[Please forward this if you know of somebody who might like to receive it. If you are keeping in touch with any

parishioners without email, do drop in a printed copy to them if you can. If you do not wish to receive it, or have

received it in error, just email to let me know]

Dear Parishioners

Sunday Mass

It is good to be celebrating Mass again with some of you in our Church. We are getting used

to the temporary arrangements we have had to put in place. As we do, we should be able to

be more relaxed with this way of celebrating Mass. Once again, I thank all who are helping

especially those who act as Stewards.

Things are different for the time being. The pandemic is not overcome and, though currently

reduced, risks remain. Therefore, we must continue to act cautiously and responsibly as we

come together from different households to worship. Let us pray that things continue to be

under control so that we can progress towards greater normality.

A few key procedures for when you come to Mass:

It is probably best not to bring any small child (less than 8 years old) at present: they cannot be allowed to run around, go near others etc., we cannot station you at the back, and there is no ‘crying chapel’.

You must wear a facemask, and be wearing it before entering the Church. This allows us to accommodate more people (up to 60) safely at Mass.

Follow the Stewards’ instructions. If you did not reserve online, they will ask you to fill out a temporary record for the ‘Track and Trace’. These are kept here and will be destroyed after three weeks.

The Stewards will show you where you must sit (this is to avoid people passing too close to or in front of other people).

Access your seat via the side-aisles only.

Sit or stand during Mass; do not kneel.

Communion will conclude the Mass – come forward when directed via the side-aisle NOT the centre. Then leave Church immediately by the centre-aisle.

Except when in your seat, always keep a 2-metre distance from anybody not from your immediate family inside and outside the building.

Both you and I need to remain as safe as possible. You should note that the Sunday

obligation remains suspended, especially for anyone who feels they should stay away from

crowds or would prefer to attend a smaller weekday Mass at first.

We have set up an Online Booking service (using Eventbrite) to enable you to be sure of a

seat at Sunday Mass, in case our reduced capacity is reached.

You can click on one of the links below for Mass on next Sunday (26 July).

9am: - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/sunday-mass-9am-on-26th-july-2020-tickets-

113952125876

11am: - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/sunday-mass-11am-on-26th-july-2020-tickets-

113952180038

6pm: - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/sunday-mass-6pm-on-26th-july-2020-tickets-

113952222164

Parables of the Kingdom in our Time (Mt 13, 24 – 43)

The theme of so many

parables is ‘the kingdom

of heaven’; so it is with

the three parables you

hear at Mass this

Sunday – the darnel and

the wheat, the mustard

seed, and the yeast in

the dough.

Parables are an appeal

to our prayer and

contemplation.

Sometimes Jesus does

offer an explanation (as

his disciples urge him on

this occasion); more

often he leaves it for

our own reflection. Are

we interested enough in

what he teaches to

chew over these stories, to ask ourselves what personal challenges he may be putting

before us? The parables are striking, but often deceptively simple. As with many

comparisons, however, what probably matters is more the thrust of the stories rather than

analysis of their every detail.

But what does Jesus mean by ‘the Kingdom of heaven’, or the reign of heaven? In the first

parable, we could easily miss that Jesus compares the kingdom to ‘a man who sowed good

seed’. We immediately recall last weekend’s parable of the Sower. In Jesus’ explanation ‘The

sower of the good seed is the Son of Man’, that is Jesus himself. Indeed, Jesus is the

kingdom: his work with and in us, where he plants good seed. Pope Benedict XVI wrote that

heaven is not a place but a person: 'We go to heaven and enter into heaven to the extent

that we go to Jesus and enter into him.' The subject of these parables, then, is very deep –

nothing less than the love of God at work in us, the love that Jesus proclaims and incarnates.

These parables treat of how the kingdom exists in time; how it grows in the midst of much

that is contrary or obscures its presence. Wheat and darnel, for example, are outwardly very

similar, but the one is good to eat, the other not. They are not easily distinguished while

growing. Hence Jesus saying it is not wise to try to root out the darnel early in their growth.

