The Catholic Pic November 2019

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Issue 182 November 2019

St John Henry Newman INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Welcome Cardinal Fitzgerald St Bede’s Pupils Remembrance

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contents Welcome The Feast of All Saints is celebrated on Friday 1 November and this month our main feature covers the Canonisation of St John Henry Newman which took place in Rome on Sunday 14 October. Cardinal Newman converted from the Anglican Church to Catholicism in 1845 and was brought to the Church by the Passionist Priest, Blessed Dominic Barberi. Blessed Dominic is buried within our archdiocese in the shrine at St Anne and Blessed Dominic, Sutton, St Helens. As we celebrate St John Henry Newman, we pray that one day Blessed Dominic may be created a saint.

This month we also remember a local saint, St John Rigby, as we recall a Mass celebrated in his honour by Archbishop Malcolm at Harrock Hall, near Wrightington. Harrock Hall is the ancestral home of the Rigby family and St John was born there in 1570.

November is also the month of remembrance when we especially remember those who gave their lives in two world wars and other conflicts. May we remember them in grateful prayer and thanksgiving during these coming days.

Contents

From the Archbishop’s Desk

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Main Feature Welcoming our new English Saint

In a recent ‘opinion’ piece in her professional journal my niece Philippa wrote that the use of technical language empowers the speaker and disarms the audience. She was referring to the way language can be exclusive or inclusive.

Although she was talking about the construction industry, her comment applies equally to the Church. Does the language we use in our liturgy draw people into the mystery of the Mass or leave them puzzled as to the meaning of what we are doing and saying. When we talk about God, we use a specialist language which doesn’t invite others to join in but keeps the discourse among those who have trained in theology. Of course, this applies to most areas of life. If we want to talk about finance, we need to learn the language of loans, investments and interest rates. To talk meaning fully about motor racing a knowledge of car construction, engines and race rules may be essential.

This raises the question as to whether plain English is enough to get the good news of Jesus across to others.

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News From around the Archdiocese

Jesus spoke in parables to help understand deep messages about the mystery of God, his love for us and how we are to relate to him and to each other. It can be done then, but it requires imagination and effort on the part of the speaker, and a willingness to learn by the listener. The listening stage of our preparation for Synod 2020 taught us to listen. Now I pray that the Holy Spirit will teach us how to speak in a language that does not exclude but includes everyone.

25 Cathedral Record Singing the praise and worship of God

16 What’s On Whats happening in the Archdiocese 19 Profile Remembering St John Rigby

26 Pic Extras Mums the word News from the KSC

30 Justice and Peace A call to follow our prophets

Editor Peter Heneghan

Copy deadline December 2019 Monday 4 November 2019

Editorial Catholic Pictorial Magazine Liverpool Archdiocesan Centre for Evangelisation, Croxteth Drive, Liverpool L17 1AA Tel: 0151 522 1007 Email: catholicpictorial@rcaol.co.uk

Publisher CPMM Suite 4 Pacific Chambers, 11-13 Victoria Street, Liverpool L2 5QQ

Pictures: Cover and Main Feature © Mazur/catholicnews.org.uk Profile page: www.nickfairhurstphotographer.com

14 Sunday Reflections Liturgy and Life

28 Pic Life Forgiveness at its best

Most Rev Malcolm McMahon OP Archbishop of Liverpool

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13 Animate A day to celebrate our young Catholics

CPMM Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced copied or transmitted in any form or by any means or stored in any information storage or retrieval system without the publishers written permission. Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy and reliability of material published, Catholic Pictorial Ltd. can accept no responsibility for the veracity of the claims made by advertisers.

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Welcoming our new English saint ‘Saint John Henry Newman’s canonisation on 13 October was an occasion to savour for the pilgrims who travelled to Rome from Liverpool Archdiocese – and gives us a saint who is an example to all.’

By Simon Hart ‘It was like England had gone to Rome … hearing the choir of the London Oratory School, hearing the English hymns.’ These words of Father Sean Riley capture something of the sensation felt by every English Catholic who journeyed to Rome on the weekend of 12-13 October – a weekend spent celebrating the canonisation of Saint John Henry Newman, England’s new saint.

From the Archdiocese of Liverpool, a party of 70 undertook the trip to the Italian capital, led by nine clergy – among them Archbishop Malcolm McMahon, Bishop John Rawsthorne and Bishop Tom Williams. They were far from alone. Some 50,000 people gathered in St Peter’s Square on Sunday 13th for the Mass of Canonisation, including Prince Charles, who described Cardinal Newman as a ‘priest, a poet and a thinker ahead of his time’.

In his homily during the Mass of Canonisation, Pope Francis sought to highlight other characteristics of Cardinal Newman, whose feast will henceforth be celebrated on 9 October each year. The Pontiff quoted Newman’s claim that ‘the Christian has a deep, silent, hidden peace, which the world sees not. The Christian is cheerful, easy, kind, gentle, courteous, candid, unassuming; has no pretence.’ Qualities of equal weight today.

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Cardinal Newman, who lived from 18011890, is the first English saint canonised since the 40 Martyrs of England and Wales in 1970. Moreover, he is the first Englishman born since the 17th century to have been promoted to full sainthood.

He was canonised along with four women: Mother Mariam Thresia from India, Marguerite Bays from Switzerland, Mother Giuseppina Vannini from Italy, and the Brazilian-born Sister Dulce Lopes Pontes.

Cardinal Newman was many things.

Theologian and poet, prolific writer and profound thinker. As an Oxford University academic and Anglican priest, he helped to found the Oxford Movement, established to revitalise the Church of England. His conversion to Catholicism in 1845 was a matter of much controversy but he was quickly ordained a priest and, with the permission of Pope Pius IX, set up the Birmingham Oratory. He was appointed the first rector of the institution that became University College Dublin yet his priesthood was practical too and full of care for the less fortunate, as evidenced by his visits to the sick and imprisoned.

According to Cardinal Vincent Nichols, it was his very English attributes, highlighted by Pope Francis, which should give encouragement to all Catholics in this country. ‘I just felt a deep sense of something being fulfilled, and a deep sense of encouragement,’ said the Cardinal in a reflection on the

‘A priest, a poet and a thinker ahead of his time.’

canonisation. ‘I think that is especially true for all of us in England because this new saint was so thoroughly English.’

The Cardinal added: ‘We do not wear our hearts on our sleeves, we do not shout about our faith. It is, as he said, a deep and silent hidden peace that often the world does not see. What was strengthened in me was this sense of an unostentatious way of being a disciple of Jesus in the world today in the Catholic Church.

‘Here we have a saint for us everyday priests, and we have a saint for us everyday disciples who don’t shout about our faith, who tend not to get on soapboxes on the street corners but show our faith in our hearts and in doing the ordinary things, our duties, but always with a sense of obedience, that this is what God wants.’

A Liverpool link If Newman was born in London and died in Birmingham, his story does have one subplot of particular pertinence to Liverpool Archdiocese.

After all, the man who received him into the Church was Blessed Dominic Barberi, the Passionist priest who is buried at St Anne and Blessed Dominic parish in Sutton, St Helens.

‘With the Barberi connection in the Diocese, we all felt we should do something,’ said Fr Sean Riley. For the Liverpool group, their pilgrimage began on the Saturday afternoon with a Mass at the Church of St Anne in the Vatican, the Pope’s parish church. Later, at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, they attended a vigil of prayer presided

by Archbishop Bernard Longley of Birmingham along with representatives of the Confederation of the Oratory of St Philip Neri and of the Church of England.

Fr Sean reflected on this latter occasion: ‘It was quite emotional

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feature walking through the doors of the basilica, where the remnants of the crib are, to hear the strains of Praise to the Holiest in the Height.’ This Newman hymn, sung by the choir of the London Oratory School, was far from the only English flavour. There were seminarians from the English College serving at the Canonisation Mass the next day – and a sizeable number of English Catholics among the tens of thousands who filled St Peter’s Square for the Mass.

‘There were Liverpool pilgrims on the front row for the canonisation,’ said Fr Sean. ‘There was a tremendous sense of peace – a joyful but reverend feeling. Half of the English clergy seemed to be there.’

After the Mass, Canon Philip Gillespie, the rector of the Beda College and Catholic Pic columnist, joined the Liverpool clergy at a celebratory reception at the Collegio Urbano, a training college for missionary priests at which Cardinal Newman had once studied.

At the reception the Prince of Wales described Cardinal Newman as ‘a fearless defender of truth, whose impact on the world was as profound as it is enduring’. As Fr Sean observed: ‘It was wonderful to hear the future king of England speak about Newman as a national hero and a national treasure.’ The celebrations did not end there as the following day, a Pontifical Mass of Thanksgiving took place at the Archbasilica of St John Lateran, celebrated by Cardinal Nichols.

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feature

Two significant visitors from the United States were also present in Rome for the canonisation of Cardinal Newman: Deacon Jack Sullivan and Melissa Villalobos, the subjects of the two miracles attributed to him on the path to sainthood. ‘It was wonderful to meet them,’ said Fr Sean, who was also grateful for the assistance of a third

American, Alex Kramer, a seminarian from the diocese of Des Moines, Iowa, who spent last summer on a pastoral placement at Christ the King parish in Liverpool, and played an important role in ensuring the Archdiocesan trip ran smoothly, together with Leisure Time Travel.

