18 Comments

1. 

   Gloria Revilla on March 15, 2018 at 6:21 pm

   In behalf of my family we would like to keep the 4pm mass if possible at The Devine Infant Of Prague.

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2. 

   Brendan O'Boyle on March 16, 2018 at 8:25 am

   I would like to thank the Parish Council for changing the mass time at the Divine Infant of Prague as this has seen a significant upsurge in numbers attending our only weekend mass. This has given us a firm platform to expand activities at the church. We now have an increased volunteer base which we are just beginning to utilize. I would therefore suggest that the 4 pm mass be made permanent.

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3. 

   Hannah Walker on March 17, 2018 at 2:40 pm

   I really miss having the earlier Mass on Saturday at Our Lady’s. Please, please change it back.

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4. 

   Kevin Powell on March 18, 2018 at 12:34 pm

   Dear Father John.

   I am writing in relation to the article in the newsletter 18/03/2018 regarding ‘change of weekend mass times’.

   As a parishioner of the Infant of Prague Church at Bestwood Park, the change of the Saturday mass time has been both beneficial to both the church and the the parishioners.

   I attend the church on a regular basis and have done since 1994. Some Saturday’s I assist Isaac with taking the collection and most often, it is myself who enters the ‘number of parishioners attending the mass’ in the notebook held at the back of church.

   Since the mass time was changed from 6.00 to 4.00 pm, the numbers attending the mass has increased both in adult and children parishioners.

   Looking at the notebook, attendances before the change were between 30 and 40 people, following the change the numbers increased significantly. In January and February 2018, some masses attracted between 90 and 100 plus.

   The change in time has also encouraged long standing parishioners to bring their children and grandchildren, therefore making the mass a ‘family mass’. Something the Infant of Prague has not had since the removal of the Sunday mass at the church a number of years back.

   The fear amongst all parishioners is the the Infant of Prague would close if the attendances were so low. In affect using the old cliché, ‘Not enough bums on seats’ makes the church not viable.

   I am well aware that that moving the mass time would be a bitter pill for Our Lady’s Church to swallow, however, we at the Infant of Prague had to swallow an even bigger pill when we lost our own priest and the mass time moving to 6.00.

   Common sense originally should have prevailed when the mass times were arranged, when the churches had to share one priest. It always seems more practical for a priest to celebrate mass at the Infant of Prague first and Our Lady’s later, then all a priest had to do was finish mass and go home, which technically ‘next door’, instead of having to make a journey out to the Infant of Prague in all weathers.

   Your comment in the newsletter regarding encouraging comments from parishioners at the Infant of Prague. it should be noted that many of the parishioners here are elderly and do not have computers to send emails, however their voices is strong and loud.

   I note that you say that you have received a more comments from Our Lady’s regarding this matter, however, I will always say ‘the bigger the drum makes the most noise………but it does not mean the tune is any good or makes sense’.

   So to close this message, if it is a case of ‘bums on seats keeps the church open’, then the new mass times of 4.00 pm has certain proved that.

   Kind regards

   Kevin Powell

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5. 

   Hazel Hulme on March 18, 2018 at 4:17 pm

   Hi Father,I would like to say I am hoping and praying you will return to the 4pm saturday mass time as I have always been to this mass.It is a perfect time for me and I have missed coming at this time.Also missed seeing you and the regular parishioners as 6pm is too late for me as I’m not too keen on driving at night.Infant of prague is just too far away for me from Annesley.Please reconsider your decision.I would love to be coming back every week.

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6. 

   Josie Kilbane on March 18, 2018 at 4:38 pm

   The 4-30 pm mass was a great time for mass especially for pensioners like me who don’t like to be out at night.it would be better still at 4-00pm like what you put at Bestwood church.

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7. 

   Kathleen Huckerby on March 19, 2018 at 6:23 pm

   Dear father John,

   I feel since the change of Mass times the community in Bulwell has disappeared. I really miss my friends and the chats we all had on a Saturday night walking to and from the bus stop. I would love the Mass to go back to 4.30. Thank You.