Following his explanation, we might ponder the coexistence of good and evil, in the world

and in ourselves. And about the need for us to learn some of God’s patience. The story

suggests God is patient with the often hesitant growth of his kingdom among us, and even

with the mixture of good and bad. He encourages the good to grow in us, to yield the

abundant harvest of last week’s parable. The story’s end reminds us that God’s patience is

not the same as indifference; it does not mean we should become resigned to evil or lack a

concern to strive for justice and right. The patience we may need to learn springs from

wisdom and discernment, and is informed by the entire life and teaching of Jesus.

The German illustration

reproduced here clearly applied

the parable to the Church; look at

the sleeping figures. It shows a

very sneaky devil: he is slyly

dropping the bad seed behind

him with his left hand almost

hidden, and he is somewhat

disguised too. In the face of so

much evil, it is not uncommon for

people to wonder ‘why does God

allow that, why doesn’t he

intervene?’, not least about sin or

evil we find in the Church itself.

And the presence of evil in the

world is for some a major

stumbling block to belief in God.

We often become very incensed

about the wrongdoing or evil of

others; with ourselves, we usually

hope for more understanding.

Almost the first words Jesus

speaks in the Gospels concern his

call to repentance and

conversion: ‘Repent and believe

the Good News’. The space that

allows for conversion, which we

all need, means things are not neat; they can be messy. In the First Reading of Mass, from

the Book of Wisdom, the writer stresses that the strength of God’s justice is manifested in

mildness and lenience towards us. ‘You have given your children the good hope that after

sin you will grant repentance’.

‘For me, to live is Christ’, wrote St Paul (Phil 1,21). To the Galatians he declared, ‘and it is no

longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by

faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me’ (2, 20). That is the kingdom

growing in Paul. Jesus can reign in our hearts. He sows the seed of his life in us. He allows us

the space for conversion. He allows others the space for conversion.

Some reactions this week to the return to the headlines of one of the ‘Isis brides’ show the

double standards there can be to dealing with evil in the world. To afford an access to the

justice we would all expect, even to allow there might be a change of heart, is quite

different from condoning the evil intentions that may have grown in that young woman.

And it would not make her guiltless. Our society now claims to be far more aware of the

destructive grooming of children that happens through the internet; it should no more set

this aside a priori when a schoolgirl makes the disastrous decision to go to Syria than it

would for one lured into crime or drug running here.

The parable about the yeast encourages us: we should allow the kingdom growing in us, the

love of Christ for us, be a power in our world, particularly when we speak up for the needy,

the downtrodden, and the overlooked. For Christians, doing so will be vital in the ‘post-

Covid’ world, where politicians are already busy taking decisions which will have huge long-

term consequences for our future lives, in this country and across the world. It must not be

‘everyone for themselves’.

As we try to negotiate such difficult times, Paul has powerful words for the Romans (Second

Reading) and us. They encourage us to persevere in prayer: ‘The Spirit comes to help us in

our weakness. For when we cannot choose words in order to pray properly, the Spirit

himself expresses our plea in a way that could never be put into, and God who knows

everything in our hearts knows perfectly well what he means’. Let us persevere in trying to

pray with the Lord even when we are unsure quite how to.

The DEC Coronavirus Appeal

You will probably have seen media advertising of the Disasters Emergency Committee

Appeal – to assist the millions of lives now at risk as Covid-19 hits the desperate people

crammed into the refugee camps of Syria, Yemen and South Sudan. Do support this:

www.dec.org.uk. In normal times we would have a ‘green bucket’ collection at the church

door. While the UK has not done well in combatting the virus, the situation facing these

refugees is of another order, almost unimaginable and largely overlooked. The UK

government is going to match the first £5m raised, pound for pound.

