Fr. Graham Writes: 30th November 2025
Webmaster • November 29, 2025
Oh for swords to be changed into ploughshares, spears into pruning hooks and all weapons of war to be disarmed, multilaterally, and food to be given to the hungry. This is the vision of Isaiah that flows from obedience to the word of the Lord and a promise of things to come. The Lord will accomplish it and if we are to share in it we must walk in the light of the Lord and "put on the Lord Jesus Christ".
As we begin the season of Advent we pray and yearn for this conversion of heart and mind for ourselves and the nations. This is a new liturgical year and a new beginning. It is a time of hope and expectancy, not just for Christmas but for the completion of everything that Isaiah prophesied. During this time we are expected to be "ready" to greet Him who is to come - Jesus. We prepare to celebrate His first coming in humility at Christmas but first we prepare to greet Him when He next comes to reveal the new heavens and the new earth. That could be anytime - even before Christmas. To help prepare please take some of the resources we have available in church for Advent.
It is good that we begin this season with an appeal to assist those in the missions and those whom they serve. We can help them in many ways, they will help us with their faith and prayer.
With my daily prayer for a blessed Advent.
God bless you.
Fr Graham
This Sunday, we encourage you all to come together at our SVP Christmas event, after the 9.00am mass, raising money for local people in need this Christmas. We have beautiful tote bags, quilt covers, table runners, stockings and Christmas gift bags of all sizes, all handmade by a craft group for us. Plus you can get a different Christmas outfit for the season, be it a jumper of glittery dress or other outfits for all ages, male and female, and a lot of these are brand new too. There will be a raffle, and cakes of all sizes, where you can buy a slice to take home or sit down and enjoy with your coffee. Scones, fruit crumbles and hot sausage rolls, all freshly made. All are welcome.
Times of the Christmas masses at OLQP:
Dear brothers and sisters, This Sunday sees the Church begin a new Liturgical Year. The First Sunday of Advent heralds a time of preparation for our celebration of the Lord’s birth. It is, also, a "season of two parts." We begin with a focus on the coming Kingdom of God. The second part, beginning on 17th December, provides a more intense preparation for Christmas. In this first part of Advent, we reflect on our hope in the coming Kingdom. This carries a particular resonance this year, perhaps, as we enter the final month of the Jubilee Year of Hope. Advent calls us to be open to the gift of hope. Hope is a virtue. Hope is a gift. It is a mark of the Christian, for our lives are a preparation for the coming of the Lord. We proclaim, every time we profess our faith in the Creed: “I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.” The Christian life looks forward all the time – in hope – to the wonder of the experience of total love in the Kingdom of the Father. This hope must inform our actions, our encounters with others, our words, our prayer. It is this hope that enables us to live our Christian life, sometimes in the face of opposition and not without suffering and difficulty, here and now – to be Christ’s people each and every day, as we await His coming. May this season be a time of renewed hope for us all, bringing us to be ever more effective in the work of mission that the Lord has given to us as beacons of hope, witnesses to the coming Kingdom of Our Lord Jesus Christ. With every blessing, + Richard
We will be watching 'The Way', a film which has inspired thousands to walk the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage. Friday 5th December at 7:30pm Fish and Chips will be provided as an optional addition for £10. Please email moviectkchurch@gmail.com if you would like to pre order food. All are welcome
This weekend we are welcoming Fr Hugh Seenan. The Missionaries of Africa (a.k.a. The White Fathers), are an international team of priests, brothers and lay associates from Africa, Britain and many countries around the world. Any ministry which has a real relationship with Africa, no matter in what part of the world it may be, is considered by the Missionaries of Africa to be within the scope of the apostolate. Through parish work, building up small Christian communities, working with the media, involvement in justice and peace, agriculture, seminary training, education and social welfare the Missionaries of Africa aim to work in partnership with the Church in Africa . . . and above all else to help build up the leadership of the Churches.” There will be a 2nd Collection at masses this weekend to support their work. Alternatively to donate online visit their website: www.missionariesofafrica.org.uk/donations , or you can make a transfer directly to their bank account: Account name: Society of Missionaries of Africa Account number: 82296731, Sort code: 60-21-07 Reference: OLQP Adur Valley, BN43 5WG
Throughout November, we will have the Books of Remembrance in the church. Please come and write in names of loved ones who have died in the past year (no need to rewrite names from previous years). On 22nd November at 10.00am, please join us for a special Memorial Mass at St Peter’s to pray in particular for loved ones who have died this year, and all those who are bereaved. Refreshments will be served afterwards in the Parish Room. All are welcome.
Come and join us for coffee where there will be sweet and savoury treats on sale to enjoy with your coffee or take home. Also lots of Christmas gifts: jumpers, books, pyjamas, glittery outfits, plus a raffle. All proceeds to the SVP Christmas Parcels Campaign.
Saturday 29 November 10:30–12:30pm Title: “Watching in Silence: A Benedictine Advent” Abbot Mark will explore the quiet heart of Advent through the lens of Benedictine spirituality—a wonderful opportunity for reflection and preparation during this sacred season. • 10:30 am – Arrival and light refreshments • 11:00 am – Advent Talk and reflection • 12:30 pm – Light lunch and Midday Prayer (optional) To register: Contact Kelly at E: kohara@worth.org.uk
The Community of Our Lady of Walsingham seeks help to purchase a property to accommodate their growing community and further their apostolates of prayer, parish missions, hospitality, chaplaincy and youth work. Any amount, large or small is greatly appreciated and the community assure you of their prayers. Cheques payable to COLW can be sent to House of the Divine Will, Neatherd Moor, Dereham, NR20 4AZ. More information, as well as the option to donate online, can be found at: www.maryshouseappeal.org E: office@walsinghamcommunity.org T: 01362 692574
Dear brothers and sisters, The feast we celebrate this Sunday was instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925 - the 16th Centenary of the Council of Nicaea when the definition of Christ being consubstantial with the Father was made – an anniversary that the Church has been keeping again this year. Jesus is our King – the word Christ means ‘the anointed one’ – and we are all called to share in His Kingship. Indeed, we are reminded of this at our baptism when we are anointed with Chrism in a prayer that speaks of our sharing in His Kingship. In an age when there are so many challenges to the Christian Way, challenges to the Kingship of Christ, it is good for us to be able to celebrate this feast, for it reminds us of who we are, and it speaks of our destiny as the children of God. Jesus, sprung from the race of David – who had been anointed by Samuel for his role as king – fulfils the Father’s plan. We read of this in today’s second reading. All is brought to fulfilment in the One who died on the Cross and rose from the dead; Christ who is the Word of God, Who existed before all things and in Whom all is created. We are His body; He is the head. He is King. The Gospel this Sunday speaks of that destiny in a most powerful way. Jesus tells the thief who recognises the Lord’s goodness: “today, you will be with me in paradise.” These are words we must all wish to hear, for when we do we have confirmation of our destiny, we know we shall share in the life of the Anointed One, Christ our King – that we shall live the fullness of what it means to be His. With every blessing, + Richard