St Anthony’s Fakenham marks parish priest retirement
October 7, 2024
Operation Christmas Child visits Norfolk churches
October 8, 2024
Latest news of interest to the East Anglia Catholic community includes a Radio Maria fund-raising drive, a plea for Prisoners Sunday this weekend and a new book from a Norwich parishioner.
Radio Maria England is staging a three-day Mariathon fund-raiser from today (October 7) aiming to raise £30,000 to ensure that it can carry on into a sixth year of broadcasting says Priest Director Fr Toby Lees.
“Day 1: On the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, we’ll explore Marian dogmas, shrines and devotions; Day 2: Hear life-changing testimonies and meet our frequent guests and partners; Day 3: On the Feast of St John Henry Newman look for signs of his ‘Second Spring’ as we celebrate some of our glorious past and look at some of the glories of the present.
“We’ll also host in-person events in London and Cambridge – full details on the website – I’d love to see you there.
“I’m also delighted to let you know that through the generosity of some of our benefactors, we have received matched funding up to £12,000. This means that every donation you make will be doubled, up to the first £12,000. So please tune in, join us, and prayerfully consider what you can give to support our mission. Your generosity over the past five years has been invaluable and we are deeply grateful.
Prisoners’ Sunday falls this year on 13 October 13 and Catholic prisons charity Pact invites parishes across England and Wales to bring people in prison, and their children and families, before the Lord in prayer.
Pact CEO Andy Keen-Downs said: “The Prime Minister recently announced that our prisons are in crisis. We have been saying this for some time and calling for radical change. Prisons are not just overcrowded; they are now almost completely full. The new Government has resorted to an early release programme to free up spaces and to begin to tackle the squalor, and record levels of violence and self-harm. And so our Pact workers are busier than ever. Over the coming months, thousands of prisoners will be released early. Many will hope to be reunited with family. Some will have no one to return to, and nowhere to call home. Most will need a job. Many will be in urgent need of practical, financial and emotional support. The probation service is struggling, and in some areas, is overwhelmed. So, as has been the case so many times in the past, we are stepping up, and we are calling for help. We will do all we can to support these men and women to make a fresh start, to give them the support they need to live crime free lives. As we mark 125 years of service, please support us this Prisoners’ Sunday, to build bridges of hope for people leaving prison.”
More details at: www.prisonadvice.org.uk
A member of the St John the Baptist Cathedral community and a volunteer, Dr Virginia Minogue, has recently published a book about involving patients and the community in health and medical research. The book is called ‘Meaningful and Safe: The ethics and ethical implications of Patient and Public Involvement in health and medical research’. https://www.ethicspress.com/products/meaningful-and-safe
Patient and public involvement in health and clinical research has increased over the last two decades and is important in ensuring that research asks the right questions and leads to better outcomes for patients and the community. Including patients and the community in setting priorities for research and in the design and implementation of research has been shown to make a huge difference in positive outcomes and patient experience.
