All Saints Margaret Street.

Dear friends,

It was a real joy to spend last weekend in Walsingham with a group of parishioners on our annual weekend pilgrimage. It was a beautiful time of prayer and praise, along with fellowship and fun, refreshment and renewal.

Our parish regularly makes a weekend pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham each year in July. There are always places available for new pilgrims who have never been before. If you have never yet undertaken a pilgrimage to Walsingham and would like to, do be in touch with me.

Our annual weekend pilgrimage usually involves arriving on a Friday afternoon and staying until either Sunday evening or Monday morning.

Our time in Walsingham started, once we had arrived, on Friday afternoon with a Mass of Requiem in the Chapel of the Guild of All Souls, which we followed with our “First Visit” to the Holy House. The “First Visit” involves gathering at the Annunciation altar by the West door of the shrine, hearing the Annunciation Gospel and then making our way into the Holy House to present our pilgrimage intentions and prayers to God. I always find it so moving to light my first candles and lay before Our Lady the people and situations I have come to pray for.

Saturday morning is usually taken up with Stations of the Cross. These take place outside and the route snakes around the beautiful Shrine gardens. This weekend we were blessed with glorious weather. At the end of Stations, we returned to the Shrine where we were able to reverence the relic fo the True Cross which the Shrine possesses.

Saturday afternoon was given over to free time. A number of our group walked the Holy Mile to the Roman Catholic Shrine to pray for the unity of all christians. I was particularly impressed by Thomas, our parish office administrator, who undertook the Holy Mile in the traditional way – in bare feet! Others indulged in pilgrim retail therapy – shopping at the many gift shops and stocking up with gastronomic treats at the splendid Walsingham Farm Shop!

The evening on Saturday is then filled with a Pilgrimage Mass at 6.00 pm, followed by a candlelit procession of Our Lady and Benediction after supper, attended by all those pilgrims present in the Shrine. This is one of the most moving of the liturgies available during a weekend pilgrimage. The time after the procession is then available for people to make their confession, pray in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament, receive the sacrament of healing or the laying on of hands. The whole Shrine feels full of God’s love and his presence once we return from the procession and pilgrims seek him out in a number of sacramental encounters.

On Sunday morning, we all head off to the parish church for the Solemn Mass there at 11.00 am and then return to the Shrine for lunch. First thing in the afternoon, Sprinkling at the Holy Well takes place. This involves people having the sign of the cross traced on their foreheads, receiving a sip of the healing waters, and then having it poured into their outstretched hands. Many pilgrims tell me this is one of the great highlights of the pilgrimage that they look forward to each year. Once sprinkling is over, we gather once more for a Procession of the Blessed Sacrament finishing with Benediction.

Our weekend pilgrimage next year will take place from 25th-27th July 2025. If you wish to return on Sunday evening, the price is £210, and if you want tor return to London on the Monday morning, the price is £300. This price covers all accommodation, meals and transport from Kings Lynn Station to the Shrine. You are, however, expected to pray for your own train ticket from London to Kings Lynn. If you wish to book onto next year’s pilgrimage, you can do so via Eventbrite here.

If you want to discuss pilgrimage to Walsingham at greater length, please be in touch with me. Please also do say if you would like to come on pilgrimage but are prevented from doing so by financial need, as All Saints’ is very happy to help cover the cost in cases of genuine hardship.

I give thanks for the wonderful weekend of renewal our group had in Walsingham. I remembered our parish and its many needs in the Holy House and cannot commend a weekend pilgrimage to you more highly. It is an amazing way to reconnect with God, take time out for reflection and prayer, and to return reinvigorated and refreshed in our faith. Our Lady of Walsingham, pray for us!

Fr Peter

Livestreams

We apologise for the failure of many of our usual livestreams last Sunday. The technical difficulty we were having has been resolved and usual service has been resumed. We are so sorry that this has interrupted the way so many of our wider family of faith worship with us.

Calling Stewards!

Assumptiontide is fast approaching and we’re looking for stewards to help ensure the procession runs smoothly and safely. If you’re able to help on Sunday, August 11th please be in touch with Fr Alan. Evensong begins at 6pm, and there will be a briefing and walk-through at 4.30pm.

Visit to the Fitzrovia Chapel

Due to great demand, we have increased the number of tickets available for the forthcoming visit to the Fitzrovia Chapel to a total of 20. Even so, just four tickets now remain for our evening visit to the Fitzrovia Chapel on Tuesday 10th September.

You can read more about the history of this extraordinary architectural jewel, which is just around the corner from All Saints’, in last week’s parish email here.

