RENEWING THE STATIONS

When Canon Ned Carey suggested to parishioners at Sacred Heart, Blackpool, that one good deed for Lent would be to clean the Stations of the Cross in the church, there was no shortage of volunteers. Our picture shows some of those who helped.

WALSINGHAM MEETING

The Poulton-le-Fylde group of The Walsingham Association met at St. John's, Poulton, on The feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, for a special Mass, celebrated by Father Joseph Ntuwa. This was followed by a social event in the Parish Centre. The inclement weather, trimmed the numbers a little, but did not deter the group from thoroughly enjoying themselves and getting down to planning their next pilgrimage to Walsingham in September. Those interested in becoming a member of the group, or joining the pilgrimage, should contact the president, Anne Barnes on 01253 884316.

FEAST OF DIVINE MERCY
Teresa Caracdice

Sunday, 3rd April, 2005 at 2.00 pm at St. Peter’s Cathedral, Lancaster Exposition, Confessions, Chaplet, Veneration of the image. Refreshments afterwards. WHY DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY? A presentation on the life of St. Faustina Kowalska and devotion to the Divine Mercy by Anna Roszkowska and Teresa Carradice Tuesday, 15th March, 2005, from 7.00 – 8.00 pm at Cathedral House, Lancaster. All welcome

LOURDES STATIONS OF THE CROSS
John Baldwin

A new set of the "Stations of the Cross" for Pilgrims not able to do the large Stations is being prepared in Lourdes to be sited on the meadow. The Pilgrimage Directors of English, Scottish and Welsh Pilgrimages have secured the Ninth Station as a gift from these countries. A donation plaque will be attached to the Station. The Station will cost roughly £24,000. The Lancaster Diocese contribution will be £300, calculated at £1 per head of the Pilgrims who were in Lourdes for the 2004 pilgrimage last July. The Lourdes advisory council for the Diocese would like to give all lovers of Lourdes the chance to contribute, with this in mind an appeal will be launched to this end. Any surplus donations will go in to the Lourdes sick fund. Collections and donations should be sent to, Mrs Cath Morgan (Pilgrimage Director). 48, Raybourne Avenue. Poulton Le Fylde. FY6 7RT. Cheques should be made payable to "Lancaster Diocese Pilgrimage Trust"

NEWS FROM THE CWL
Collette Greenwood

Lancaster Branch Officers held their quarterly Meeting in Ulverston on 22nd January. The Branch President opened the Meeting with Prayers. Ulverston Chairman Ann Lackey welcomed everybody with a special word for our Spiritual Advisor Fr Tony Ashcroft, Regional Officer, June Helps, President, Susan Gornall, Vice President, Vera Cottingham, Treasurer, Stephanie Wilson, Secretary, Pat Nicholls and Liaison Officer, Colette Greenwood.
Fr Tony spoke to us about Jesus’ healing of the Blind and the Deaf. He urged us to read the bible and gave us some helpful advice on making best use of it. We had two Speakers for the day. Stuart Dew of the Churches' Criminal Justice Forum reminded us that the prison population in England is one of the highest in Europe. Our second Speaker was Chris Bain the Director of CAFOD. He was presented with a cheque for over £40,000.00 towards the CWL/CAFOD special project for which we have been working throughout the year. We sent congratulations to Elaine Thomson, a founder member of Penrith section for her 100th birthday.

THE CATENIAN ASSOCIATION
Deacon Dominic Hyland

The original title of this association for men in the Catholic Church was “The Chums Benevolent Association”. It was, perhaps, a rather quaint name. However, the word " Chums' serves to highlight one of the key essential features of this gathering of like minds, namely, the insistence on friendship and a sense of belonging. These are qualities that we all strive for in life and it is refreshing to know that there are such groups within the Church who continue to foster them.
As with all such groups, the Catenians are always anxious to invite others to enjoy the social advantages of membership. It is recognised that one of the strange phenomena of the age in which we live is that fewer people seem inclined to commit themselves to membership of organisations. There seems to a sense that, in some way or other, one's independence is somehow threatened. Nothing, of course, could be further from the truth. ' Come and join us' is a friendly and heartfelt and welcoming invitation.
There are 17 established and flourishing groups (called Circles) of Catenians the length and breadth of the Lancaster diocese stretching from Fleetwood to Barrow- in- Fumess. Members of individual Circles are welcome to visit any of these and any Catenian Circle anywhere in the world whether in New Zealand or Zambia, Sydney or Valetta. There is always a warm welcome available. There are over 10,000 members in the Association.
The Catenians are, of course, not just inward-looking. As their original title suggests they are involved in works of charity also. Many are in responsible positions, too, within the diocese and on public bodies. All in all, they are a force for good within the church and the world at large. You and your family will find that the Catenians can lend another dimension to your life. Come and join us. To find out about a circle near you please contact Tony Halliwell (01772/742170) or visit the website, www.thecatenianassociation.org. Or you can ask your parish priest who will know someone who is a member.

THE FLOODING OF CARLISLE
Mgr Greg Turner

Naturally overshadowed by the enormity of the Tsunami tragedy, the floods in Carlisle this winter still do deserve our attention. Here the Parish Priest of the city’s central Catholic church, Our Lady & St. Joseph at Warwick Square gives a gripping account of what it was like at the time and what it is still like. As is so often the case adversity brought out the best in many people.

