Quadragesima I 2019 Bulletin

“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.”
Acts 2:42

Kalendar

DAY	DATE	OFFICE	NOTES
SUN	10.03	Quadragesima I	First in Lent
	07:30	Morning Prayers	Chapel
	08:30	Mass & homily	Chapel
	10:00	Breaking fast	Roedean Cafe
MON	11.03	Feria II of Quadragesima I
	07:30	Morning Prayers	Chapel
	08:30	Mass & homily	Chapel
	10:00	Breaking Fast	BCH Cafe
	17:30	Evening Prayers	Chapel
TUE	12.03	Feria III of Quadragesima II	*St Gregory the Great*
	07:30	Morning Prayers	Chapel
	08:30	Mass & homily	Chapel
	10:00	Breaking Fast	Roedean Cafe
	17:30	Evening Prayers	Chapel
WED	13.03	Feria IV Quatuor Temporum	Embertide
	07:30	Morning Prayers	Chapel
	08:30	Mass & homily	with Ashes
	08:30	The Hub drop-in	BCH Hall
	09:30	Breaking Fast	The Hub
	17:30	Holy Hour & Benediction	Chapel
	18:45	Ad orientem Conference	Chapel
	20:00	Fish Supper	Bardsleys
THU	14.03	Feria V of Quadragesima I	S
	07:30	Morning Prayers	Chapel
	08:30	Mass & homily	Chapel
	09:30	Breaking Fast	BCH Cafe
	10:00	BHFA Faith Council	BCH Hall
FRI	15.03	Feria VI Quatuor Temporum	*Embertide*
	07:30	Morning Prayers	Chapel
	08:30	Mass & homily	Chapel
	10:00	Breaking ~Fast	Roedean Cafe
	17:30	Evening Prayers	Chapel
SAT	09.03	Sabbato Quatuor Temporum	Embertide
	07:30	Morning Prayers	Chapel
	08:30	Mass & homily	Chapel
	09:30	Breaking Fast	Chapel
	10:00	Catechism Class	Chapel
SUN	10.03	St Patrick of Ireland	Second in Lent
	07:30	Morning Prayers	Chapel
	08:30	Mass & homily	Chapel
	10:00	Breaking fast	Roedean Cafe

DIARY THIS WEEK

ALMSGIVING is a form of prayer because it is “giving to God” — and not mere philanthropy. It is a form of fasting because it demands sacrificial giving — not just giving something, but giving up something, giving till it hurts.

Jesus presented almsgiving as a necessary part of Christian life: “when you give alms, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by men. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing” (Mt 6:2-3). He does not say IF you give alms, but WHEN. Like fasting and prayer, almsgiving is non-negotiable.

The first Christians knew this. “There was no needy person among them, for those who owned property or houses would sell them, bring the proceeds of the sale, and put them at the feet of the apostles, and they were distributed to each according to need” (Acts 4:34-35). That was the living embodiment of a basic principle of Catholic social teaching, what tradition calls “the universal destination of goods.”

MORNING & EVENING PRAYERS just a reminder that the Chapel is open from 0730 and again at 1730 for morning and evening prayers. These are not formal liturgies but simply a time for private reflection and prayer in the chapel. Fr Jerome is also available at these times to hear Confessions.

BREAKING FAST following the daily Mass and generally Sunday through Friday we cordially invite you to “break fast” enjoying fellowship and sharing conversation about the faith and life in general as we experience it severally and individually. The kalendar above details where we will breakfast together, BCH Cafe refers to the Community Cafe at the end of the building facing The Level run by our Salvationist brethren; Roedean Cafe is on East Brighton Gold Course and requires a lift if you don’t drive and perhaps offering a lift to someone if you do!

To “break fast” is of course to end the fast one has observed prior to Mass and the reception of the Holy Communion, traditionally this means abstaining from food and drink from midnight until the moment of Holy Communion. It is for this reason that traditionally Mass is offered in the morning rather than in the evening and hence the name of the first meal of the day, breakfast! As we read in the Acts of the Apostles, the early Christians in Jerusalem gathered together daily to worship and share fellowship including meals. So it is that as an Orthodox Catholic faith community, we gather daily to “break bread” in the Mass and in fellowship afterward. If you’ve time to stay on after Mass, please do!

