On Wednesday 12th November, Canon John celebrated a Service of Memories at St. Teilo’s. An invitation was sent out to all parishioners who have experienced a bereavement in the period, November 2024 – November 2025, and all family members and friends. The service was an opportunity for families to light a candle for their loved ones and to offer a personal prayer.
Remembrance Sunday Today is Remembrance Sunday. The 10am Mass will be a Requiem Mass to pray for those who have died in war. Canon will be taking part in the Act of Remembrance at the Whitchurch War Memorial at 10.45am. 10am Mass will be a little shorter than usual to enable Canon and any parishioners to attend the Act of Remembrance.
The Dedication of the Lateran Basilica This weekend, the Church throughout the world celebrates the feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome, the oldest and highest ranking of the four major basilicas in Rome. The Basilica of St. John Lateran is the Cathedral of the Diocese of Rome, the official ecclesiastical seat of the Holy Father, the Bishop of Rome. Therefore, we honour it as the Mother Church of the Universal Church as we honour the Pope as the centre of the unity of the one, catholic and apostolic faith. Given this papal link the Feast Day takes priority over the Sunday celebration when it falls on a Sunday.
Collection for Mary’s Meals Next weekend we shall be having our annual second collection for Mary's Meals campaign. Mary’s Meals is a registered charity serving a nutritious daily meal to some of the world's poorest children to attract them into the classroom where they can gain an education and a brighter future. We, as a parish have supported the charity since December 2023. There are 71 million primary school-age children out of school around the world; they have to work or beg to survive. A nutritious daily meal served at school not only satisfies a child’s immediate hunger, but it encourages children to attend consistently, improves their ability to learn and gives them better opportunities through education. It costs just £19.15 to feed a child for a whole year. Please give what you can.
Clothes donations for the SVP – This Weekend The Parish St. Vincent De Paul (SVP) Conference undertakes a monthly collection of clothing for the SVP Charity Shop. Clean, good quality clothing, books and toys are very welcome. Donations may be left outside the confessionals at the rear of St. Teilo’s this weekend. The clothes will be removed early on Monday morning, so please ensure that donations are brought to the Church by the end of the evening Mass this weekend or kept at home until the Second Sunday of December when we will have another collection Thank you from the parish SVP. Thank you from the parish SVP
November Dead List During the month of November, we will pray for the Faithful Departed at Mass every day. We will remember especially those included on the November Dead List in Church. Envelopes and sheets for your family’s Holy Souls’ list and your donation to the priest are available at the back of the Church. They can be handed in to the sacristy, dropped into the presbytery or placed in the collection plate. If you are unable to go to the Church, you can email your list of the deceased to whitchurch@rcadc.org
A plenary indulgence, applicable to the souls in Purgatory, is granted when you visit a church on November 2nd or 3rd (All Souls and the transferred day). While visiting the church or oratory, you are required to say one Our Father and the Apostles’ Creed in addition to having the other requirements for a plenary indulgence - the interior disposition of complete detachment from sin, even venial sin; have sacramentally confessed their sins (one confession will cover a number of indulgences); receive the Holy Eucharist; and pray for the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff. A partial indulgence may be obtained by visiting a cemetery and praying for the departed on any day from the 1st to the 8 th of November. The indulgence can be gained each day by visiting a cemetery between November 1 st and November 8th .
Monday is the, transferred, Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed. The Church gathers in solemn prayer for the souls in Purgatory and the Liturgy expresses this clearly. Mass is celebrated in purple and flowers are removed from the altar and sanctuary. There will be Mass on All Souls Day at St. Teilo’s at 10am and at Our Lady of Lourdes at 6pm. The Mass readings and prayers for the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed – All Souls are on page 197 of the Parish Mass Book.
This weekend is World Mission Sunday. On this day the Holy Father calls us all to be Missionaries of Hope. Mission is the responsibility of the whole Church, and this global celebration of World Mission Sunday is a reminder that we are one family in Christ. This special day is our chance to be part of the love and solidarity to our brothers and sisters overseas. In offering our prayers, we join with missionaries everywhere, in communion and compassion to support them in spreading the Good News, and by giving a donation, we respond to Christ’s call to share our faith in Jesus so that all may experience God’s love. As we have recently held a Missionary Appeal for one of the Missionary societies in the parish, we will not have a second collection for this cause this weekend, but we can still pray along with the Holy Father for the work of the missions. You can watch the Holy Father’s message for today at: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2025-10/pope-leo-xiv-take-part-in-world-mission-sunday-videomessage.html If you would like to donate to the work of Missio you can do so via the Red Boxes or by clicking here: https://missio.org.uk/donate/
Christmas Fayre - early notice! Although there are still 12 weeks until Christmas, our Annual Fair is just 6 weeks away. This year the Fayre will be held in St. Teilo’s Hall on Saturday, November 7th beginning at 10.45. If anybody is interested in having a table to sell items at the Fayre, please contact Carole on 07747562847
Canon John is a member of the interview panel for the Archdiocesan Selection Panel for those who are exploring a vocation to the Permanent Diaconate in the Archdiocese. The panel is meeting from 9am until 1pm on Saturday 11th October , so there will be no morning Mass or confessions that day.
