Please note that the Mass on Wedensday 28th September will be at 9:00am instead of the usual time of 10:00am. The parish office will also be closed.
Fr Jithu will be attending the Funeral of Fr Brian Leatherland and Fr Christopher is on the annual Diocesan Clergy retreat.
REQUIEM MASS FOR QUEEN ELIZABETH
On Monday 19th September, the Day of the Funeral of Queen Elizabeth, there will be two Requiem Masses offered in the Parish for the repose of her soul:
9:00am at St Thomas Aquinas Church
5:00pm at All Saints Church.
The funeral service from Westminster Abbey is televised and will take place 11:00am.
PRAYER FOR THE REPOSE OF THE SOUL OF QUEEN ELIZABETH
Almighty God, You are the author and sustainer of all human life; grant that your servant, Elizabeth our Queen, whom you granted a long and happy reign as Monarch of these lands
may be rewarded with that eternal life
promised to all those born again
in the water of baptism and power of your Spirit. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit God, forever and ever,
Amen.
Eternal rest, grant to her O Lord,
And let Perpetual light shine upon her.
May she rest in peace.
Amen.
May her soul, and the souls of all the faithful departed,
Through the mercy of God, rest in peace.
Amen
Pope Francis sends his condolences to King Charles III and the people of the United Kingdom for the death of Queen Elizabeth II, and praises her “life of unstinting service to the good of the Nation and the Commonwealth”. Shortly after her death, Pope Francis sent a telegram to offer his condolences to King Charles III for the death of his mother, the UK’s longest-serving monarch:
Deeply saddened to learn of the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, I offer heartfelt condolences to Your Majesty, the Members of the Royal Family, the People of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth.
The Pope said he joins everyone who mourns her loss “in praying for the late Queen’s eternal rest, and in paying tribute to her life of unstinting service to the good of the Nation and the Commonwealth, her example of devotion to duty, her steadfast witness of faith in Jesus Christ and her firm hope in his promises.”
Pope Francis also commended “her noble soul” to the mercy of God the Father: “I assure Your Majesty of my prayers that Almighty God will sustain you with his unfailing grace as you now take up your high responsibilities as King. Upon you and all who cherish the memory of your late mother, I invoke an abundance of divine blessings as a pledge of comfort and strength in the Lord.”
Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster and President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, paid tribute to The Queen: “On 21 April 1947, on her twenty-first birthday, Princess Elizabeth said, ‘I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service.’ Now, seventy-five years later, we are heartbroken in our loss at her death, and so full of admiration for the unfailing way in which she fulfilled that declaration. Even in my sorrow, shared with so many around the world, I am filled with an immense sense of gratitude for the gift to the world that has been the life of Queen Elizabeth II. At this time, we pray for the repose of the soul of Her Majesty. We do so with confidence, because the Christian faith marked every day of her life and activity. In her Millennium Christmas message, she said, ‘To many of us, our beliefs are of fundamental importance. For me the teachings of Christ and my own personal accountability before God provide a framework in which I try to lead my life. I, like so many of you, have drawn great comfort in difficult times from Christ’s words and example.’ This faith, so often and so eloquently proclaimed in her public messages, has been an inspiration to me, and I am sure to many. The wisdom, stability and service which she consistently embodied, often in circumstances of extreme difficulty, are a shining legacy and testament to her faith. Our prayer is that she is now received into the merciful presence of God, there to be reunited with her beloved Prince Philip. This is the promise of our faith, and our deep consolation. Queen Elizabeth II will remain, always, a shining light in our history. May she now rest in peace. We pray for His Majesty the King, as he assumes his new office even as he mourns his mother. God save the King.”
Catholic Bletchley 