Steps towards sainthood

‘There was a tremendous sense of peace – a joyful but reverend feeling’ 6

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It was in 1991 that Pope Saint John Paul II recognised Cardinal Newman as ‘Venerable’ for his life of ‘heroic virtue’. To achieve sainthood, though, there had to be two authenticated miracles credited to him. On 3 July 2009, Pope Benedict XVI recognised as a miracle the healing in Boston, Massachusetts of Deacon Jack Sullivan from an incurable spinal disease through the intercessions of Cardinal Newman. This led to Newman’s beatification, which Pope Benedict performed during visit to this country in September 2010. The Vatican approved a second miracle in November 2018, following the unexplained healing in 2013 of a pregnant American woman, Melissa Villalobos, who was suffering unstoppable internal bleeding that threatened the life of the child in her womb. On 13 February 2019, it was announced that Pope Francis had approved the Decree concerning this miracle. He then formally approved the canonisation at July’s Consistory of cardinals.

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Merseyside HCPT are hosting the Trust Liturgies at Easter 2020 in Lourdes and Archbishop Malcolm will be joining us to lead our celebrations. Merseyside HCPT region are asking for all past helpers who would be interested in joining the Pilgrimage to Lourdes as a friend of HCPT to get in touch with the regional Secretary/Chairperson so we can put some plans together for travelling as part of the region in 2020.

Contact: Kerry Arands: arandskerry@me.com or Merseyside Chair: merseyside@hcpt.org.uk or call Paul on 07798 581745 In addition we would like to appeal to any musicians and or singers who wish to audition and be a part of the musical group for 2020 liturgies.

Our next practice sessions are as follows: Sunday 8 December 2.00pm till 4.00pm At: St Teresa’s Church, Sedgemoor Road, L11 3BW If you are coming along or require further information contact either Angela 07702 975090 E: obrienjacs@hotmail.com or Marie 07535 624765 E: marielunt@hotmail.co.uk

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News diary If you’ve got any news from your parish that you’d like featured e-mail us with the details at: catholicpictorial@rcaol.co.uk

St Vincent’s celebrations

By Father Ferdinand van Campen MAfr The parish community of St Vincent de Paul, Liverpool celebrated their patron

saint in style with a three-day programme of events. On 27 September, the actual feast day, a Mass was celebrated with the pupils of

St Vincent's Primary School, teachers and parents. It was a very joyful celebration with the children singing, reading and praying.

On Saturday 28 September Father Tom Neylon and Mr Barry Kirby gave a talk about the life of St Vincent and how his mission ideals are continued by the SVP Society, who try to turn concern into action.

On Sunday the 29 September the parish community gathered for the Eucharist together with a good number of visitors.

At the beginning of the Mass we were invited to leave our benches and greet some of the people we had not met before. After the readings, ten children of the school performed a play about the life and work of St Vincent. We learned that St Vincent de Paul was not a saint from birth but underwent a conversion process which was initiated by his contact with the poor, the orphans and prisoners while he worked in the slums of Paris. Another strong point of this saint was his collaboration with others.

He did not do his charitable work alone.

He founded groups of lay people and two religious congregations. After communion a special word of thanks was addressed to Mr Joe Savage, who has served in the parish as sacristan for innumerable years.

And after the blessing, the celebration continued with a shared meal, with food brought in by parishioners.

Warriors of the Cross

by Neil Sayer, Archdiocesan Archivist A roll of honour has been compiled at the archives, listing all the priests ordained for our Archdiocese who are known to have served as Chaplains to the Forces in the Second World War. As remembrance services take place in churches and public places around the region this month, you might like to offer a prayer for our clergy in khaki.

A newspaper report of early 1940 shows that 14 of our priests were then in uniform, some who had already been serving as chaplains, but with several volunteers who came forward immediately war was declared and were then approved by Archbishop Downey for military service. By the end of the war some 55 of our priests are known to have served with the armed forces. Most were in the Royal Army Chaplains’ Department, but at least 6 served with the RAF. Given Liverpool’s seafaring connection it is perhaps surprising that only 4 are known to have been Navy Chaplains. Almost all of them 8

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survived the war, but Rev Gerard Barry, attached to the 8th Battalion Royal Scots, was killed under fire in Belgium in 1944 (see last month’s Pic).

Between them, our chaplains must have served in every theatre of the war: Rev Edward Crowley (pictured) underwent gruelling Commando training in the Scottish highlands before being sent out to the Far East, ministering to the troops in India and Burma. Rev Austin Jackson was with the Eighth Army in north Africa when he was taken prisoner at Tobruk in 1942.

Rev Dan Kelleher, a Kerryman by origin, also followed the ‘Desert Rats’ through the Mediterranean, landing in Sicily and following the fighting through the Italian campaign; when he reached Rome he was granted a special audience with Pope Pius XII. Rev Clifford Murphy had been one of the first to volunteer and found himself being evacuated from Dunkirk in 1940.

Much later in the war, a senior chaplain attached to a Corps HQ, he was the first priest to enter the concentration camp at

Belsen, not surprisingly a harrowing experience for him. In peacetime Rev George Hickson had been a curate at St Paul’s in West Derby. He wrote of how his faith helped him in re-adjusting to work in a parish after the war. He had realised, during sleepless nights in the Burmese jungle, that the war between nations needed ‘the weapon of prayer’.

‘We thought of ourselves’, he said, ‘as “Warriors of the Cross”’.

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news diary Metropolitan Perspectives

The Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King Liverpool has been awarded a grant of £91,000 from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to support an ambitious new community engagement project. The project, named ‘Metropolitan Perspectives’ will work directly with members of the public to create a range of new permanent visitor experiences within the Grade II* listed Cathedral.

‘Metropolitan Perspectives’ will connect local residents with heritage professionals. Through free-to-attend workshops and research trips, they will help to shape exciting new additions to the Cathedral. This will include an interactive Children’s Trail, a multilanguage Audio Tour and a brand-new exhibition in the Lutyens Crypt.

The Cathedral will work with local arts engagement experts Whispered Tales to deliver the three-year project.

Cathedral Dean Canon Anthony O’Brien said: ‘This is a very exciting opportunity for us to share the unique heritage of the Cathedral in a way that has never been done before. ‘Metropolitan Perspectives’ will help to ensure that our wonderful, diverse community is reflected in every element of our new visitor experience. We are so grateful to the National Lottery Heritage Fund for their support and guidance in shaping the project.’

To be part of the project to create a major new exhibition about the majestic Lutyens Crypt, the Cathedral is looking

for volunteers of all ages to form a research team. No prior experience is required, and workshops will commence on the 5th and 8th November from 10.00 am to 2.00 pm running initially for six weeks. Volunteers can sign up to either the Tuesday or Saturday sessions.

Expenses and refreshments will be provided. To find out more, email getinvolved@metcathedral.org.uk

Obituary of Deacon Patrick Meaney Deacon Pat Meaney who served for many years in St Columba’s parish, Huyton, died peacefully in Whiston Hospital on Saturday 5 October, supported by his family and the parish community.

Patrick Hugh Meaney was born on 21 December 1930 and was educated at St Francis Xavier’s Junior School and College. He trained at De La Salle Teacher Training College and his long teaching career included a spell as Headteacher of St Teresa’s Junior Boys School, Norris Green.

He married Teresa Mary Murphy on 20 July 1968 at Sacred Heart, St Helens and they had six children (five sons and one daughter). He was a committee member of the St Helens Lourdes Association and a brancardier on the Archdiocesan pilgrimage.

He was ordained deacon on 4 July 1982 and served the parish of St Columba, Huyton, where he will be remembered for his gentle and unassuming service of others.

His Funeral Mass was celebrated at St Columbia’s on Wednesday 16 October, followed by interment at Knowsley Cemetery.

Welcome Cardinal Fitzgerald

Representatives from Civic and Church life and Faith and Community groups gathered at the Liverpool Archdiocesan Office on Friday 11 October for a reception to welcome Cardinal Michael Fitzgerald MAfr back to the city. The previous Saturday in Rome Pope Francis had created Archbishop Fitzgerald Cardinal-Deacon of Santa Maria in Portico. A short service was held at the reception, hosted by Archbishop Malcolm, and afterwards Cardinal Michael took time to meet all the guests individually.

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news diary

Living with dementia

by Maureen Knight There are many people in our parishes living with dementia who, with their carers and their families, are also living in loneliness and isolation; they need our support.

Fifteen people recently trained to become Dementia Friends Champions.

This training enabled the people who took part to offer Dementia Information Sessions in parishes or to groups within the parish.

Recently some of the Dementia Champions and their friends decided to join in with the Alzheimer’s Societies Memory Walk at Aintree Racecourse.

Their team, ‘Holy Saints,’ walked in torrential rain but together they raised over £1000 which will go towards the Alzheimer’s research project.

The rain didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the thousands of walkers and it really was emotional to see the number of people who were walking in memory of husbands, wives, mothers, fathers, grandparents… so many people touched by dementia. We also recognised healthcare professionals walking for the patients they have cared for and still care for which was heartwarming. What was also tangible was the spirit of optimism and celebration, it wasn’t depressing at all despite the downpour and the mud.

There are a variety of activities taking place across the archdiocese:

Dementia Support Group at St Julie, Eccleston, St Helens.

The group meets on the first Tuesday of each month 1.00 pm to 3.00 pm.

Prayer session at St Oswald, Old Swan.

The group meets monthly on a Friday 1.00pm. Dates are decided on availability.

Afternoon tea and sing-along at St Mary, Woolton.

