Notes from Fr. Claro
30th Ordinary Sunday
25th October 2026
YouTube link for the Bible Study
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0LMfSPN6EI
We are still in the Tuesday of Holy Week, and in today’s Gospel a Pharisees asks a question in an attempt to trap Jesus: Which is the greatest commandment in the Law? Jesus responds with words that every Jew knew by heart, quoting Deuteronomy 6:5: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” These words form part of what Jews call the Shema (שְׁמַע). That is the opening word of Deuteronomy 6:4, and it means “Hear”—Hear O, Israel. Observant Jews recited the Shema every morning and every evening. No words of Scripture were more familiar.
Jesus then joins to it a second commandment from Leviticus 19:18: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.”
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We welcome newly ordained Fr. Chidiebere JohnBosco Ezeakacha, OCD of the Carmelites of Boars hill, who will preside this Sunday Mass.
OCTOBER/NOVEMBER
Stephanie Hope is organising Mass on 31 October 6pm Saturday for TODOS LOS SANTOS when we remember the Saints and Prayers for our Beloved Dead. Then there will be sharing of Food afterwards to commemorate and celebrate the life & death and Eternal of our beloved departed. This is a Bolivian Traditions and, also Filipino and South American Customs. You may bring photos of your beloved dead. COME AND JOIN THE FEAST OF THE HOLY SAINTS and FAITHFUL DEPARTED.
27 October Tuesday, Hallam Willis, Las Casas Institute, will host this hybrid seminar discussing how a framework of progress has impacted the adoption of artificial intelligence in society. This event will take place at 5:30pm in the Aula of Blackfriars Hall St Giles, Oxford OX1 3LY.
Bamenda Sunday weekend, which falls this year on 31st October/1st November.
See PPC and Finance meetings. Please read the minutes. If you have ideas or issues to present, please inform me or any member of the PPC.
MAINTENANCE
Unicorn visited for a pre-winter heating check, as requested by us.
The church and sacristy heating is working fine but the church hall boiler is not. We have a choice of new boiler at approximately £4500 fitted. Or strip our boiler replace the heat exchanger and flush the system for approx £2300. With no gurantee for the future. I prefer the new boiler option (ours is approx 7 years old) and out of the 5 year warranty.
Andrew Chell
MONDAY BIBLE ZOOM time 7pm
YOUTH MEETING every other Friday, contact Helena Boakye 07455 993296
Holy Rosary, and the Month of October is Rosary Month, 3pm every Saturday at Blessed Hugh Faringdon.
PORTSMOUTH DIOCESE E-NEWS
https://mailchi.mp/portsmouthdiocese/issue552
Catholic numbers worldwide: The number of Catholics in Africa surpassed the number in Europe for the first time. According to statistics published to mark World Mission Sunday on 18 October, the latest available figures from 2024 show the number of Catholics worldwide grew to 1.44 billion. There were 288.31 million Catholics in Africa and 287.24 million in Europe. There are 678.87 million Catholics in the Americas. The statistics also recorded a slight increase in the number of priests worldwide to 407,421, the first increase for five years: the addition of 1,676 priests in Africa, 1,065 in Asia and 199 in the Americas outweighed the fall of 2,483 in Europe and of 32 in Oceania.
A Redemptorist priest in southern Ecuador died when a large crucifix fell on to him from the wall behind an altar. Fr Patricio Alfredo Sánchez Molinari was celebrating Mass on 17 October at the Church of Our Lady of Perpetual Succour in Guayaquil.