Category: E-Bulletins
Westminster Justice and Peace E-Bulletin March & April 2024
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Westminster Justice and Peace E-Bulletin February 2024
SHOW THE LOVE 2024
Westminster Justice and Peace are members of The Climate Coalition, which since 2015, has used the power of green hearts on Valentine’s Day to send a message to those in power that we want to see a safer, greener future for generations to come.
Watch some of the highlights from eight years of Show The Love
On Monday 12th February, everyone is invited to join the Southern Dioceses Environment Network on Zoom for deeper reflection on the theme of ‘Show The Love’ in our parishes and Catholic communities as we also make our preparations for Lent. If you would like to join us, make or bring a green heart to the meeting and wear something green!
Book for 12th February, 12.45-2.00pm, #ShowTheLove – Southern Dioceses Environment Network
THE SYNOD JOURNEY CONTINUES…
Cardinal Vincent Nichols and Bishop Nicholas Hudson have written to all the priests of the Diocese with an invitation to arrange two parish meetings before the next Deans meeting on 6th March to reflect on two themes of the Synod: Co-responsibility and Formation.
The time is short but materials are available to help and will be published on the Diocesan website shortly here https://rcdow.org.uk/synod/ .
The Cardinal writes: “It will be a moment for us to pause and consider how we are, in fact, keeping this mission before our eyes and in doing so striving to act in a participative manner.”
PREPARING FOR LENT
2024 is to be a Year of Prayer, leading up to the next Jubilee Holy Year in 2025. We are invited to delve deeply into the Lord’s Prayer at this time, reflecting on it deeply, line by line.
A Diocesan booklet ‘We Dare to Say’ is available with 5 Lenten sessions for small groups and the Westminster Deaf Service is encouraging us to learn to pray the Our Father in sign language. Please give it a go!
Westminster Justice and Peace E-Bulletin January 2024
“Lord, come to our aid!
Grant us peace, teach us peace;
guide our steps in the way of peace.
Open our eyes and our hearts and give us the courage to say:
“Never again war!”
Westminster Justice and Peace E-Bulletin December 2023
A warm welcome this month to James Holland as he takes up the post of Westminster Interfaith Co-ordinator. The work of inter-religious dialogue is intimately connected to work for justice and peace so we look forward to working closely together in the months to come.
James writes:
Hello! My name is James, and I have recently taken over from Jon Dal Din as the Coordinator of Westminster Interfaith. I’m delighted to have been appointed and I am very much looking forward to meeting some of you in the coming months.
Before joining Westminster Interfaith, I worked for 3 years as Lay Chaplain at St Charles Catholic Sixth Form College, in North Kensington. My diocesan email is jamesholland@rcdow.org.uk – please do get in touch, even if it is just to say hello!
At time of writing, it is the end of Interfaith Week, and I spent yesterday at a Parliamentary event with the All Faiths Network. Here, the most moving testament to the importance of dialogue was the warmth with which the Muslim representative spoke about the Rabbi, who this year hosted an Iftar in his synagogue.
In a world where we are so often defined in opposition to one another, this subtle embrace was more powerful than any of the other words spoken. As Catholics, we have a role in this conflict, and that is to pray for peace and to promote dialogue. Echoing the words from our fellow Christians at Evensong, we might pray:
Give peace in our time, O Lord,
for there is none other that fights for us, but you, O God. Amen
You can also read the Advent Message from Fr Dominic Robinson SJ
Fr Dominic’s Advent Message
Advent – a season of renewal, of hope in a new age to come.
The ever-moving cycle of the Church’s Year starts once more as we hear the message of hope in the light of Christ enveloping our darkened world.
It would seem there is much to dampen that hope in these dark days of mid-winter. Everything has been put into perspective by the singularly appalling violence in the land of Christ’s birth and could lead us to simply despair. And in our own city and its environs too the mid-winter is looking increasingly bleak. The growing number of homeless on our streets and those trapped in poverty. The ever more hostile policy against those looking for welcome from abroad, many of whom now, after only seven days of being granted refugee status, will shamefully spill out onto our streets looking for shelter.
This new insult to human dignity will surely mean the number of those sleeping rough, at record numbers already, will spike even more, with the shameful lack of inhabitable accommodation to give them a room at the inn. The fight for the very survival of the planet looms too at this time as we follow Pope Francis in campaigning for environmental justice at COP 28. So much, indeed, could lead us away from the light and leave us dwelling in the darkness of night.
Yet for the Christian disciple we have a certain hope that God’s Kingdom of justice and peace will one day prevail.
That must be our heartfelt prayer this Advent.
For the Christian all action for justice and peace starts with hope in his coming Kingdom, and in heartfelt prayer for this.
Then comes action, so necessary at this time of crisis and so much in evidence on our streets and in our communities. This is expressed in finding ways to help concretely and to advocate for the poor, the weak and the voiceless.
We see it in the food banks and pantries, night shelters, refugee vigils, climate vigils and marches, and in the attempt to deliver aid to Gaza and to campaigning for a just and peaceful resolution to this terrible conflict. Such action we see around our communities, be they in schools, parishes, chaplaincies and other organisations.
Action for justice and peace is always most effectively rooted in Christian love, which does not take sides in the conflicts but which seeks true reconciliation through dialogue, a lasting peace through which the dignity of every human person of whatever faith and nation is respected.
The Justice and Peace network can lead the way at this time of crisis as we are schooled through the treasure of Catholic Social Teaching in the search for a lasting peace which is never achieved without justice.