The event takes place on the last Friday of every month 2.00 pm to 4.00 pm.

Liverpool priest honoured

by London community A north London church packed with 1,500 people highlighted the impact of Liverpool-born priest Father Terry Murray on his local community.

Fr Terry’s Mass of installation as parish priest for the twin Kilburn parishes of Sacred Heart and Immaculate Heart of Mary, where he was previously curate, took place in September and was celebrated by Bishop Nicholas Hudson and attended by the Mayor of Camden, Maryam Eslamdoust. Fr Terry, a priest with the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, grew up in Holy Cross parish, Liverpool and has ministered in Dublin, Edinburgh, Lourdes and Liverpool, and even at San Quentin Prison, California. Holy Cross parishioner Colly Dunne Whitty was present at the Mass along with Fr Terry’s family and said: ‘Fr Terry does amazing work within the community.

He runs a credit union, a food bank, he feeds the homeless, he takes pensioners on holiday and takes volunteers along with him to provide Mass for the prisoners.’

• With thanks to Charles Rogan, ex-Holy Cross altar boy 10

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The Songs We Remember Choir gather at St Thomas of Canterbury Parish Hall, Waterloo every other Wednesday from 2.00 pm to 3.30 pm.

For further information, or if you are keen to be working towards your parish becoming Dementia Friendly, please contact Maureen Knight Tel: 0151 522 1046 or email: m.knight@rcaol.co.uk.

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news diary

New Organ for St Edward’s College

By Dr Christopher McElroy, Cathedral Director of Music The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council, writing about the use of the organ in our Churches wrote that the organ ‘is to be held in high esteem, for it is the traditional musical instrument which adds a wonderful splendour to the Church's ceremonies and powerfully lifts up man’s mind to God and to higher things.’

They might have also noted that people who play the organ (ie. organists) also perform a valuable liturgical function at Mass. The organ is one of the most difficult musical instruments to master, as the player is required to use both their hands and feet simultaneously whilst also reading music, watching the conductor and following the liturgical action.

As part of the Cathedral’s commitment to training the next generation of liturgical musicians, some of our choristers, and former choristers, has been learning the organ, taught by members of the Cathedral music staff.

During the month of October we were delighted to receive a brand new Viscount organ on a long term loan to be based at St Edward’s College, the senior choir school to the Metropolitan Cathedral. The cathedral choristers are encouraged to see themselves as musicians first and foremost, and singers second.

Thus, each chorister is encouraged to play one or more instruments and to engage with music theory on a weekly basis.

Several of our more accomplished pianists have in recent years shown a desire to play the organ, inspired no doubt by the experience of singing on a daily basis with the famous 1967 Walker organ in the Metropolitan Cathedral.

We are delighted to now have four students engaged in weekly lessons, with a waiting list of those who would be keen to start.

Mrs P Gent, Head of Music Faculty St Edwards College, Dr C McElroy Director of Music Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral and organ students at the new organ)

This new instrument, very kindly donated by Viscount, will allow our students to practice more regularly and also for the organ to be used in Masses, assemblies and concerts.

Thanks to the generosity of Viscount Organs, our organ students will have more opportunities to practice and the number of students we can accommodate will increase. Additionally, the students will be able to use the organ in liturgies, assemblies and concerts thus exposing the beauty of the sound of the organ to the whole College Community.’

Procession of faith and prayer in St Helens Families and individuals, young and old, braved the wind and rain to take part in the St Helens annual family Rosary procession on Sunday 6 October.

This year’s procession was led by Emeritus Bishop John Rawsthorne, deputising for Auxiliary Bishop Tom Williams, and the Deputy Mayor of St Helens, Cllr Paul McQuade.

On their route from Church Street via the Town Hall Piazza to St Mary’s, Lowe House, the walkers recited decades of the Rosary

for a number of intentions, including the family, youth, sanctity of life from conception to natural death, relief from unemployment, relief from disease and famine, and the progression of the Sainthood causes for Blessed Dominic Barberi and Mother Elizabeth Prout, both of whom are buried at Sutton.

A particular intention was for peace in the Middle East and for refugees from these conflicts. The procession concluded with the traditional sung Benediction service, celebrated by the Bishop.

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news diary The following Pastoral Letter was read on Synod Sunday, 13 October My dear friends in Jesus Christ, The words ‘thank you’ are central to everything we do at Mass today. The Mass, the Eucharist, is our great prayer of thanksgiving and praise to God. In this way when we gather for Mass we are a people formed by thanksgiving.

The Gospel today is an example of thanks unexpectedly given. The Samaritan, who was one of the ten cured, returns and says thank you; he is the only one.

I want to say thank you today to all those who have taken part in our Synod listening. It is remarkable that over 20,000 people have been part of this journey so far. This is encouraging and fills me with hope as does every act of thanksgiving.

But today I also want to say thank you to God for the gift of a new saint. On Sunday 13 October, Pope Francis will declare John Henry Newman a saint of the Church. That means we can all learn from his example, from his holiness, from his teaching, writing and praying. We can ask Saint John Henry Newman to intercede for us with God. He was associated with Blessed Dominic Barberi whose mortal remains were laid to rest at Sutton Monastery, within our Archdiocese. He became intellectually convinced of the truth of Catholicism but yearned to meet a person imbued with the holiness it promised. He found this in Blessed Dominic who received his declaration of faith and prayed with him at the time of his conversion. Newman was a man of the Spirit who yearned to encounter true sanctity, he discerned this holiness in Blessed Dominic and discerned the presence of the Holy Spirit in his own life and the life of others. He said: ‘Heart speaks unto heart’.

God has given each of us a calling, to use John Henry Newman’s words ‘an invitation to a definite service’. The Synod invites us to use the gifts that God has given to us to be truly missionary disciples for and in the world today. We must use our gifts in growing and strengthening our parish communities and taking our Faith out to the wider

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community in service of all, particularly the marginalised and the poor just as John Henry Newman did.

In one of his many writings our new saint wrote: ‘I sought to hear the voice of God and I climbed the topmost steeple, but God declared: "Go down again - I dwell among the people.”’

This is something that Pope Francis is very aware of as he encourages us to be the Church that listens. Over these last months we have listened together. We have journeyed along the road towards our Synod. I would encourage you to have a look at the report from the listening that can be accessed through our Synod website. Even a quick glance will give you an idea of the riches that have been shared by so many who have participated. As you read through you may notice some ideas that you think might make good proposals to be considered at the Synod itself next October. You may also notice some ideas that lie outside of what can be considered at a diocesan Synod.

From all the listening that has taken place 4 themes have emerged.

These are: • All called and gifted by God In this Synod Theme we reflect on the vocation that God gives to each of us.

• Sharing the mission of Jesus Here we reflect on how we are sent out into the world to proclaim the Good News to the whole of creation.

• How we pray together In our third theme we reflect on the place of prayer and worship in our life as Church.

• Building community, nurturing belonging In our final Synod Theme, we reflect on what it means to be a Church of welcome and discipleship.

Please take the Synod Sunday leaflet with you today and be ready to play your part in shaping proposals.

We do all this led by the kindly light of God’s love. Those words are part of St John Henry Newman’s great hymn, ‘Lead kindly light’. In the midst of what can sometimes seem to be dark times we are confident of that light. Our Synod listening has shone a light, a bright light which with God’s help will lead us on the path we should choose. It will not always be an easy path, but we walk it together, on the road, becoming the Church God is calling us to be.

St John Henry Newman lived during a period of tremendous changes: social, cultural, technological, intellectual and spiritual. He tried to assimilate all this into his traditional Christian life of faith.

He said: ‘To live is to change and to be perfect is to have changed often’.

With courage and great faith and with thanksgiving in our hearts we commit the next steps in our Synod to his intercession as we journey together to become the Church God is calling us to be.

St John Henry Newman, pray for us.

I wish you and your families every blessing in the months ahead.

Most Reverend Malcolm McMahon OP Archbishop of Liverpool

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youth ministry

A day to celebrate our young Catholics

By Simon Hart ‘Significance’ is the theme of National Youth Sunday, a day which we celebrate on the Feast of Christ the King – Sunday 24 November.

It was the theme of this year’s Flame Congress, when 10,000 young people descended on Wembley Arena in March and reflected on their significance to God and the unique vocation each has received to explore and fulfil.

It is a theme, moreover, inspired by Pope Francis’s Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation, ‘Christus Vivit’ and in his address to young people to mark National Youth Sunday, Cardinal Vincent Nichols points them to paragraph 115 of the Pope’s work, where he writes: ‘For him, you have worth; you are not insignificant. You are important to him, for you are the work of his hands. That is why he is concerned about you and looks to you with affection.’

The Cardinal, in his message to the young Catholics of England and Wales, goes on to say: ‘I really want to encourage you to make your way and feel part of the Church, to feel part of your Church, to feel at home there and know you have a part to play. I want to encourage you to play your part to be the apostles of today.

I want you to be the digital disciples of Jesus, the digital apostles, people who understand the digital word and can use it to let other people know something of the joy and consolation of faith.

Of course, we have an example closer to home of young disciples doing significant work – namely, the Animate Youth Ministries team, a group of young adults living and working as a community in Liverpool Archdiocese.

Their work with some 10,000 school

pupils per year is overseen by Father Simon Gore, Director of Youth Ministry in the Diocese.

‘Working with young people both reminds me of, and gives me, the hope I should always have as a child of God,’ says Fr Simon. ‘I am fortunate that I’m able to see those moments of grace and blessing perhaps more often than many others.’