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8. 

   tom kiernan on March 21, 2018 at 6:55 pm

   very happy with the present situation. may I add if there is any possible chance of changing 10-15 mass on sunday to 10 am , that will give fth john a little more time to join us for coffee, thanks .

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9. 

   Bridget Doyle on March 22, 2018 at 1:01 pm

   Dear Fr John

   I would like the Saturday evening mass at OLPS to be returned to 4.30pm (or 4pm as you briefly mentioned last Sunday) because as a Eucharistic Minister taking the Blessed Sacrament to our housebound and sick parishioners after mass it would give me back the time to spend with each parishioner that I visit. Currently I visit before the 6pm mass and I feel pressure that I have to clock watch so that I can get from one parishioner to another and get back to church for mass at 6pm (or even earlier when I play the music at a Saturday evening mass). I feel that I do not spend the time correctly visiting our housebound and sick parishioners with the Blessed Sacrament. Visiting parishioners after the 6pm mass (7pm onwards) is far too late for them – thank you.

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10. 

    Pauline Lynch on March 22, 2018 at 3:49 pm

    I would like to offer a representation of comments from senior members of Our Lady’s Parish, who have no access to computers and wish the Mass time to revert to the original time of 4.30pm or 4.00pm ( if necessary) Their comments are as follows:

    1. Would you please urge Fr John to consider the time. I can get to church for the 6.00 pm Mass, but then my bus finishes and so cannot get home. I would like 4.30 or 4.00pm – Thankyou.

    2. I have made a lot of friends since the 4.30 pm Mass was started in Fr Paul’s time. I went to the 6.00 pm Mass last week and in the area that I sit there were two people. At the 4.30 pm Mass, there used to be up to twenty people. Where have my friends gone? we are losing touch. They haven’t gone to Bestwood, because they haven’t got access to transport there. I am really saddened by this. I really miss the Community spirit that has disappeared since the trial began. Please reconsider the times.

    3. I thought that the 6.00pm Mass was agreed with Bestwood Parish, because that would give the Parishioners opportunity to speak with the priest over any matters and the priest would have more time to spend with them. the Priest could then stay on for any Parish functions that were arranged up in Bestwood. How is it working now when Fr John has to get back to Bulwell for 6.00 pm? Saddened by it all.

    4. I am grateful to have Mass, but am alarmed as to how few people are attending Saturday 6.00pm Mass at Bulwell. There always used to be well over 100 – 120 people – now we are lucky to have 60 attending.

    5. I notice that in the newsletter the weekly collections have gone down by a significant amount. If the numbers have gone up so much in Bestwood, why isn’t there an increase in takings? I know times are hard for people, but the significant upsurge that has been mentioned, should be bringing some increase.

    6. Please please express our wish at the Parish Council Meeting to return to the earlier Mass in Bulwell x 10 people.

    7. Would it be reasonable to ask Bestwood Parish to have a Sunday morning Mass that would help people get to Church in total daylight. Perhaps that would increase numbers as many of Bestwood/Top Valley/Rise Park residents attend Bulwell on a Sunday because their belief is to attend Mass on Sunday and not on the Vigil day.

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11. 

    Teresa Doherty on March 22, 2018 at 5:39 pm

    Dear Fr John, I have been a parishioner at Our Lady’s all my life.
    I remember when The Divine Infant of Prague was established and the thriving Parish that it was.
    Happy days!
    However, circumstances changed and sadly a lot of people left and went elsewhere.
    A small number of faithful parishioners have kept things going and I feel deeply sorry for them.
    I drive and so I am lucky and grateful to be able to get to Mass, whatever time.
    However, as a Welcomer at Our Lady’s, I cannot ignore the large number of people who come to me and say how upset they are at the change of Mass time. A lot of these people are elderly and depend on local buses to get to Mass and are afraid to come out later, no matter the time of year.
    Personal circumstances also mean that some people need to come to the 4.30pm Mass.
    In addition to this, the 4.30 Mass is a lovely little community all on its own and socially it has been important to people.
    The attendance has been more than halved and has been so sad to see.
    Sadly, I am not convinced that numbers of Bestwood parishioners attending the 4pm Mass has risen.
    I can understand how people feel and how they want to maintain their community. So I can’t understand why the parishioners haven’t opted to use the multi-denominational centre as they do in Oakwood. I have been to Mass there and it’s lovely for the people who don’t live close enough to St Albans. It works beautifully.
    I hope and pray that a decision will be made soon and that everyone will be happy.

