The Late Shows 2013
As part of Newcastle and Gateshead 'Late Shows 2013' event, on Saturday 18 May dancers from the Eliot Smith Company will lead a 'dancewalk tour' of St Nicholas Cathedral, then of St John the Baptist Church, Grainger Street and then of St Mary's Cathedral at 8.30pm. The musical accompaniment for the dance will be on the new Cathedral organ. There will also be a display of artwork by students from St Cuthbert's High School and a showing in the Cathedral of the feature film Romero (based on the life of Archbishop Oscar Romero of San Salvador, who was murdered in 1980). Free admission and all are welcome. Booklets giving details of all the Late Shows 2013 events are available at the back of church or on The Late Shows website.

Ecumenical Pilgrimage to St Mary’s Chapel, Jesmond Dene
The Cathedral Churches of St Mary and St Nicholas invite you to join them in an Ecumenical Pilgrimage to St Mary's Chapel, Jesmond Dene, Newcastle upon Tyne, next Saturday 18 May. The Pilgrimage will begin from the Quayside (opposite the Law Courts) at 11.00am proceeding to St Thomas the Martyr Church, Haymarket for 11.45am then on to St Mary's Chapel, Jesmond Dene for a Service at 1.00pm (then picnic – weather permitting). All are very welcome.

A Day with Mary
This Monday Fr Marc Lyden-Smith will lead a 'Day with Mary' to celebrate the month of May and honour the Blessed Virgin Mary. The day will begin at 12.00 Noon with the Angelus followed by a Solemn Mass at 12.05pm. There will be a break for lunch and the day will resume at 2.00pm for the Holy Rosary before the Blessed Sacrament and conclude with Benediction at 3.00pm. All are welcome.

Coming up in 2013...
This year will be a memorable one for the Cathedral as the new three manual pipe organ designed and built by Kenneth Tickell has been completed. Housed in the new west end gallery, from where the Cathedral Choir will also sing, this fine and impressive instrument will enhance our liturgical celebrations as well as providing great opportunities for recitals, concerts and teaching programmes. One particular date for your diary is:

Saturday 25 May at 12.00 noon
A short recital, demonstration and illustrated talk about the new organ by Paul Hale, Rector Chori, Southwell Minster, and organ consultant for the project. Tickets £12** (including interval refreshment and souvenir brochure) from the Cathedral Office in person or from Cloister Café & Restaurant in person or from The Sage Gateshead Ticket Office.

** Tickets for this recital will be on sale in the Cloister Café at a concessionary price of £8 for members of the Cathedral congregation at a later date to be announced.

Exploring the Charism of Healing
As part of the Year of Faith, a series of weekly seminars under the heading of Exploring the Charism of Healing will take place on Tuesday evenings in April and May from 7.00pm - 8.30pm in St Joseph's Parish Centre, High West Street, Gateshead, NE8 1LX. Each seminar will include an opportunity for open discussion and a collection will be taken toward expenses. All are welcome. For further information please contact the Diocesan Service Team for Renewal, Telephone: 0191 284 1690.

A Series of Talks for the Year of Faith
To celebrate the Year of Faith, initiated by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, a series of talks will take place here in the Cathedral during May and June. Subsequent talks in the series will be:

Tuesday 14 May 7.00pm

Carrying the Fire: Faith in Literature by Dr Clare Elliott, Lecturer in Nineteenth-Century Literature at Northumbria University.

Tuesday 28 May 7.00pm

Social Communications and Pauline Spirituality since Vatican II by Mrs Silvia Caramella, Pauline Books and Media.

Tuesday 11 June 7.00pm

Benedictine Spirituality for Modern Life by Revd Dr Nicholas Buxton, Priest in Charge, St John the Baptist Church, Grainger Street.

Tuesday 18 June 7.00pm

The Universal Call to Holiness - The Catechism of the Catholic Church 20 Years on by Mgr Andrew Faley, former Assistant General Secretary to the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales.

There is no charge for the talks but donations towards expenses will be gratefully received. All are very welcome.

The People's Kitchen
The People's Kitchen was established by a Catholic lady in 1985 who used to take sandwiches down to the Quayside for the needy. Nowadays, the Kitchen is open every day and serves hot meals to 140 homeless and vulnerable people. The work is done entirely by volunteers, while the food is provided by local firms, voluntary donations and gifts from events such as church harvest festivals. There are some leaflets available at the back of church giving details of the Kitchen's work. You are welcome to take one.

