PW 37

Way ’ s m i r Pilg Journal of the Society of Our Lady of Lourdes

Issue 37 – Summer 2021

Contents

P. 1 Ray Harrison ­ Eulogy by Dave Farrow

P. 3 Memories of Ray Harrison by James Burns P. 4 Ray Harrisson ­ The Catholic Universe P. 6 Osmotherly ­ Shrine of Our Lady of Mount Grace by Steve Kelly P. 10 From Deliquency to Evangelisation by Fr René­Luc P. 12 The Mass is Prayer by Pope Francis P. 14 Love is Service and Service is Compassion by Mother Teresa P. 16 The Sacrifice of a Life by Marie­Hélène Cook P. 19 Virtual Pilgrimage by John Mitchell P. 21 Diary of Events ­ Appeal for Trustees P. 22 Office Update P. 23 Ways to pay the Society P.24 SOLL Departed P. 25 Centenary Club

Front page: Ray Harrison

Ray Harrison Eulogy

by Dave Farrow, Chair of the Society, 26th April, 2021

I

have been asked more than once in the past two weeks, “Who is going to replace Ray?” The answer of course is ……… No one can.

Ray joined us from another age, becoming a part of what was for most of its existence known as the English National Pilgrimage for the Sick. First in 1968 as a Brancardier, and for the past third of a century as our Office Manager proposed originally by Lady Helen Asquith, granddaughter of a Prime Minister, who in reality led the Society.

I have sometimes felt that Ray felt obligated to the memory of Lady Helen – and certain things would always be done the way she did them; this included his affection and care for the banner.

I brought the banner here today ……. rolled up. Ray would be appalled!

Ray had great love for Our Lady which he expressed in his devotion to the Society of Our Lady of Lourdes. He notably visited not just Lourdes but Walsingham and a shrine in Belgium. It seems that only in the last fifteen years did he stop cycling the 300 miles to Belgium because he didn’t think his bike was up to the trip.

Ray’s was the voice of the Society who explained and reassured the many who sought to join us. Tacitly we knew that Ray ran his own Social Services operation: stories of some of those he was kind to are now emerging, such as the lady who occasionally popped by for her bus fare, a friendship and support for someone living long­term in an airport hotel, and the home he provided for a man estranged from his family.

Ray helped so many we will never learn of. Sadly, he never helped himself and simply refused ever to go near a doctor.

Sometimes, as the immovable date for the departure of the pilgrimage 1

approached with much still to be done, it was hard to encourage him to focus on what was becoming critical. I once proposed that he only answer the phone between 11am and 2pm, leaving messages otherwise to go to voicemail. He assured me he would do so – but knew he wouldn’t …….. and deep down, so did I! Ray’s words: “I’ll just start a new list” …… were always ominous! Yet for all that Ray overlooked, there was so much more that he saw and we didn’t. He booked venues, sent out reminders of the Christian year and sought prayers for those of our number who needed them.

It was as he said, his life...

Dave Farrow

2

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Memories of Ray Harrison

by James Burns

I

knew Ray for many years as we both attended All Saints Church Kenton, until I moved out of North London in May 2019. He was our church organist for countless years. He was an Anglican, only becoming a Catholic much later in life. However, I really got to know him when I joined the Society of Our Lady of Lourdes some 28 years ago. I had recently been made redundant so had time on my hands and would spend a day every week helping Ray at the SOLL offices (then in Soho), before later returning to full­time employment. I then resumed volunteering once a week following my retirement in 2015.

Ray was always very warm and friendly. I noted how he spent lengthy hours every day, working well into the evening on preparations for the following year's pilgrimage to Lourdes, the Aylesford and Walsingham yearly pilgrimage days, and various other services, meetings and fundraising issues. No phone call to Ray was ever cut short, even when there were many jobs to complete, and much of his time was spent listening to members of the Society who needed support or advice.

When not working at the office, Ray was heavily involved at our church. He belonged to the Society of St Vincent De Paul and was always busy assisting vulnerable people and driving them to and from church. He invited one person with mental health issues to live with him and supported him for years. He was also an active member of the church choir, belonged to various faith sharing groups and ran weekly Bingo to raise money for SOLL. From the late 1990s, I began working closely with Ray each year at the Permanence office in Lourdes during our pilgrimages. This was always a very special time we both enjoyed, and the last time in May 2019 is still a vivid and very happy memory for me. The kettle was always on the go to offer to refreshments passing visitors, including the occasional bishop or priest. As many others know, Ray always accepted any task requested of him, and I still remember helping him, when well into his 80s, push laden trolleys to and from the Accueil and Permanence. In more recent years we were very grateful to the new, enthusiastic, younger groups of Helpers who willingly took on this 3

work. I remember the many interesting conversations with Ray, and how, often at the end of a particularly busy day, he would insist on taking me for a drink in one of our favourite Lourdes cafés to continue.

