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STREAMING AT BISHOP ETON
Services at Our Lady of the Annunciation, Bishop Eton can be viewed live or on playback at any time at: www.churchservices.tv/bishopeton
You can usually plug a PC into your TV to watch it on the big screen. On a ‘Smart TV’ save the site in the TV web browser.
Please help any relatives or friends to access the internet. It is a great source of spiritual support for those who cannot go to church.
Information cards are available in the porch. Please share with the sick or housebound.
Please not the Wednesday Novena is not streamed. Occaisionally funeral Masses will not be streamed, if this is the case a notice will be found at www.churchservices.tv/bishopeton
ASYLUM LINK CLOTHES APPEAL
Clearing out your closet? Asylum Link are in need of clean, unwanted adult clothes in good condition, especially men’s clothing and would gratefully receive any items that you would be happy to donate!
Some of the service users at here at Asylum Link arrive with just the clothes on their backs, some of which are not even suitable for our ever-changing British weather
By donating your unwanted clothes to Asylum Link you can help to give someone the gift of choice. Your donation can make a real difference
FAITH INTO ACTION – VOLUNTEERING WITH CAFOD:
Would you like to volunteer for CAFOD and make a difference in the lives of countless people in poverty throughout the world? You can help in your parish, local schools and in other interesting ways.
If you’re interested in joining CAFOD’s community of volunteers for a better world, please get in touch on or 07779 804 241.
ADVENTUROUS ACCOMPANIMENT DAY WORKSHOP
📅 Date: 19 September 2026
📍 St Margaret Clitherow Centre
"In the relationship of accompaniment, [we] are provided a space in which [we] can come to deeply know the love of Jesus Christ through friendship, guidance, and authenticity..."
Whether you are new to the concept of accompaniment, or regularly incorporate it, this workshop is for you. There is no cost and we would just ask that you bring your own lunch.
Sign up here https://forms.office.com/e/9zxSLAndhm
For enquiries, please contact Moses Mui, Training Coordinator at
CATHOLIC HOLIDAYS IN THE LAKE DISTRICT THIS SUMMER:
During August and September, Castlerigg Manor in Keswick is opening its doors to families, groups of friends, or private individuals who are looking for an affordable stay in the Lake District. Breakfast and evening meal are provided, and Mass is celebrated on site.
For more information check out castleriggmanor.com/stay-with-us or contact / 017687 72711
CRAFTING THE WORD OF THE LORD
📅 Date: Monday 7 to Friday 11 September
📍Meet: Our Lady & All Saints Church, Parbold, WN8 7HS
An exhibition of knitted Bible scenes created by Francesca Vause will be on display at Our Lady & All Saints Church, Parbold, WN8 7HS, from Monday 7 to Friday 11 September.
The exhibition is free to visit and all are welcome.
Opening times
Monday: 11.00am - 3.00pm
Tuesday: 3.30pm - 6.00pm
Wednesday: 11.00am - 3.00pm
Thursday: 11.30am - 4.00pm
Friday: 11.00am - 3.00pm
Free entry and parking on site.
FLAME – MARCH 2027
📅 Date: 15 March 2027
📍 Location: OVO Arena Wembley
The archdiocese is organising a trip to FLAME - the largest Catholic youth event in the country where 10,000 young people gather together at Wembley Arena to listen to speakers, pray and praise.
It is open to young people in Year 9 and above. If you’re interested in bringing a group of young people, please contact Sarah McGeehan on or 07415099048.
Please note: young people must be accompanied by a teacher, youth leader or chaplain.
More information: FLAME 27 – CYMFED
JULY 2026 CATHOLIC PICTORIAL
The online version of July's Catholic Pictorial can be found at CATHOLIC PIC JULY 2026 by CPMM Media Group - Issuu
THE WEATHER:
There may still be a few people who are in denial that global warming is a reality we as a human family need to take seriously, but this week has certainly provided us with another wake-up call. The forecast is that by the time we are celebrating on Sunday we will be enjoying some cooler air. I hope you have coped alright. As you can imagine some of the less able members of the CSsR community have found things very difficult! Let’s continue to strive to respond to the CAFOD call to live as simply as we can.
PARISH GARDEN PARTY & PROJECT ZIMBABWE UPDATE:
Once again an enormous thank you to everyone who supported the garden party and donated to the tombola. We raised £1175.80 on the day and also received some extremely generous donations amounting to £2800! This will make a huge difference in Zimbabwe, especially since US Aid has been completely cut.
