Refugee Week
From 15-21 June, communities across England and  Wales will be celebrating Refugee Week, an annual opportunity to recognise the contributions,
resilience and dignity of refugees and others who are seeking sanctuary. This year’s theme, ‘Courage’, aims to highlight the strength of those who have been forced to flee their homes in search of safety and a new beginning. Speaking on theme, Bishop Paul McAleenan, the Lead Bishop for
Migrants and Refugees for the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, said: “To see the humanity and dignity of every person requires the courage to reach out and welcome refugees, resisting those voices which seek to sow fear or division in our communities. They are our brothers and sisters, made in the image of God. By welcoming them we bear witness to the Gospel’s call to love our neighbour.” This week might be an appropriate time to familiarise yourself with, and take part in, the Welcome the stranger: defend the right to asylum campaign being promoted by the Jesuit Refugee Service.

Pudding Evening
Come and enjoy a series of puddings this Friday, 19 June, 7.00-9.00pm, in St Andrew’s Hall, Tiverton. Bring your own drinks, but tea and coffee will be provided. There will also be a raffle with prizes. All donations given on the evening with go towards the internal furnishings of the new church.

Day for Life
Next Sunday is the annual Day for Life. There will be a retiring collection for the Day for Life Fund which distributes grants to organisations that promote respect for life from conception until natural death.

Adoremus – Third National Eucharistic Congress
The third National Eucharistic Congress will take place in London on Saturday 10 October. The Principal Mass will be celebrated at St George’s
Cathedral in Southwark, followed by a procession across the Thames to Westminster Cathedral, concluding with a Vigil of Adoration from Midnight to 6.00am the following day. If you would like to be one of our 50 diocesan delegates, please contact Fr Chris Findlay Wilson on 01202 746539.

200 Club
Congratulations to Ann McKinney who won the £30 prize and to Alan Parr who won the £20 prize in the June draw. Any parishioners wishing to join this parish fund raiser should speak to Simon Coombs or Sheelagh Bourdon at St Andrews or Siobhan Gilroy at St Boniface.

June – the Month of the Sacred Heart
The month of June is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a devotion which gained popularity after Jesus appeared to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in the 1670s, revealing to her the image of His Sacred Heart. It is a month dedicated to contemplating the wonderful mystery of the human heart of Jesus that contains all of God’s eternal, infinite, self-giving love for each person. In 2024, Pope Francis wrote an encyclical,
Dilexit nos, on the human and divine love of the Heart of Jesus and its relevance for today. In this letter, he invites us to rediscover the importance of the heart, both in our spiritual life and in our human and social relationships. The Heart of Jesus is the perfect model of unconditional and total love, which calls us to live an authentic and full life, in communion with God and with others.

First Holy Communion Sunday
A group of our children has been preparing to receive First Holy Communion over the last 8 months. They will receive the Blessed Sacrament for the First. Time at 11.30am Mass on Sunday 28 June. Please keep them and their families in your prayers in a special way over the next few weeks. We are thankful, too, for Deacon Michael, Elaine Kelly and Monika Manser who so generously give of their time as catechists for the children and their parents.

CHAT AGM
The AGM of CHAT, the Churches Housing Action Team, will take place on Thursday 2 July at 7.00pm in the Salvation Army Hall, Chapel Street, Tiverton. All welcome.

Bishops’ Appeal to the G7 Conference
Archbishop Richard Moth, President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, has joined fellow presidents of the Bishops’ Conferences of the G7 States to make a series of calls on the leaders who will gather for the 52nd G7 Summit in Évian-les-Bains, Haute-Savoie, France, from 15–17 June. In a joint statement, attached to the Newsletter and entitled “Building Bridges for Peace, Justice and Human Dignity”, the Presidents of the Episcopal Conferences appeal to the leaders of the G7 to respect international law, uphold the dignity of the person, lead in the pursuit of peace and reconciliation through dialogue, negotiation and mutual respect, and to collaborate in the fight against organised crime, human trafficking, illicit trade, corruption, and unlawful financial actions. They also encourage G7 States to promote education that facilitates dialogue and respect for religious and cultural differences.

June Diocesan Newsletter
The latest edition of the Diocesan Newsletter can be accessed at: https://email.workwithgusto.co.uk/t/t 5EF9A62E5613824F2540EF23F30FEDED.

Parish Volunteer for Stella Maris
Stella Maris (formerly called Apostleship of the Sea) is seeking one volunteer from this parish to help with Sea Sunday (which falls on 11/12 July this year) in this parish. This is the day when the Church comes together to pray for seafarers, fishers and their families, and takes a retiring collection to support the work of Stella Maris. The volunteer will read out the appeal (which Stella Maris will provide) at the end of Masses that weekend. If you can kindly do this, please contact roland.hayes@stellamarismail.org.