Oldham Deanery

(St. Mary's Deanery) Dean: Fr. Peter McKie

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PUBLICATION OF THE APOSTOLIC LETTER "MOTU PROPRIO DATA" SUMMORUM PONTIFICUM ON THE USE OF THE ROMAN LITURGY PRIOR TO THE REFORM OF 1970

Letter to Bishops

Apostolic Letter (non official English translation)

Salford Liturgy Office

Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament in St. Patrick's Church Oldham from 10.30am. - 11.45am. on the last Saturday of each month

Vocations
Repeating last year's success

The diocese is repeating its prayer calendar initiative of last year wherby a parish, school, college, or chaplaincy, will dedicate prayers, on assigned dates, to ensure that all days throughout 2008 will have prayers devoted to Vocations in Salford Diocese. This year, the Office for Vocations is offering extra support to all the High Schools, 6th Form Colleges and University Chaplaincies in order to enable them to highlight and celebrate their designated Day of Prayer for Vocations.

Fourteenth Sunday in the Ordinary Time - July 6, 2008
The Lord reveals to the young their vocation in life if they seek it. Are you open to the prospect of your son or daughter entering Religious Life? Could you encourage a relation of yours to consider this vocation? If God is calling you contact Fr. David Featherstone, the Vocations Director, on 0161 681 1410.

For calendar details please see http://www.salforddiocese.org.uk/vocations/resources.html

MEN’S WEEKENDS
Harvesters Northern Residential Men’s Weekend at Lancaster University Chaplaincy and Conference Centre on Saturday 5th (start 10.00am.) & Sunday 6th July (until 5.00pm)
Theme – “You will find rest for your souls (Mt. 11:29)
All men (over the age of 18), are invited to the above event. Cost £97 including full board and en-suite room. Keynote speaker – Fr. John Trenchard CSsR (until recently Provincial of the Redemptorists). Weekend includes small group sharing, Eucharist, relaxation, bar. Details: Greg McCrave 01772 733338 or Dave Yates 01253 735061.

Changes in water charging structures in a number of regions mean that churches are charged on the same scale as businesses leading to large increases in annual water bills.

E-Petition

The petition, below, by Mr David Boddy of North Thornaby in Yorkshire, is currently available on the 10 Downing Street website for signing prior to submission to the Prime Minister, Mr Gordon Brown.

Further reading:
Church in 900% water hike charge
Courtesy of BBC News :

'We, the undersigned, petition the Prime Minister to instruct water companies to return to charging churches as charities rather than as business premises.'

To support and sign the petition click on the following link:
Church Water Bills (E-petition)
You need to provide your e-mail
and postal address.

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill

MPs have now voted on the upper time limit for abortion, retaining the need for a father, mixing human and animals to create hybrid embryos for experimentation and creating saviour (or spare part) siblings. All the votes went against the wishes of the majority of people in the country, and the objectives of the Passion for Life campaign.

See links at Passion for Life for how your MP voted, and write to them to let them know if you didn't agree. Remember to consider this information when you come to vote at the next general election.

The Mental Capacity Act and 'Living Wills'
The new Mental Capacity Act has a number of far reaching implications and will affect anyone unable to make decisions for themselves.

A Practical Guide for Catholics
The Bishops' Conference has produced a short guide:
MCA Guide (pdf, 308kbytes)

Child Protection – we have been informed by the diocese that our deanery is the next one for CRB checks to be made. These will take place in the next 12 months.
There is a meeting at St. Herbert’s on 22nd June to explain the details. All those in contact with children will have to complete the forms provided for CRB checks.

Chadderton section of the Catholic Women’s League (ST. HERBERT’S CWL)

If you would like to join the League which meets on the third Thursday of the month, contact Elsie on 0161 652 3930.

Prayer Group You are warmly invited to Prayer Group which meets at Werneth Convent, Grange Ave., Oldham, every Saturday evening 7.30 - 9.00pm. to praise God, meditate on Holy Scripture and Prayers of Intercession, followed by refreshments. Everyone welcome. For further information contact Cath Taylor on 682 8660.

Lourdes 2008 A Jubilee Year Preparations are underway for this, our 76th, diocesan pilgrimage to Lourdes in 2008. It is a special year as it marks the 150th anniversary of the Apparitions of Our Blessed Lady to St Bernadette at the Grotto of Massabielle.The diocesan pilgrimage to Lourdes will be Friday 25th July - Friday 1st August 2008

Full details contained in the Lourdes Newsletter (pdf.) Booking form can be downloaded from the diocesan website

The formal Decree according to which is granted a daily Plenary Indulgence on the 150th Anniversary of the Apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Lourdes is now available on the Vatican website Plenary Indulgence Briefly, the conditions are as follows