Confirmation Preparation
The next meeting for the young people (13-17) who are preparing for the Sacrament of Confirmation will be on Saturday 17 May at 10.40am (following the 10.00am Mass) in the Winter Chapel alongside St Dominic's Church, New Bridge Street, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 2TP.

Friends Family Race Day
The Friends of the Cathedral have arranged a trip to Hexham Racecourse for a Family Race Day on Saturday 15 June. There is no charge for transport as the cost of the coach has been sponsored by the Friends. Tickets are priced at £8.00 (paddock) or £14.40 (club paddock) and we would require the number of children attending (children go free). There will be children's entertainment and a bouncy castle. Please give your name and full payment at the back of the church. The coach will depart from the Cathedral at 11.00am and return from Hexham at 6.00pm.

Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes
In this Year of Faith the Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes, will take place from Friday 26 July - Friday 2 August (departing from and returning to Newcastle Airport). There is a good choice of hotels and full board accommodation. The week will include a full spiritual programme of Masses, Services, Rosaries and Processions. There is also a comfortable alternative to flight travel via Jumbulance which is medically equipped to cater for all needs, however if you wish to travel this way please be advised to apply now as places are limited.

For further information please contact: Tangney Tours: Telephone: 01732 886666 or Fr Peter Stott, pilgrimage director, Telephone: 0191 257 5801 Email: handnlourdespilgrimage@btconnect.com.

Newcastle Schools Mission
In the autumn/winter of this year the Diocesan Youth Ministry Team (YMT) will be coming to lead Missions in the Newcastle Catholic Secondary Schools. The dates of the Mission in each school are as follows:

Sacred Heart Catholic High School: 10 - 18 October 2013

St. Cuthbert's Catholic High School: 7 - 15 November 2013

St. Mary's Catholic School: 11 - 19 December 2013

The schools would now like to invite all parishioners to pray for the success of these school missions. There are prayer cards designed by a group of students from all three schools available at the back of church – please take one and pray for our young people and the success of these missions.

Ecumenical Pilgrimage
The Cathedral Churches of St Mary and St Nicholas will embark on an Ecumenical Pilgrimage to St Mary's Chapel, Jesmond Dene, Newcastle Upon Tyne, on Saturday 18 May, beginning from the Quayside. Further details will be available in due course.

Listening Service
A Team of trained and experienced counsellors is available here at St. Mary's Cathedral to offer a confidential Listening and Supportive Service - free of charge - to members of the Cathedral congregation who wish to talk about:

• Family Issues
• Stress
• Parental difficulties
• Loss and Bereavement
• Any other matter, however small or large

Year of Faith 2012 - 2013
Following requests for information regarding some recommended reading during the Year of Faith 2012/2013 here are some suggested titles which are currently available in the Pauline Books and Media Centre:

YouCat (Catechism for young people)

CTS Price: £9.95

Compendium Catechism of the Catholic Church

CTS Price £6.95

The Gift of Faith: Insights for the Year of Faith 2012-2013

CTS Price £1.95

Apostolic Letter "Porta Fidei" of the Supreme Pontiff Benedict XVI for the indiction of the Year of Faith

CTS Price £1.95

Principal Documents of Vatican II: Sacrosanctum Concilium (On the Sacred Liturgy)

CTS Price £3.95

Dei Verbum (On Divine Revelation)

CTS Price £2.95

Lumen Gentium (On the Church)

CTS Price £4.95

Gaudium et Spes (On the Church in the Modern World)

CTS Price £4.95

Year of Faith – Diocesan Pilgrimage
Pope Benedict XVI has declared a 'Year of Faith' which will begin in October 2012, the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council. As part of our diocesan participation in this 'Year of Faith', Bishop Seamus will be leading a Pilgrimage to the Holy Land 6–13 May 2013, with 2 nights in Bethlehem, 2 nights in Tiberias & 3 nights in Jerusalem. Flights will be from Manchester to Tel Aviv and the cost is £1,260.00 (not including insurance or single person supplement). For further information and booking forms please contact: Fr Peter Stott at St Joseph's, North Shields Tel. 0191 257 5801.

