Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, three times today’s Gospel account mentions the deep love that Jesus has for his friend, Lazarus, who has died. You can see it. Our Lord is moved; he sheds tears, and yet, his love is, according to the beautiful words of the Song of Songs “stronger than death”, and can call Lazarus back from death to life. As we listen to God’s Word this weekend, let us give thanks for the transformative power of his love. Let us thank him for his friendship towards us, and thank him, also, for our own friends, those close at hand and those who live further away, whose love has sustained us along life’s journey, and let’s pray that we too can be friends to others, supporting them in faith and calling them to life and truth.

As we are just one week away from Holy Week, we look back and see how Lent has been accompanied by greater silence in the liturgy, with less music, and flowers have not been used to adorn the altar and sanctuary, and from this weekend, some of the familiar statues and sacred images will be removed and others will be veiled, according to an age-old custom. All of this is done so that we can focus on the essential, namely the immense love of God for each one of us revealed in the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

I wish to reiterate my gratitude to those of you who helped prepare the service of healing and hope, and also to the individuals and groups from our parish community who have led us, these past weeks, in praying the Stations of the Cross. I would encourage you to sign up if you can help out in the forthcoming Holy Week Liturgies. There are still a few gaps, and we need a few more feet for Holy Thursday! And, as we seek to live out our ongoing and personal conversion, do avail yourself of the wonderful sacrament of reconciliation and make a good confession before Easter, either here – there’ll be some extra possibilities during Holy Week - or in some other place, as we allow ourselves, by his holy grace, to be called back to the fulness of life the Lord offers, so as to benefit more fully from the graces of Easter. May this be our prayer for one another for a fruitful Holy Week, and please take a leaflet with details of Mass and service times for the Great Week and let your family and friends know that they are also very welcome to join us. May God bless us all, Fr David +

Lead, Kindly Light – The Journey in Faith. The next meeting will take place on Wednesday 25^th of March at 7 p.m., when the group will meet to consider the advisedly provocative question “Are we Tradition-bound or Spirit-led?”. It’s wonderful to see how this group has developed. Do please pray for those who are considering joining the Church and seeking the sacraments at this time.

Planned Giving/Gift Aid - If you pay income tax, joining the Gift Aid scheme increases the value of your donations to the Parish by 25% at no extra cost to you. If you no longer pay income tax, have changed your home address in the last 2 years, wish to join the Gift Aid Scheme, or simply update your planned giving/gift aid, please contact Denise Jones via the parish office admin@stwerburghchester.co.uk by 5^th April.

New Tax Year Weekly Offertory Envelopes. The 2026/27 envelopes are available at the back of church. They start from the first Sunday in the new tax year which will be Sunday 12th April. If you use envelopes, please help by collecting yours as soon as possible. Thank you.

Welcome Wednesday Last week, eleven students from the Catholic High School came, with their chaplain, Ana Gasparini, to present a Lenten Reflection based on the last seven phrases uttered by Jesus before he died. It was a very thought-provoking and moving service and we are extremely grateful to Ana and her students for all their hard work and dedication. On 25^th March from 10.45 am to 12 noon, Fr. David on “Colombia - its Geography, Culture, Politics, and People”. We will start in the meeting room but may move to the church, depending on numbers. As always everyone is Welcome!

Faith Stories Christleton Churches Together has organised a series of informal talks. There will be an opportunity for questions and refreshments afterwards at Christleton Methodist Chapel: 7:00 pm 25th March.

Refugee Assist, an Ellesmere Port-based charity created to support refugees arriving in the UK, need the following items: Men’s jackets, T-shirts (sizes m &l), jeans, joggers, socks and trainers sizes 7 8 9 10 11. They also need backpacks that will take an A4 folder, new pillows, blankets, pans, tents, sleeping bags and suitcases. Please contact a member of the SVP for further information at svpchester@gmail.com or 07778 392816

“Come and Sing Messiah” April 18^th, All Saints Church, Hoole, Chester, CH2 3HZ. Registration 10:00 am, Rehearsals 11:30 am. Performance at 7:00 pm. See https://www.deogratiaschoir.com/blank-5 for details

Encountering Jesus in the Gospels. How to lead groups in reflective prayer. The Jesuit Institute are running a short online formation course building the skills and confidence needed to hold and guide groups of those who wish to deepen their relationship with Jesus, in conversation with others, through reflectively praying with gospel texts. Time: Tuesday evenings 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm. Dates: April 21^st, 28^th, May 5^th, 12^th, 19^th, 26^th, June 9^th.

For details please see https://jesuitinstitute.org/events

Photo of the week: Thank you to Ray Cosgrove for this photo of the Metropolitan Cathedral of St Paul in Mdina, the original capital of Malta, thought to stand on the site where Roman governor Publius met St Paul following his shipwreck on Malta. The original 12th century cathedral, severely damaged in the 1693 Sicily earthquake, was rebuilt in the Baroque style between 1696 and 1705. The two clocks are common to many churches in Malta. In local folklore, the clock on the right has the correct time, while the one on the left doesn't, supposedly to fool the Devil