PARISH  PRAYER  

O God, through Baptism you have made us your children, heirs of heaven and members of the Church.  Make our parish of one heart and mind in love towards you.  Grant that our common life and work may be an example to all about us.  Guide our parish clergy in their work, along with all people involved in ministry in our parish.  Acknowledge the intercessions of Saint Thomas of Canterbury and Saint Clare, our patrons; and keep us secure in your love.  We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Government Guidance for Places of Worship from 4th January, 2021:  

You may attend places of worship for a service. However, you must not mingle inside the church building with anyone outside of your household or support bubble. You should maintain strict social distancing at all times.

Communal worship and life events - You can leave home to attend or visit a place of worship for communal worship, a funeral or event related to a death, a burial ground or a remembrance garden, or to attend a wedding ceremony. You should follow the guidance on the safe use of places of worship and must not mingle with anyone outside of your household or support bubble when attending a place of worship.  Weddings, funerals and religious, belief-based or commemorative events linked to someone’s death are all subject to limits on the numbers that can attend, and weddings and civil ceremonies may only take place in exceptional circumstances. 

For further details, please visit the Government's website:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/national-lockdown-stay-at-home

January 2021

Fri 15th         9.30 a.m.      Wood      Mass for a new bishop  [R.M. 1308]

Sat 16th        6.00 p.m.      Wood      Tom Cass,†       (Christianne Bowles)

SUN 17th     9.00 a.m.      Fram       For the people of the Parish

SUN 17th    11.00 a.m.     Wood      P. & C. Jennings,†† (Susanna Gibbons)

Mon 18th       9.30 a.m.      Wood      Mass for a new bishop

Tue 19th        9.30 a.m.      Wood      For Aideen Tuddenham (Maureen Byrne)

Wed 20th      No Mass today.

Thu 21st       12.00 p.m.     Fram       For Gerry & Margaret  (Fr. Edmund)

Fri 22nd        9.30 a.m.      Wood       Tony Stone, †            (Fr. Edmund)

Sat 23rd        6.00 p.m.      Wood       For the people of the Parish

SUN 24th     9.00 a.m.      Fram        For the unity of the Church

SUN 24th    11.00 a.m.     Wood       Family intention (Susanna Gibbons)

Mon 25th      9.30 a.m.       Wood       -

Tue 26th       9.30 a.m.       Wood      -

Wed 27th      No Mass today.

Thu 28th       12.00 p.m.     Fram       Family intention   (Maeve Wigley)

Fri 29th         9.30 a.m.       Wood      -

• We ask that you do not enter the church if you have cold or flu-like symptoms.
• Social distancing should be maintained at all times, both inside and outside the church building.
• Face coverings must be worn in the church at all times by people over the age of 10, unless they have a medical exemption.
• Please sit in designated seating, and as guided by our church stewards.
• All surfaces have to be cleaned and sanitised when the church is closed.  Please try to avoid touching things in church unnecessarily.
• Track & Trace details are being recorded.  Please bring with you your name and contact details written on a piece of paper and leave it in the basket provided in the church.
• Your co-operation is greatly appreciated.

ABIDING IN CHRIST. 

Information about the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is available here:  

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity:  18 - 25 January, 2021

MASS FOR A NEW BISHOP.  Bishop Alan Hopes has asked for Masses to be offered for this intention in the parishes across the diocese.  We are asked to pray especially for those entrusted with the job of selecting the next bishop for our diocese.   It is nearly two years since Bishop Hopes tendered his resignation to the Holy See, as required by Canon Law, when he reached the age of seventy-five in March 2019.  The process to select his successor has now begun.

O GOD, eternal shepherd, who govern your flock with unfailing care, grant in your boundless fatherly love a pastor for your Church in East Anglia who will please you by his holiness and to us show watchful care.  Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Please pray for the happy repose of the soul of the Most Reverend Philip Tartaglia, Archbishop of Glasgow, who died on Wednesday 13th January, age 70.  May he rest in peace. Amen.

WELCOME.  We welcome to our deanery Father Joseph Welch, Cong.Orat.   Bishop Hopes has appointed Father Welch to be parish administrator of Saint Pancras’s Parish, Ipswich.

THANK  YOU.  Deacon Mike Vipond sends his thanks to all the people who sent him cards and gifts for his recent 80th birthday celebration.

JOB VACANCIES.  Details of job vacancies in the Diocese of East Anglia may be found here:  https://www.rcdea.org.uk/vacancies/

DIOCESE OF EAST ANGLIA YEARBOOK AND CALENDAR FOR 2021 is now available to purchase.  Price £2.00 per copy.

SAINT THOMAS’S 100 CLUB PRIZE WINNERS.

December:   Ann Jones (1st), Jean Wallace (2nd), and Carla Daniels (3rd).

January:      Julia Ashenden (1st), Mr. Lister (2nd), and Jean Wallace (3rd).

Registered with East Suffolk Council under the Lotteries & Amusements Act, 1976.

GIVING TO THE PARISH.  During this time of pandemic, we have taken a substantial dip in contributions to our parish funds which help us to maintain our parish buildings and activities.  As a result, we have had to find ways of bringing this to your attention and to ask for your generosity and cooperation.  In recent months, several parishioners have made new Standing Orders for their parish Offertory donations, for which we are most grateful.