New Sunday Missals
The new CTS Sunday Missal which contains the recently revised English translation of the Mass and also the Sunday Readings for the three year cycle is available in the Pauline Books and Media Centre. Copies are £18.00 and there is also a white deluxe version at £25.00.

New Translation of the Missal
From Sunday 4 September, the Order of Mass in the new English translation will be used at Sunday and Weekday Masses throughout England & Wales. Copies of the Order of Mass will be made available at the back of church before each Mass – please do not take the Mass cards/sheets away with you afterwards! If you wish to buy a copy of the new translation or other resources associated with the new Missal, Pauline Books and Media will be happy to help. Mass cards are 50p each and the new edition of the Simple Prayer Book £1.95 each. The Weekday Missal is priced at £30.00 The Sunday Missal at £16.99, both available in blue or red covers. Information about the new Missal is also available on the diocesan website and on the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales Liturgy Office.

Friday Penance in England & Wales
The Bishops of England and Wales have looked again at the role of devotions and the practice of penance, both of which can help to weave the Catholic faith into the fabric of everyday life. Our regular worship at Holy Mass on Sunday, the day of the Lord's resurrection, is the most powerful outward sign and witness of our faith in Jesus Christ to our family, friends and neighbours. Sunday must always remain at the heart of our lives as Catholics. The Bishops also wish to remind us that every Friday is set aside as a special day of penitence, as it is the day of the suffering and death of the Lord. They believe it is important that all the faithful again be united in a common, identifiable act of Friday penance because they recognise that the virtue of penitence is best acquired as part of a common resolve and common witness.

The law of the Church requires Catholics on Fridays to abstain from meat, or some other form of food, or to observe some other form of penance. The Bishops have decided to re-establish the practice that this penance should be fulfilled simply by abstaining from meat and by uniting this to prayer. Those who cannot or choose not to eat meat as part of their normal diet should abstain from some other food of which they regularly partake. This decision comes in to effect from Friday 16 September. N.B. Failure to abstain from meat on a particular Friday does not constitute a sin.

The Worswick Centre
St Cuthbert's Care in association with St Andrew's Church, Worswick Street is developing a brand new project to help support people who are vulnerable because they are homeless, have no income or are living with substance misuse or addiction. The Worswick Centre is open every Friday between 10.00am and 2.00pm and will provide a place that:

• is safe and secure
• is warm and friendly
• offers hot food, tea and coffee
• has warm clothing available from the 5p Bus

For more information on The Worswick Centre, please contact Kathleen Urwin, email: kathleen.urwin@stcuthbertscare.org.uk.

Volunteers Needed
The Worswick Centre, based in St Andrew's Church, Worswick Street, are looking for some extra volunteers to help out at the Café style drop?in for people in desperate need of help and support. Since opening just over a year ago, the project has welcomed 2,300 who are homeless, living in poverty or who are struggling with substance use and addiction. Volunteers have prepared food and served nearly 7000 meals and more than twice as many hot drinks, as well as offering emotional and spiritual support. The 'Worswick Welcome' held weekly on Friday between 10.00am and 1.30pm and offers a variety of fulfilling opportunities for volunteers. If you are able to help or would like more information, please visit the project any Friday between 10.00am and 12.00 Noon or contact Kathleen Urwin, St Cuthbert's Care Tel: 0191 228 0111.

Bede House - Catholic Chaplaincy
Bede House - Catholic Chaplaincy serves Newcastle and Northumbria Universities. The Chaplains, Fr Dominic White OP and Mia Fox, are based at 14 Windsor Terrace, Jesmond. Details of Service Times and other activities organised by the Chaplaincy during Term are available at www.catholicchaplaincy.org.

Cathedral Choir
The Cathedral Choir is looking for new members: men and women who can sing in tune and are willing to turn up regularly for the weekly practice will be most welcome. You don't have to be able to read music to join. If you are at all interested, or just want to find out more, please speak to the choirmaster, Howard Baker, after the 10.00am or 11.30am Masses.

Going into Hospital?
Due to a new admissions system at the RVI, Newcastle General, the Freeman and Walkergate Hospitals Fr Corbett (Hospital Chaplain) does not receive any information on Catholic patients. Patients or relatives must therefore take responsibility to inform the Chaplain - Tel. 0191 232 1892 or email: me.corbett1@tiscali.co.uk. A phone call before 8.15am would be helpful, providing Fr Corbett with the name of the patient, the ward and the hospital.