The parishes of Peterborough held their annual Katharine of Aragon Mass in Peterborough Cathedral on Friday, January 26, at 8.30am with around 150 parishioners present, alongside nine priests.
In his homily, Fr Bienn Carlo Manuntag said: “If you visit the tomb of Queen Katherine of Aragon in Peterborough Cathedral, they say you should bring a pomegranate and place it on her tomb as a sign of respect to the late queen.
“Pomegranates have a lot of symbolism and meaning attached to them – they are a symbol for fertility and regeneration and in the Christian church is a sign of Christ’s resurrection.
“In the heraldic badge of Queen Katherine of Aragon a pomegranate is depicted on it. The pomegranate is also used, as an emblem of charity, love and humility, all of which Queen Katherine showed.”
After the Mass the congregation moved to the tomb of Queen Katharine praying the Angelus for the repose of her soul.
Pictured above are the priests at the Katharine of Aragon Mass at Peterborough Cathedral.
Around 50 people of all ages gathered to tuck into some delicious pancakes at what has now become an annual Shrove Tuesday event at St Pancras in Ipswich, reports Fr Joseph Welch.
Parishioners brought their own pancake mixture, and a few extra nibbles, and took turns to cook their own supper and join in the jollity and friendship of the parish.
For once, there was no collection and no fund-raising involved, just a pleasant way to use up all those extra foodstuffs before Lent began.
Pictured below are parishioners at the St Pancras pancake party. Picture by Stuart Haining.
The Papal Nuncio to Malta and Libya , Titular Archbishop of Sila is visiting Cambridge for a second time, a year after his first visit. He will celebrate a Lunar New Year Thanksgiving Mass with the Cantonese Community on Saturday February 24, at 12.15pm, at Our Lady & the English Martyrs in Cambridge.
The Pope’s charity for world mission, Missio, has created a Lent planner to help people to make space for prayer, abstinence, charity, scripture and, the Sacraments in a way that is both manageable and possible in our busy world, says Dave Wheat from the charity.
“By creating small, flexible blocks of prayer and action, we hope you’ll be able to build a personal plan which helps you to engage fully with this important season.
“Alongside our planner – a free printable download that anyone can make their own – we have created some reflection films, prayers and suggestions, along with helpful links.”
To download the Lent planner and find all accompanying resources visit: missio.org.uk/join-missio-for-lent