There are four catholic churches within the Forest of Dean area all served by our Parish Priest, Fr. Barnabas Page. Fr. Barnabas also serves the parish of Our Lady of Lourdes in Newent with St. Michael in Blaisdon. Our parishes lie within the Clifton Diocese, which is part of the Catholic Church in England & Wales.

Our Churches:

Our Lady of Victories

Our Lady of Victories, 70 Abbey Street, Cinderford, GL14 2NP. [ Map » ]

Pastoral Council Members: Teresa Hare (Secretary), Greg Moger

St. Margaret Mary's

St. Margaret Mary's, 4 High Nash, Coleford, Glos, GL16 8HN. [ Map » ]

Pastoral Council Members: Peter Chisholm, Sarah Perkins.

St. Joseph's

St. Joseph's, Tutshill, Lydney, Glos, GL15 5PA. [ Map » ]

Pastoral Council Members: Pip Deave (Chairperson), Dorota Dufort

Sacred Heart Chapel

Sacred Heart Chapel, Grahamstown Road, Sedbury, NP16 7AD. [ Map » ]

Pastoral Council Members: Helen Molyneux

Parish Office

Although our churches are closed during the lockdown we will try and help and keep everyone in contact.
Our aim is trying to reach as many people as possible through this website, by phoning those who do not have computers and by videoing the Mass. You please can be part of this by phoning those who are isolating. By clicking on the Vimeo link below you can watch Sunday Mass, Wednesday Mass and a talk on Fridays.
We pray for all who are sick or who have died and for our front line staff. If you give me the names, they will be included in the Mass. But as well as this, as a church we are listening to what God may be saying through this crisis.

God Bless and protect you.
Fr.Barnabas

: 01594 833173

: 4 High Nash, Coleford, Gloucestershire. GL16 8HN.

Forest of Dean RC Churches

Mass Times

Current Masses and Services

Masses and talks

Sunday Mass and Wednesday Mass from Coleford Click here

Daily Mass from Clifton Cathedral can be found here

Friday talks from Fr.Barnabas on our Parish Vimeo Channel

Phone contacts;

To help those without internet, Mass by phone 01642 130120 [ calls charged at local rate and free if included in your minutes]

Hospital; Gloucester and Cheltenham Chaplaincy Team will visit and Pray with patients on our behalf 0300 422 6200/4286.

News

We are a family of God, a community of disciples, striving to continually deepen our relationship with Christ and with each other. We recognise and value each member of our community, encouraging everyone to share in our life and worship. Together we celebrate the joy of the gospel and witness in faith our hope of eternal life with our heavenly Father.

Lockdown Updates:

Parishes of the Forest and Newent

Parish Priest Barnabas Page 01594 833173

barnabas.page@cliftondiocese.com

Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
2nd August 2020

Sunday Mass available from 9am )
Friday Talk available from 9am )

Am I my brother’s keeper?
As a teenager I used to visit an elderly neighbour. The lady was a member of the parish. My brother also visited another parishioner. Did we volunteer for this, we were encouraged by my mother, had she even engineered it? I would drink tea, chat and eat all her biscuits. What this lady wanted was: news of the outside world, what my family was up to, and simply distraction for someone who lived alone.
My brother and I joined the Junior Legion of Mary and visited in twos the addresses supplied by the priests. Our friends had joined and our social life revolved around the parish. In the 6th Form we joined the SVP to collect and deliver furniture to families in need. None of this seemed unusual, it was part of our life at the time.
When we were in the 6th Form, the three of us including my sister, got holiday jobs in the local mental hospital. We were a pair of hands in the male geriatric ward. These days youngsters wouldn’t be able to do some of this. However, I am encouraged by the care many of them have for others in our world for fund raising for charity and care of the environment.
Am I my brother’s keeper? What a difference it would make if we thought that perhaps we might be.
New Dawn Virtual Conference, Walsingham
Catholic Charismatic Conference 31st July - 2nd August streamed live from Walsingham. www.newdawn.org.uk
Bless you all.
Barnabas
Masses This Week
Please book a place at Mass by phoning the following contacts for each Church, thank you.
Sunday        9am Cinderford    To book phone Fiona 01594 516175
           11am Newent   To book phone Mary 01531 822 156
Tuesday       10am Coleford   To book phone Beverley 01594 861345
           (Followed by private prayer until noon.)
Wednesday    10am Cinderford   To book phone Fiona 01594 516175
           12noon Newent   To book phone Mary 01531 822 156
Thursday        10am Lydney       To book phone Dot and Brian 01594 560054

There are lots of resources for anyone who needs to contact someone in a safeguarding capacity on our diocesan website – www.cliftondiocese.com/departments/safeguarding
The Silver Line – a helpline for older people 0800 4 70 80 90 www.thesilverline.org.uk
Child Line – a helpline for children 0800 111 www.childline.org.uk
Our safe guarding representatives are also available to help you with your needs at this time please contact Jenny Heseltine Tel: 01989 750665 PSR.newent.ourladyoflourdes@cliftondiocese.com for Newent and Fiona Mills 0758 717 2279 or 01594 516175 for the Forest.

