2nd Sunday of Advent

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Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is close at hand Dear Parishioners, The Readings for this Second Sunday of Advent place in front of us another invitation to prepare ourselves for the coming of the Lord. If last Sunday the focus was on the necessity of staying awake and being vigilant in order not to miss the encounter with the Lord who is to come, this Sunday the stress is on the necessity to convert.  What does this mean? It is not so much something that we are required to do, but rather something we are required to receive.  Of course, this doesn't mean that we have to do nothing. When we receive the visit of a guest or a friend to our house, it is normal to first check that everything is well in order. Then, when he arrives at the footsteps of our house, we get up to go to open the door to let him in. In this season of Advent, the Lord comes to meet each one of us, individually. Therefore, 'it is important to prepare the way for his coming.' (Mt 3:3) Nonetheless, contrary to a friend or a guest that we may know, the Lord comes in ways that are different from what we will normally expect. It comes as a shoot which springs from the stock of Jesse, a scion that thrusts from his roots (Is 11:1) or his arrival is foretold by someone who is dressing in a garment made of camel hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. (Mt 3:4) This is to say, that the Lord comes to visit us with an event that we might consider irrelevant or not so important or through a person that we may easily judge or label for his way of doing, speaking or behaving. Who is the one that is announcing the coming of the Lord to you, today? How can we have eyes to recognize this person? Then, in order to find this out, we are invited to abandon our own conventional way of thinking, planning and dealing with the events we face and the people we meet in our life to welcome our Lord Jesus Christ who comes to bring something new into it.  Fr Marco Paul Hewitt Permanent Diaconate   As our dear parishioner, Paul Hewitt is continuing his training in preparation to be ordained as a permanent deacon, this Sunday at 11.15 am, at St Matthew in Northwood, he will receive the ministry of Lector, one of the steps towards the diaconate. Fr Marco will attend the ceremony as a representative of our parish community. Please keep Paul in your prayer, in this important stage of his formation. Primary School Applications Mgr Jim will sign and issue Certificate of Catholic Practice for Primary entry on the 10th December between 11.30am to 12.30am and 3 to 4pm. Please come to the parish centre.  World Youth Day, Lisbon 2023   It is now just nine months until the next World Youth Day celebration in Lisbon. As many of you know, World Youth Day takes place roughly every three years and brings together millions of young Catholics from all over the world with the Holy Father, to be inspired in their faith and experience a deeper sense of the great communion that is the Church.  As usual, Westminster Youth Ministry is really excited to be taking a group of young people from our diocese. The two-week pilgrimage will include "days in the diocese" in Porto before travelling to Fatima and Lisbon. We encourage young people to take this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We are only offering 50 spaces so we really encourage early sign-up and preferably by 16 December 2022 when we will close applications.  This is mainly because of significant further rises in fees and cost from January 2023. Friends of the Holy Land Next weekend There will be an appeal and retiring collection for the work and apostolate of the Friend of the Holy Land aimed to support Christians through education, employment projects and welfare. Adoration and Confession Monday 5th December Due to planned engineering works on our sound system and installation of new speakers, the weekly slot for Adoration and Confession happening every Wednesday after mass, next week will be moved from Wednesday 7th December to Monday 5th December in order to facilitate the works. Caritas Volunteer Service: Putting Faith into Action   Looking for your perfect volunteering opportunity? To find an opportunity today, visit www.caritasvs.org.uk. For more information, contact our Volunteer Coordinator at cvs@rcdow.org.uk or phone 07738183833   Caritas Food Project Our Lady of Fatima We are twinning with Our Lady of Fatima, White City, to support their Food Project, every Monday starting at 11.30 am. Food and items you wish to provide to support the initiative should be dropped off to them.  People in the community are able to come and collect 2 or 3 bags of fruit/veg/dairy/ meat/fish/bread. We also have teas and coffees on Monday mornings so people don’t have to queue out on the street from 10 am. This is also a time when Laura Allison, our Community Support Worker, is available in the parish centre (9 am – 1 pm) to discuss issues you may be having with debt, fuel bills and getting back into work. Besides that, every Saturday at 1.00 pm in our Parish Centre we also have a Free friendly community lunch run by FoodCycle charity (see www.foodcycle.org.uk). Veggie Lunch & take-home bags. Food Cycle CAFOD World Gifts: Give a gift of hope this Christmas In Advent, let us share the promise of hope that has been made to us with our sisters and brothers around the world. World Gifts are a range of virtual charity gifts that will delight the people you give them to and help transform the lives of families living in poverty. You can buy CAFOD World Gifts for family and friends this Christmas online by clicking on the button below.   