The Parish priest writes: Dear brothers and sisters may the peace of the Risen Christ be with you all! The Easter greeting of the Risen Lord is one of forgiveness and peace. He comes to offer that fullness of life for which we were made and for which all hearts are longing, even if at times, and most especially in a world so broken and divided, such a desire may seem utopian. We need Divine Mercy, which we celebrate and proclaim this Sunday. The Lord calls us, like the Apostles in the Upper Room, to profess our faith. Furthermore, He calls us blessed for believing without seeing. Our faith is anything but static! It’s God gift and it is full of divine potential and entrusted to us, so that through our own personal acts of faith in his presence we can grow that gift each and every day of our lives. The “I believe” is, of course, sustained by the “we believe”, that is to say by the faith of the community in whose life we share, and just like the first Christians, in the Acts of the Apostles, as Catholics, we must remain “devoted to the Apostles’ teaching, the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers”.

Let me reiterate my thanks to those who helped make the liturgies of the Easter Triduum so very beautiful. It was very encouraging to see so many in attendance, and just as the readers recently had some time for training and reflection on their ministry of proclaiming the Word, we will have soon have something similar in place for extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion (EMHC), sometime after Pentecost, so that we can take stock, and look to see how we can best support our parish community, through this very special ministry, including bringing Jesus in the Eucharist to the sick and the housebound. Do look out for the date for the meeting nearer to the time.

May the Lord Jesus who, in the words of the great St Augustine, “died from what was ours, so that we could live from what is his”, flood our souls, the Church and the whole world with the great gift of his mercy, so that all might live in the peace He comes to bring, as we repeat the simple, yet powerful prayer: “Jesus, I trust in you!” With every good wish and blessing, I remain, yours fraternally in the Risen Lord, Fr David +

Clean and bright – Please can you lend a hand to help keep the church looking presentable and welcoming? We are looking to grow the team of volunteers in this very important service. If you think you might be able to offer a couple of hours of your time each month, then please email admin@stwerburghchester.co.uk

There are still some new Tax Year weekly offertory envelopes to be collected. Please do take yours if you make your weekly offering to the parish in this way. Thank you!

Welcome Wednesday got off to a good start after Easter. This Wednesday 15^th April from 10:00 am to 12 noon, we look forward to John Peterson’s talk entitled “My Antarctica”. All welcome.

The Parish History Group will meet in the presbytery on Wednesday 15 April from 6 p.m. and welcomes new members.

Lead, kindly Light. “Why Catholic?” The group will also meet on Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. in church, when parishioner Ray Chidell, and Fr Neill Robb will share some thoughts on their own “journey home” to the Catholic Church. Please do pray for the members of this group as we continue to grow in faith and friendship.\

The Dementia and Carers’ Prayer Group will take place in the Meeting Room, Thursday, 16th April at 10:45 am. Everyone is welcome, especially all carers.

Santa Misa en castellano - Monthly Mass in Spanish at St Clare’s Fr Patrick will celebrate the first of these on Saturday 18^th 4:00 pm. Please do let any Spanish speaking neighbours and friends know: Bienvenidos!

Marriage & Family Life Ministry (MFL) Retreat Day on 18^th April 9:30 am to 4:00 pm in Northwich. Please see the flyers at the back of church for details and for any further information or to register please email: monika.golembiewska@dioceseofshrewsbury.org

“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

The Shrewsbury Lourdes Hospitality Focus Group 21st April, at 7:00 pm (open to all members, new and old) will meet at St Columba’s, Plas Newton Lane, CH2 1PL. Fr Sean Henry, Chaplain to the Hospitality, will join us. If you wish to attend, please email Clare Marchmont at secretary@teamshrewsbury.co.uk

Encountering Jesus in the Gospels. The Jesuit Institute is 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

We look forward to welcoming Sr Mary Lucy Mbamara of the Holy Family Sisters who will speak about the work of her congregation at the end of Mass on the weekend of 25/26 April as she seeks our support.

The Sacrament of Confirmation will be celebrated by the Bishop on 11th November next at St Columba’s church. It is possible for individuals from all parishes in Chester and will be led by St Columba and St Theresa’s Confirmation preparation team. Anyone currently at high school, or older is encouraged to prepare. Please email stcolumbatheresaconfirmation@hotmail.co.uk if you are interested.

Photo of the week: Thank you to Samanta Scipanova for her photo of the Easter Vigil Mass at St Joseph’s Church, Highgate in 2025.