As I write this it is almost four weeks since the Great Carlisle Flood. As far as the national media was concerned it was literally a three-day wonder. Newspapers and TV soon tired of pictures of flooded streets and dramatic rescues and any mention of Carlisle (and other parts of Cumbria affected by the flood) was soon consigned to a few lines on an inside page or a brief mention on the local TV stations. But the consequences of the Flood are still very much with us.

Strangely, at its height, we knew less of what was happening than anybody else. With electrical power off for several days we were even deprived of pictures on the television screen. The brother of a local priest told him by phone of Carlisle’s woes as he witnessed them on CNN in Canada. However, it soon became clear that this was a tragedy with personal and community implications. The amount of damage to property will cost many millions of pounds to make good. Two thousand homes are uninhabitable and many will be so for another nine months.

Floors have collapsed or have been removed as they are contaminated with sewage, petrol, and diesel. Plaster from the ground floor rooms of the flooded house is being removed and placed in lines of skips in the streets. Carlisle’s fleet of seventy brand new buses was lost. The city’s biggest employer (McVities) has yet to resume production, with over a thousand workers still laid off, with the threat of unemployed. Our local Catholic Secondary School (Newman) is the nearest school to the River Eden (we couldn’t imagine that a river with such an evocative name could be so savage!) and will need rebuilding. Many smaller businesses - workshops, restaurants, shops, were destroyed. Civic amenities – both the police and fire stations and local government offices were all put out of action.

This has had a serious affect on so many individuals. Sadly three people drowned – one a faithful parishioner. Two thirds of the parishioners of Our Lady’s, for example, have been directly affected. At the lowest part of the city the Warwick Road area bore the brunt of the Flood. Most of the three thousand who are still homeless are from this part of the city. The likelihood of them returning to their dried out homes will not be before August.

There are scenes of desolation yet. Some streets are devoid of inhabitants. At first the Dunkirk Spirit was evident. Neighbours helped each other to clean up their homes and declared frequently that this was nothing compared to what the people of the Indian Ocean basin had to endure after the Boxing Day Tsunami. But the reality of a ruined home and the loss of treasured possessions has now lead to many tears and much depression.

Human beings are basically kind and resilient, and this event has brought out the best in people. The cup of tea, the shoulder to cry on, the invitation to share a meal or the offer of accommodation – all have been given unstintingly.

The ecumenical Spirit also came to the fore. The Churches Together in Carlisle soon mobilised a Churches’ Flood Response Group. Four hundred volunteers from forty different churches of every kind of religious hue set up within days three emergency centres. Lifters and carriers were there to help move furniture and sodden carpets. A cup of tea and hot meal service was provided. Many victims just wanted to talk, so a team of listeners was recruited. For more specialised counselling and practical help a referral system was established. Security for abandoned properties was provided. Several superstores donated food, cleaning materials, rubber gloves, buckets, and detergents to help in the great clean-up – the Churches saw to their distribution.

The National Farmers Union, the Salvation Army, the RAF, the Across Trust, and Story’s Builders loaned the Churches vehicles, portacabins and mobile kitchens to assist them in their work. St Aidan’s, the nearby Anglican church was badly damaged and has found a temporary home in Our Lady and St Joseph’s.

It is particularly pleasing to mention that there was a sense of solidarity from our own diocese. Parishes in St Anne’s, Lancaster, Cleveleys, and Blackpool sent, of their own accord, generous donations which our local SVP are using for the most deserving cases, and there is no shortage of those. Other Catholic organisations from outside Carlisle, such as the Knights of St Columba have also made donations to help those affected by this disaster. One month on, the work of recovery continues. The problems are different now, they will change again before the recovery is complete.

A Personal Reflection From One Of The Hundreds Of Volunteer Helpers. She Prefers To Remain Anonymous.

It’s hard to imagine what Carlisle was like at that time even with Television footage to remind us. We had four old ladies stay with us the weekend of the flood. They had been rescued by boat from their homes in Warwick Road. Two old ladies in that same road drowned in their homes just trying to move their belongings upstairs away from the water. I have to say that when I first went down Warwick Road after it was re-opened I cried. It was what I can only describe as a war zone with people pulling out the contents of their homes and having to dump them in piles on the pavement. That same scene was happening in numerous streets across the city.

The following Wednesday we had the first meeting of “Churches Together” at Saint James Parish Centre in Denton Holme. About 150 people of all denominations turned up. First we prayed together. Then, with 3000 people made homeless, we set about deciding the best way to help. And so it began.

Drop-in Centres were set up across the city providing food and hot drinks. Some of us just stayed to listen as people tried to rid themselves of their hurts, anger, frustrations, fears or just cried. All we could do was be there. Appeals in the churches on that first Sunday swelled the number of volunteers who set about moving people’s belongings from their homes, knocking on doors, pushing information leaflets through letter boxes and answering telephones.

People have been told that they will be out of their homes for 6 to 9 months while work is carried out. Some families are not even able to stay together and many are living in hotel rooms. One elderly couple, temporarily re-housed in Bed & Breakfast accommodation were very distressed. She had lived in the same house for 69 years and had no idea when she would get back. His main concern was that he had lost his beloved piano and all his classical music collection.