The voice of so many advocating for this peace is a vital prophetic voice which, like the great Advent voice of John the Baptist, proclaims the dawning of a new horizon of hope.
My prayer is that this Christmas we spread something of that hope in the Kingdom to come to those around us and so proclaim the prophetic vision of true and lasting peace.
Fr Dominic Robinson SJ, 1st December 2023
Chair, Westminster Justice and Peace
Westminster Justice and Peace E-Bulletin November 2023
Colette writes: As Israelis mourn their murdered love ones and await news of captured hostages, the world watches in horror as the death toll rises from retaliatory actions in Gaza and the situation becomes intolerable for people living there in constant fear of bombing and dwindling resources. Where will it end? What can we do?
Below we publish statements from Pope Francis, Cardinal Vincent, Mgr Jim Curry, Pax Christi and the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem and invite you to read the more detailed texts in full.
Westminster Justice and Peace E-Bulletin October 2023
Dear Friends of Justice and Peace,
Featured in the October E-Bulletin this month:
Celebrating the Season of Creation
A whole host of activities have taken place around the Diocese this month, including an outdoor ecumenical service for Farm Street Church and Grosvenor Chapel; a litter pick around Our Lady of Fatima parish, White City; weekly themed flower arrangements featuring the ‘river of justice and peace’ at St Peter and Paul, Northfields; an Uxbridge parish trip to Church Gardens, Harefield; and a Justice & Peace outing to the ‘Plants of Qur’an’ exhibition in Kew Gardens.
If you would like to share your events and photos from the Season of Creation, please reply to this email and let me know!
CAFOD ‘Fix the Food System’ Campaign
In addition, some 43 Westminster parishes plus the staff at Vaughan House signed the most recent CAFOD Fix the Food System campaign over the course of the summer – ‘Salina’s letter’ to the World Bank, calling for the rights of farmers to be protected to preserve and trade their own seed. This represents around 8,180 signatures. Thank you to everyone!
Laudate Deum and the Synod
During the month, Pope Francis announced that he has written ‘Laudato Si’ Part 2’, a follow-up to his 2015 encyclical. The Apostolic Exhortation ‘Laudate Deum’ will be launched on 4th October (details below) to close the Season of Creation, significantly placing the care of creation and concern for the poor, themes central to the life of St Francis, at the heart of the Synod in Rome which opens on the same day. We will be reflecting on all these developments over the course of the coming months.
New Commission Members
A very warm welcome to Richard Harries, the new Director of Caritas Westminster, and to Beata Rozycka, recently appointed as CAFOD Westminster Community Participation Co-ordinator, who are joining the Westminster Justice and Peace Commission as representatives of Caritas and CAFOD respectively. We look forward to working closely with Richard and Beata on justice at home and abroad and benefitting from their insights and experience. All best wishes in your new roles!
The newsletter also contains three pages of Diary Dates detailing unmissable events on these and other themes of justice and peace to share with your parishioners, friends and colleagues.
Westminster Justice and Peace E-Bulletin September 2023
Dear Friends of Justice and Peace,
Welcome to the Season of Creation!
We have many events, ideas and resources to share with you in this month’s E-Bulletin including:
GLOBAL – Join the ecumenical online services on 1st September and 4th October. Watch on YouTube Read the full text of Pope Francis’ Message for the Season of Creation.
NATIONAL – Watch the CBCEW webinar on the ‘Call of Creation’ document on 12th September.
REGIONAL – Join a Christian Climate Action river walk along the Thames on 9th or 10th Sept. Attend the Southern Dioceses Environment Network meeting on Monday 11th September.
DIOCESAN – Come with us to Kew Gardens on Thursday 14th September! Details
PARISH – Pray the Intercessions for the Season of Creation; say the Season of Creation Prayer at the end of Mass; create a display board, banner or focus area in the church; choose hymns about harvest, creation, rivers, water, peace and justice; hold a harvest festival or international meal; screen ‘The Letter’; host a Blessing of Pets… More ideas and resources on the website here
And there are many more events going on this term in every field of peace and justice from disability awareness, DSEI arms fair protests, children’s rights, migrants and refugees, to interfaith sharing and synodal conversations, to name just a few. In fact, there are four-and-a-half pages of Diary Dates this month! I’m sure I’ve missed something, so do write and let me know in good time (by 27th September) if you want an event included in the October E-Bulletin.
In peace, with justice
Colette
colettejoyce@rcdow.org.uk
Westminster Justice and Peace E-Bulletin July 2023
Following the departure of John Coleby (Caritas Director) in June, we must again this month say another sad goodbye and thank you, this time to Tony Sheen, who is retiring as the CAFOD Westminster Community Participation Co-ordinator after 18 years of service on the Justice & Peace Commission.
We look forward to welcoming new members onto the Commission for Caritas and CAFOD in due course in the autumn term.
The month of September, of course, also launches us into the now well-established Season of Creation. This year’s theme is especially meaningful to all in the Justice and Peace network, with words drawn from the prophet Amos ‘Let Justice and Peace Flow‘ (Amos 5:24). For ideas and resources please visit our website:
There are various events to enjoy throughout the summer, too.
If you have yet to visit the St Francis of Assisi Exhibition at the National Gallery, Trafalgar Square, we do encourage you to go. Perhaps you might even like to join me on a visit together on Wednesday, 26th July at 11am? Details are in the E-Bulletin.
With every best wish for a refreshing and relaxing summer season.
In peace, with justice,
Colette and Fr Dominic
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Diocese of Westminster Justice and Peace Commission 