Christmas Carols at St Joseph’s
The years fly past! It seems we spend months preparing for Christmas and then it is over all too quickly. This year, as always we had prepared for the coming of the Lord in our advent services and celebrated Christ’s birth at our Christmas Masses. Fr Gary had reminded us of the Octave of Christmas, an eight day liturgical celebration from December 25 to January 1 (Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God), extending the joy of Christ’s birth with related feasts like St Stephen, St John and the Holy Innocents. Even so, it has come and gone very quickly!
So, let us take some time to remember one of the highlights. On Sunday 21 December, Fr Bill invited us to join him, Fr Simon and Fr Gary for our 2025 Carol Service. This year we were blessed by a truly wonderful collaboration of choirs. The Filipino Choir began the service with a beautiful gathering song, sung in their own language. It was a wonderful start to the afternoon. What followed was a thoughtfully chosen mix of Christmas carols, blending some popular ones alongside lesser known but equally beautiful carols. We had readings from Sheila Allan and Mary Gorton, while Fr Gary gave a reading from the Holy Gospel. More than 200 parishioners added their voices to the singing of George Matthews, the Family Choir, the Folk Choir and Terry Donohoe with Chris Donovan. The Christmas Tree sparkled in the background, the crib was lit up in front of the altar and the singing filled the church. Children were invited to hang their Christmas wishes on the tree before bidding prayers read by Thomas Andrews and then the final blessing from Fr Bill. The Coordination Team had organised food and drink in the hall afterwards. The usual tea and coffee was supplemented by “festive” red and white wine, mince pies and various other delicious and largely unhealthy goodies. Fr Bill used the opportunity to say how much he appreciated all our volunteers and he thanked them heartily. It was a fitting end to an uplifting afternoon. Thank you to everyone involved.
Parish–School Mass: A Celebration of Faith, Community and Diversity
Sunday 28 September 2025 was a very special day for our parish and school community as we came together to celebrate the first joint Parish–School Mass. This initiative, developed by the newly formed steering group, reflects Bishop Richard’s Pastoral Plan which reminds us: “This formation (faith development), lived out in the life of parish communities, with the school as a key collaborator and partner, will further develop the three-fold bond (home–school–parish) that has been long recognised as a source of strength.”
The Mass was a joyful celebration of faith, culture, and diversity. One of the highlights was the beautiful Procession of Nations, which show-cased just a small sample of the many nationalities represented within our vibrant community. Although not every nation could be represented on the day, it was a powerful reminder of the unity and strength we share in our diversity.
Attendance far exceeded expectations, with over 1,200 people present (where 500 would usually be typical). The atmosphere was uplifting, with moving singing and heartfelt participation throughout the liturgy.
After Mass, many families continued the celebration together on the school field, where food, drink and activities created a wonderful social event. The catering and organisation ran smoothly, and the weather held just long enough for everyone to enjoy the occasion in great spirits.
This remarkable day was made possible by the hard work, vision and commitment of so many people. Heartfelt thanks go to all who helped with the planning, preparation and running of the event, especially those who contributed to the food, drink, music, and general support.
The overwhelming feedback has been full of praise, with many people commenting on how uplifting and unifying the day was. It was a wonderful demonstration of what we can achieve together as parish and school — a true celebration of our shared faith and community life.
Pilgrimage of Hope to Walsingham
The Shrine of Our Lady at Walsingham was established around 1061 when, according to the text of the Pynson Ballad [c 1485], Richeldis de Faverches prayed that she might undertake some special work in honour of Our Lady:
“ Our Lady led Richeldis in spirit to Nazareth and showed her the house where the angel had greeted her. ‘Look, daughter’ said Our Lady. ‘Take the measurements of this house and erect another one like it in Walsingham, dedicated to praising and honouring me. All who come there shall find help in their need. ‘It shall be a perpetual memorial to the great joy of the Annunciation, ground and origin of all my joys and the root of humanity’s gracious Redemption. This came about through Gabriel’s message that I would be a mother through my humility, and conceive God’s Son in virginity.” [Pynson Ballad 1485]
On September 19th-21st 35 Saint Joseph’s parishioners enjoyed a Pilgrimage of Hope to the shrine of Our Lady at Walsingham in Norfolk. “We marked the beginning and end of each day with Morning or Evening Prayer in the Church. We also had the opportunity to pray in the Slipper Chapel at the shrine and receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Mass was held in the Shrine Basilica, outdoors in the Priory Gardens and in the Church of the Annunciation. The church and shrine are situated in a truly beautiful setting. One evening we enjoyed an outdoor candle-lit Rosary and we even found time for an outing to nearby Wells next the Sea and to visit the Anglican shrine in Walsingham”. This is a popular annual event at St Joseph’s and, once again everyone enjoyed the pilgrimage. Special thanks to Jenny and John Mortimer for organising.
