St James's Roman Catholic Church

THE VIEW FROM THE RECTORY

11 May 2008

First of all, I wish to thank you for your generous response to the second collection last weekend for the work of the Catholic Communications Network. The total raised was £726.00 and this will be sent off as soon as we can.
There have been quite a number of things to write about in the recent weeks, so I’m afraid that I have not had chance to mention a couple of things that will occur this week. First of all there is the annual Memorial Service for those who have lost a baby at any stage of pregnancy whether recently or long ago. This will take place at the Whitfield Memorial Church in Tottenham Court Road at 3.00pm this Sunday 11 May and is organised by the Neonatal Unit of University College Hospital.
Second, I should mention here that this week, 11-18 May is Catholic Deaf Awareness Week and there are two things to note: On Thursday 15 May there are two sessions, morning and afternoon, in the Hinsley Room, Morpeth Terrace (at the side of Westminster Cathedral). These sessions will focus on the experiences of many deaf people in Westminster and also give the opportunity to learn some liturgical signs for the deaf. Details are on the notice board. Then there is the possibility to donate any hearing aids that people no longer use so that they can be sent to a project in Nigeria. Again, details are on the notice board, but I will just say that the hearing aids (with batteries removed) can be sent to ADVP Hearing Aid Appeal, Westminster Diocese Deaf Service, Westminster House, Hendon, London, NW4 4TY.
Today is Pentecost Sunday and this Feast of the Holy Spirit brings the Easter Season to a resounding close. Once again we have celebrated the Paschal Mystery and we pray that the Holy Spirit may enlighten our minds as it enlightened those of the apostles in the Upper Room. The Spirit gave them courage to go out and preach the Good News and while our methods will have to be different, we too need courage if we are to be Catholics in today’s society. A survey published in the past week suggests that numbers of Christians will go down quite seriously in this country in the next fifty years. We all need to play our part in making sure that the message of Christ is properly and joyously presented. Who knows? We may reverse the trend! Everything is possible.

God bless

Fr Terry

Our Church

Our Church is right in the heart of London. It is a spiritual oasis to many people who come in for silent prayers and personal devotion. It serves the deep needs of those who desire to get away from the hurly burly of city life. On the other hand, the various parish liturgical services reflect the richness of catholic traditions and its pastoral orientation caters for all categories of people especially the young and those searching for truth.
The location of the church is not actually in Spanish Place as its predecessor used to be, but in George Street, almost at the corner of George Street and Marylebone High Street. Nearest Subway or Underground stations are Baker Street and Bond Street. For directions click here.

Access to the Church: The entrance to the Church is in George Street. The Blandford Street door does not give access to the Church.
There is no wheelchair access to the Church as yet. This has been put in hand, but there has been a considerable delay, while negotiations take place about the architecture of the Church and the best way to install the lifts that would be necessary.