For Fr Simon, National Youth Sunday is ‘a chance to celebrate the young people in our parishes and schools’ and, to this end, it is worth highlighting their involvement in faithrelated activities. Working with the Animate team, 2,700 pupils over the last year took part in high-school day retreats, while 4,500 were involved in school mission days or weeks.

Another 1,046 participated in the Faith in Action Award. And all of this

before the summer when around 500 youngsters departed on the Archdiocesan Youth Pilgrimage to Lourdes.

Fr Simon adds: ‘At times I, and maybe most of us, can look at the world and see bleak horizons. And yet I then take part in a retreat here at Lowe House in St Helens with a group of Year 7s, or I look at the final piece of a Year 11 pupil aiming for a gold Faith in Action Award, or I see a young person so engrossed in talking to a pilgrim in Lourdes that they’re ignoring everything else around them and I suddenly start to see the world a little differently.’

Thus National Youth Sunday is a moment not only to recognise young people as a gift for the Church, but also to enable youth ministry and affirm their contributions. To support the Animate team on this National Youth Sunday, there will be collections at Mass, while for those willing to consider more regular financial support, gift-aid forms can be downloaded from animateyouth.org.

The Animate team also welcome practical support, such as bringing youngsters to Youth Alive Masses, helping with the Faith in Action Award Scheme or assisting with Lourdes fundraising. Fr Simon adds: ‘If you’d like to offer support in this way, please contact Animate and we can let you know the different ways you might be able to be involved.’

• To learn more about National Youth Sunday, and explore it at home or in your parishes and schools, there are resources available on the following website: nationalyouthsunday.com

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sunday reflections On a liturgical note

Canon Philip Gillespie

‘Those angel-faces smile, which I have loved long since and lost awhile.’

Written in 1833 while he was still an Anglican, these words of John Henry Newman are well known and loved as part of the hymn ‘Lead, Kindly Light’. It was a hymn sung many times over the weekend of 12-13 October as Cardinal John Henry Newman was declared a saint in a wonderful and memorable celebration at St Peter’s Square in the Vatican in Rome.

From one new saint, we begin November with the Solemnity of All Saints and then recall on the 2nd, the Feast of All Souls, all of those ‘who have gone before us with the sign of faith and rest in the sleep of peace’ (Eucharistic Prayer 1, the Roman Canon). Indeed in our parishes and communities the custom of the ‘pious list’ and prayer for the Holy Souls is a mark of this entire month of November which seems to chime with the theme of Remembrance, which is marked by the nation around the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month.

Remembrance of our dead is an important part of every celebration of the Mass because we form ‘one body, one spirit in Christ’ (Eucharistic Prayer 3) – those who have been nourished by God’s Word and his Sacraments, those who have in turn nourished us by their

good will, their good example and their Christian witness, deserve to be in our thoughts and prayers at all times as we celebrate God’s goodness to us.

Daily in our personal prayer and devotion, and in a particular way on the Lord’s Day, in our Sunday Mass, we give thanks for that goodness which has been shared with us in and through the lives of those dear to us, living and dead.

An important part of our Catholic devotions in this month is also to remember the souls that have no one else to remember them or to pray for them; that we are all one body, one spirit in Christ means that they too are our brothers and sisters, even though we may never have met them in life.

This sense of being truly part of a community of faith, spreading across the years and across the geographical miles, is a source of great comfort and inspiration to us. It should make us ever mindful of the fact that it is not simply about me or just my concerns but rather it is always about us and our celebration as part of something truly Catholic and universal – the pilgrim Church on earth which does indeed long to be one with those angel-faces that gaze on the glory of God in eternity.

Sunday thoughts

Mgr John Devine OBE

I’m a baby boomer. I’ve lived through a long period of stability.

Wars have taken place on distant shores but those living in western Europe and the United States have enjoyed relatively untroubled lives for half a century.

The UN and NATO (and dare I say the European Union?) have ensured peaceful and seamless interaction between western nations. In the UK, free elections, Parliament, the judiciary, the Police service, the NHS etc have been taken for granted. Although these institutions have disguised inequalities and injustices for some, the UK has been considered to be a comfortable place to live, work, raise a family, and to live with dignity until death. Most of us have unquestioningly assumed that these benign structures would survive until the end of time.

So what’s changed? Terrorism and extremism obviously rock our sense of security but what really threatens our way of life is when trusted institutions

are challenged by the establishment itself.

Parliament and the judiciary are ridiculed as ‘enemies of the people’.

The BBC, once the touchstone of reliability, is dismissed as biased. We rely instead on our iPhones and a social media that is manipulated by hidden and malevolent interest groups.

At the end of November we celebrate the feast of Christ the King. Many of us had assumed that the ‘post-war consensus’ was the next best thing to the Kingdom of Heaven. We’ve had to grow up quickly. The world of idolatrous systems and institutions is always passing away. It’s been suggested that when we pray ‘Thy Kingdom come’ we must also be able to say ‘my kingdoms go’. Our worldly kingdoms rise and fall. We need to be careful what we pray for. The Kingdom of the Servant King is where true freedom and joy is to be found.

Weekly Reflections are on the Archdiocesan website at www.liverpoolcatholic.org.uk/reflection

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Will you come and follow me?

Many years ago I came across a man called Steve who worked with people who had disabilities. His life had been tragically marred by childhood abuse. He was so badly damaged that much of his way of thinking, particularly about himself, was twisted and broken. We became good friends, but he struggled with life and particularly with trust of God and of others.

Then he was diagnosed with an aggressive and rare cancer and something happened within him. He told me that he turned around and ‘God was there’. The healing that he had always desired began to take place. He was transformed within as the cancer ravaged his body. He began to know that he was loved by God and by those around him. He forgave people who had damaged him so badly and he learned how to trust. He eventually died aged 64, a healed, whole, free man who finally knew that God can be trusted.

The whole of the Scriptures are an invitation to trust that God is on our side and that whatever may be going on in our lives, God is there for us.

I don’t think that there is any better example of that than Mary in Luke’s Gospel. Luke paints a beautiful picture of Mary and an angel coming to visit her to make the point to us that however God breaks through into our lives, we have a choice. We can trust that God will be God, or we can wonder and question and never ultimately do what Mary did and say: ‘Let it be.’

I often wonder where we get the picture of gentle Mary from and how we interpret her in the way we do in religious artwork – meek and mild, dressed in blue and white with her hands joined looking into the skies.

This was a strong lady who was willing to face her fears and walk into the darkness, trusting in the God she experienced. She was pregnant, alone in a society where at the very least she would have been shunned if not stoned to death. Despite that ‘Let it be’.

The challenge she gives us is to open our hearts and allow God to break through into our lives trusting that He will be there for us and, even in the most difficult circumstances, will bring good about. Luke presents Mary as the prototype of the disciple, the one who says ‘let it be’, the one who trusts and who follows. Are you willing to trust in the God who is present and who is with you as Mary did? Are you willing to follow the Lord wherever He may lead?

Fr Chris Thomas

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New Eucharistic Ministers for Liverpool South Pastoral Area

We were delighted to invite Father Chris Thomas and Sister Moira Meeghan from the Irenaeus to St Clare’s Parish Hall, Sefton Park to deliver thorough and thought-provoking training to a new batch of Eucharistic Ministers from the Liverpool South Pastoral Area and environs.

It was very encouraging to welcome so many who had responded compassionately to the call to this most rewarding ministry, especially ‘younger’ parishioners.

Two identical sessions on consecutive afternoons at the Carmel Monastery, Maryton were arranged for current Eucharistic Ministers. A profound eucharistic reflection on part of paragraph 236 of Pope Francis’ Encyclical ‘Laudato Si’ given by MaryAnne Francalanza fcJ was followed by Monsignor Peter Fleetwood inviting us to look at the way Catholics have traditionally approached death (asking for non-existent ‘Last Rites’). The Anointing of the Sick (administered to bring spiritual strength during an illness and not exclusively near the time of death) was discussed in depth.

We explored ways of ministering to the sick and dying based on a booklet by Father Stephen Cooper and Monsignor Peter Fleetwood (originally produced for Fazakerley hospitals) containing meaningful prayers and support suggestions.

We ended our time joining the Sisters for Evening Prayer and Benediction and are deeply grateful to them for hosting us, and to our facilitators for leading this emotive time of profoundly spiritual and personal reflection.

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what’s on Friday 1 November to Sunday 3 November Scripture Weekend ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few’. Discovering Matthew’s Gospel at lrenaeus, 32 Great Georges Road, Waterloo, L22 1RD. Details Tel: 0151 949 1199. Email: jenny@irenaeus.co.uk Website: www.irenaeus.co.uk ‘They shall be called children of God.’ Weekend Retreat with Father Mark Paver at Theodore House, Stonyhurst, College, Clitheroe, BB7 9PT. Details: www.christianheritagecentre.com Bookings: bookings@christianheritagecentre.co m Tel: 01254 827329.

Friday 1 November Solemnity of All Saints. Holyday of Obligation.

Sandymount, 16 Burbo Bank Road, Blundellsands, L23 6TH. Details: Tel: 0151 924 4850 Email sandymountcrosby@montfort.org.uk Wednesday 6 November ‘All called and gifted by God’.

Reflection on the Synod 2020 themes. 7.30 pm at St Philomena’s, Sparrow Hall, L9 6BU. UCM bi-monthly Mass 7.30 pm at St Jerome, Greenloons Drive, Formby, L37 2LX. Thursday 7 November ‘A study of the people journeying through Exodus.’