BIG, BIG THANK YOU!
AUGUSTINIAN MISSION APPEAL:
Thank you for the generous donations to Fr Emmanuel last week. We raised £1037.32 and are still waiting on the figure for the donations made directly to Fr Emmanuel using his card machine. We will share the grand total once we have the final figure.
CATHOLIC MEDICAL ASSOCIATION UK:
Are you a doctor, nurse, healthcare student, or allied health professional?
The Catholic Medical Association UK invites Catholics working in healthcare to join a growing community of fellowship, prayer and formation. The Association supports healthcare professionals in living out their faith and vocation, while providing opportunities to connect with others working in the medical and healthcare professions.
Find out more about membership and upcoming events at: Home - Catholic Medical Association
JUNE 2026 CATHOLIC PICTORIAL
This months edition has a feature on our day marking the 300th Birthday of St Gerard Majella, and the Blessing in Bishop Eton School of the statue of Our Lady, given by the Sisters of the Cenacle after the recent closure of the Convent.
The online version of June's Catholic Pictorial can be found at https://issuu.com/catholic_pic/docs/01_catholic_pic_june_2026
GENTLEMEN’S BREAKFAST CLUB
The last Saturday of the month at Christ the King Church there is a Gentlemen’s Breakfast at 8:30am. Talk to Deacon Peter to find out more about coming along to the Club.
ARCHDIOCESAN YOUNG ADULT GROUP
📅 Date: Tuesday 26th May
📍Location: Pauline book centre
Anyone aged 18-35 is welcome to join the Archdiocesan Young Adult Group. The group meets fortnightly at the Pauline Book Centre in Liverpool City Centre. The next meeting will be held on Tuesday 26 May. As usual, light refreshment will be served at 6.30pm. For enquiries, please contact Moses at .
PROJECT ZIMBABWE A MESSAGE FROM FRANCES
When you read this, I will already be on my travels to Zimbabwe. I would like to thank you for your support and prayers. Please also remember to pray for the five students who will be Ordained whilst I am there. FRANCES.
THANKYOU FROM SOUTH LIVERPOOL FOODBANK (VIA SVP) MAY 2026:
Wow - what can we say? Except that we're totally blown away by your kindness and your latest donation.
The £500 you donated will make a real difference, enabling us to continue to be there for people day after day - providing emergency food when the cupboards are bare, a listening ear when things feel overwhelming, and advice to help people take control with dignity.
We know that severe levels of hardship still prevail in our communities and while falling inflation has helped some, many are still struggling to cope. Thousands of people and families are having to face impossible choices: heating or eating, bills or food.This is so sad and it’s why hundreds are being forced to turn to our food bank every month.Last year alone we were able to provide 6,816 local people with emergency food and toiletries - 2,204 of those were children. In addition, everyone who turned to us had access to a dedicated Citizens Advice Adviser. She helped over 200 people gain, on average, an extra £1,750 in their pockets - making it less likely they’ll need to use our food bank again.
This would not have been possible without your continued support.And for that we’re truly grateful.
WORLD COMMUNICATIONS DAY 2026
The theme of this year's World Communiations Day is "Preserving Human Voices and Faces"
To read Pope Leo's message for World Communications Day click here
For prayers focusing on communication click here
To support the communications work of the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales click here
A POEM ON THE PASSING OF FR CASEY
PARTING
As Innocents born into our mystical world,
We quickly discover the parameters
That determine the length and quality
Of our mortal existence;
If there is a beginning,
There must be an end.
As Life unfolds,
Joys and sorrows mark the years
With indelible nuances
Of events, places and people.
The Bishop Eton confreres and parishoners
Mourn the loss of one unique Scot
Who touched their worlds – not flamboyantly,
But with charming erudition and humorous wit.
He led a life of loving devotion and service
To his Redemptorist Vows and Confreres,
Brave to the end.
Thank you, Dear Father Jim.
We shall miss you –
Until we meet again!
Eileen Murray © 30 April 2026
I'm back again by Fr James Casey C.Ss.R
Yes, I’m back, although I don’t know for how long. I left Bishop Eton and checked in to the Royal Liverpool Hospital at 7.30am on the 18th July 2016. A few days previously I had visited my brother in Glasgow to assure him that there was nothing to worry about and to avoid my never seeing him again if things did go wrong. I didn’t think they would, but when the patient is 82 years old and the surgery is of the car crash variety, there is room for doubt. But when I was told I had between six and nine months to live and surgery was proposed as my best chance of a cure, I was all for it. My mind was in “bring it on” mode.