The Primus’s Lent Appeal 2019

Our Orthodox Catholic mission in Cuba is currently in desperate need of funds to continue the SCHOOL FOR POOR CHILDREN Santa María de las Vegas Nuevas it provides every Saturday.

In Cuba, approximately 10% of the population lives below the poverty-line. However, even poor Cubans still have access to basic services such as healthcare, education, clean water etc. The lingering economic crisis, emigration, and teachers’ meager salaries though have led to a critical shortage of educators in primary and secondary schools throughout Cuba, with schools severely understaffed. Private remedial instruction is on the rise, as are private schools that teach English and other supplemental skills. Some children, in accordance with family custom, must work. In rural areas, children have to help their families with farm work or housework, so it’s more difficult for rural children to pay as much attention to their studies throughout the day and into the night. This has can have a negative impact, be it physical or psychological, on the lives and mentality of children.

The Santa María de las Vegas Nuevas Saturday School for kids is located in Camino de Vegas Nuevas on the outskirts of Santa Clara. The volunteer staff strive to provide a free supplementary education for children from a variety of impoverished homes both from the shanty town on the city outskirts and the poor from the surrounding countryside. The children are the sons and daughters of cheap prostitutes, peddlers, excavators (those who rummage in the municipal garbage dump to recycle raw materials), smugglers and agricultural workers without farms (poorly paid) who are forced to alternate their jobs with skullduggery and economically criminal activities e.g. the Black Market and worse.

With high priority given in the State schools to literacy and numeracy there is nothing in the limited budget left for extracurricular activities nor arts or creative projects. The Saturday School provides a place where poorer kids can be assisted with their education, have an alternative activity than slave-work and a safe place to play and be creative, free to express themselves, their hopes and their dreams.

The Primus of the Holy Synod, Metropolitan Jerome of Selsey has chosen the Saturday School project for our Communion’s Lent Appeal. The monthly rent of the school building is $40 per month or approximately £30, we’d like to raise a year’s rent this Lent, approximately £360 almost $500 and perhaps a little more to contribute to materials and resources for the activities.

Please prayerfully consider contributing to this worthwhile cause, perhaps donating a month’s rent for the school building? Use the button below and be clear to make the donation for “Saturday School Cuba” when prompted. God bless you.

To donate just press the button!

LENT STUDY continues on Wednesday evenings followed by the Fish Supper at Bardsleys. From 6.45pm/following Holy Hour, Fr Jerome leads a new study series called “Turn to the Lord” explaining through Scripture and Tradition the significance and relevance of ad orientem i.e. “facing east” in worship. The series has been devised in response to a request from the faithful in the Philippines and will take the form of a weekly series of broadcast conferences, video presentations and notes released weekly ahead of each conference. This will be of particular interest to those keen to know the reason for the orientation of our churches liturgically and architecturally. Below is last week’s Conference…

PLEASE NOTE the Conference will begin after Holy Hour BEFORE the Fish Supper with the idea being that conference/supper attendees can discuss the conference over supper!

THE LITURGY in Lent itself reflects the season in various ways aside from the penitential colour of violet and the absence of the Gloria etc. Tradition assigns a particular Mass for every day of Lent i.e. an individually tailored Mass with its own readings and prayers. Each Mass is also assigned a “stational church” in Rome where the faithful and the Bishop of Rome gathered for the Mass – the history of these stational churches will be posted every day on this website. Additionally every Mass concludes with an extra prayer of blessing for the faithful to remain constant in their observance. Most feasts of Saints become commemorated only to keep our focus on the season and even when they are celebrated, it is muted and the Lenten Feria commemorated with it’s prayers and Gospel.