Scripture Morning, 10.30 am at lrenaeus, 32 Great Georges Road, Waterloo, L22 1RD. Details Tel: 0151 949 1199. Email: jenny@irenaeus.co.uk Website: www.irenaeus.co.uk

Roman Catholic Mass Celebrated at 1.05 pm in the Parish Church of Our Lady and St Nicholas, Old Churchyard, Chapel Street, Liverpool, L2 8TZ.

First Saturday to Our Lady led by Father Michael McCormick Adoration, confession, rosary, Mass, followed by soup and refreshments.

10.45 am at

‘Manor Disco’ A place where people with various learning and physical needs and their carers can come together. 7.30 pm at Our Lady of Walsingham Club, Stand Park Avenue, Netherton, L30 3SA. Entrance: £1.50.

Saturday 9 November ‘Living Holy Communion.’

A day of retreat with Archbishop Malcolm McMahon OP. 10.00 am 3.30 pm at St Joseph’s Prayer Centre, Blundell Avenue, Freshfield, Formby, L37 1PH. £15 including lunch. Booking essential: Tel: 01704 875850. Email: theprayercentre.stj@psmgs.org.uk Website: www.stjosephsprayercentre.com ‘Choral Classics’ Concert Music by Bach and Handel, Fauré and Franck Parry and Stanford, with the Metropolitan Cathedral Orchestra and Cantata Choir. 7.30 pm in the Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King. Tickets and details Tel: 0151 707 3525 or www.cathedralconcerts.org.uk

First Friday Mass 7.30 pm at St Joseph’s Prayer Centre, Blundell Avenue, Freshfield, Formby, L37 1PH. Saturday 2 November Commemoration of all the Faithful Departed.

Friday 8 November Roman Catholic Mass Celebrated at 1.05 pm in the Parish Church of Our Lady and St Nicholas, Old Churchyard, Chapel Street, Liverpool, L2 8TZ.

Celebration with Liverpool Cathedral to mark the Canonisation of Cardinal John Henry Newman at the Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King 6.00 pm Choral Evening Prayer sung by both Cathedral Choirs, followed by a guest lecture with Newman scholars Reverend Canon Dr Rod Garner and the Right Reverend Monsignor Roderick Strange, who will share their insights on the influence of John Henry Newman on both the Anglican and Roman Catholic Church. Admission free but registration required at www.eventbrite.co.uk (Search for John Henry Newman Lecture.)

Sunday 10 November Remembrance Sunday Solemn Mass with Mozart’s Requiem.

11.00 am in the Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King.

Liverpool Bach Collective Johann Sebastian Bach Cantata 116: ‘Du Friedefurst, Herr Jesu Christ’. (‘O Prince of Peace, Lord Jesus Christ.’)

6.30 pm at St Bartholomew’s Church, Warrington Road, Rainhill, L35 6NY. Singers and Players directed by Philip Duffy. www.liverpoolbach.com Email: liverpoolbach@icloud.com

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november Monday 11 November Synod 2020 Talk: Faith and Theology in Later Life Dr Ros Stuart-Buttle. 7.30 pm in Hope Chapel at Liverpool Hope University (entrance by Chapel or Gateway Building). Tea and coffee available from 7.00 pm and optional Night prayer follows at 9.00 pm.

Tuesday 19 November Diaconate Information Evening with Archbishop Malcolm McMahon OP. 7.30 pm at Our Lady, Queen of Martyrs, Stonebridge Lane, Croxteth, L11 9AZ. Friday 22 November Roman Catholic Mass Celebrated at 1.05 pm in the Parish Church of Our Lady and St Nicholas, Old Churchyard, Chapel Street, Liverpool, L2 8TZ.

Tuesday 12 November Time Out on Tuesdays 10.00 am to 4.00 pm at the Cenacle, Tithebarn Grove, Lance Lane, Liverpool L15 6TW. An opportunity for quiet time, away from the daily rush of life. Offering £10 per person (bring your own lunch). For further details contact: Sister Winifred. Tel: 0151 722 2271, Email: winniecenacle@mail.com

Saturday 23 November Quiet Day 10.30 am to 4.00 pm at the Cenacle, Tithebarn Grove, Lance Lane, Liverpool L15 6TW. Time to be quiet, reflect and pray. Offering £10 per person (bring your own lunch). No booking required. For further details contact: Sister Winifred. Tel: 0151 722 2271, Email: winniecenacle@mail.com

Friday 15 November to Sunday 17 November A retreat on Catholic answers to New age and the Occult led by Father Michael McCormick Residential or day Participants.

Details: Sandymount, 16 Burbo Bank Road, Blundellsands, L23 6TH. Details: Tel: 0151 924 4850 Email sandymountcrosby@montfort.org.uk

‘Healthy and Holy under stress.’

A day of retreat with Father Pat Deegan. 10.30 am - 3.30 pm at St Joseph’s Prayer Centre, Blundell Avenue, Freshfield, Formby, L37 1PH. £20 including lunch. Bookings: Tel: 01704 875850. Email:

Friday 15 November Roman Catholic Mass Celebrated at 1.05 pm in the Parish Church of Our Lady and St Nicholas, Old Churchyard, Chapel Street, Liverpool, L2 8TZ. Sunday 17 November Thirty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time. World Day of Prayer for the Poor.

Cafod Memorial Mass to pray for all supporters and loved ones who have died 11:00 am at Our Lady of Compassion, Formby, L37 3LW.

theprayercentre.stj@psmgs.org.uk Website: www.stjosephsprayercentre.com Sunday 24 November Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Universal King.

Youth Sunday Solemn Mass for the Patronal Feast of the Metropolitan Cathedral 11.00 am in the Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King.

Celebrant: Archbishop Malcolm McMahon OP. Friday 29 November to Sunday 1 December ‘Follow the Star’.

A women’s weekend led by Sister Moira Meeghan at lrenaeus, 32 Great Georges Road, Waterloo, L22 1RD. Details Tel: 0151 949 1199. Email: jenny@irenaeus.co.uk Website: www.irenaeus.co.uk Friday 29 November Roman Catholic Mass Celebrated at 1.05 pm in the Parish Church of Our Lady and St Nicholas, Old Churchyard, Chapel Street, Liverpool, L2 8TZ.

#LoveToSing – free, fun and for everyone A Waterloo-based community choir is expanding by launching a children’s choir. The #LoveToSing choir is for children and young people aged between six and 16 and is run by the Liverpool Echo award-nominated St Edmund’s Choir.

Charlie Corkin, director of St Edmund’s Choir, says: “For more than 20 years, St Edmund’s Choir has engaged with so many different people in the community of Waterloo, Liverpool and beyond. After a surge in interest from young people and families, we’re excited to branch out further and create a children’s choir that lives up to our vision of being free, fun and for everyone.

‘At a time when arts funding is in crisis, we’re privileged and proud to be able to offer what we do for free, with no entry requirements and a vast repertoire of music.’

Both #LoveToSing and St Edmund’s Choir will perform a variety of concerts and events each year, with the new choir’s first public performance coming this December. SEMusic, which is responsible for the development of #LoveToSing, is run by professional music teachers and experienced musicians.

Rehearsals take place each Wednesday between 5.30pm and 6.30pm at St Edmund’s Church, Oxford Road, Waterloo. For more information, visit www.semusic.org.uk or call 07730 413024.

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profile ‘I would be loath to speak anything contrary to the Truth’

Remembering St John Rigby by Father Andrew Unsworth On Friday evening, 21 June this year, 175 people gathered at Harrock Hall near Wrightington to celebrate the annual Mass in honour of the Lancashire Martyr, St John Rigby. The Celebrant, Archbishop Malcolm, was assisted by the priests who serve the Upholland Pastoral Area under the patronage of St John Rigby.

The setting of Harrock Hall in rural central Lancashire is beautiful all year round but on this occasion the weather was especially glorious. So many people commented on the spiritual atmosphere and the calm and peaceful nature of the event.

Harrock Hall is the ancestral home of the Rigby family; St John was born there in 1570 the son of a Catholic recusant mother and a father who had Catholic sympathies but who conformed to the worship of the Church of England (‘temporising’ as it was called) in order to avoid fines and retain his land and property. John followed his father but was influenced greatly by his mother.

The barn at Harrock Hall is the only part of the original estate buildings to have survived from the time of the saint; built around enormous timber ‘A’ frames in a style that is unique to Medieval and Tudor barns in Lancashire. Because these timbers were standing during the lifetime of St John Rigby, it is here that

the annual Mass is celebrated.

The tradition of celebrating a Mass on the nearest Friday to his feast day on 21 June has been observed for as long as anyone in the parish of St Joseph’s Wrightington can remember. This year marks a special anniversary because it is ninety years since the beatification in Rome of St John Rigby: he was beatified

by Pope Pius XI, along with 134 others on 29 December 1929.

During the Mass Archbishop Malcolm preached a very thoughtful homily on St John Rigby’s life and martyrdom: St John was hung drawn and quartered in Southwark in 1600 on a charge of High Treason. After his reconciliation with the Church by a Franciscan priest, St John Jones, he became a fervent Catholic. As well as summarising many of the historical details, what struck me was that the Archbishop had a personal knowledge of the places associated with the death of St John Rigby, which took place in South London in Southwark. He joked that he was a southerner talking about northern saints, but as a southerner, there was much he could tell us northerners about the saint’s life in the south that is often forgotten.

