Father Luke writes ...

“The key to living safely with Covid-19, [is] namely keeping infections from a virus that cannot be eliminated to levels which minimise disruption to people’s lives….  

“Alongside the positive effects of covid vaccination, it should be stressed that any people displaying symptoms of Covid-19 should stay at home and not participate in acts of worship in church….  

“There is no need for formal social distancing in church buildings, although those present should be sensitive to the needs of others around them….  

“It is clear from scientific evidence that transmission from surfaces (touch transmission) is now minimal and so the use of hymn books, missals and other worship aids can be resumed with immediate effect.  

“Whilst it is still good practice to sanitise hands on entry and exit of churches, there is no need for readers (or other ministers) to sanitise their hands before reading or performing other ministries in the church. All ministers of Holy Communion (clergy and lay people) should still sanitise their hands for the distribution of Holy Communion….  

“[T]here should be a return to the normal mode of celebrating Mass…. This would include the reintroduction of the] the Sign of Peace…. For the time being, Holy Communion must continue to be given under one kind only…. 

“Congregational singing may continue and there is a general encouragement to wear face coverings while singing….  Parish social activities can resume …. Home visits can continue…. Whilst this reduction of restrictions brings about a more normal way of living, the Covid-19 virus is still in circulation, and this should be in the mind of those participating in the life of the Church….”

                        With permission, Diocese of East Anglia, Keith Morris, January 27, 2022 

                          https://www.rcdea.org.uk/updated-covid-guidance-offered-to-dioceses/ 

Lord Jesus, give us. the grace to hear your voice.
And the strength to continue working for your kingdom in this time of pandemic.
Do not allow us to be indifferent to those who today suffer the loss of a loved one, or who suffer because of the absence of work.
But give us the courage to accompany and side with those who suffer violence or injustice.
Amen.
                                                                                 CAFOD: Javier Edwardo Martinez Rueda

Public Mass is again possible at Brandon and Mildenhall.  Mass will also be streamed live via the Internet. See the weekly diary.

If you are unable to travel, the restrictions permit me to enter homes “if it is part of my work” so please message me and I will arrange a way that you can receive Holy Communion.

There are some circumstances where people may not be able to wear a face covering. Please be mindful and respectful of such circumstances, noting that some people are less able to wear face coverings, and that the reasons for this may not be visible to others. This includes (but is not limited to): 

• Children under the age of 11 (Public Health England does not recommend face coverings for children under the age of 3 for health and safety reasons)
   
• people who cannot put on, wear or remove a face covering because of a physical or mental illness or impairment, or disability  

We are now in transition back to public worship with limited attendance.  See the Church Services page on this website.

These are trying and difficult times for all of us and I encourage you to read the letter from the Cardinal which is available below.

Our faith continues and the Mass will still be celebrated albeit without a public congregation, you are invited to participate spiritually in the Mass and instructions with prayers for at home, along with other resources to help you do this are found here. (See 'When Mass cannot be celebrated publicly' leaflet – No Public Mass pdf -- below.)

Daily Mass will be celebrated Tuesday – Friday at 10 am and broadcast live from our Facebook Page.

Sunday Mass will be streamed live at 11:00 am via our Facebook Page

Important: You do not have to be signed up to Facebook to view our Facebook Page – it will ask you to login in or sign-up but you do not need to do this to watch the live video, so you can ignore it and just click ‘Not Now’ when the box comes up.  It will then function like any other website.

It is better, however, to create a free account because you can interact with the page and we can keep in contact with each other (you don’t have to load any pictures up or use it for anything else) – so please do consider signing up for a Facebook account. To be clear, you do not need to sign up if you simply want to watch the video.  If you can’t hear any sound, just either press the screen (if it’s a touchscreen) or hover the cursor (little arrow moved by the mouse) over the video window. In the bottom of the video, a speaker icon with an ‘X’ will appear - tap that icon to unmute the sound.

If you do not have the internet but you do have Sky you can watch a daily Mass (usually at midday) on EWTN which is channel 588 on Sky.

Other ways to stay in touch:  The weekly newsletter will continue and be uploaded to our parish website as usual. If you or someone you know would like a hard copy delivered to you then get in touch and we will arrange this.

If you need anything and or are struggling in any way, please contact me and I will support you in any way that I can.  I am on phone 01842 812200 and email bmrcparish@priest.com

Let us look out for each other, pray for one another and keep the faith!