• 
  A) If, during the year running from 8 December 2007 until the end of 8 December 2008, they devoutly visit the following places, preferably in this order - 1) the parish baptismal font used for the Baptism of Bernadette; 2) the house of the Soubirous family called the "cachot"; 3) the Grotto of Massabielle; 4) the chapel of the hospice where Bernadette made her First Communion - and pause to reflect for an appropriate length of time at each of these Jubilee sites, concluding with the Lord's Prayer, some legitimate form of the Profession of Faith, and the Jubilee prayer or some other Marian invocation.
• B ) If, from the Feast of the Presentation of our Lord on 2 February 2008 until the end of the Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lourdes on 11 February 2008, which is also the 150th Anniversary of the Apparition, they devoutly visit a blessed image of the Holy Virgin Mary of Lourdes in any church, chapel, grotto or other suitable place in which it is solemnly displayed, and in the presence of that image perform some pious act of Marian devotion, or at least pause to reflect for an appropriate length of time, concluding with the Lord's Prayer, some legitimate form of the Profession of Faith, and the Jubilee prayer or some other Marian invocation.
• C) The elderly, sick, and all those unable to leave home for a just cause, if they consciously reject all sin and have the intention to fulfil the above-mentioned conditions as soon as possible, are likewise able to obtain - at home or wherever they may be - a Plenary Indulgence, if, between the days of 2 and 11 February 2008, they complete a "spiritual visit" (to the aforementioned places) in the desire of their heart, recite the prayers indicated above, and trustingly offer the pains and discomforts of their own lives to God through Mary.

World Youth Day 2008 Sydney, Australia
Interested in attending?
Further details (cost etc.) available from:
Fr. Simon Firth Tel: 0161 834 0333
Chairman, World Youth Day Co-ordinating Group.

http://www.wyd2008.org/

Annual diocesan pilgrimage to Our Lady of Ladyewell Shrine near Preston, Lancashire. Monsignor Mark Davies VG will lead our annual diocesan pilgrimage to Our Lady of Ladyewell Shrine near Preston, Lancashire, on Saturday 6th Sept (2pm)

Meet up at St Mary’s Church on Fernyhalgh Lane for the procession to the Shrine at 2.00pm.

Time for reflection and quiet prayer.
Opportunity for Confession. The day will end with Adoration & Benediction. Tea & Refreshments.

NEW HIGH SCHOOL FOR THE CATHOLICS OF OLDHAM
The Bishop made his decision to accept the offer being made by the Local Authority for a new Catholic High School for the whole of Oldham. This would mean that a few years from now, Our Lady’s High School and St. Augustine’s High School would be closed and would form a single school. The new school is to be situated on a piece of land near St. Patrick’s Primary school and the King Street roundabout, beside the current railway track. The Diocesan surveyors are happy that they could build a school there appropriate for the needs of the Catholic community in the future. Clearly, there will be some who will be happy about this decision and others who will be upset. Please pray, however, that it will be the right decision for the good of the Catholic Community and, indeed, for the whole town.

Statement from the president of the Bishops’ Conference, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor 20 July 2006 Holy Days of Obligation which are Solemnities of the Lord (other than Christmas Day) are to be moved to Sundays. This means that the Epiphany, the Ascension of the Lord and Corpus Christi will now be celebrated on Sunday. The Bishops of England and Wales have decided to transfer these Holy Days of Obligation to Sunday in response to requests from theDiocesan Council of Priests and many others. The Holy See approved these changes to the calendar on 13 July 2006 and they take effect on 3 December 2006, the First Sunday of Advent.

Catholic Certificate in Religious Studies
RE Centre
Plymouth Grove
Longsight
Manchester M13 0AS

The CCRS is important to anyone intending to enter Catholic Education. In the majority of Catholic Schools the CCRS is a requirement of employment and/or promotion. A course is currently running and comprises a number of stand-alone modules which may be commenced at any time.
Further details:
Bernard Stuart, 0161 256 6207, RE Centre.

Listen to the Family-

The website "Everybody's Welcome" is a response to needs expressed during the Listening 2004 initiative

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PARISH & DEANERY RE-ORGANISATION - Development Framework

Proposals affecting St. Mary's Deanery are:

St. Patrick's Oldham has been identified as a "Gem Church". That is, a building which will be developed as a focus for prayer and devotion within the deanery.

St. Patrick's Oldham and St. Mary's Oldham

Our Lady's Moorside and Sacred Heart Derker

Holy Family Limeside and Holy Rosary Fitton Hill (1 priest to serve 2 churches)

1. Sts. Aiden & Oswald Royton and St. Joseph's Shaw
2. St. Herbert's Chadderton and Corpus Christi Hollinwood
3. Our Lady's Moorside with Sacred Heart Derker, St. Anne's Greenacres, St. Edward's Lees with St. Michael's Abbeyhills

SAFE IN OUR CARE  In January 2002 Bishop Brain set up the Salford Diocese Child Protection Commission. Fr. Barry O'Sullivan has been appointed as Child Protection Coordinator and Patricia Gilligan, a social worker, has been appointed as the Child Protection Advisor.

The Commission has the responsibility to help parishes implement child protection guidelines (Safe in Our Care guidelines) Each parish has been asked to appoint a Child Protection Representative to act as a link between parish and commission.  St. Edward's Parish  Child Protection Representative is Eileen O'Toole and her role will be to help our parish volunteers, who are working with children, to implement the "Safe in our Care" guidelines. The  Diocesan Child Protection Commission are refining their delivery of training to parish based representatives in 2006. Training will focus at deanery level groupings so that constituent parish reps may meet and form mutual and collective support for the deanery. See website for further details