The outing will begin at 7.00 pm at All Saints’ with an aperitif and a short introductory lecture given by Fr Peter. We will make our way to the Chapel by 7.45 for a tour given by Dr James Thomson, and then finish the evening with dinner at Sergio’s Italian restaurant on Great Titchfield Street (main course and pudding, plus wine). The cost of the evening – including dinner – is £35. You can sign up for this event through the following Eventbrite link here.

August Bible Study

A weekly Bible Study, led by Fr Alan, will be on offer throughout August. Our plan is to work through the Gospel of St Mark.

Every Wednesday in August there will be exposition of the Blessed Sacrament from 6.00 pm, Mass at 6.30 pm, followed by a period of Bible Study with a simple supper provided. The evening will end no later than 8.30 pm. Please let Fr Alan know if you want to attend.

All Saints’ pilgrims enjoyed a well-earned drink together most evenings on our pilgrimage as the heat of the day gave way to cooler evenings.

Walking Trip to Lancing College

Fr Alan will be leading a walking trip to Sussex on Saturday, August 17th. We’ll get the train to Shoreham (likely the 10.16 from Victoria), and take in that town’s very fine churches, before making our way to Lancing College, where we’ve kindly been offered a tour of the chapel.

We’ll then move on towards Steyning, dropping by to see the wall-paintings at Coombes and the church at Botolphs. We’ll get the bus back into Shoreham, with the opportunity for an early supper at a local hostelry. Bring a packed lunch for the route!  Everyone is welcome, just let Fr Alan know if you’re interested.

Pilgrims from All Saints’ enjoy the splendid food on offer in the Shrine Refectory – calories consumed in Walsingham stay in Walsingham!

Attendance last Sunday

In person
Saturday Evening Vigil Mass             7
High Mass                                        113
5.15 pm Low Mass                           16
Evensong and Benediction             44

TOTAL                                              180

We apologise that there was no livestream last Sunday.

Prayer List

The Friends of All Saints’ Margaret Street:

July 28th – Fr. Peter and Anna Oesterby-Joergensen, Fr. Barry Orford, Samantha Parker, Malcolm Parr, Bhaven Patel, Alma Pearson, Gladys Pearson
29th – Pat Philips, Colin Podmore, Nick and Cecilia Powell, Vasileios Psomas, Simon Pusey, Simon Rainey, Gordon Reid, Heikki Repo, Jane Turner
30th – The Sisters of All Saints
31st – Friends of All Saints’ in need
August 1st – Carlos Remotti-Breton, Dr Steve Rice, John Rick, Fr. Peter Roberts, Hilary Rodger
2nd – Greg Round, Fr. Jim Rosenthal, Jamie Rundle, Mary Sherred, James Shrimpton
3rd – Gabriel Simerson, Brad Singer, Ingrid Slaughter, Naomi Slippe, Vaughan Snook, Harvey Solomon-Brady

The sick:

John Andrews, David Craig, Tony Hawkins, Fr Harry Hodgetts, Katherine Lee, Lesley Lee, Elizabeth Lyon, James Rodger, Bruce Ross-Smith, Graham Snow, Jack de Gruiter, Christine Vaughn.

The faithful departed:

Katherine Coop, Trudy Cormack, William Henry Benefield Sr, Bill Dennis, Isaac Hall, Donald Theodore McWhinney, Mossman Roueché, Sr Julie SLG, Michael Sullivan, Caroline Thorpe, Simon Walker, Terry West.

Those whose anniversaries of death fall at this time:

July 29th – Edward Hobson, Herbert Palmer Pr, Helen Clark, George Maynard, Patricia Self, Molly Voy
30th – George Maryon-Wilson
31st – John Gardner, Francis Woodlock, Margery Duce
August 1st – Winifred Cratherne
2nd – Patrick Watmore, Sara Stevens, Eva Spencer
3rd – Harriet Brownlow (Mother Foundress)
4th – Donald Scott, Mona Morgan

Wednesday 31st July – St Ignatius Loyola
12.00 noon Mass
6.30 pm Mass

Thursday 1st August – St Alfonso Maria de’ Liguori, B, Dr
12.00 noon Mass
6.30 pm Mass

Friday 2nd August – Feria
12.00 noon Mass
6.30 pm Mass

Saturday 3rd August – Feria
12.00 noon Mass
6.00 pm Confessions
6.30 pm Vigil Mass

Sunday 4th August – TRINITY X
11.00 am High Mass
5.15 pm Low Mass
6.00 pm Evensong and Benediction