Over the last year or so we have talked about changes and moving forward and growth, and we have been aware that so much of it has been to do with buildings and responsibility and the ways things are done. However we think that it is important to remind ourselves that when we talk of the Church of the future, we are not just talking about these physical aspects. We are also talking about something much more basic and close to our hearts as Catholics. We are talking about the way we worship. Especially the way we worship as a community.

 For five weeks this Summer, some of our Sunday Masses were replaced by Services of Word and Eucharist, or Eucharistic Services as they are more commonly known. It was a positive decision which was not taken lightly. But circumstances presented us with a very valuable opportunity. To solve a problem facing us when one of us is away and also importantly to prepare for the future. Where Mass each week will not necessarily be the norm. Will not be an option. But where the continued weekly coming together as a Eucharistic Community will still be necessary for us as Catholic Christians.

 Talk about Catholic life. Talk about Catholic Parishes. Talk about anything Catholic and it is not long before the question of the Mass comes up. And quite understandably. It is the centre of our Catholic worship. It is the distinctive form of worship which makes us different from most other Christian denominations. Christ made present on our altars through the words and actions of the priest. But the fact of the matter is that until some more imaginative view of Catholic Priesthood is accepted there will simply be fewer masses. But this must not mean there will be less coming together of the Catholic Christian community in a Eucharistic setting.

A Catholic Parish is first and foremost a worshipping community - traditionally chiefly each Sunday. It is also a community which works in groups or individually for the good of each other and for the good of those in the local and world-wide community. If any of these elements is missing, the credibility as a Catholic parish can be questioned.

 So it was important that when each of us was on holiday this summer and fewer Masses were celebrated, our Parishes still gathered together as communities for weekly worship. In the weeks before, we tried, as best we could, through the newsletters and sermons and informal conversations to prepare the ground for this changed situation. Whether the preparation was either adequate or successful only you yourselves can say.

One of the biggest points we tried to make in that preparation was that these Eucharistic Services should not be seen as second class - as second best. That would have been the case if there had been an alternative. But there was not. Our Eucharistic Services on those Sundays were the best way we could worship in our familiar groups. The alternative was that there would have been no Eucharistic Celebration at that time. With talk of ‘Sunday obligation’ and ‘But it’s not the mass’ we appreciate that for some it was not only a difficult situation but at times an impossible situation to accept. And we are sensitive to these views.

After the various services, the majority of comments were very favourable. The overall sense of devotion was commented on. The leaders were competent. And so on. But the reason for these notes, is that we are suggesting that the change from Mass to Eucharistic Service, as a more frequent situation as is likely in the future, is in fact a much greater step than we think has been realised. That maybe we have not taken in the full implications of this change in our form of worship. And we include ourselves in this. Because of this you may feel that we would benefit from a meeting where we can honestly air our reservations and share our ideas and views.

 We feel that this changed situation asks us to look in a new kind of way at what we mean by being a member of a parish. Without being too simplistic I feel that it is fair to say that for many of us, over the years, being a member of a Catholic Parish has meant coming to the Parish Church on a Sunday where the priest says Mass for us, and responding to the various calls for help, financial and social, as suggested by the priest and his committees. With the greater frequency of Eucharistic Services we would like to suggest that our Parishes are undergoing a real change.

 This new era puts more responsibility on each of us. It asks us what we individually mean when we say that we worship. That is why we are suggesting that if anyone feels that some of the ideas we have suggested here need a more fuller explanation then perhaps we should have a meeting. Perhaps a sharing of ideas will help us to grow in our sense of worship. Perhaps we need to talk this out together. To learn together. To grow together.

 And finally we would like formally to thank those Eucharistic Ministers who volunteered to lead the Services. And did so so well. It takes a lot of courage to be so intimately involved in something so different and fundamental. We thank them for their generosity. Their meaningful leadership was one common feature in the many positive comments made afterwards.