He could be very amusing in his comments but was always kind and generous in his observations of the many people he met.

Ray would sometimes come to join us at our home for a meal, though it was always hard for him to free up time from his various commitments. He loved his food and would enjoy a few

glasses of wine as well. Despite this he fasted twice a week, which began after he visited Medjugorje, and this would last from early morning until late at night. He had dedicated his life to Our Lady.

Cathy and I will always treasure having known Ray. He was a friend of all our family and always asked about our daughter, Emily, and granddaughter, who live in New Zealand. He kept photos of our granddaughter on the office wall at Hayes.

by James Burns

Ray Harrison mourned as ‘extraordinarily caring man’ The Catholic Universe The Society of Our Lady of Lourdes has paid tribute to Ray Harrison after he died on Easter Monday, aged 85. He was described as “an extraordinarily caring man whose death has left a huge gap in many lives.”

The Society told The Catholic Universe: “To many he was quiet and unassuming with a keen sense of humour. However, it was his unfailing helpfulness to all that provided a strong backbone to the Society.

“Even though it was rare for the telephone to stop ringing, especially as the pilgrimage approached, every caller was valued and greeted with a joyful voice. He also made time to act as confidant and counsellor to many.

“He attended Mass daily and after visiting Medjugorje, fasted twice a week right up until he died. This was a complete fast with no food until late at 4

night. Throughout his life Ray remained a deeply spiritual person who dedicated his life to Our Lady.”

Ray Harrison was born and raised in Kingsbury, north west London. His father was a maker of stained glass. He attended Kingsbury Grammar (now Kingsbury High School). He was taught the piano very early and played the organ at St Mary the Virgin, an Anglican Church of the Anglo­Catholic Tradition in Kenton.

His career saw him working in electronics, until he was made redundant in 1981. However, by then he was well into his astonishing 52 pilgrimages, the first of which he had made in 1968, and he was to become increasingly involved in the Society of Our Lady of Lourdes as its office manager, a role he held from 1989 until his death.

Ray once said: “I am constantly asked, once the pilgrimage is finished, what do I do for the rest for the year. I reply ‘I spend the rest of the year raising money for the next pilgrimage.’”But this tale did him a huge injustice as he worked constantly, both for the Church and the pilgrimages he so much enjoyed. Indeed, such was his devotion that he was presented with the ‘Bene merenti Medal’ by the Church – even before he became a Catholic.

Ray didn’t just confine his activities to the Society of Our Lady of Lourdes; he was also the organist at All Saints Catholic Church and an active member of its choir where, appropriately, his favourite hymn was the ‘Our Lady of Lourdes Song’.

Outside the church he was an active member of the SVP. But his voluntary work didn’t stop there, as he was a friend and supporter to many parishioners with mental health issues A true servant of the Church, his local parish and its community, Ray’s contribution was almost impossible to measure. He will be sorely missed.

Ray, may you rest in the loving arms of God.

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Osmotherley Shrine of Our Lady of Mount Grace Lady Chapel Lyke Wake Walk

by Steve Kelly

of years, but I suppose, except for Walsingham, Marian sites in the UK are not well known.

Mount Grace Lady Chapel When Covid struck we started having discussions about the possibility of visiting alternative pilgrimage sites in the UK. There came from the back of my mind, as an option, Osmotherley and the Lady Chapel, a tucked away place on the North York Moors not very well known outside of the Middlesbrough diocese. I must admit just suggesting it brought back memories of old priests I have known and activities in Hull, where I come from.

I do not remember very much, but I am quite sure that at some point in the late 1950’s or early 1960’s, as a very young boy in short trousers, I visited the Lady Chapel, dedicated to Our Lady of Mount Grace, in Osmotherley. I would have gone with my mother and father, along with our parish priest at the time, Fr. Anthony Story. He was the brother of Fr Peter Story who re­discovered the Chapel in 1942. The site of the Lady Chapel has been a Holy Place for many hundreds 6

Osmotherley to Lady Chapel With Covid restrictions still a problem for us, Mike Devlin, my wife Christine and I decided that we would take a drive up to Osmotherley. We had been advised that the Lady Chapel was not very accessible by car, we were also unsure of the terrain and how we would manage with the less able.

We set off early from Keighley and a steady drive took us one hour and forty­ five minutes.

The village itself has a small amount of parking, we found a space and took a quick look round and then started the walk from the village

towards the shrine, about one mile from the village.

The stroll from the village is an incline but not steep. We walked up North End past the Catholic church, then approximately half a mile to Ruebury Lane, at which point there is some limited parking on the main road.

