Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Spread the word...

...about the Towards Advent Festival: Saturday November 23rd 2013 at Westminster Cathedral Hall.

The choir...

...of St Philomena's School, Carshalton, will be singing at the 2013 TOWARDS ADVENT Festival.

The school, founded in the 1890s, is a Catholic girls' school originally established by the Daughters of the Cross.

The Opening Ceremony will  begin at 10.30am, with the chairman, Mr Brian Towler, of the Catenian Association, welcoming  Archbishop Vincent Nichols. The choir will sing, and  the Archbishop will declare the Festival open, and will tour the hall visiting the various stalls.

Groups involved with the Festival this year include Aid to the Church in Need, the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham, the Knights of St Columba, the Benedictine monks of Farnborough Abbey,  the Catholic Truth Society, and the Association of Catholic Women, as well as a large number of small independent Catholic charities. It is an opportunity to browse the buy all sorts of things ranging from Christmas cards and Advent candles to knitted goods, hand-made rosaries, and books and DVDs. There are also talks (see below) celebrating the YEAR OF FAITH, and freshly-made refreshments so that people can relax and chat with friends over a cup of tea...

Thursday, July 18, 2013

...it seems a long way ahead but HAVE YOU MARKED THE DATE????

The 2013 TOWARDS ADVENT Festival is on Saturday Nov 23rd, at Westminster Cathedral Hall.

The  choir of St Philomena's School, Carshalton, will be singing.  Archbishop Vincent Nichols will open the Festival. Speakers during the day include Sister Hyacinthe of the Dominican Sisters of St Joseph, who will talk about Evangelisation - "a task entrusted to each of us!" - in this Year of Faith.  The whole of the Festival will be a celebration to round off the Year of Faith and to carry on its messaged. Edmund Adamus, from the diocese of Westminster, will speak on the importance and role of the family in passing on the Faith.

You won't want to miss this Festival - it promises to be the best-ever...the TOWARDS ADVENT event began at the start of the 21st century and has played an increasingly important role in bringing people together and promoting the work of the vast range of Catholic groups and organisations that we have in Britain. Come and join in!

Monday, April 29, 2013

Towards Advent 2013

MARK THE DATE NOW!!!

The Towards Advent Festival 2013 will be held on

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 23rd 2013

at Westminster Cathedral Hall.

Grand Opening 10.30am with Archbishop Vincent Nichols.

Speakers during the day:
Edmund Adamus,|Dept of Pastoral affairs, Diocese of Westminster
Sister Hyacinthe Defos, Dominican Sisters of St Joseph

Doors open 10 am. Books, DVDs, holy cards, posters, booklets, Nativity sets, Advent calendars, statues, rosaries, craft goods, and much more on sale...

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Make sure...

...you spread the word about the TOWARDS ADVENT Festival. Posters and info are being mailed to all parishes in London and the South East of England in October. Entry to the Festival is FREE, delicious refreshments are available at modest prices all day,  there is a friendly welcoming atmosphere, and you can browse the bookstalls, buy gifts for Christmas, meet friends, make contacts, find out about new developments in the life of the Church (Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham) and keep up to date with older ones (Aid to the Church in Need, Catenians, Knights of St Columba).

Monday, September 10, 2012

OLYMPIC STAR AT FESTIVAL!!!

A young Olympic speed-skating star will be special guest speaker at the 2012 Towards Advent Festival.

Sister Catherine  - born Kristen Holum -  was an American  speed-skater at the 1998 Olympics. She was born into a distinguished sporting family - her mother was a gold medal winner at the 1972 Olympics.

She loved speed-skating, and took part in the winter Olympics at Nagano, Japan. But as she reached the end of her teens, she began sensing a call to something quite different. Beginning with a  childhood visit to the shrine at Fatima, and continuing with the unforgettable2002 World Youth Day in Toronto with Pope - now Blessed - John Paul II , she felt a call to the religious life.

Now Sister Catherine is a Franciscan Sister of the Renewal, with a community based in Leeds.  She will be special guest speaker at the TOWARDS ADVENT Festival on November 24th at Westminster Cathedral Hall.

Tickets for the talk are £2.00, obtainable at the Welcome Desk at the Festival, which opens at 10am. Come and hear Sister Catherine's remarkable story!

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

EVERY PARISH...

...within reasonable travelling distance of London will shortly be recieving news of the 2012 TOWARDS ADVENT Festival. We ask all parish priests to put it in the newsletter, announce it from the pulpit, etc.

Marcus Grodi of the Coming Home Network is a special guest speaker: he'll be making some new programmes while in Britain and will be spending the day with us at TOWARDS ADVENT.

You can also find out about: the FAITH Movement, the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham, the Catenians, The Music Makers, Aid to the Church in Need, and groups involved with work ranging from caring for blind children in India to fostering good liturgy here at home.

Come and celebrate the Catholic Faith...come and meet lots of other Catholics, find out about the wide range good things the Church is doing here and now, add your support where it is needed in all sorts of good causes, affirm your commitment to the message of the Church and to the New Evangelisation of our country....