Caribbean Evening
The recent Caribbean evening raised an incredible £4,250 for brain tumour research. We would like to express our thanks to everyone involved on making such a great success of this amazing fundraising event. Here are a few photos from the evening.
Celebrating our Volunteers
Our Parish relies on volunteers. Fr Bill recognised this by writing to each volunteer thanking them for their valuable contribution to St Joseph’s Parish Life. He went on to say “your time and support which you give freely are a perfect example of parish life in action. At St Joseph’s, we want to continue to create a vibrant community with faith at our heart and a community that represents and celebrates the cultural diversity so evident at our Masses”. To deliver this goal we continue to encourage Parishioners to become more involved in the life of their church. As you know, giving a little time can help in so many ways.
Fr Bill’s letter included an invitation to a Celebration of Volunteers event held on the afternoon of Saturday 15 March in the church hall. It was an opportunity to meet with other volunteers in the Parish and share some drinks and treats. More than 80 volunteers turned up and consumed a large quantity of food beautifully prepared by…. volunteers. Wine and soft drinks were soon flowing and the room was buzzing with conversation. The Christmas mulled wine made yet another appearance, although there were few takers. I am pleased to report we are down to our last few bottles.
Once everyone had arrived and made themselves at home Harvey said a few words on behalf of the Coordination Team, who had organised the event. He introduced Fr Simon who gave a moving speech describing how his return to Epsom felt like “coming home”. He talked about the talents we all have and the importance of sharing them for the good of the Parish. The way we find God in our lives and in our work and the importance of recognising it and making time for God and for each other. We ended this uplifting talk with a prayer.
Fr Bill had wanted to attend but with the sad news of his brother Tom passing, he had travelled to Ireland for the funeral. We all passed on our thoughts and prayers for Fr Bill and his family.
After a couple of hours, people went their different ways. Everyone seemed to have a smile on their face as they departed. Feedback suggests everyone enjoyed themselves and the plan is to repeat the event later this year.
If you have read this and want to volunteer, please do! Contact the parish office and help in any way you can!
Fr Simon and Coordination Team
Celebration with New Parishioners
On Sunday 2 February, we held a celebration with our new parishioners after the 10.30 Mass. New parishioners were welcomed in the hall, together with more familiar faces: about 100 people in total! Cheese and wine was on offer, together with non-alcoholic options. We even brought out our seemingly endless stock of Christmas mulled wine, which went down a treat (speaking personally).
The event was organised by our Coordination Team. As a reminder, the team was created by Fr Bill to help deliver our Statement of Aspirations. Fr Bill welcomed new parishioners and shared his recollections of a rather ‘over the top’ approach to introductions in the USA. Ours, he said, would be heartfelt but lower key! He introduced Harvey Bradshaw, who currently chairs the team. Harvey welcomed everyone and described the desire of the team to create a vibrant culture of faith, celebrating and fully involving all the cultures we have in our parish.
The team introduced themselves. As a reminder, they are:
- Mary Gorton leading faith development;
- Neil Whitmore leading sacramental development;
- Mary Burke leading welcomers and liturgy;
- John Mortimer leading social activities;
- Theresa Park leading outreach;
- Thomas Andrews leading youth.;
The key message to everyone was ‘get involved in your parish’. We can only thrive if people help. Please contact the parish office and help in any way you can!