From here we walked onto Ruebury Lane, which is more track than road, although a reasonable part of it is tarmacked walking surface.

The walk continues uphill, again not too steep (I can’t walk uphill easily!) for about 600 yards. We then turned up the final track about 400 yards to the Lady Chapel, a little rougher surface, and a little steeper. Taken steadily, we managed it quite easily.

With wheelchairs, however, it would be exceedingly difficult.

We had a surprise halfway up as we encountered Stations of the Cross spaced out about every ten yards.

This caused us to pause, gave us time for reflection and made us take things a little easier.

As we reached the top of the path, we

encountered the view of the Lady Chapel, surmounting an open space, which is another bright spot. There is some parking at the shrine, enough for perhaps a minibus and three or four cars.

When we arrived at the Lady Chapel, after our walk, we were pleased to find a small stone­ built chapel, located on the top of the hill Mount Grace. It is in a grassed area with benches around the top to take in views and sit in quiet contemplation.

There is an outside altar area used when the numbers are large.

The chapel is always open to pilgrims; it is peaceful and simple inside with a solid stone altar and a golden statue of the Madonna and child.

I must admit that my thoughts turned to my parents as we came out of the chapel; they often travelled the 77 miles from Hull and attended the yearly pilgrimage. We then took in the views from the top of the hill, pausing a while before making our way back down to the village.

We enjoyed a light lunch at the Catherine of Aragon pub, named 7

after one of the better­known benefactresses of the shrine.

We had a particularly good day and enjoyed our visit and look forward to a return with a larger group when things improve.

Lyke Wake Walk Osmotherley to Ravenscar Until the above outing, the last time I had visited Osmotherley was in 1971, a wet behind the ears lad who managed to persuade four of his friends to do a sponsored walk, in aid of UNICEF, forty­two miles across rough moorland in the dark.

ground became boggy but there was still a path of sorts. I managed to slide down a fifty­foot bank, losing my precious trilby hat, but somehow found a way to scramble back up the bank and re­join the group. With no cover and just open moor we kept going, finding odd small groups of people asking us which direction to go, but we had no more knowledge than they and just hunted for signposts.

After about four hours the rain and fog did start to abate.

We then removed our basic weather gear bike capes and tried to dry out a bit. Unknown to us the worst was yet to come. We pushed on and daylight started to emerge, stunning early morning misty views opened in front

We practised hard in the preceding weeks and, like Robinson Crusoe, departed the fine city and magnificent university of Hull to join up with the estimated two thousand walkers from all over country. We arrived in Osmotherley full of enthusiasm, even had a chat with Richard Whitely reporting for Calendar news before we set off at eleven in the evening.

The first hour was fine, plenty of people and we could locate the wayfinders without problem. Then the fog descended. We struggled to see each other, let alone the direction posts. We ploughed on in the dark and fog just about keeping on track. Next, we had the rain, and I mean rain! The 8

of us. This gave us a little lift in spirit, but ahead of us was a bog that had been exacerbated by the heavy rain.

We knew we had covered about eighteen miles and the breakfast point was a couple of hours away. After an hour of bog walking with mud in parts up to our knees our strength was

beginning to wane.

We made it to the breakfast point by about nine in the morning. We ate and then moved on the next check point,

which was a couple of miles further on; we had completed thirty miles of the most horrible terrain in foul weather. When the offer came from an army rescue vehicle to drive us to

one of the coach points, we gave up our entitlement to the Lyke Wake Walk club and succumbed. When we arrived home that evening the news was full of reporters telling us that over two hundred walkers were still lost on the moors and all the various rescue services had been used to find people. It was an adventure, but we never made it to Ravenscar on the east coast. Just perhaps if I had visited the Lady Chapel before we set off on the walk, we might have made it to the end!

Steve Kelly For more information, on Mount Grace Lady Chapel, please visit:

www.ladychapel.org.uk/history

Pilgrims’ Way by Flora Margaret Morrish Finally in print more than 80 years after it was written, the Pilgrim’s Way is a unique chronicle of one woman’s efforts to save the historic Lady Chapel near the village of Osmotherley, North Yorkshire.

The Pilgrims’ Way is the journal of Flora Margaret Morrish, who came upon the ruined chapel and its adjoining cottage in 1916 and subsequently led its restoration, before living there herself for many years.

The original manuscripts were handed down the generations and have now been published as a short book by her granddaughter, Flora Dysart. http://osmotherley­ladychapel.co.uk 3 9

dy Our La k at wor

From Delinquency to Evangelisation

by Father René­Luc

M

ary! My first encounter with her was in 1980, when I was about

evening there, I knelt before the Grotto and gave my life to Jesus through Mary.

I had never met my father, and had grown up amid hardships and violence, especially when my mother got involved with a gangster when I was 10.

