Statement from the Archbishop of Southwark Following the Vote on Assisted Dying in the House of Commons

WEBMASTER • December 1, 2024

I am deeply saddened and extremely worried by the progress made in the House of Commons towards the legalisation of assisted suicide. While this is not yet the final step in enacting this legislation, it represents a seismic and concerning shift in our nation’s approach to caring for the most vulnerable among us.


Compassion, rightly understood, means standing with those who suffer, sharing their burdens, and honouring their dignity until the natural end of their lives. It does not mean hastening death, even in the face of pain or despair. Every human life is of immeasurable value, and our response must always be to protect and support those who are most in need.


The experience of other countries where assisted suicide has been introduced serves as a grave warning. Promised safeguards are eroded over time, leaving the elderly, disabled, and seriously ill at risk of feeling their lives are a burden to others. The subtle, and sometimes overt, pressure this creates threatens the very fabric of a society built on care and protection for the weakest.


Legalising assisted suicide also undermines the essential trust between patients and healthcare professionals. Those who dedicate their lives to healing and comforting the sick are being placed in an untenable position. Conscientious objection — the right of medical practitioners, nursing and care staff, and institutions to refuse to participate in practices that violate their deeply held ethical or religious convictions — must be upheld and protected. Without this assurance, the ethos of our healthcare system and the integrity of those who serve within it are at serious risk.


Instead of moving towards assisted suicide, we must commit to improving palliative care, ensuring that expert pain relief, emotional support, and spiritual care are available to all who need them. No one should feel alone or abandoned in their suffering.


As we face this challenging moment, I call on Catholics and all people of goodwill to advocate for the protection of life at every stage and to stand in solidarity with those who are most vulnerable. Let us also turn to the Lord Jesus, who shared in human suffering and revealed the depth of his love through his death and resurrection. Through him, we find the strength to defend the dignity of every person and to build a society that values the gift of life from conception to natural death.


Archbishop John Wilson

29 November 2024

THANK YOU

By Webmaster • November 17, 2025
To Manuel and Kim, for all their help in the Cafe. Manuel and Kim tell me that ‘Grandparent Duties’ have led them to feel they had to move to a different parish where their own children and grandchildren now live and where the grandchildren and their parents celebrate holy Mass. To David, for all his past work in the field of Health and Safety. David has now kindly agreed to be our Lead parishioner in matters of Maintenance and Repairs.  To Jim, for taking on the role of Lead Parishioner in the area of Health and Safety

CHRISTMAS CARDS

By Webmaster • November 17, 2025
It won’t be long before our thoughts will rightly begin to turn towards the great Feast and Season of Christmas. I have left in the porch of the church, Christmas cards that feature the picture of a holy Family living in the slums of Guayaquil, Ecuador, South America. When I lived and worked there, I knew this family - a single mother with a very young daughter. The mother is disabled, having lost her legs in an accident and she is only able to move by sitting on a small piece of wood fixed with castors and then propelling herself and her child forward. They live in a small shack made of bamboo and cardboard boxes over the filthy waters of the swamp. The real meaning of Christmas is that the Lord Jesus came to be especially with the poor and suffering of our world by sharing in their plight and offering everyone the chance to be saved from Sin and Death.  Perhaps you would like to buy this Christmas card and send it to family members and friends to remind them of why we celebrate the birth of Jesus. May I suggest £1 for each card and envelope. We will send any money raised to CAFOD to care for the Poor, Homeless and Suffering people of our world.

PROGRAMME OF PREPARATION FOR FIRST RECONCILIATION AND FIRST HOLY COMMUNION, FOR CHILDREN

By Webmaster • November 17, 2025
Our programme to help parents to prepare their children for the Sacraments of Reconciliation and Eucharist will begin early in the New Year. Meetings for Parents and meetings for their children will be on Friday evenings at 5.00pm. The parents will meet with Fr Malachy in the Parish Room and the children will meet with our Catechists in the Sacristy of the church, at the same time. Each meeting will last just 30 minutes. The dates of the meetings are flexible but we are planning to have the first six meetings on: 16th, 23rd, and 30th January 2026, then the 6th, 13th and 20th of February 2026. First Reconciliation for Children and their parents will be during the Season of Lent 2026 and First Holy Communion during the month of June 2026. If you have a child who you think is ready to receive the Sacraments of Reconciliation and Holy Communion in 2026, please let me have details as soon as possible so that we can begin our planning.