Archbishop Malcolm used a recusant chalice and paten during the Mass that now belong to St Joseph’s parish but that originally were owned by the

Dicconson family of Wrightington Hall.

The silver vessels made by Benjamin Pyne in London around 1680 are in remarkably good condition given their age. The maker, Pyne, was silversmith to King James II and Samuel Pepys.

The event was made possible through the hospitality and generosity of the owners of Harrock Hall, Mr and Mrs Ainscough; and the music was provided

by Jo Wallace and Martin Fletcher who contributed much to the joyful atmosphere of the night who through their playing and singing style, added a contemporary feel to a traditional event.

Faith of Our Fathers accompanied by guitar and keyboard gives the hymn a very different and pleasing musical quality.

St John Rigby was a layman who loved his faith and gave his life joyfully and courageously for it. One of his final utterances was: ‘I would be loath to speak anything contrary to the Truth’. For this principle, he was prepared to die.

Next year we mark the 50th anniversary of the canonisation of St John Rigby.

Again, we look forward to commemorating the occasion with the celebration of Mass at Harrock Hall and continuing in this wonderful tradition that is at the heart of Catholic life in our area.

St John Rigby pray for us

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education news

Catholic schools make the Educate Awards 2019 shortlist A number of Catholic schools in the region have been shortlisted for this year’s Educate Awards.

From inspiring teachers, dedicated support staff to innovative projects across the curriculum, the awards recognises the work of schools and colleges which are delivering outstanding education and helping students achieve their full potential.

The awards, in partnership with Copyrite Systems and Ricoh, is in its eighth year and is the largest education awards in the North West.

With 21 categories in total, the following Catholic schools have been shortlisted: • All Saints Catholic Primary School, Liverpool - Eco School Project of the Year • St Damian’s RC Science College, Tameside - Spirit of Enterprise Award • Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Primary School, Widnes Innovative and Creative Literacy Award • The Barlow RC High School, Manchester - SEND Provision Award • Cardinal Langley School, Manchester - STEM Project of the Year • St Julie’s Catholic High School, Liverpool - Outstanding Arts in a Secondary School • St Bede’s Catholic High School, Ormskirk - Career Aspiration Award • St Teresa of Lisiuex Catholic Primary School, Liverpool Innovation in Education Award • St Mary’s RC Primary School, Manchester - Outstanding Commitment to Sport in a Primary School • Adam Sirett, The Barlow RC High School, Manchester Teacher of the Year • Stephen Hill, St Joseph’s RC Primary School, Oldham Teacher of the Year • The Academy of St Francis of Assisi, Liverpool - Most Inspirational Secondary School Since launching in Liverpool in 2012, the awards has grown rapidly, now recognising schools and colleges right across the Liverpool City Region, Cheshire, Lancashire and Greater

Manchester.

A new category has also been introduced this year, recognising schools’ commitment to mental wellbeing. The Mental Health & Wellbeing Award will be awarded to a school with a strong commitment to promoting social and emotional wellbeing, mental health and wellness.

This difficult task of shortlisting the entries fell upon the esteemed judging panel which includes Michelle Dow, managing director of All About STEM; James Tartt, Merseyside track athlete and architect; Councillor Gary Millar, assistant mayor & mayoral lead for business & international trade; Chris Walker, regional managing editor of Trinity Mirror North West and North Wales; Lesley Martin-Wright, chief executive of Knowsley Chamber; Andrew Pimbley of Wirral’s Claremont Farm; Sue Cronin, head of teacher education at Liverpool Hope University, Suzanne Ramsey former partnership manager at Liverpool School Sports Partnership and Allan Williams, learning manager at Everyman and Playhouse Theatres.

Kim O’Brien, founder of the Educate Awards, said: “Congratulations to the Knowsley schools shortlisted for the Educate Awards 2019!

“Every year, the judges’ job gets harder as the entries from schools get better. Whether it is the arts, careers, sport or their commitment to mental health and wellbeing, we aim to recognise all areas of education and shine a spotlight on all the hard work that goes on in schools and colleges each academic year.

“We look forward celebrating with all the finalists and winners on the 15 November.”

The winners will be announced at the annual awards ceremony, which takes place on Friday 15 November at Liverpool Cathedral.

Associate sponsors include: All About STEM, Angel Solutions, CER, CPMM Media Group, DMR David M Robinson Jewellery & Watches, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool Diocesan Schools Trust, Liverpool Learning Partnership, LSSP, Progress To Excellence Group, Satis Education, School Improvement Liverpool, Signature Living and Winstanley College.

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education news

One World Day 2019 Carmell College held their annual One World Day. The event embodies the spirit of the Carmel Community and helps them think about how they can all make a difference in the world.

The students attended workshops on many different aspects of this year’s theme – “Peace through mutual understanding”. It was fantastic to see so many organisations and visitors come into college to support this event yet again.

Visitors included; Author, Shaun Atwood, PJ Smith, former student, Ben Hodge, and more. Also, representatives from the Yellow House charity, Willowbrook Hospice, Teardrops and other charities came to speak to the students.

Mike Hill, Principal said: “One World Week is a time for people in their communities to learn something new about their fellow humans. This includes the planet they inhabit.

“It is not a fund-raising event, but an awareness-raising exercise, intended to broaden students perspectives on life

and to keep them informed.

Feedback from students has been overwhelmingly positive.

“We are extremely grateful to all our visitors for adding to our students’

education in its widest sense. It was a very informative and enjoyable day.”

For more information about One World Week, click: https://www.oneworldweek.org/

The Academy of St Nicholas welcomes the English National Opera Students at The Academy of St Nicholas, in Garston, have been surprised with a special visit from the English National Opera’s (ENO) Baylis Opera Squad, as part of a campaign to make opera accessible for all.

The Academy of St Nicholas was one of just four schools across Liverpool to take part in the exciting opportunity, which was provided in collaboration with Liverpool Learning Partnership and Culture Liverpool, thanks to a generous grant from The Behrens Foundation.

During their visit to the Academy, the ENO Baylis Opera Squad took over the whole school day with a range of workshops providing the chance for students to develop their own operatic skills, before witnessing a live performance from the professionals.

The ENO Baylis team will now return to the Academy on a regular basis, to work closely with students across each year group and provide support for the development of the arts curriculum.

Dave Lancaster, Headteacher at The

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Academy of St Nicholas, said: “We would like to thank everyone at the English National Opera and all of the partners involved for providing this wonderful opportunity for our students.

“We tell our students that if you have a dream or an ambition-whatever it is-if you work hard, try your personal best,

show some resilience and put the hours in, you can become an expert in something that you may never have thought about previously.

“This ethos underpins all that we do and we are proud to offer a wide range of opportunities for our students to explore their talents.”

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education news St Mary’s pupils take centenary trip back in time Pupils at St Mary’s College in Crosby enjoyed a history lesson with a difference when they went back in time to celebrate the school’s centenary.

It was on Monday 22 September 1919 that St Mary’s – then the Catholic Institute of Crosby – opened its doors to an initial intake of around 80 boys, and a special week of celebrations included ‘Back in Time’ lessons as pupils discovered learning methods from the past.

Year 7 pupils dressed up in period clothes to reenact the first day at Claremont House, the original school building that remains in use.

Another highlight was the ‘Back in Time’ lunch for lower-school pupils, inspired by the so-called peace parties held in 1919 to mark the end of the Great War. This meant treats such as ham and cucumber sandwiches, buttered swede, crab pot, crumpets with lemon curd, and scones with jam.

The celebrations concluded with a whole-school Mass at St Helen’s Church in Crosby, which was celebrated by Bishop Tom Williams and attended by pupils and staff from St Mary’s College and Preparatory School. Every pupil received a centenary T-shirt as a keepsake which they wore at the Mass, which was followed by a celebration lunch.

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education news It’s gold for St John Bosco Arts College!

St John Bosco Arts College in Croxteth has been awarded gold for the Liverpool Attendance Quality Mark.

The Liverpool Attendance Quality Mark is designed to support schools in evaluating their strategies to improve attendance and reduce persistent absence. The assessment for the award assures the processes in place for managing student absence.

Over the past few years, the college has worked tirelessly to ensure that absences are kept to a minimum and following the school exceeding national attendance to Easter and reducing persistent absence of students to well below the national average for the same period, St John Bosco has been given the gold award the top mark available!

The college has managed to achieve such a fantastic record due to a number of initiatives implemented across the year groups, including end of term rewards and trips for students with attendance over 97%.

The college also places great emphasis on the value of teaching and learning, highlighting to students the impact of absence in missed opportunities and achievement in their future goals. Five days off school a year equates to 25 lessons missed!

The school also works with Family Action and Magic Breakfast to provide free breakfast for all students. A healthy breakfast can provide children with the energy and nutrients they need to thrive; increasing alertness, improving behaviour and giving them the motivation to learn.

Headteacher Darren Gidman, said: “Many schools struggle with student absence and it can be a complex area to understand and address. By looking into the root of the problem, schools can develop the right strategies to ensure attendance is always at its best, which is exactly what our school has done.

“I’d like to congratulate both staff and students on this fantastic achievement and long may it continue."

ASFA student’s poem picked for book A talented 13 year old pupil from The Academy of St Francis of Assisi is celebrating after his poem was picked as a Merit Winner for the Young Writers ‘Talent for Writing’ competition.