When I returned from this pilgrimage, my relationship with Jesus was stronger, as was my relationship with Mary. I began to pray the Rosary more and more regularly, encouraged by the Marian fervour of Pope Saint John Paul II.

15.

In November 1979, this man committed suicide in my yard right in front of me by firing a bullet into his heart. I became a violent teenager after that with no sense of direction.

I was going down and I went astray. It was at that period of my life that I had the most profound experience which changed me.

On March 19, 1980, a Christian woman called Marie­Do, took me to Montpellier to listen to the testimony of Nicky Cruz, an American gang leader turned pastor. That evening, I opened my heart to Jesus, and I began a new life. In June 1980, Marie­Do took me on my first pilgrimage to Lourdes. On the last 10

In 1984, I founded with some friends the first Catholic rock band in France, which we called Totus Tuus, Saint John Paul II's motto borrowed from Saint Louis de Montfort: All to Jesus through Mary!

Then, I left my bass guitar to enter the seminary...

On May 25, 1985, my unknown father found me. He was a German soldier who had had a passing affair with my mother.

He explained to me that he had been looking for me for several years and that he had even gone to Lourdes to ask for the grace to find me. He

decided to ask God for a miracle. He took his car and went to Lourdes, even though he was a Protestant. He did not light a candle to the Virgin Mary but, instead, he lit a candle for Bernadette asking her to find me. And he went back to Berlin.

Five years later, in 1985, he decided to come back to France, to search for me again. He went back to the Camargue region and still he found nothing. So he decided to go to Nîmes, because he knew that I was born in Nîmes. He decided to go into a church that was open and he shouted to Jesus: “Help me to find my son. I do not know where he is, help me God.” At that time I was living 800km away from Nîmes in Brittany.

He came out of the church and walked down the street. He stopped in front of a house and he recognized it as my grandfather’s house. He had visited the house once or twice when he was with my mother twenty years previously. So he rang the bell. My grandparents were already dead by then and the woman who then owned the house was not part of my family.

She opened the door, and fortunately she had kept the number of my uncle and she gave it to my father. This is how my father found me.

I was very touched by this whole story.

I asked him: "When did you go to Lourdes?" He answered: "In June 1980." It was in the exact same year, month, and place, that I had given my life to Jesus through Mary...

Everything connects through Mary...

Fr René­Luc

Father René­Luc wrote his testimony in a book that has become a best seller: Dieu en plein coeur , published in 2008. He exercises a ministry as a preacher in France and abroad, especially with young people. He is part of the regular preachers of the televised mass of the Day of the Lord on France 2. He founded with Mgr Carré, CapMissio, the diocesan mission school of Montpellier; he is its director.

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The Mass is Prayer

M

ass is prayer; rather, it is prayer par excellence, the loftiest, the most sublime, and at the same time the most ‘concrete’. In fact, it is the loving encounter with God through his Word and the Body and Blood of Jesus. It is an encounter with the Lord.

But first we must answer a question. What truly is prayer? It is first of all a dialogue, a personal relationship with God. Man was created as a being in a personal relationship with God who finds his complete fulfilment only in the encounter with his Creator. The path of life leads toward the definitive encounter with the Lord.

This indeed is the greatest grace: being able to feel that the Mass, the Eucharist, is the privileged moment to be with Jesus and, through him, with God and with brothers and sisters.

Praying, as every true dialogue, is also knowing how to be in silence — in dialogues there are moments of silence — in silence together with Jesus.

When we go to Mass, perhaps we arrive five minutes early and begin to chat with the person next to us. But this is not the moment for small talk; it is the moment of silence to prepare ourselves for the dialogue. It is the moment for recollection within the heart, to prepare ourselves for the encounter with Jesus.

Silence is so important! Remember we are not going to a spectacle, we are going to the encounter with the Lord, and silence prepares us and accompanies us. It is such a grace to be pausing in silence with Jesus. From this mysterious silence of God springs his Word, which resonates in our heart. Jesus himself teaches us how it is truly possible to ‘be’ with the Father and he shows us this with his prayer. The Gospel shows us Jesus who withdraws to secluded places to pray.

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The encounter with the Lord is always a living encounter.

In Jn 3:1­21, the Lord speaks of the need to ‘be born anew’ (cf. v. 3). But what does it mean? Can one be ‘reborn’? Is it possible to return to having the zest, the joy, the wonder of life, even in the face of so much tragedy?

This is a fundamental question of our faith, and this is the longing of every true believer: the longing to be reborn, the joy of beginning anew. Do we have this longing? Does each of us have the wish to be born ever anew in order to meet the Lord? Do you have this wish? Indeed, one can easily lose it because, due to so many activities, so many projects to implement, in the end we are short of time and we lose sight of what is fundamental: the inner life of the heart, our spiritual life, our life which is the encounter with the Lord in prayer.