Prayer during this Time

Join Pope Francis in praying his Prayer Intention for the month of July:

‘The family ought to be protected. It faces many dangers: the fast pace of life, stress… Sometimes, parents forget to play with their children. The Church needs to encourage families and stay at their side, helping them to discover ways that allow them to overcome all of these difficulties. Let us pray that today’s families may be accompanied with love, respect and guidance, and especially, that they may be protected by the State.’ You can watch and pray this prayer along with Pope Francis using this video link: https://thepopevideo.org/

Parish Evening Prayer – our Last Week: on Tuesday and Thursday at 630 there will

be the final two prayer sessions. I shall soon be away for my summer break and so this week’s sessions will have to be the last. Do join if you can. I am pleased this simple way of joining together in prayer has been appreciated, especially at the height of the lockdown. I have found it helpful to be able to pray with you too.

Use either this link:

https://us04web.zoom.us/j/5157283317?pwd=TC9PK2dPNlcrRnI2eVo1Y2NwMmVKZz09

or Meeting ID: 515 728 3317, with Password: 4ekmaZ.

Try to Logon about 6.25pm. Remember to switch off audio once we begin the prayer, except

anyone who is assisting at various points. I shall send the texts needed for our times of prayer

on Monday.

Holy Mass in our Church. As well as on Sunday, there will also be public Masses this week

at 9.30am on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. The Church is open for private prayer

immediately before those Masses. All the current guidelines (use of facemask, social

distance etc.) apply on weekdays too.

The following are the Mass Intentions for the coming Week:

o Sunday 19 July 9am: Franca Luigina Tavars Gardin RIP (Row) 11am: For all Parishioners 6pm: Fr Christopher Pemberton RIP

o Monday 20 July Intentions of Mary Wild

o Tuesday 21 July 9.30am: In Thanksgiving (Fr Tim’s 41st Anniversary)

o Wednesday 22 July Intentions of Mary Wild

o Thursday 23 July 9.30am: Jean Hughes RIP (Row)

o Friday 24 July 9.30am: Holy Souls

o Saturday 25 July Deceased Relative of Fr Tim

Special Prayers: Pray For Bernadette Austen, who has been in hospital but is now back at

home; for Henry Holtz and his wife Antoinette; and for the Edwards family mourning the

death of Cathy RIP. Please also pray for me on Tuesday, when I celebrate my 41st

Anniversary of Ordination to the Priesthood (how blest I was with the beautiful celebration

in June last year, in times so different from those we are living through now). Several new

priests are also being ordained for our diocese in these days – pray for them that they will

be faithful and generous. One, Giovanni Prandini, has been appointed to our neighbouring

parish in Balham

Family Prayer: As you have prayed together as a family at home over these months, I hope

you may feel you the seeds of the Lord’s word growing in you, and the presence of his

promised Holy Spirit. As Sundays return towards something more normal, persevere in

those practices of prayer you have shared together. They will continue to nourish your

family’s life and faith long after this crisis is past.

Please give your financial support to your parish

We are so grateful to those who are supporting our parish at this time, especially those who

did so while there was no public Sunday Mass. Please now help if you are in a position to do

so. Our Diocese recently asked us to produce a Cash Flow prediction to the end of the year,

and it does not make good reading. Our income is declining significantly! Our (modest)

current account balance may disappear over the remainder of the year.

You can leave your contribution in the collection basket in the centre of the aisle as you

leave each Sunday Mass – please use cheques where possible or notes, but not coin if you

could avoid it (have a care for the parishioners who will count the collection).

The envelopes for those already registered are available at the back of Church by the font.

You can also give directly to our parish bank account. The BACS details you need are

(please use your surname as the reference, especially in order to Gift Aid):

o Sort Code: 50-21-01 Nat West, Clapham Junction Branch o Account: 82117209 o A/C Name: RCAS St Vincent de Paul Church No.1 Account

You can also use the JustGiving page on our website – many thanks to several people who have done so anonymously during this crisis. You can and should Gift Aid when you do this.

I hope that some of you will manage some sort of break at this time if possible. The last four

months have caused strain for many people.

With my prayers and affection as always,

Fr Tim