Bishop Christopher writes:
The importance of Easter is highlighted by its celebration for 50 days. These constitute the Easter season.
The readings of Easter Week, especially the Gospels, have an important purpose - namely, to convince us that the Lord is truly risen and that life cannot be the same again. Sin and death have been disarmed and, if we remain faithful to our new Easter life, they will never again dominate and control us.
A varied range of talks has been arranged by the Torbay Deanery Adult Education Commission. Open to everyone, the four post-Easter talks are taking place at St. Joseph's Church Hall, Queen Street, Newton Abbot, Devon on Wednesday evenings at 7.30pm. Refreshments are available, there is a bookstall, and tapes of the talks can be obtained.
The 30th Annual Justice & Peace Conference is being held on 18-20 July 2008 at the Hayes Conference Centre, Swanwick in Derbyshire. Hear My People Cry is a conference that explores the dilemmas and opportunities of living a Christian life in the modern world - and what it means to "live justly, love tenderly, and walk humbly with God." It will focus on the implications of 'doing justice' in the places where we live.
The Faith in Health conference in July will bring together healthcare professionals from across the country to further the current debate about vocation and professionalism within the NHS and to provide a space for healthcare professionals to reflect on the spiritual basis of their vocation to work in healthcare.
Key speakers include: Cardinal Cormac Murphy O'Connor, Baroness Julia Cumberlege, Sir Cyril Chantler and Dr James Hanvey SJ.
As the summer approaches, young adults are making their final preparations to travel to Sydney on the World Youth Day (WYD) pilgrimage.
Twenty four pilgrims from our Diocese - together with another 60 from our neighbours Clifton and Portsmouth - are busy fundraising in the last stages of preparation for their journey in response to Pope Benedict XVI's invitation to meet with him in Australia. Support both financial and spiritual has been most gratefully received from local parishes and schools which are in some cases even supporting pilgrims from other parts of the Diocese.
‘Church Beyond Boundaries' is the title of a day being held in the Exeter Deanery on Saturday, 10th May 2008 at St Nicholas School, Ringswell Avenue, Exeter. The day commences with an opening liturgy and introduction by Bishop Christopher at 10.30am. There are 12 inspiring workshops to choose from, directed quiet prayer and activities for children and young people. A crèche is available, as are refreshments and a buffet lunch. A closing liturgy will be held at 3.30pm.
2008 sees the 150th Anniversary of the building and dedication of the Cathedral Church of St Mary and St Boniface, Plymouth. To celebrate this momentous occasion, a series of events is taking place in the Cathedral during the year.
The latest edition of the Newsletter has extracts from a thought-provoking presentation on Stewardship made to Council members. The Newsletter also contains some thoughts from Bishop Christopher about our being a Eucharistic people and how stewardship relates to this.
As part of the ongoing pastoral re-organisation in the Diocese, a number of changes came into effect in the Cornwall and Dorset Deaneries on 1 April 2008. All the original Churches, including the Parish Churches, retain their dedications.
Bishop Christopher's further thoughts:
This Bill continues to make its way through Parliament. It returns to the Commons shortly after Easter. May I encourage everyone to continue dialogue with his or her MP.
Please give your support to the plea that government MPs should be given a free vote, as there are so many important conscientious issues in the Bill.
My own concerns - and I share these with many other people of faith and no faith - are still as follows.
Formerly known as the Child Protection Office, this diocesan agency has a new name and a new address. It is now the Diocesan Safeguarding Office, as its work embraces the protection of both children and vulnerable adults.
"I have come so that they may have life, and have it to the full" (John 10:10)
The new Mental Capacity Act affects the care of anyone who is unable to make decisions for themselves. These may be financial decisions, choices about where to live, or how someone is to be cared for. Healthcare decisions made when the end of life is approaching are the main focus of the Mental Capacity Act & Living Wills - A Practical Guide for Catholics, produced by the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales to provide a Catholic perspective on the new law.
On behalf of the Bishops of England and Wales, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor has sent a pastoral message to Catholics encouraging them to write to their MPs about the "profound questions of human life and dignity" posed by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill.
This Bill is currently making its way through the parliamentary process. It is a proposed new law about infertility treatment and about experimentation on human embryos. Bishop Christopher writes: "There are many items in the Bill with which we take issue:
Copies of a document entitled ‘Pastoral Re-Organisation in the Diocese of Plymouth - Principles, Strategy and Framework' have been sent to all parishes in the diocese for wide circulation.
Retreats in 2008, led by members of the Plymouth Diocesan Ignatian Spirituality Group, are being offered at various venues. These silent retreats, in the Ignatian tradition, are open to Christians of any denomination who would like to step back from everyday life and review their journey in faith and be strengthened in their vocation as disciples of the Lord.
The 2008 Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes takes place on 23 to 30 May under the leadership of Bishop Christopher. It will celebrate the 150th Anniversaries of both the Lourdes Apparitions and the building and dedication of the Cathedral Church of St Mary and St Boniface, Plymouth. The cost, by air from Exeter, is £575. Financial assistance is available for sick and disabled pilgims.
The third Festival of Diocesan Organisations is set to take place this year on Saturday, 28 June. It will be held in the Conference Centre at Buckfast Abbey, Devon from 10.30am to 3.30pm. Entry is free and there is free parking.
Organisations that are interested in exhibiting at the Festival, or in finding out more about it, should contact the organiser: Deacon Tony Irwin, 22 Glebeland, Churchstow, Kingsbridge, Devon, TQ7 3RD. Tel: 01548 853413. Email: tony [at] irwin777 [dot] fsnet [dot] co [dot] uk