In truth, the Lord surprises us by showing us that he loves us even in our weaknesses. The Lord encounters our frailty so as to lead us back to our first call: that of being in the image and likeness of God. This is the environment of the Eucharist. This is prayer.

Pope Francis General Audience 15 November 2017

Consecration “The supreme moment of the holy sacrifice of the Mass, where time blends with eternity.”

“Come to communion, come to Jesus, come to live of Him, in order to live for him.”

St John­Marie Vianney, Curé of Ars 13

Love is service and Service is Compassion in Action.

by Mother Teresa

T

o me, God and compassion are one and the same. Compassion is the joy of sharing. It’s doing small things for the love of each other – just a smile, or carrying a bucket of water, or showing some simple kindness.

These are the small things that make up compassion.

Compassion means trying to share and understand the suffering of people. I think when people suffer that’s really like a kiss from Jesus. It is also a sign, that this person has come very close to Jesus, sharing His passion.

Only pride and selfishness and coldness keep us from having compassion. When we ultimately go home to God, we are going to be judged on what we were to each other, what we did for each other, and, especially, how much love we put in that. It’s not how much we give, but how much love we put in the doing that’s compassion in action.

14

One’s religion has nothing to do with compassion. It’s our love for God that is the main thing. Many Christians and non­Christians come to help in our houses in Calcutta and throughout the world. We have volunteers of all religions working with our aides day and night. Religion is meant to help us get closer to God, not meant to separate us…

All God really wants is for us to love Him, and the way we can show our love for Him is to serve others.

You may ask how the contemplative life fits together with compassion in action. It fits together by bringing union with God. Jesus said, “Whatever you do to the least of my brethren, you are doing to me.” If you do everything for him, you are acting as a contemplative in the heart of the world.

There is contemplative life where people separate themselves completely from the world and live a life of prayer, of sacrifice. We are out

in the world doing that – being contemplatives in the heart of the world.

We need a life of deep prayer to be able to give until it hurts. It seems the more we have, the less we give. And the less we have, the more we can give.

The need is great for food, clothes, medicine, and tender­love­and­care.

This is the greatest need. We have homes for the dying, for lepers, for children, for the poorest of the poor.

And now, in the United States, we have homes for people with AIDS, also.

My message to the people of today is simple. We must love one another as God loves each one of us. To be able to love, we need a clean heart. Prayer is what gives us a clean heart. The fruit of prayer is a deepening of faith and the fruit of faith is love. The fruit of love is service, which is compassion in action.

Religion has nothing to do with compassion; it is our love for God that is the main thing because we have all been created for the sole purpose to love and to be loved.

Mother Teresa (1983) Quoted in the Handbook for the Spirit

I am not sure exactly what heaven will be like, but I know that when we die and it comes time for God to judge us, he will not ask, ‘How many good things have you done in your life?’ Rather he will ask, ‘How much love did you put into what you did?

Mother Teresa

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The Sacrifice of a Life “Greater love than this no man has than that he lay down his life for his friend”

by Marie­Hélène Cook

S

ome of us will remember how Arnaud Beltrame, a Gendarme, offered himself up to an Islamist gunman in exchange for a hostage, during a 2018 terrorist attack in a French supermarket.

At about 11am, on 23 March, Redouane Lakdim, a terrorist claiming to be a member of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), charged into a supermarket in Trèbes (Southern France) with a large knife, a gun and three homemade bombs. After shooting two people dead and leaving 15 injured, he held others hostage.

Outside tension was growing while the police tried in vain to negotiate for liberation of the hostages. Anxiety gave way to terror. Arnaud Beltrame offered to substitute himself for the last hostage, a lady cashier in the supermarket. After overcoming the suspicions of the terrorist, Beltrame entered and effected the exchange.

Discreetly, he placed his mobile phone 16

on a table so that police could hear what was happening inside. After three hours of apprehensive wait, shots resonated, prompting the police to assault the place. They killed the terrorist… Arnaud had been stabbed and shot by four bullets; he died a few hours later from the stab wounds to his throat.

Who was this brave young man? Lieutenant Colonel Arnaud Beltrame had been born into a nonreligious family in 1973, but at the age of 33, he experienced a deep conversion. After two years of catechumenate, he became a Catholic and nurtured a great devotion to Our Lady.

While he was lively and never hid his faith, always ready to act as a witness to Christ in words and actions, he was known as a healthy, sports loving man, and at the same time a deep and discreet person.

He later confessed to asking Our Lady to help him find a wife and indeed, shortly after, he met Marielle, whom

he married in a civil wedding.