CATECHISM CLASSES will continue THIS Saturday, March 16th immediately following the end of the Mass there’ll be a quick break fast and class starts at 10am finishing at 11am. This is the perfect opportunity to invite enquirers to the Faith or come along yourself to revisit the basic tenets of Christianity. “Catechumen” i.e. those enrolling to be received into the Church at Easter will be baptised/Confirmed during the Vigil on Holy Saturday morning.

The weekly discussions will be framed around study of the old Penny Catechism. This excellent pocket catechism provides a wealth of detailed guidance on, and explanation of, the Catholic faith. It explains Faith in God and the Apostle’s Creed, Hope and Christian Prayer, Charity as lived out in the Ten Commandments and other guidance of the Church. Participants will be expected to do some light prep and study in the week as well as attend the Saturday morning sessions.

SACRISTY SUPPLIES in preparation for the special liturgies of Holy Week and the Sacrum Triduum or “Great Three Days” the mission is in need of some sacristy supplies. It’s been a while since some of these items were renewed and the existing ones are now tired and past their best. We should of course desire to give God our very best! The following have been researched and are very competitively priced, perhaps dedicate the purchase of them to the memory of a loved one, or in thanksgiving for a prayer answered?
Altar Linens we need x8 Corporals x8 Purificators
Holy Water Sprinkler
Paschal Candle – required for Holy Saturday

Christianophobia refers to the state of being hateful or spiteful to Christians. A Christianophobe hates or despises Christians and/or what they stand for. The existence of Christianophobia should not be surprising. Jesus Himself predicted the world’s hatred for Christians: “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you” (John 15:18–19). Christians are called not to conform to the world but to be transformed into the image of Christ (Romans 8:29; 12:1–2). The unbelieving world hates what it does not understand and, therefore, will hate those who follow Christ.

Home Office statistics from last year on religious hate crimes in England, Wales and Northern Ireland indicate there were 316 incidents (out of a total of 4213) affecting Christians between March 2015 and March 2016. Organisations like National Churchwatch who describe themselves as a ‘leading organisation for security and advice in the Christian sector’, believe anti-Christian hate crime is significantly under-reported.

A Stop Christophobia campaign has been launched by Premier Christian Radio. The success of this campaign depends highly on the number of people who support it so please share this link with your contacts on social media and sign it yourself! There is currently a momentum building, but change won’t happen unless people stand up and be counted. Together we can ensure that Christian minorities are protected from discrimination and persecution.https://www.thestopcampaign.org/

Other news…

BRIGHTON & HOVE FAITH COUNCIL meets this Thursday from 10am at Brighton Congress Hall. This week’s speakers include, Suleman Nagdi MBE, Deputy Lieutenant of Leicestershire (DL) an expert in interfaith relations particularly in Leeds and Leicestershire and John Reading from the B&H City Council talking about Third Sector Invest Partnerships and Martha Spencer from the Community Safety Casework Team. Please pray for the smooth running and success of the Council and presentations, our own Fr Jerome will be chairing the meeting…

BRIGHTON INTERNATIONAL FEAST A chance for people from diverse backgrounds to come together and share their favourite dish! It’s a ‘pot luck’ event. What makes it an Ambigo event though is that participants will also be invited to share a personal goal, idea or ambition. They’ll then exchange info, contacts and advice to support each other towards them. This will help everybody feel heard and valued as a unique individual and increase their sense of belonging in our city. Why? When considering what’s going on politically this month ref Brexit, there are going to be many in our community who may feel more vulnerable and concerned. We wanted to do something that would bring people together no matter what culture the identify with in a positive, supportive and yummy way… We want it to be accessible to everybody so there’s no entry fee. This event is open to all but you must get a free ticket for entry. Before the event, we’ll email you to find out what food you’re preparing. It can be savoury or sweet, and we recommend enough for 1-4 people (but feel free to bring more!). We will have facilities to keep food cold and/or to warm it up. It’s thanks to the Brighton & Hove City Council and Sussex Community Foundation that we can do this. Free tickets and more info are here: tiny.cc/IntFeast29Mar

