Bishop Robert and all those taking part in our Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes, which leaves this Friday.

Collections for the Apostleship of the Sea raised £114.11 and for the Diocesan Lay Training Fund raised £1050 Thank you for your generosity.

A book by Fr Paul Zielinski, telling the story of the saint martyred at Gateshead in 1594. On sale here at St Cuthbert’s, price £5.99.

Jesus visits the house of Martha and Mary, who, as we know from John’s Gospel, are dear friends. The two women make Jesus welcome, but Martha is so busy with serving the food that she becomes anxious and fretful, even falling out with her sister. Jesus gently reminds Martha that hospitality is not only about practical care for a guest. At that moment, what he needs is the loving welcome and attentive listening that Mary provides.

In the Church, we are called to practical service of our neighbour. There are many Marthas, who work tirelessly to meet the needs of others. But service begins with listening and reflection, in order to discern what our neighbour actually needs and wants, and what God is asking of us. To be true disciples of Christ, we need both Martha’s practical care for our neighbour and Mary’s spirit of listening and contemplation.

A play with a pro-life theme, being performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, 6-10 August. Details at www.crownedwithgloryandhonour.com

Many thanks to those who supported Judy’s Open House Weekend. £1025 was raised for charity.remaining from Judy’s open weekend – today after 10 o’clock Mass, in the Parish Room. Pick up a bargain!

St Cuthbert’s is seeking to appoint a part-time cleaner to provide cleaning services in the presbytery and University Chaplaincy rooms. For details, see poster on noticeboard or www.rcdhn.org.uk

Thanks to Fr David Coxon and the community of Our Lady Queen of Martyrs, Newhouse, for their warm welcome and hospitality (and cakes!) at last Sunday’s Partnership Afternoon.

Mr Simon Campbell will retire this week from his position as Headteacher of St Leonard’s Catholic School. We thank Mr Campbell for his years of dedicated service to Catholic education, and we wish him a happy retirement.

The prophet promises peace for Jerusalem. After the time of exile, the Jewish people can return to their own land, and can hope for stability and prosperity. The people of Jesus’ time probably hoped for the same things, but the reality was a struggle for survival: subsistence farming, heavy taxation and constant unrest, which would be brutally suppressed by the Roman occupiers. Jesus sent out his seventy-two disciples ‘like lambs among wolves,’ with none of the things that they would normally rely on – money, possessions or even shoes. All that the disciples carried with them was their faith in Jesus. He sent them out with a message of peace; not a peace imposed by the edge of the sword, but the peace of God’s kingdom, brought about by God’s mercy. Their lives would be a witness to the peace of the kingdom. Today, that peace is needed as much as it ever was, and the Lord sends us, his disciples, out into the world to witness.

With the Newman Association: ‘Children of Abraham’ – Interfaith Topics. Saturday 13th and Sunday 14th July at the Bar Convent, York. Cost £70 (half price for students), including lunches and refreshments. For further details and to book your place, contact: www.jesuit.org.uk/living-theology-york-2019 Email: tpj.egerton@virgin.net Tel: 01642 645 732

The diocese is delighted to announce that Catherine Pepinster, former editor of the Tablet will deliver the sixth Cardinal Hume Memorial Lecture in the Cathedral on Thursday 11th July at 7.00pm. The Lecture is entitled ‘A migrant, pilgrimage people – how the Catholic revival shaped the Church today’ and will focus on examining the kind of the church the Catholic Church became after emancipation. It was very much a Church of migrants, especially Irish, in the early days, and it was as much focused on education as worship. Catherine will also look at how churches and schools served the mostly migrant church and how that has given Catholicism a particular character in the UK. Cardinal Hume will come into because of his impact on the church at the national level and how important he thought education was, but also how his interest in serving the homeless is typical of the Catholic Church in this country – a very strong feeling for those struggling in society.