CAFOD World Gift The Gospel Power This is a gentle reminder that the Pauline Bookshop at the back of the church is open from Monday to Friday from 9 am to 1 pm and on Sunday from 8.45 am to 1 pm. Inside the store, you will find a wide variety of religious articles and books suitable for any range of age, such as children's Bibles. Among the different articles of interest, we would like to present to you the annual commentary on the readings for the next year's readings cycle, 'Gospel Power', written by Sr Bernardita Dianzon FSP. Sr Bernardita is a Pauline Sister, resident in the Philippines. She is an illustrious biblical scholar and has been recently appointed by the Holy See as Associate Professor of the Loyola School of Theology (LST) in Manila, Philippines. Are you a student at one of the universities or colleges in London or Hatfield? Our Catholic Chaplaincy is for you! It’s based at Newman House, 111 Gower Street, WC1E 6AR. We have Sunday Masses for students and regular events during the week. And in many of the universities and colleges, we also have campus-based Catholic societies and activities. Click on the button below to find out more. You will be made very welcome at our Catholic community here, a ‘home from home.’   Catholic Chaplaincy Universe Catholic Weekly Universe Catholic Weekly is true to its mission of being “a light to guide the world, and a mirror to reflect it”, keeping Catholics­ informed about their faith, and bringing them ever closer to God. In order to keep our high standard going and maintain a strong weekly Catholic voice at a time when it is much needed in the world, please consider taking out a subscription. We have an excellent website full of trustworthy articles and an online shop with all subscribers receiving a 10% discount. Order your Digital 4 weeks FREE introductory offer by calling Michelle on 0743 661 7650 or emailing: michelle.jones@universecatholicweekly.co.uk For more information and to visit Universe Catholic Weekly website please click on the button below.   Universe Catholic Weekly Confirmation Course 2023 There is still room available for our next programme for the Sacrament of Confirmation due to start in mid-January 2023. The Sacrament of Confirmation will be celebrated on Friday 9th June at 6.30pm. More details to follow. We remind you that the requirements for inclusion in the Confirmation programme at Our Lady of Victories (OLV) are: 1) The candidate must be in Year 9 this Academic year. 2) Our Lady of Victories must be the candidate’s regular place of worship. 3) The candidate must be a baptised Catholic. If all the above requirements are met please download and complete the form below and return it to Fr Marco at marcosalvagnini@rcdow.org.uk Confirmation Course Registration Form OLOV LATEST NEWS GIFT AID DONATIONS:   Dear Parishioners:   We have worked with our colleagues in the Parish Support Team towards procedures for processing the Gift Aid from contactless donations through the Dona provider. When signing a Gift Aid declaration on the device, you will also be asked if you would like your previous contactless donations to be Gift Aided.  Further, as entering a Gift Aid declaration on the device can take a couple of minutes, we want to help reduce the amount of time you may spend on the device, and reduce the queue for it. Leaflets have been created and placed at the back of the church and on the notice board. These contain a QR code that will enable you to use your smartphone to make your Gift Aid declaration. You can also access the Dona portal and leave your donation by simply scanning the underneath QR code: You can also donate securely by debit or credit card by clicking on the button created at the section end.   WEEKLY MASS SCHEDULE:   Monday to Friday - 10.00 am Saturday - 6.00 pm Sunday - 9.00 am, 10.30 am, 12.00 pm and 6.00 pm.    ALL OUR MASSES WILL BE LIVE-STREAMED FROM OUR WEBSITE.    EUCHARISTIC ADORATION: Each Wednesday, soon after mass, there will be the possibility to spend some time in prayer in front of the most blessed sacrament, immediately after mass. During that time a priest will be available to hear your confession. Adoration will finish at noon with the prayer of the Angelus.  Confessions are also available every Saturday from 5 pm to 5.45 pm. BLESSING OF HOUSES:   For anyone who would like to have the house blessed, Fr Marco we will available to arrange it. Please send an email to marcosalvagnini@rcdow.org.uk   Please do keep an eye on the website: www.ourladyofvictories.net which will be updated weekly. To all who are travelling at this time, stay safe and travel well.   Mgr Jim Curry & Fr Marco Salvagnini   Our Lady of Victories 16 Abingdon Road London W8 6AF 020 7937 4778  kensington1@rcdow.org.uk