Cherubs Kitchen an exciting new project is on the horizon for Cherubs in 2019 and a team of core volunteers are needed for a regular commitment from January to April to facilitate a new SWEP (Severe Weather Emergency Protocol) homeless night shelter to prepare and serve food on an ad hoc basis. IF you’re interested, please ring 07423 074517

The MYBRIGHTON & HOVE Photo Project are running Photography Mentoring and Workshops which kicked off on the 2^nd of Feb 2019. The group is open to anyone who is homeless or has a history of homelessness. It is an opportunity to work with professional photographers from across the city in a relaxed and supportive environment and a chance to prepare work to be exhibited as part of the Brighton Fringe in May at One Church Brighton. This is a great way to build confidence and self-esteem and brought some great results for those involved in 2018.
Workshops take place fortnightly between 2-4pm on Saturday at the Justlife Studios in the Open Market. A group of professional photographers are volunteering their time to run workshops and support participants, so it’s a fantastic opportunity for some creative advice and direction.

Holy Week Schedule

HOLY WEEK begins on Palm Sunday, April 14 and ALL the liturgies (except Palm Sunday) will begin at the usual time of 8.30am in the Brighton Chapel. The Brighton Oratory is still the ONLY congregation in the South East to offer ALL the sacred rites of Holy Week according to the traditional Tridentine form encapsulating centuries of tradition. Do invite those you know or think would be interested to experience Holy Week as Christians did in the first millenium, through the middle ages right up to only a century ago!

DAY	DATE	OFFICE & LITURGY
SUN	14.04	PALM SUNDAY
	08:00	Blessing of Palms, Procession & Mass
MON	15.04	HOLY MONDAY
	08:30	Low Mass & Passion Reading
TUE	16.04	HOLY TUESDAY
	08:30	Low Mass & Passion Reading
WED	17.04	SPY WEDNESDAY
	08:30	Low Mass & Passion Reading
	16:30	Tenebrae
THU	18.04	MAUNDY THURSDAY
	08:30	Pontifical Mass of the Lord’s Supper & Solemn Blessing of Chrism
	16:30	Tenebrae
	20:00	Watch at the Altar of Repose
FRI	19.04	GOOD FRIDAY
	08:30	Veneration of the Cross & Mass of the Presanctified
	12:00	Stations of the Cross
	16:30	Tenebrae
SAT	20.04	HOLY SATURDAY
	08:30	Paschal Fire, Praeconium, Vigil, Litany, Baptism &/ Confirmation, Mass & First Vespers of Easter
	16:30	Paschal Mattins
SUN	21.04	EASTER SUNDAY
	08:30	PONTIFICAL PASCHAL MASS

For prayer…

Of your charity, please hold the following in your prayers…

For those in need… Christopher, Lyn B, Simon G, Dagmar B, Karen, Debbie G, Fr Graham F, Fr Stephen D, Heather & Susanna L-D, Finley G, Diane C, Pat, Paul, Bishop Rommel B., Penny E, Colin R, John, Ronald, Fr Gerard H, Lilian & family, Ruth L, David G, David P, Patrick H, Debbie G, Karen K, Fr Graham F, S&A, Dave G, Metropolitan Charles of Wisconsin,
For those discerning… James, Manuel, Vincent, Darren, Akos, Roger, James, Adrian, Carlos, Yordanis, Nicholas
For those who mourn… Barbara R & family, Brenda W & family, Joseph S, Catherine L & family, Rev George C & family, Jean C, Margaret & Bonita C
For the recently departed… Lauretta (21.01.19), Clive Reed (23.01.19), Fr John Wright (24.01.19), Shelley Luben (11.12.18), Mick Howells (13.12.18), Daniel Callaghan (13.02.19), Alfie (Hub guest), Jill Lewis, Cynthia Sharpe Conger

DONATIONS

The Brighton Oratory and our apostolates are completely dependent on the generosity of benefactors and supporters. If you appreciate our daily Mass posts and broadcasts, if you support our efforts for the homeless and neglected of society, please consider making a donation using the button below…