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12. 

    Julie O'Boyle on March 24, 2018 at 7:45 am

    Dear Father John, like some of the others who have left comments I grew up in Our Lady’s Parish and then once it was built the Divine Infant of Prague. My parents generation were the ones who raised funds to build the church, dug and laid the paths and who developed the Catholic community in Bestwood, hosting Mass in their living room whilst waiting for the building to be completed. I find it especially sad that after all the many years of service this generation have given and now when they are old and infirm they are in danger of being abandoned by the Church.

    It is true to say that the numbers attending the Church in Bestwood have declined, for many years we had a thriving parish under the guidance of some wonderful Priests (Fr Eastwood, Fr Saunders, Fr Moynihan and Fr Welsh). Numbers fell dramatically under Fr Welsh’s replacement for reasons that I will not go into – suffice to say the Parish was left ruined financially and more importantly spiritually. As a result The Infant of Prague came once more under the auspices of Our Lady’s. We lost our Priest and we lost services going from 3 Sunday Masses to one and losing daily Mass. We are very grateful for the ministry of the Priests from Bulwell since that time, and numbers are slowly increasing however it is more difficult to build a community when there is only one service a week and no Priest on site.

    The parishioners at Bestwood lie at both ends of the age spectrum. We have many elderly parishioners who do not drive and either walk to Mass or use Public Transport. if the only Mass in the Parish returns to 6pm on a Saturday our elderly will be forced to walk in the dark for much of the year, There is no direct bus from Bestwood Park to the church in Bulwell so in order to get to an earlier Mass in Bulwell our elderly would need to take 2 buses and walk. I note the comments of people not wanting to drive in the dark our parishioners have to walk.
    We also have increasing numbers of working families with young children. The 6pm Mass is too late for young children, the consequence is that parents don’t bring their children to Mass. The 4pm Mass gives us our only opportunity to have a family Mass. Bulwell has 2 Masses at the weekend and therefore has the opportunity of a family Mass.

    In making your decision about Mass times I would ask that you consider not just the numbers but the spiritual need.

    Compared to Bulwell Bestwood is poor in resources and spirit. Bulwell has a Priest on site, it has a traditional Church building, It has Services everyday and 2 Weekend Masses, there is also a new Church hall. Bestwood has one service a week. We cannot rebuild the Parish without the support of the Church and we will not raise numbers if the only service we offer is at a time that penalises both the elderly and young families. We have a primary school in our Parish that is full so there are obviously Catholic families living in the Parish but many of them travel to other Churches because the services at our Church are not convenient.

    I understand that some of the Bulwell parishioners feel aggrieved that their service times have changed but I would ask them to consider that they at least have a choice of Mass times. We are supposed to be one family and it distresses me that we are not caring for one another – the teachings of Jesus are if you have two cloaks give one away to the poor – not pull them both round yourself tightly lest you get cold.

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13. 

    Russ Donoghue on March 24, 2018 at 5:01 pm

    Please change olops back to 4:30pm. I cannot understand why you would want to upset the many, to placate the few. Hand on heart, I haven’t been attending mass on a Saturday, since the mass time change, on a regular basis and a lot of other parishioners have voted with their feet. The mass attendances at olops speaks, no shouts, volumes

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14. 

