A big welcome back to Edna and Deanna who have teamed up to Co-ordinate SPES this year. We are full of enthusiasm, very eager and excited to begin our journey of SPES together. Even though we are not taking on any new students this year the life of SPES is very much a live and active.

We were off to a very quick start with the visit of the Holy Father last week. We were blessed and privileged to attend the vigil in Hyde Park and the Beatification of Cardinal John Henry Newman. It was a time full of many blessings and graces! We continue to pray and hope for many hearts to be open and receptive to all that was bestowed upon us all during these days.

With our day focused around prayer we are in the middle of getting our Evangelisation team organized. We want to go out not to only proclaim the Good News to others, but to share the love of Christ with them, to be compassionate and caring in not only our words, but in our actions too. It is important to be a light to those who are in darkness especially in this culture of death.

The 40 Days for Life Campaign has started this week as well. This campaign is a peaceful and prayerful vigil taking place from the 22^nd of September to the 31^st of October. It is a time to be united together through pray and fasting for an end to abortion, a time also for conversion and healing, to support life and those in need. Please go to www.40daysforlife.com/London and get involved. God will reward you because Our Lord is never out done in generosity!

This Thursday we started a nine day Novena to St. Therese of Lisieux. To conclude our Novena, but to also celebrate a brand new year of SPES we will be having a Welcome Mass on 1^st of October 2010, the Feast of St. Therese. Mass will begin at 7 pm in the Chapel of St. Patrick’s Presbytery. You are all warmly invited to join us, support us, and celebrate with us on this special day. Hope to see you there! God bless you and may Our Lady keep you! Please keep us in your prayers as we continue to keep you in ours!

Seeing the Pope this Friday

We are excited to welcome the Holy Father to the Diocese of Westminster, only a mile or so from St Patrick's. Groups from St Patrick's will be attending the Youth Vigil at Hyde Park on Saturday, and the Beatification of Cardinal Newman on Sunday near Birmingham. As well as these important events in the life of the Church, the Holy Father will also be addressing British society as part of his State Visit, the first by a pontiff. He will be speaking on Friday evening in Westminster Hall (at Parliament Square) in a speech which is sure to be closely followed. He will be travelling by Popemobile, from Lambeth Palace, 5pm-5:15pm. We would love to show him our support and affection by lining the route. We will meet at 4pm outside the Red Lion pub on Whitehall (near the Cenotaph and Ministry of Defence). This is a short walk from the route itself, and will give us the chance to meet without too many crowds, and then to find a good spot from which to see the Holy Father. If you cannot find us, you can contact Vincent on his mobile on the day. A map here will show you the expected route, and our meeting point. Please bring signs, banners, guitars et cetera and your enthusiasm to show Pope Benedict how welcomed he is in London and Britain. Do invite friends to come and join us. Above all, please keep the visit in your prayers, that it may be a time of grace and conversion for the English Church, and all British society.