Baptism
Baptism is the beginning of the journey of faith for your child. Through baptism, your child will receive the Holy Spirit and become a disciple, a follower of Christ and a member of God’s family, the Church. It is your responsibility as the child’s parents to be the role models for your child on this journey of faith. This is why we have a special program to prepare the parents and godparents and to help them raise their consciousness about this important responsibility that God has entrusted to them.
Reconciliation
Awareness of reconciliation is a gradual development, and the rate of moral, psychological and religious development of children differs from child to child.
Parents should be involved in the preparation of children for this sacrament. Catechesis for the sacrament of reconciliation is to precede First Communion and must be kept distinct by a clear and unhurried separation. This is to be done so that, before receiving First Communion, the child will be familiar with the revised rite of reconciliation and will be at ease with the reception of the sacrament. Because continuing, lifelong conversion is part of what it means to grow in faith, catechesis for the sacrament of reconciliation is on-going.
The catechesis genuinely provides for the child’s right to go to confession. The teaching is taught in a simple way and in keeping with what is required for the first confession of young children, namely:
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ability to distinguish between right and wrong;
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awareness of need for forgiveness;
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trust in Jesus’ forgiving love;
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ability to express sorrow.
Eucharist
Our Lord Jesus continually and lovingly calls us to be joined to Him in His Mystical Body, the Church. It is by this means that He gives us His Real Presence in the Eucharist and continues to touch and heal us through Reconciliation.
Together we are preparing your child for this experience of Christ and His Church on a deeper level.
This is an important time in your child’s life, your family, and your parish family, we are happy to help you in any way possible. We are looking forward to preparing your child for these Sacraments with you.
Confirmation
At confirmation we receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit and confirm our baptismal promises. Greater awareness of the grace of the Holy Spirit is conferred through the anointing of chrism oil and the laying on of hands by the Bishop.
Through the Sacrament of Confirmation we renew our baptismal promises and commit to living a life of maturity in the Christian faith. As we read in the Lumen Gentium (the Dogmatic Constitution of the Church) from the Second Vatican Council:
Bound more intimately to the Church by the sacrament of confirmation, [the baptized] are endowed by the Holy Spirit with special strength; hence they are more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith both by word and by deed as true witnesses of Christ.
Marriage
The Sacrament of marriage is "The matrimonial covenant, by which a man and a woman establish between themselves a partnership of the whole of life, is by its nature ordered toward the good of the spouses and the procreation and education of offspring; this covenant between baptized persons has been raised by Christ the Lord to the dignity of a sacrament." ~ Catechism of the Catholic Church 1601
Annointing of the sick
In the Catholic Church, Extreme Unction or the Last Rites is the anointing at the time of death. Since the Second Vatican Council, this sacrament is now called the Anointing of the Sick and has been broadened to offer healing and comfort in times of illness that may not lead to immediate death. Speaking about a wider implementation of this sacrament, Pope Paul VI advocated for “a wider availability of the sacrament and to extend it—within reasonable limits—even beyond cases of mortal illness."
Funerals
To discuss funeral arrangements please call 01721 720865
If you would like support from our bereavement team please contact us using the form here