    Francesca Doleman on March 25, 2018 at 7:22 pm

    I would like the 4pm Mass to stay at Infant of Prague for a number of reasons:

    1. One of my favourite things about coming to mass is seeing the joy it gives my niece. She is two years old and really starting to take part in mass. 6pm mass is too late for her – when we had this previously by the time we get home after mass she is overly tired as it is past her bedtime. As Infant of Prague does not have a family Sunday morning mass like Bulwell does, by removing the 4pm mass from Infant of Prague you would be removing any appropriate mass for her to go to. Children are the future of the Church – they cannot voice their needs and it is our job to protect their right to go to Mass.

    2. I appreciate that the elderly at Bulwell would prefer an early Mass, however so do the elderly at Infant of Prague. I do not think that one set of elderly parishioners is more important than another. However the elderly at Bulwell do have a Sunday morning Mass which they could attend, this is not the case at the Infant of Prague. May I also present another option – thinking outside the box, if the parishioners at Bulwell would like an early Saturday Mass, could we compromise and have a 14:30 Mass at Bulwell and a 16:30 Mass at the Infant of Prague? This would hopefully allow all of our elderly parishioners to attend Mass.

    3. There is Mass at Bulwell 7 days a week, Infant of Prague only has Mass once a week – is it so much to ask that that one Mass is at a time that best suites the Infant of Prague parishioners?

    4. I think it is in everyones interest (both at Bulwell and at Infant of Prague) for the Infant of Prague to stay open. If the Infant of Prague closes it won’t be long before Bulwell is paired with another church, and then the “battle” of mass times begins all over again. If Bulwell is paired with a larger parish it will lose some of its many Masses. To keep the Infant of Prague open we need as many parishioners as possible. By changing the time of Mass to 4pm mass we have increased attendance at the Infant of Prague by over 60% – this is a great thing for us all.

    I hope that many can see the merits of these points and that the decision is made to keep the 4pm Mass at the Infant of Prague.

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15. 

    Pietro Albano on March 27, 2018 at 12:26 pm

    Dear Fr John,

    I am writing on behalf of the Filipino Rosary Crusade. Our group is in favour of having the Vigil Mass at Our Lady’s at 4:30pm. We felt that this time schedule is more convenient to attend the Vigil Mass especially when most of our members have to work starting at 7pm night shift. The current time schedule has prevented them from attending because of time constraints. Thank you.

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16. 

    Nick Barnett on March 28, 2018 at 9:38 pm

    Dear Fr John

    For many years we have attended the 4.30pm mass at Our Ladys and as such we have built our weekends around it, having the 6pm mass was too late. We have tried the 10.15am on Sunday but this has been too noisy so on a regular basis we have been going to the Cathedral at 8am. Please bring back the 4.30pm mass (or 4pm) at OLOPS where we had a great community.

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17. 

    David Peck on March 31, 2018 at 11:24 am

    Apologies for joining the conversation late in the day Father John (and others):

    This certainly is a delicate subject. I grew up in the shadow our Our Lady’s Parish, and now as an adult I primarily attend Our Lady’s on a Sunday with my young family. On balance, I also lived in the Bestwood Parish for a period of time, and have family members who attend the Infant of Prague.

    Whilst the points raised above are incredibly valid the majority are subjective. There should be middle ground moving forward. With this in mind could there be a comprimise?

    One such compromise could that 2 services take place starting at the same time. Service A would be a traditional mass with the priest; service B would be a Eucharist service, with a Eucharistic minister in attendance. The following week, the alternative would be offered. Whilst this suggestion is by no means ideal, it would prevent one parish from taking the full load of any implemented changes. Hopefully, if people from the respective parishes wanted to attend a full mass, then they could support the alternative parish.

    Moving forward we must surely work together for a viable solution that incorporates all parishioners – young and old (and those somewhere in between).

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18. 

    Josie Kilbane on April 2, 2018 at 11:30 am

    I remember when infant of pragu e were given the chance of an even earlier mass 2pm would be a good idea for those of they want it early. Please bring the early mass back to Bulwell

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