HOLY MASSES IN THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER, FOR THOSE WHO HAVE DIED

By Webmaster • November 17, 2025
We began the month of November with the great Feast of All Saints, inviting everyone who is now with the Lord in Heaven, living in eternal joy, to pray for us. We think of those who have died and, while not yet in Heaven, are on their way home! We believe that the holy Mass and our prayers help these Holy Souls on that journey. Do come to holy Mass, and join me and through the holy Mass we can help our loved ones to speedily reach our homeland of Heaven.  If you would like me to offer holy Mass during the month of November, for specific members of your family or friends who have died, please fill in one of the Holy Mass envelopes which you will find in the church porch, enclose your stipend and please give it to me or pop it through the presbytery letterbox. In the holy Mass, we are connected to the Lord Jesus in his death and resurrection. The holy Mass is the most powerful means possible to allow the Lord to bring us and our loved ones safely home to Heaven.

EXTRAORDINARY MINISTERS OF HOLY COMMUNION ROTA

By Webmaster • November 16, 2025
NOVEMBER 2025 1/2: 5pm Patrick; 9am Paul; 11am Lizzie, Ross, Marian(H) 8/9: 5pm Patricia; 9am Maggie; 11am Lorenza, David, Simone(H) 15/16: 5pm Angela; 9am Phil; 11am Margaret, Mary, Lisa(H) 22/23: 5pm Carolyn; 9am Jim; 11am John, Gabrielle, Giannina(H) 29/30: 5pm Regina; 9am Patrick; 11am Paul, Patricia, Linda(H) Thank you to our wonderful Ministers of the Eucharist who have accepted the Lord’s invitation to this awesome, sacred ministry, by their willingness to give up their own plans and convenience in order to do God’s will rather than their own. Let us pray for them because they too fight the same personal weaknesses we all have to fight against and they too have to fight the same temptations we all have to fight. God be with them.

WEEK DAY LECTORS

By WEBMASTER • November 16, 2025
Wed 19 Nov: Lizzie Thu 20 Nov: Jim Fri 21 Nov: David

CHILDREN’S LITURGY OF THE WORD DURING 11.00am SUNDAY HOLY MASS

By Webmaster • November 16, 2025
We began again our ‘Liturgy of the Word’ for children of Primary School age on Sunday November 2nd and will continue on the following consecutive Sundays. Dear Parents please bear these dates in mind when you bring your children to holy Mass. During these ‘Liturgy of the Word’ sessions, our children will have opportunities to understand and enjoy God’s loving Word during the 11.00am holy Mass.

BOOK OF REMEMBRANCE

By Webmaster • November 16, 2025
Please add the names of any loved ones who have died in the last year, to our Book of Remembrance, on the page of the date they left our world. The Book of Remembrance will be placed on the altar during every holy Mass in this month of November and so we will remember to pray for them at each and every holy Mass.

OLDE FORGE CAFE - FREE COFFEE AND CAKE FOR OUR VISITORS

By Webmaster • November 16, 2025
Please do your best to bring members of your family, your friends, neighbours and colleagues who normally have little, if any contact with our Catholic parish, to the Olde Forge Cafe. Please remember that those you bring with you DO NOT give a donation for their coffee and cake. Only us, who are regular members of our parish, are asked to give a donation, each time, to cover the cost of the Coffee machine, coffee beans, heat, light etc. Dear Bakers and those who provide milk, please remember to take your expenses from the donations received.

BEQUEST, IN A WILL

By Webmaster • November 16, 2025
It is wise to write a Will so that the resources you have when the time comes for you to leave this world, goes to the people and organisations you wish. May I suggest that you might consider leaving a Bequest in your will to our parish or to our diocese or to our priest as well as to other causes. A gift in your will can enable us to continue to help people to know the Lord Jesus and his saving love. What a wonderful legacy you would be leaving behind.