Be assured of my continued prayers and affection for you all,

Fr Luke

Concerned as we are about the COVID-19 disease and it social and economic effects, as Christians we must never forget that we are one global family, united in the struggle against the pandemic. Now is not the time to build barriers, but for the world to unite in love and compassion.

Out of love for our brothers and sisters across the world CAFOD is organising a petition to the UK government asking them to ensure that the most vulnerable and marginalised people are the priority in the UK’s international efforts as well as at home.

Visit www.cafod.org.uk/coronavirusto add your name to the petition, to donate and to find text and ideas for sharing the petition online.

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 

                                                                                                     James 2: 4-18

Please remember that there are now more people than ever in need of our support for food and the basic essentials.

The Food Bank is based In Mildenhall at the Kings Project, King Street.

Leave your contribution there or at the Co-op.

At present, there is an urgent need for Long Life Milk.

All non-liturgical groups have now ceased to use St John’s until further notice. These include The Tuesday Lunch Bunch, Slimming World (Wednesday) and the Thursday Line Dancing Club.

This will mean a loss of income to the parish and you are asked to think about how the whole parish community can counter this by the contributions made through the weekly offertory via standing order please contact Fr Luke or Phillip Kemp for more details.

It is pleasing and hopeful to see how people are responding to the challenge of the virus by offering to help and support their neighbours – evidence that the Holy Spirit is at work in our community and that neighbourhoods are ‘pulling together’.Remember too that our best friends ever are ready to help. 

Pray to Jesus and Our Lady of Walsingham, and your prayers will be answered.

You might also want to include saints who are patrons for those with medical problems:

• St Luke is an obvious choice, but there are also:
• Ss Adrian and Natalia of Nicomedia;
• The Fourteen Holy Helpers of the Rhineland
• St Hugh of Cluny
• St Theobald of Provins

It is a great blessing that many people in the parish have now been vaccinated, and some even have had both vaccinations. It is important to remember, however, that vaccinations do not necessarily stop a person from transmitting the virus to someone who is not vaccinated.   

A significant number in our parish, including the Parish Priest, have yet to be vaccinated.  

Therefore, it is imperative both legally and for other people’s safety that social distancing continues at this time. It is important to remember that:  

Talking in Church is kept to an absolute minimum (Evidence suggests talking in an enclosed space increases risk of transmission, even with a mask) Talk to God in Church and talk to others, safely outside!  

You stay seated:  When you arrive at Church you are either allocated a seat (on a Sunday) or you go directly to a spare seat. It is important that you do not get up and move around the Church building. Moving unnecessarily increases risk transmission around the Church.  

Please refrain from touching unnecessary surfaces: Churches are cleaned after every Mass, however, with the best will in the world this is not 100% effective. Please help us to be safer my minimizing the surfaces you touch i.e., Statues, Dry Holy Water Font, Backs of chairs etc.  

Please Remember to keep a safe distance from one another (2m where possible), especially before and after Mass and when entering and leaving the Church.  

WE ARE GETTING THROUGH THIS! KEEP GOING!  

Help us to keep you safe and to keep open!

A reminder that at this current time Holy Communion can only be received on the hand. Please place your hands flat (do not try and take the host from the priest) so that the host can be placed on your hands without the priest touching your hand. Holy communion should be received in silence, understandably many of us go into ‘auto pilot’ and say “Amen” without thinking. However, where possible please try and remember to refrain from saying “Amen”. Please also, where possible, stretch out your hands over the barrier as to keep maximum physical distance from the priest at the moment of Communion.

News of success in testing a new vaccine with which to fight the Covid-19 disease comes at the right time, when many are confused, frustrated or downcast as the coronavirus continues to spread and restrictions aimed at halting it seem more and more to turn houses into prisons and homes into cells of isolation.

We should therefore rejoice in the optimism that the New Year will hopefully bring the beginning of a nationwide vaccination programme and that we will see the threat posed by Covid-19 reduced to the same manageable level of Flu and other viruses. But the battle is not over yet! In the meantime, we must continue to observe government regulations and guidance, wear masks, keep our distance and cautiously safeguard and respect the safety and dignity of others and ourselves.

A daily prayer for this might help:

Lord: Help us to control our impulses and maintain discipline safeguarding the health and wellbeing of those around us and others we encounter today. Amen