Growing closer to God, the couple started to prepare for their religious wedding at the Abbey of Lagrasse, where they attended Mass regularly and received religious instruction.

The wedding was to take place on 9 June 2018.

On the day of the attack, 23 March, a few kilometres from the supermarket, the Canons of Lagrasse Abbey were praying. Father Jean­ Baptiste, a monk in the Abbey, recalls: "The prior called us to pray.

We prayed Psalm 88, which foretells the sufferings of Christ." Although unaware of what was happening in the supermarket at the time, Fr Jean­ Baptiste suddenly received "a singular grace" from God: a flashing

vision of Arnaud Beltrame covered in blood. "That had never happened to me before. I didn't understand the meaning of it, until 8pm when people told me that Arnaud had been held hostage".

Later Fr Jean­Baptiste went to the hospital to give the Sacrament for the sick and the dying to Beltrame.

Before he left, the priest laid a Miraculous Medal on Arnaud’s shoulder so that "he could live his last moments under the protection of the Virgin Mary, whom he so much loved”.

Arnaud died that very night. It was a week before Good Friday. He was 45 years old.

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Tributes to Arnaud Beltrame Pope Francis sent a message of condolences in the wake of the attack, mentioning in particular, Beltrame’s “generous and heroic” gesture.

Bishop Planet of Carcassonne and Narbonne, speaking at a memorial Mass in Trèbes: “A life that has been given cannot be lost. It transcends misfortune to rally us in unity. It calls us to believe in life stronger than death.”

“People who compared him to Saint Maximilian Kolbe have understood something of his act, even if the circumstances are different.”

Fr Jean-Baptiste, monk at Lagrasse Abbey: “I think that only his Christian faith, animated by love, could have demanded of him this superhuman sacrifice.”

Marielle Beltrame: "We were a Christian couple. It isn’t meaningless for me that my husband's funeral should take place during Holy Week, and I look forward – with much hope – to celebrating with him the Resurrection at Easter."

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VIRTUAL PILGRIMAGE 2021

by John Mitchell

T

his year, again, we were unable to make our annual pilgrimage to Lourdes due to the pandemic. By next year, when we all hope to once more be at Our Lady’s Grotto in Lourdes, it will have been three years since we were there as a pilgrimage family.

In 2020 many of you joined us on our virtual pilgrimage to Lourdes, so this year, with a little more time available to plan, we wanted to make our virtual pilgrimage as close as possible to an actual pilgrimage, an encounter with God, under the watchful care of Our Lady of Lourdes.

We wanted to offer a prayerful experience to draw us nearer to Our Lord in the company of Our Lady and to remind us of why we go to Lourdes.

We also wanted to bring us close again as a Lourdes Family after being separated twice by circumstances beyond our control. With this in mind, the Society Council created a working committee to devise and create the best virtual experience we could for everyone.

We enlisted your help via our new and improved website and on Facebook, to send us your photos and videos and memories of Lourdes. You helped us create some excellent videos which brought us instantly back to our Lourdes home and reminded us of why we go there on pilgrimage.

Each day of our virtual pilgrimage we were able to bring you different masses, services and evening prayers celebrated by our wonderful clergy, and we are enormously grateful to them for their support and cooperation in helping us to bring this to you.

The lovely people at Event Anywhere created a branded web platform for us where we could all meet in an online “coffee” room at virtual tables to catch up and we all enjoyed seeing faces we hadn’t seen for so many months as well as meet many new friends and welcome them to our family.

Special thanks must be given to the virtual pilgrimage team: Sacha Blanchard, John 19

Perkins, Katrina Howell, Ruth Rockey and Simon Chandler who worked tirelessly to bring the virtual pilgrimage to life.

We hope that everyone who joined us this year enjoyed the programme we brought you and shared in the joy we experienced in creating it for you. The entire virtual pilgrimage is still available on our website: https://www.soll­lourdes.com/events/soll­virtual­pilgrimage­2021 for those who were unable to watch.

Thank you for joining us in 2021 and we all look forward to meeting in Lourdes, in person, next year, Deo Volente!

John Mitchell SOLL Press Officer

Keep up to date by visiting our website: www.soll­lourdes.com ­ news of the Society, ­ events and updates for 2021, ­ projects, ­ prayers and spiritual documents, ­ virtual pilgrimage in 2021, ­ tweets, ­ pictures and videos of our past pilgrimages, ­ various accounts.

You can also contribute to the life of the website by including your stories in the Spiritual tab in the menu towards the top of the page.

The website has been set up by John Mitchell, whom you can contact at: john.mitchell@soll-lourdes.com

Don’t hesitate to consult our Facebook pages https://www.facebook.com/groups/soll.lourdes/ 20

Society of Our Lady of Lourdes Diary of Events 2021 Aylesford Pilgrimage Sunday, 15th August. The Friars, ME20 7BX Mass 12pm.