I was wheeled into the operating theatre. I had been there before and so was pretty relaxed. It was a matter of breathing deeply and drifting off, for an indeterminate period of time, to a happy place, from thence to be awakened by the kindly voice of a Filipino nurse purring in my ear: “James how are you?”. At least that is how it happened in the past. This time it was different. I have no recollection of ever awakening from that general anaesthetic, or being coaxed out of sleep by some kindly nurse. No, I was locked , it seemed, in another world, in a very unhappy place, a dark place populated by drug addicts, gun runners, kidnappers—me being one of the kidnapped with no possibility of ever being ransomed. You see, I was being moved from one dank window- less place to another. There was no way I would ever be traced.
Mind you, I did resist, especially when I came to believe that my cancer was a fiction and that I and other elderly folk had been conned into hospital for experimental purposes. I fought back physically. I remember the struggle as they tied me down and I resisted with all my might. Months later when I was back here in Bishop Eton a parishioner told me her daughter, a nurse at the Royal, had been involved in one of my battles against the powers of evil, i.e. half-a-dozen nursing staff. Apparently I called the lady’s daughter a witch. Considering the state of mind I was in, or out of, at the time, she got off lightly!
Let me tell you that my operation for oesophageal cancer was carried out successfully. What set me back and laid me low was a sudden post-operational infection. While I hallucinated and raved, the doctors, nurses and staff of the Royal worked hard to keep me alive and did so with awesome good will. Such was my mental and physical state that several weeks passed before I was fully aware of where I was and what was going on around me. And it was then that I began to stand still . Days became interminable; I lay there and prayed that they would end, but they wouldn’t!
Nights were equally obstinate; there was no way they were going to give way to the days. I must confess that as I lay there, I languished — oh how I languished. You see, if there was no way the days were going to give way to the nights and vice versa, life would be at a standstill and I’d be lying there forever, a forlorn old creature hooked up to feeding tubes and electric wires, hoping there would be a powercut.
And talking of prayer, my advice to those preparing to go into hospital is: pray before you get there! This I learned years ago when I was seriously ill in Rome. I was suffering from a bacterium capable of killing me and I never said a prayer—I couldn’t. For the past sixty years as a religious and priest I’ve been more than happy to pray several times a day. I’ve studied prayer and lectured on prayer, but that has been no help when sickness was draining the life out of me. During my stay in the Royal I doubt that I ever managed to finish a Hail Mary. But, thank God, a phalanx of folk was doing the praying for me. What’s more, I was inundated with “holy” cards wishing me well and assuring me that, not one Mass, but novenas of Masse s were being offered for my return to good health. There were so many of those multiple Mass cards that the Masses promised are probably still being said — even now. If I suffer a relapse, I’m probably still covered
I was all of six weeks in the Royal. As time passed and I became a bit (but not much) brighter and more aware of life around me, I continued to languish. Who could blame me? I was, without warning, introduced to hospital food. Enough! I’ll only upset myself if I say more. I remembered the mouth-watering menus I was presented with when in hospital in Rome. I remembered, too, how we were asked to indicate whether we wanted red or white wine to accompany our meals. To tell the truth I wanted neither red wine nor white wine. There was only one thing I wanted and that was OUT . Like the big child I am, I wanted to go home to our beloved Bishop Eton—yes, to the building, but more importantly to the community that gives life and purpose to the building. Waiting for the day of deliverance/homecoming was anything but easy.
What eased the pain of waiting were the constant visits to the Royal of the different members of our community. Not a day passed without a visit from at least one member of the community. Often, they arrived in threes and fours, helping each other along, and in danger of being mistakenly admitted. This kindness continued during my immediate convalescence at Christopher Grange and has continued to this day here in Bishop Eton, where our home-grown paramedics still attend to my daily technomedical needs.
I’m back home again, and I’m ever so grateful for all that has been done for me. During my illness, I did live through some dark, even frightening, times, but despair was never an option. There were too many on my side. We were a power to be reckoned with. As we lived through this experience, grace, normally thought of as a theological truth, became a lived reality—became words of encouragement, a warm embrace, little acts of service, a willingness to wait and watch and listen and love. We were a grace-fuelled community and we were winners. As they say daftly on television these days: ‘Why don’t we all give ourselves a big round of applause?’
First Published in BE Alive June 2017
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