a catechumen, clothed me with this robe”. He woke to find that his robe had been restored to its full and complete length. 

    This vision profoundly affected St. Martin (who wouldn’t be!?) and he was baptised at 18. 

    An interesting historical side note is the impact this cloak had on our language. Priests who cared for the relic of the actual cloak that St. Martin wore were called ‘cappellanu’ and subsequently all Priests who served in the army were called ‘cappellani’ or in French – ‘chapelains’ which is where our word for ‘chaplain’ comes from. 

    Also, the little churches that were set up to care for the ‘little cloak’ when it was on tour were called ‘capella’. Ultimately those small churches lost their association with the cloak – and became ‘chapels’. 

    All this from a cloak cut in half to care for the poorest. All this from an act of instinctive love. 

    Inspiring stuff. Who will we serve this week? What sacrifice will we make that will be repaid a 100 times by Jesus?

    Fr. Matthew

    Downloads

    Bulletin for 5th NovemberDownload

    Readings for 5th November

    Other news

    Sunday School NEXT WEEK.

    No Thursday Fun & Fellowship this week.

    The funeral of Norma Pigott will take place here at St. Anselm on Wednesday 29th November at 11am.

    The Christmas Tree and Town Lights turn on will once again take place at St. Anselm, this year on the 16th November at 4pm with a joint primary schools choir concert and the switch on at 4:30pm. The mayor will be with us once again.

    Please sign up for Parish Giving (which is a wonderful way to support St. Anselm and helps us claim more money from the government) Go to stanselm.matthewcashmore.com/giving or call the Parish Giving Team directly on 0333 002 1271 quoting our parish number, which is: 230 623 503.

  • News for October 29th

    Praying for the dead, what’s the point?

    Some will tell you that praying for the dead is simply an exercise in futility. The person you are praying for is already dead, they’ve lived their life and presumably made their own decisions about that life, their actions and most importantly – their faith in Jesus Christ. What more can we do now they are gone?

    The simple truth is that we know God is merciful. In multiple parts of scripture we have seen how His heart has been turned towards mercy by the intercession of those who love Him. Who have called out to Him and asked him to be merciful. 

    We know that God does not work on our timetable. The fact that someone we know and love is dead and gone in this world, doesn’t mean they are dead and gone in the life of eternity. Our prayers reach God and He can easily put a new thought or direction in front of the person we are praying about.

    Finally, our prayers comfort us here in this life. Praying for my Grandmother brings me peace and comfort – I know my prayers are heard and I pray that my Grandmother is now amongst the company of heaven – surrounded by all the saints and angels – and in turn I know that she will pray for me. 

    When we are at the altar we are surrounded by the whole company of heaven – angels and saints unite around us as we receive the body and blood of Jesus Christ.

    If you could see that whole company of heaven surrounding the altar, if you could feel their presence, if you could hear their prayers – oh what a wonder it would be!

    Pray for the dead, pray for your loved ones. Be at peace.

    Fr. Matthew 

    Downloads

    Bulletin for 29th OctoberDownload

    Readings for 29th October

    Other news

    There are lots of changes to the usual schedule this week due to Half Term and the solemnity of All Saints and the importance of the All Souls service. Please take a look!

    No Sunday School this week as we are in  Half Term.

    No Thursday Fun & Fellowship this week due to Half Term.

    The Christmas Tree and Town Lights turn on will once again take place at St. Anselm, this year on the 16th November at 4pm with a joint primary schools choir concert and the switch on at 4:30pm. The mayor will be with us once again.

    Please sign up for Parish Giving (which is a wonderful way to support St. Anselm and helps us claim more money from the government) Go to stanselm.matthewcashmore.com/giving or call the Parish Giving Team directly on 0333 002 1271 quoting our parish number, which is: 230 623 503.

  • News for 22nd October

    Loved by God and called to be saints.

    This week we are pretty low on feasts and memorials. We often have several days where we remember the saints of God who have gone before us. But this week, we only have one – Saints Simon and Jude (Apostles). 

    They’re incredibly important saints who give us much to learn, but this week I’ve found myself reading Romans and I was struck by the first chapter where Paul introduces himself and addresses his letter to:

    ‘..all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints.’ (Ch1. V7.)

    The ordering of that introduction is fascinating if you take a moment to think about it. 

    Paul doesn’t address his letter to the saints of Rome who are loved by God, but to those who are loved by God… and called to be saints. 

    In other words, you don’t have to be a saint to be loved by God – that comes first. In fact, the only way to become a saints to recognise that you are already loved by God.

    God’s love is not given out because you are a saint already – that you’re so holy that you somehow earn God’s love. 

    No! God’s love comes first and in accepting that love you can become a saint – you can become more holy.

    Holiness is a journey deeper into God’s love, it is not a search for God’s love.

    Knowing this, I wonder how it may change our understanding of our own unworthiness? 

    Can we take where we feel unworthy and turn it on it’s head? Can we see that unworthiness as something that God already loves and in that love calls us to change and be better?

    What an idea! We become more holy in God’s love, not to earn it.

    Who in your life needs to hear this? Who needs to know that God loves them already and that they are called to be saints?

    Fr. Matthew 

    Downloads

    Bulletin for 22nd OctoberDownload

    Readings for Sunday 22nd October

    Other news

    PCC Meeting THIS SUNDAY 11:30am – 1pm to plan our Advent and Christmas seasons.

    There is Sunday School NEXT WEEK at 11:30am-12:30pm. Please invite and encourage your children to come.

    Thursday Fun & Fellowship is on Thursday and Fr. Josiah has some great ideas about things to try over the colder and darker months. Come along if you’re feeling lonely, come along if you enjoy great company – good coffee, conversation and camaraderie. 

    The Christmas Tree and Town Lights turn on will once again take place at St. Anselm, this year on the 16th November at 4pm with a joint primary schools choir concert and the switch on at 4:30pm. The mayor will be with us once again.

    Please sign up for Parish Giving (which is a wonderful way to support St. Anselm and helps us claim more money from the government) Go to stanselm.matthewcashmore.com/giving or call the Parish Giving Team directly on 0333 002 1271 quoting our parish number, which is: 230 623 503.