Parishes of Newent and Forest
Parish Priest Barnabas Page 01594 833173
barnabas.page@cliftondiocese.com

Bless you all. Barnabas

Fr Barnabas Pastoral Talk Friday 8th May:https://vimeo.com/416034273

Cardinal's statement on resumption of collective acts of worship

Press Release for immediate Release 23.6.20

Cardinal Vincent Nichols, president of the Bishops’ Conference of England & Wales said:

I welcome the statement by the Prime Minister earlier today, that places of worship are now able to resume collective acts of worship from 4 July. This is welcome news for members of all religions in England. I thank all who have worked hard to bring this about, not least my fellow religious leaders.

As Catholics we now look forward to being able to celebrate Mass together again from 4 July. We have waited with patience and longing for this moment, understanding the importance of protecting the health of people in our society. Now we are full of anticipation that we will be able again to take part together in the Eucharist, which lies at the centre of our faith.

It is important that we continue to abide by the guidance, given by the Government, on appropriate social distancing and the other measures to avoid all unnecessary risk. Our own detailed guidance will be distributed around dioceses and parishes so everyone can be confident that they may come to Mass securely and understand the part they are to play in protecting each other from any remaining risk of infection.

The past few months have been a time of fashioning new patterns of prayer, new ways of exploring and enriching our faith and vigorous ways of reaching out to those in need. We can build on these, forgetting nothing of the graces we have been given. Yet now, with the experience of opening our churches for individual prayer already gained, this return to the more normal patterns of worship will be of great importance to all Catholics.

This time of our ‘Eucharistic fast’ has made our hearts grow in longing for that moment when we can come together and receive again the Body and Blood of Christ in the Eucharist. That moment is now very near and for that we thank God.

Church Hall

Our Church Hall is located next to St. Margaret Mary Church in Coleford and is available for hire. If you wish to find out more, arrange a viewing or to discuss requirements, please contact the Parish Office.

Address: St. Margaret Mary's, 4 High Nash, Coleford, Gloucestershire. GL16 8HN. Get Directions »

Our hall is in frequent use. Below are some of the regular activities currently running. To find out more about any of these activities, please contact our Office.

Hard of Hearing - Fourth Monday of the month - 10 - 12.
FoodBank - Every Monday 2 - 4pm & Every Thursday 9am - 11am.
Pilates - Tuesdays 1 - 2pm. Please contact the office for dates.
Tai Chi - Tuesday 2 - 3pm. Please contact the office for dates.
Busy Bees Parent & Toddler Group - Tuesdays during term time 9.30 - 11am. Snacks provided. Activities for the Children.
West Dean Wind Band - 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month from 7.00 - 9.00pm. www.westdeanwindband.uk
Faith Group - 2nd and 4th Wednesday of the month from 7.30 - 8.30pm with tea & coffee from 7pm.
Young @ Heart Group - Thursdays 2 - 4pm.
Yoga - Thursday 7 - 8.30pm.
Gloucestershire Wildlife Group - Once a month on a Friday from 7-10pm. Contact the Parish Office for dates.
Lunch Club - Held every last Friday of the Month. 3 Course meal followed by tea/coffee.
Coffee Morning - Third Saturday of the month 10 - 12 noon. No Coffee Morning in Dec, Jan or Feb.

To download the hall booking form click here

To view regular bookings please click here

Links

Below are several links that we think might be of interest to you. Clicking on the logos will open the link in a new browser tab.

The Catholic Diocese covering the Counties of Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire, North Somerset and Bath, the City and County of Bristol and North East Somerset.

The Catholic Church is the largest Christian denomination in the world. It has more than one billion members worldwide and around five million of these live in England. There are 22 dioceses in England and Wales seeking ways to help all the people of God grow closer to Christ.

The school's mission is to provide a rigorous and broad education within the context of a Christian environment. An understanding of the Roman Catholic faith, in line with the Gospel message, underpins the whole work of the school.

CAFOD is the official Catholic aid agency for England and Wales. In more than 40 countries across the world, we bring hope, compassion and solidarity to poor communities, standing side by side with them to end poverty and injustice.

Celebrating Family: Blessed, Broken, Living Love, is the overarching theme of a range of pastoral initiatives developed by the Bishops following the Listening 2004 conversations.

The UK's premier campaigning and charitable organisation affirming and defending human dignity, and the right to life of every member of the human family, from conception to natural death.

SPUC represents a voice for the unborn. SPUC promotes awareness of the humanity of the unborn child to encourage more widespread recognition of the obligation to defend those with no means to defend themselves.

Marriage Care helps couples and individuals to build and sustain strong, fulfilling healthy relationships, as well as providing counselling support in times of relationship difficulty. Our vision is a society in which all adults can build and sustain strong, fulfilling, healthy relationships.

We exist to save lives and transform the futures of some of the most disadvantaged children and young people in the UK by supporting vulnerable pregnant mothers and young families through difficult times, offering them the help they need to turn their lives around.

We are a Christian organisation that seeks to put the hope of Christ at the heart of our nation. We aim to empower Christians to speak out with a strong voice in the media, in law and in government.

Gloucester Cathedral sits in the heart of the city of Gloucester, acting as the centre for the areas' Anglicans and the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Gloucester.

Mid-Wyedean Churches: the Church of England serving Coleford, Broadwell, Staunton, Clearwell, Newland, and Redbrook and surrounding areas.

CLIFTON DIOCESE (a Company Limited by Guarantee registered in England and Wales under number 10462076. A registered charity number 1170168. Registered Office: St Ambrose North Road Leigh Woods Bristol BS8 3PW)