Canon returns from his break at the end of the week and on Friday will depart for Lourdes as the Chaplain to the Cardiff branch of the Handicapped Children’s Pilgrimage Trust. If any parishioner would like to offer prayer intentions to be taken to the grotto of the apparition in Lourdes, please drop them through the presbytery letter box before the end of Thursday and Canon will carry them to Lourdes with him.
From Monday, September 8th to Friday, September 12th there will be Carpet Fitters at St. Teilo’s replacing the current carpet tiles with new carpet which is Supacord Heavy Contract Fibre Bonded Carpet and is specific for churches and areas with heavy footfall with a BREAM Rating of A+ which indicates that the product has the lowest overall environmental impact. The carpet comes with a 10 year guarantee and has been used in schools and other heavy-duty high traffic environments for over 40 years. Many thanks to the parishioners who have noted the various breaks and wears in the current surface, it has taken a while to get Archdiocesan approval for the work to take place, but hopefully by Sunday, September 14th everyone will see the difference. Naturally, these things do not come cheap with the lowest tender being for £21,000. It seems like a good time to think of ways to fund this expenditure please let the Parish Finance Committee know if you have any suggestions for fund raising.
If anyone has concerns over the welfare of any children or vulnerable adults within our community, please contact Jill Gildersleve, in confidence, on 07813 322179 or gildersleve@ntlworld.com .
The Pilgrimage of Hope is a national walking pilgrimage for England and Wales with four main Ways converging at the Cathedral of St. Barnabas, Nottingham, on Saturday, September 13th, the eve of the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. It is an initiative of the Hearts in Search of God project. The Ways start at the Catholic cathedrals in Cardiff, Leeds, Norwich and London and will bless our nations with a Sign of the Cross. The routes use established hiking routes and are off road as much as possible. A small group of 'perpetual pilgrims' will walk the full distance of each Way, with up to 20 day pilgrims joining for day stages. It is now possible for pilgrims to register for day stages. For details see this link https://www.pilgrimways.org.uk/become-a-pilgrim-for-a-day
The second edition of our monthly diocesan newsletter has just been published, bringing you all the highlights from a busy and joyful summer across the Archdiocese of Cardiff-Menevia. What’s Inside This Month This August edition captures the breadth of Catholic life in our archdiocese, from milestone moments in priestly ministry to vibrant community celebrations: Celebrating Vocations : Read about two special occasions fifty years apart – the ordination of Fr Illtyd Williams at Cardiff Oratory and Canon Michael Flook’s Golden Jubilee of ordination in Swansea. Both events remind us of the enduring call to serve God and His people. Faith in Action : Discover how our communities came together for the Ecumenical Pilgrimage Walk from Llandaff to Cardiff city centre and the powerful witness of this year’s Corpus Christi Procession through Cardiff streets. Parish Life : Learn about the blessing of a new maritime window at the Cornerstone and the completion of St Illtyd’s Church restoration project, plus insights into children’s liturgy and the significance of the Nicene Creed. Looking Ahead : Find details of upcoming events including pilgrimages to Penrhys and Monmouth, the March for Life, and various parish celebrations and courses. The newsletter also includes clergy moves taking effect in September and resources from the wider Church, including podcasts and new publications.
Canon John welcomes visitors from Brentwood Diocese to Our Lady of Lourdes, Cardiff
On Sunday 20th July we welcomed Archbishop Mark to the parish to celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation with the parish candidates. A wonderful celebration, some photos of the event are below. Please keep our newly confirmed in your prayers as they experience the coming of the Holy Spirit in their lives in a new way
At the beginning of September, Fr. Artur Kozik, who has served the Polish Catholic Community in Cardiff and area for four years, comes to the end of his term of office. Fr. Artur is well known to the community at Our Lady of Lourdes and will be missed by many. Fr. Tomasz Kocjan, who until now has served the London Polish Parish, will become the new Parish Priest for the Polish Catholic Mission in Cardiff, from the weekend of September 7th .
As we all know, in the space of just one week at the end of June, MPs voted to decriminalise abortion up to birth and to legalise assisted suicide. These recent events have been a result of determined efforts by activists eager to expand the culture of death. Sadly, the pro-life movement simply do not have enough people active in the range of pro-life activities to contend successfully in the struggle for pro-life values. However, SPUC are as determined as ever to defeat abortion and assisted suicide and believe this can be done by mobilising adequate pro-life support. SPUC therefore urgently need to build up the critical mass of people necessary to effect real and lasting protection for unborn children and vulnerable people at the end of life. To Join the Fightback all parishioners are encouraged to complete an expression of an interest in SPUCs work, by completing a postcard at the back of the Church today. The postcards will be collected from the back of the Church and send to SPUC at no cost to you.