Adel penned the poem last year when he was in Year 7. The hard-hitting poem is called ‘Dear the People of the World’ and is an open letter about being a Muslim.

Dear the People of the World, My name is Adel and I’m a ‘terrorist’, I’m sorry for all the killing, bombing and kidnapping ‘we’ do, I know it’s hurting you, But it’s hurting us too, Apologising for something we did not do, I’m sorry the media brainwashed you all, I know you don’t want to place stress and blame on us.

Do you know what? I am not sorry, I am not sorry that 90% of the terror attacks are by nonMuslims, I am not sorry that we created the first ever University, Coffee, Soap, And even algebra, I can go on for days, Every human bleeds red and we don’t?

The breaking news that we hear every day about ‘Muslims’ is fake.

Dear the People of the World, My name is Adel and I am a Muslim.

With the help of English teacher, Jen Avery, Adel’s poem was submitted to the Young Writers ‘Talent for Writing’ Competition

and was chosen from over 8000 entries to be included in a forthcoming book that features poems written by young people across the country.

This success follows hot on the heels of the Academy being awarded the gold standard Liverpool Writing Quality Mark.

Speaking about the competition, Adel said: “I am thrilled to have been awarded Merit Winner for Talent for Writing competition. I can’t wait to see my poem in the book later this year.”

Jen Avery added: “Adel’s poem is extremely personal and very emotive. He’s really put his true feelings down on paper and he should be very proud of himself for being a published poet at such a young age.”

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cathedral

by Dr Christopher McElroy Director of Music, Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral

Singing the praise and worship of God October saw a new group of chorister leaders awarded medals to wear in services. These girls and boys have been called to lead their fellow choristers in singing the praise and worship of God. As Jesus illustrated, this call to leadership is one of service.

Of service to their fellow chorister, the choir, to our Cathedral, and to Jesus himself. Jesus led his disciples by modelling the behaviour and ideals he wanted them to show others. So it is then, that our new chorister leaders are called to lead others to God through the gift of music, giving what St John Henry Newman so eloquently phrased: ‘Praise to the holiest in the height.’

Some of the medals that our leaders wear are named after saints, or people connected with the Cathedral. For the girls we have medals named after four female musicians: Hildegard, Cecilia, Miriam and Mary - the singer of the Magnificat. For the boys we have Gibberd (architect of the Cathedral) Heenan (former Archbishop) Downey (former Archbishop) and Lutyens (architect of the crypt.)

During early November we have a particular focus on all those who have died. Much of the most beautiful choral music ever written is inspired, or someway

connected to, death and the afterlife. On Remembrance Sunday the Boy choristers and lay clerks will sing Mozart’s setting of the Requiem Mass. Our Youth Choir will sing Gabriel Faure’s melodic setting at Christ the King Parish, Childwall on the evening of Friday 8 November. On Friday 15 November the girl choristers and Youth Choir will give a concert at Holy Family, Ince Blundell and on Saturday 16 the boys and lay clerks will join forces with the Anglican Cathedral Choir to give a concert in the Anglican Cathedral of Mozart’s Requiem.

November draws to a close with the Cathedral’s own titular feast, that of Christ the King. On this day each year we sing the hymn ‘Hail Redeemer, King Divine’ which the Cathedral likes to call the ‘Cathedral hymn.’ The hymn was composed and first used in 1933 at the laying of the foundation stone of the Lutyens Crypt here on the Cathedral site.

The text was written by Father Patrick Brennan CSsR, a Redemptorist priest based at Bishop Eton, and the music was composed by Father Charles Rigby. A seminary professor at an early age, Rigby was also a very accomplished pianist, and was occasionally invited to play as principal at the Philharmonic Hall if the celebrity failed to appear.

Cathedral Record Canon Anthony O’Brien – Cathedral Dean Sunday 3 November is the memorial of St Martin De Porres on whose feast I was ordained 40 years ago, so I will be giving thanks to God that day for 40 years in the priesthood. With the tomb of Archbishop Worlock located in the St Joseph Chapel in the Cathedral I still feel he is keeping an eye on me after all these years.

On Thursday 7 November we are holding an evening of celebration of the life of Saint John Henry Newman.

It will be jointly hosted by our two Cathedrals and begin with a joint Choral Evening Prayer at 6.00 pm.

This will be followed by a shared lecture on Newman’s influence on both the Catholic and Anglican Church with a chance for questions afterwards. The shared talk will be given by Doctor Rod Garner and Monsignor Rod Strange who have both spoken and written extensively on Newman’s life and thought. It promises to be an enjoyable and informative evening.

Sunday 10 November is Remembrance Sunday and as an act of Remembrance for those fallen in war and for the faithful departed the musical setting for the Solemn Mass that day will be Mozart’s Requiem. The youth choir will also sing excerpts from the Faure Requiem at the evening 7.00 pm Mass in the Crypt on that Sunday.

The Chapter of Canons meet on Tuesday 12 November for their meeting and also for their annual Mass at 12.15 to pray for the deceased clergy of the archdiocese.

We celebrate the Feast of Christ the King on the weekend of 23/24 November. Archbishop Malcolm will preside at the Solemn Mass at 11.00 am, please come along and join us in celebrating our Cathedral Patronal Feast.

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Pic extras

Mums the Word On 6 November representatives from Catholic women's groups from around the country will celebrate ‘Catholic Women Praying Together’ with a Mass at the Church of the Immaculate Conception in London, followed by lunch. The groups involved include the Union of Catholic Mothers, the Association of Catholic Women, the Catholic Women's League, the Ladies’ Ordinariate Group, and Life Ascending.

This event used to be called the Catholic Women of the Year Lunch. It was celebrated for 50 years and featured presentations to outstanding Catholic women. As this was becoming too expensive to stage (not to mention the increasing numbers of outstanding Catholic women!), the event has been scaled down this year, meaning Mass will be followed by a light lunch and no presentations. The theme of the Mass will be ‘Praying for our Young People’.

By coincidence, Liverpool UCM is holding its bi-monthly Mass on the same day at St Jerome's Church in Formby. They are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the founding of the UCM in their parish, for which we send them many congratulations. It is wonderful that we can all join together to be part of this initiative, as Catholic women praying together. We invite all women out there to join with us on 6 November as we all know how powerful prayer is when we pray together, and for such a good cause.

This event fits so well with one of the themes for next year’s Synod, which is ‘How we Pray together’. UCM can promise Archbishop Malcolm that we will certainly do just that. I hope to see you all, therefore, on Wednesday 6 November at 7.30pm at St Jerome's, Greenloons Drive, Formby, L37 2LX. God bless, Madelaine McDonald, media officer

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A century of service News from the Liverpool Province of the Knights of St Columba

Iona pilgrimage brings celebrations to memorable end

For Liverpool’s Knights of St Columba, the centenary year of the foundation of our Order ended, quite fittingly, with a pilgrimage to the Hebridean island of Iona. It was there, after all, that our patron, St Columba, arrived from Ireland in the year 563 to spread the Gospel in Scotland and further afield.

A party of over 50 – including members, their families and friends – travelled to Loch Awe up in the Highlands and islands of Scotland on 28 September and spent the next four days in this beautiful area, concluding our visit with the trip to Iona. There, Mass was celebrated by Father Bernard Forshaw, parish priest of St Anne’s, Rock Ferry and St John’s, New Ferry, who had accompanied us on the pilgrimage and is former chaplain to the Wirralbased KSC council 51.

Fr Bernard also said Mass for us at our hotel in Loch Awe and concelebrated Mass with Monsignor James McNeill, parish priest and administrator at St Columba’s Cathedral, Diocese of Argyll and the Isles.

We thank Mgr McNeill for the warm welcome we received at this Mass

on Sunday 29 September and for the refreshments provided after Mass for such a large party. Our photo shows the whole group together after Mass, with Fr Forshaw and Mgr McNeill in the centre.

On Tuesday 1 October we set out for Iona, boarding the ferry from Oban to the Isle of Mull and then crossing Mull by coach to the port of Fionnphort where we took another ferry for the short passage to Iona.

By prior arrangement we attended Mass at Iona’s House of Prayer celebrated by Fr Bernard. For all of us, it was a very inspiring and uplifting occasion and we thank Fr Bernard for celebrating the Mass for us and for leading us in prayers for special intentions. We also thank the administrators of the House of Prayer for the arrangements they made for us to celebrate this very special and memorable experience in the unique and historic location of Iona. A final word of thanks goes to Bro Pat Foley, former provincial grand knight, who planned and arranged the pilgrimage so meticulously.

Websites: www.ksc.org.uk and www.kscprov02.weebly.com Email: dpokeane@aol.com

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Letter from Oscott

by Peter Ross

The beginning of term feels like an age ago. Having been back at college for well over a month, I have lots to talk about already.

During the first two weeks of the year, as is usually the case at Oscott, the community goes on recollection for a weekend.

While other year groups visited places like Holywell, my year group went to Douai Abbey a Benedictine monastery in Berkshire. It was a wonderful experience, led by Liverpool’s very own Father Andrew Robinson, who is on the formation staff here.

The recollection was focused on the Ministry of Lector, which I’m hoping to receive this academic year. As a lector I will have a special responsibility of proclaiming the Word of God liturgically and by my way of life. I really

enjoyed meeting the monks at the abbey. It’s a beautiful place and definitely worth a visit.

After the recollection, things resumed here as usual. This year’s lecture timetable is much busier and, as a result, there are more assignments.