Rosary Procession 3pm.

Due to current government restrictions , SOLL is unable to provide transportation to and from this event. All attendees must use their own private transport in accordance with government guidance.

Mass for the repose of the soul of Ray Harrison Sunday, 4th September at 12pm At the Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, Hayes, Middlesex Mass will be followed by a buffet lunch Dowry of Mary Pilgrimage, Walsingham Sunday 5th September, 2021 Subject to government restrictions being lifted , SOLL Council are considering arranging this pilgrimage to Walsingham Mass for the repose of the soul of Miss Veronica Mascarenhas Sunday 3rd October, 2021 at 12pm

Our Lady and St Joseph's Church, Hanwell

Appeal for Trustees (Council members) We have a number of very dedicated and skilled Trustees leaving our Council in December when their terms of office come to an end. We will therefore be seeking nominations to fill these vacancies very soon.

The role is not onerous but does demand each Trustee is able and willing to attend up to approximately 10 meetings per year (either in person or online) and has skills to further the work of the SOLL Council. We currently lack some capacity within the areas of IT, marketing and communications, as well as basic administration.

We would very much welcome expressions of interest from our members and friends. Following this we will put you in touch with a current Trustee to discuss further the role of a SOLL Council Trustee.

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SOLL OFFICE UPDATE We should like to update you on the new office arrangements in place now since early April 2021 following the passing of our dedicated office manager Ray Harrison RIP. • •

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Office Hours are now 10am to 4pm Monday to Friday.

Telephone calls are answered by Trustees and volunteers on a rota basis, so if we miss your call please do leave a message on the answer machine and we shall get back to you.

Please continue to email the Society with your questions and queries we shall be happy to help where we can. Email: enquiries@soll­lourdes.com You may contact us through post, email or phone call to request: ­ Mass bequests ­ Candles to be lit in Lourdes ­ Prayers for the sick and deceased ­ Prayer cards Due to the bank charges levied by RBS we are now requesting Members and Friends of SOLL to use HSBC. You may receive a request from our Treasurer (John Perkins) to change Standing Orders and Direct Debits already in existence to HSBC. Members of the Bonus Ball and Centenary Club fundraisers will be asked for bank details to allow prize monies to be paid directly into bank accounts. SOLL is working to reduce the administration and cost of manual banking.

The changes to our administration arrangements have been made necessary due to our reduced office capacity. However, communication with our Members and Friends remains very important to us.

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WAYS TO PAY THE SOCIETY Telephone/Internet banking You’ll need to tell your bank: 1. Our bank sort code: 40­01­13 2. Our bank account number: 10769509 3. Our bank: HSBC 4. Payee “Society of Our Lady of Lourdes” 5. Your Reference “pick from table” Payment Type Subscription – Life Member Subscription – Annual working Adult Subscription – Annual Student Subscription – Annual Religious Subscription – Annual Retired Subscription – Annual Nonworking Subscription – Annual Family Donation Mass Candle Bonus Ball Centenary Club

Short Reference MEMLIFE MEMADU MEMSTU MEMREL MEMRET MEMNON MEMFAM DONATE MASS CANDLE BONBAL CENCLB

Cost £60.00 £6.50 £4.00 £4.00 £4.00 £4.00 £10.00 £10.00

£1 per Week £5 per Month

You may also pay by setting up a “Standing Order” for regular weekly, monthly or yearly payments, using the same details above.

At a bank Pay by Cash or Cheque at your bank with the following details: 1. Our bank sort code: 40­01­13 2. Our bank account number: 10769509 3. Our bank: HSBC 4. Payee “Society of Our Lady of Lourdes” 5. Cheque made payable to “Society of Our Lady of Lourdes” By post 1. Make cheques out to “Society of Our Lady of Lourdes” 2. Post cheques to: Society of Our Lady of Lourdes Church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ­ Botwell Lane ­ Hayes Middlesex ­ UB3 2AB For security reasons CASH IS NOT RECOMMENDED for postal payments.

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They have arrived: 07/07/2021 Nancy Lennon 06/07/2021 Fr Michael Fewell 25/06/2021 Mary De Silva 17/05/2021 Concetta Wager 01/05/2021 Peggy O'Donnell 05/04/2021 Ray Harrison 18/03/2021 Veronica Mascarenhas 03/03/2021 Norah Frances Barrett 17/02/2021 Anna Maria Crosskill 01/02/2021 Francis Fitzpatrick 16/01/2021 Doris Moore 07/01/2021 Bridie Murphy

REQUIESCANT IN PACE May their souls and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace, and may our Blessed Lady, Consoler of the Afflicted, pray for those who mourn.