Nevertheless, I am appreciating the new material that we are covering. So often in class I get what I call ‘wow’ moments, when I hear something about the faith that is so profound. I’m very fortunate to be taught by brilliant lecturers, who are truly experts in their field.

In late September, together with Hugh Donleavy, our other Liverpool seminarian at Oscott, I made a trip back home for a Synod Meeting in Wigan. What a brilliant day it was, hearing about the themes that will form the basis of our Synod for the

next few months. I returned to college feeling optimistic about the future of our Archdiocese.

Let’s continue to pray and discern during our Synod process, that God will make us into the Church that He is calling us to be.

More recently, we celebrated the feast of Our Lady Seat of Wisdom, the titular feast of our college. The celebrations included a Solemn Mass, celebrated by Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham followed by a lunch attended by a number of guests connected with the College.

We are already preparing for future events, including our Advent Carol Service on 9 December, which you are all most welcome to attend (see our website for details: www.oscott.net).

Keep up to date with all the news from around the Archdiocese at:

www.catholicpic.co.uk You can now follow us on twitter at:

@PicCatholic

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PIC Life Forgiveness at its best

By Moira Billinge Then Peter approaching asked him, ‘Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?’ Jesus answered, ‘I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.’ (Matthew 18: 2122.)

I watched an incredibly moving video recently. It made such an enormous impression on me that I have replayed it many times. A young American man, Brandt Jean, took the witness stand and spoke in court after the sentencing of a former Dallas policewoman, Amber Guyger, who shot and killed Brandt’s brother, Botham, when she mistakenly went in to his apartment, thinking it was her own.

In an astonishing act of love and kindness, Brandt turned to Guyger and said to her: ‘I know if you go to God and ask him, he will forgive you. I love you just like anyone else and I am not going to hope you rot and die. I personally want the best for you. I wasn’t going to say this

in front of my family, but I don’t even want you to go to jail. I want the best for you because I know that’s exactly what Botham would want for you. Give your life to Christ. I think giving your life to Christ is the best thing Botham would want for you.’

Incredibly, he then asked the judge for leave to give the prisoner a hug. Brandt stepped down from the witness stand, a guard brought Guyger over and Brandt embraced her for several minutes before she was taken away to start her 10-year sentence with the possibility of parole in five years.

Emotions ran high in the courtroom and even the judge could be seen weeping into her handkerchief. To watch this young man, in the name of Jesus, forgive the person who had killed his brother, and then tell the killer that he loved her, was astounding. How many of us, in similar circumstances, would be able to do the same? I would like to think that I could, but I doubt it.

If we can’t forgive small things, how on earth can we expect to forgive the more

Greeting Cards from Carmel Christmas is not too far away now - so it’s a good time to stock up on lovely cards for family and friends.

Christmas cards for all occasions are on sale at Maryton.

Contact the Sisters at Maryton Grange, Allerton Road, L18 3NU. Telephone the card office on 0151 724 7102 or Email the Sisters at marytoncards@outlook.com

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important matters? We are reminded when we pray the ‘Our Father’ that forgiving is what we should be doing.

How often do we forget that in the same beautiful prayer, we have asked God to ‘forgive us our trespasses’? And yet we still fail to afford the same courtesy to others?

Hanging on to the pain of the past is never helpful and merely stokes the flames of yesterday’s hurt and deprives us of the joy and peace of the present. Licking our old wounds serves only to re-open them.

Forgiving someone when they have deliberately hurt us doesn’t mean that what they did wasn’t terribly wrong, but it means that we do not allow it to carry on hurting us.

Not forgiving and not being forgiven produces negativity and discord, saps our energy, clouds our thinking, destroys our freedom and prevents our healing. An absence of forgiveness is the foundation for acts of reciprocal violence and revenge.

Reconciliation is the only pathway to peace, harmony and acceptance.

Almighty God is never outdone in generosity, and, even when we try to forgive – yet fail – He sees, helps and rewards our efforts. Jesus was surely made visible through Brandt’s powerful testimony of love and the words he spoke have now echoed around the world. We may think that we could never react like Brandt, but he has certainly showed us what is possible. It was forgiveness at its very best.

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Catholic PIC retreats and away days 2020 Catholic Pic Away Days 2020 During 2020 we are planning to visit: • Stoneyhurst College Chapel and Museum • Arley Hall • Chorley Shopping Village • Chatsworth House • Llandudno • Grasmere When dates are confirmed we will let you know with an advert in the Catholic Pic. Meanwhile if you would like any information regarding our retreats and away days please call 0151 733 5492.

Worth a visit - Pendeen Pendeen in Penzance on Cornwall’s west coast is rich in mining history, writes Lucy Oliver. Located between Land’s End and St Ives, Geevor Tin Mine is a hidden gem for those with an interest in the peninsula’s heritage, and is open between 10am and 4pm from November to March.

The 18th-century mine, formerly known as North Levant Mine, contains a collection of industrial and engineering artefacts including plans and maps, rocks, minerals and mining tools in the Hard Rock Museum. Explore the change room, known as The Dry, which has been left exactly as it was in 1990 when the last miners returned to the surface.

Venture underground at the Wheal Mexico Mine for a 30-40 minute tour through the tunnels dug by 18th-century miners, and return to the surface to take in the invigorating Atlantic air.

Afterwards, the 25-minute drive to Land’s End will not disappoint. Although the family attractions on site, including the End to End Story exhibition and ‘Aardman Presents …’ film, are closed from the end of October, the coastal walks and

scenery remain beautiful at any time of year. Look out for a glimpse of the Isles of Scilly, 28 miles away across the water.

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justice & peace

A call to follow our prophets

By Steve Atherton, Justice & Peace fieldworker Wednesday 25 September was an extraordinary day in the life of Liverpool Archdiocese. After an all-day event where the themes of the Synod were presented to Synod members setting out the course for diocesan renewal, there followed an evening lecture which demonstrated that current developments are rooted deeply in diocesan history, in its devotion to St Oscar Romero and in the lives of three priests who lived their prophetic witness in this Archdiocese.

Under the auspices of the Romero Trust, and in Liverpool Hope University’s beautiful Capstone Theatre, David McLoughlin delivered a lecture titled ‘Prophetic Trajectories of Hope from San Salvador to Liverpool: A Celebration of the ministries of Oscar Romero, Austin Smith, Tom Cullinan and Kevin Kelly.’

In her introduction of the speaker, Pat Jones, herself a Liverpool prophet, spoke of how we had taken our three prophets for granted, assuming that what they taught and what their lives demonstrated was the norm. It seemed normal at the time because we saw it daily but now they’re gone, it’s clear just how extraordinary they were.

With an opening reference to Moses, one of David’s themes was that the ‘prophetic trajectories’ of all four men began with contact with the real lives of the faithful among whom they served and lived, requiring a struggle to loosen the grip of the background and training that

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had prepared them to have all the answers to the questions nobody is asking. In their radicalisation, all four were deeply affected by the cry of the poor, the ‘za’ak’ of scripture which is both the cry of grief and the lodging of a formal complaint.

As demonstrated by Pope Francis when he cited see-judge-act in Laudato si’, methodology that begins with experience has different results from that which begins with theory. This change of theological methodology – from starting with first principles to starting with lived experience – engages the heart as well as the head so that Romero’s episcopal motto ‘Sentir con la Iglesia’ expanded from merely ‘think with the mind of the Church’ to include ‘feel with the heart of the Church’.

Developing the insight that the Magnificat came from the meeting of Mary and Elizabeth, the first prophets of the New Testament, David pointed out that they were foreshadowing God’s bias to the poor as shown in the Beatitudes; the word ‘ptochoi’, translated in the Beatitudes as ‘the poor’, actually means ‘the destitute’.

To illustrate how this changes attitudes and practice, he told the story of a poor woman telling hostile reporters that Romero was the first man who’d ever asked her what she thought and listened to her reply. He likened this to the ‘grace space’ around Jesus’s presence with those who connect with Him to this day.

Then as now radical thought is a challenge. He noted how relevant the ‘Liverpool three’ are today because, in true prophetic style, they identified key issues ahead of the following pack; Austin Smith responded to race; Tom Cullinan to ecology; Kevin Kelly to gender. And all three to unjust structures, including within the Church. Does our Church dare to point out the relationship between the stellar wealth of the minority super-rich and the growing poverty of the masses? Dare we lead on what might change things, a rediscovery and re-embracing of the vision of kinship and hospitality of Moses and the prophets so that we take the crucified people down from the cross? He quoted Austin Smith’s realisation that he must confront ‘any “not yet” in history which blesses or spiritualises ideologies and institutions which marginalise and oppress the powerless.’

David ended with a quotation from St Oscar Romero: ‘I ask all of you, dear brothers and sisters, to view these things that are happening in our historical moment with a spirit of hope, generosity, and sacrifice. And let us do what we can.’

Summing up, Pat said that their questions remain live now and challenge us to accept their prophetic mantle so that our Diocese incorporates their insights into the Synod’s deliberations and recommendations. There is, she said, an ‘ouch’ as well as delight in hearing the challenge. We are the Church. Dare we engage with the prophetic imagination?

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Catholic Pic Pilgrimage to the Holy Land 2020 To take place on Thursday 8 October to Thursday 15 October Cost: ÂŁ1295 sharing ÂŁ1545 single room Please call 0151 733 5492 for brochure and booking form

Galilee

Bethlehem

Jerusalem

Gethsamane

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