Advertisement Pilgrimage to Lourdes by Coach and Ferry 16th ­ 23rd October 2021 Pick up at Nottingham, Derby, Leicester and by mutual agreement en route to Dover.

Cost £650 per person sharing.

This cost includes Refreshments while travelling on the coach, Bed and Breakfast in the Welcome Break Hotel at Saran, Orleans, Full Board at the Hotel Irlande in Lourdes, Excursion to the City of the Poor and Gavarnie in the Pyrenees, Half Board in the Kyriad Hotel in Nevers on the way back.

There will be a full guided programme led by Fr. John McCay with Group Masses in the St. Frais Chapel (Sept Doleurs Hospital), the City of the Poor, The Grotto and at St. Gildard's Convent in Nevers.

A full refund will be given if necessary due to covid restrictions.

For more information and a booking form, please contact Fr. John McCay at jmccay1982@yahoo.co.uk or 07853 068 189.

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, Centenary Club Winners 2021 January 2021 1st Tim Edwards (1) 2nd Alex Hay (11) 3rd Daniel Crowley (20) 4th Ken Hay (46)

February 2021 1st Philomena Hibbert (25) 2nd John & Jackie Crean (12) 3rd Pauline Collie (21) 4th Michael Chute (31)

March 2021 1st Simon Chandler (15) 2nd Tom Casey (5) 3rd Clare Barnwell (14) 4th Elizabeth Price (2)

April 2021 1st Simon Chandler (27) 2nd Pauline Collie (21) 3rd Michael Chute (31) 4th Pauline Collie (49)

May 2021 1st Patrick Phelan 2nd Michael Hennessey (18) 3rd Pat Symons (43) 4th Anne Mann (9)

June 2021 1st John & Jackie Crean (12) 2nd Rosemarie Helene (42) 3rd Philomena Hibbert (38) 4th John Lamb (10)

Centenary Club Fundraising This is one of our successful ongoing fundraisers for the Society.

We are able to offer vacant numbers to members and friends for a monthly draw.

Prizes are offered in relation to the size of the pot with the first prize currently around £40. There are four winners in all each month, paid directly to winners’ bank accounts with notification by email or post.

If you would like to support us, each number costs £5 per month or £60 for a year’s membership, this can be paid by Standing Order. Yearly membership can also be paid by cheque.

Please contact the office for further details or complete the application slip below and see WAYS TO PAY THE SOCIETY on page 23.

The Society of Our Lady of Lourdes is a Company Limited by Guarantee and a Registered Charity. Company Reg. No. 4156243 Charity Reg. No.1086419

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Why not get your relations and friends to join the Society?

Complete the form below in block capitals and send it to the address at bottom of page Annual Membership ­ Standard ­ Religious, Retired & Students ­ Family Life Membership

Payee: Society of Our Lady of Lourdes Bank: HSBC Sort Code: 40­01­13 Account: 10769509

£ 6.50 £ 4.00 £ 10.00 £ 60.00

Membership Application Form I wish to join/renew my subscription to the Society of Our Lady of Lourdes and enclose my cheque/P.O. for £ . . . .

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Name (Mr, Mrs, etc.) .....................................................................................................................................................................

Address:................................................................................................................................................................................................... ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Post Code ...........................Country.....................................

E­mail address only if you consent to receive emails from the Society: ...................................................................................................................................................

1. Cheques should be made payable to the “Society of Our Lady of Lourdes” 2. You can materially increase the value of your subscription, without additional cost to you.

Gift Aid Declaration I want to Gift Aid my donation and any donations I make in the future or have made in the past 4 years to the Society of Our Lady of Lourdes. I am a UK taxpayer and understand that if I pay less Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax than the amount of Gift Aid claimed on all my donations in that tax year, it is my responsibility to pay any difference to HMRC. Title....... First Name(s)............................................

Surname...............................

Address:.......................................................................................................................................................

Post Code.......................................

Signature: Please notify us if you:

Date.........................

1. cancel this declaration.

2. change your name or address 3. no longer pay sufficient tax on your income or capital gains.

If you pay Income Tax at the higher or additional rate and want to receive the additional tax relief due to you, you must include the total of all your Gift Aid donations on your Self­Assessment Tax Return or ask HMRC to adjust your tax code.

Sub (£) ..................

For Total (£) .................

Official Use PW

Year...............

(Ch/PO/Cash) MC

Society of Our Lady of Lourdes ­ Church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Botwell House, Hayes, Middlesex, UB3 2AB

Don (£)...................

CSS Wel Tel: E­mail: Web site:

Date.........................

CDB Date ........................

(020) 8848 9833 enquiries@soll­lourdes.com www.soll­lourdes.com