Catholic Parish of Rainham
FAITH IN OUR CHURCH
St. Thomas of Canterbury Church
There has been a Catholic church in Rainham since November 1934. Originally the church was served from Gillingham Parish and Sunday masses were said in the building, which is now our Parish Hall, to the rear of this site.
Archbishop Cyril Cowderoy laid the foundation stone to the new church, designed by Eduardo Dodds, on 29 December 1956 and it was opened in April 1958, though not consecrated until 11th June 1970 when the building loan had been paid off.
The first Parish Priest was Father John Gleeson, appointed in 1963 when Rainham gained independence as a parish.
Our church is a very beautiful and peaceful place. You are most welcome to spend some quiet and contemplative moments here in prayer. There are many notable works of art and so we hope that you spend some time admiring the ceramic work and statuary, reading all about each item and using the prayers that we have collected for you.
St Jude Statue
(by
Michael Clarke, F.R.B.F.)
St. Jude is fondly known as The Patron Saint of Hopeless Causes or Difficult Cases. Some believe that Jude Thaddeus was the brother of James and one of the original apostles. He preached the Gospel and was martyred in Persia with his fellow apostle Simon. Many people come to our church to pray at this statue.
It is said that the statue was commissioned by one of the parish clergy who was convinced that it was St. Jude who ensured that the church building was completed when a funding crisis threatened the project. Prayers to St. Jude led to new bank loans, which saved the day!You might like to know that an annual Novena of Masses for the Feast of St. Jude Thaddeus, October 28th, commences on October 20th in Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Faversham. Prayer for the Intercession of St. Jude.
Most holy apostle, St Jude Thaddeus, faithful friend of Jesus, the Church honours and invokes you universally as the patron of hopeless cases. Pray for me in my distress. Come to my assistance in this time of need that I may receive consolation in my difficulties. I in turn promise to honour you as my patron and encourage devotion to you. I make this petition to you in the name of Christ, Our Lord. Amen.
St. Antony was a Franciscan friar, born in Lisbon in 1195. Our statue depicts him as a gentle young man, carrying the infant Jesus and holding a lily, but his reputation suggests that he was a strong and fearless champion of the oppressed.
During his lifetime he was called a "Hammer of Heretics". He was buried at Padua, and many miracles are attributed to his intercession. In 1892 a poor merchant in Toulons asked for his intercession when her shop doors were jammed. It seemed that they would have to be broken down but the replacement costs would have put her out of business. After her prayer the doors opened with no further difficulty and in response she gave a number of loaves of bread to the poor. Subsequently she and her friends founded a work of charity called the "Bread of St. Antony".
We follow this tradition and so in the wall near the statue is a collection box to receive contributions for "St Antony's Basket" and we give this to those in severe financial need. You might like to light a candle as you make your donation.
Prayer to St. Antony
O father of the poor, our own St. Antony, ensure an answer to our prayers by offering them, yourself to the Lord. Accept in token of our gratitude the offering we make to your Bread Basket for the relief of the poor and needy. Come to their aid and to ours with your accustomed kindness; help us in our temporal needs but still more in our spiritual necessities now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
This garden is situated just behind the church and it provides a beautiful area in which we remember babies who have died before or after birth. The fountain and garden were blessed and dedicated on 28th December 1996, the feast of the Holy Innocents.
The centrepiece of the garden is the fountain with its "Springs of Living Water". Brightly coloured plants adorn the wall behind it, on which the golden plaques give witness to the lives, however brief, of the little innocents. Above the wall, roses complete our wonderful memorial, much admired by visitors to our parish especially during the spring and summer months when it's at its most beautiful.
If you would like to add a plaque in memory of a child you have lost, please contact the Parish priest. (They cost about £20 but please do not be deterred if you cannot afford this.)
A Prayer
Into your hands, O Lord, we commend these children. Lead them into the joy of the heavenly paradise. In that happy place where there is no more mourning or weeping or sorrow, let them find peace and joy in union with your Son and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.
This is an intimate and private room where people can make their personal confession to the priest and receive the gift of God's forgiveness, so celebrating the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
The room is set out so that penitents can choose to sit and talk "face to face" with the priest or kneel behind a screen in complete anonymity in the old traditional way.
The usual times for the celebration of the Sacrament are 11.00 am and 5.30 pm. on Saturdays, although an appointment can always be made at any other convenient time.Prayer of Sorrow
O my God, because you are so good, I am very sorry that I have sinned against you and by the help of your grace I will try not to sin again.
In the corner is a statue of St. Thomas of Canterbury or St Thomas a Becket who is the patron saint of our Church. He was killed at Canterbury Cathedral on 29th December 1170 by four of King Henry II's knights in response to the King's famous words: "Will nobody rid me of this turbulent priest!".
The event is depicted on the ceramic tile-work above the entry to the Church. Previously, Thomas had served Henry well but they had disagreed over some important issues and Thomas lived for 6 years in exile, in France. They were reconciled but in less than a month a fresh quarrel broke out and his subsequent murder shook the Church in western Europe. Thomas was spontaneously acclaimed a martyr and canonised as a saint in 1173 by Pope Alexander III. St. Thomas has two special Feast days each year, on 29th December and 7th July.
Behind the altar there is the Tabernacle in which we reserve the Blessed Sacrament so that this Holy Communion can be distributed in a Eucharistic service when there is no priest available to say mass and it is also taken at any time to anyone who is sick or housebound in our Parish.
We believe in a real and true presence of Christ in the Sacrament and so this is a focal point of devotion or private adoration in the Church. The red "sanctuary light" always directs our attention to this presence.
Beside the altar is our Parish Book of Remembrance. This folder contains the names of parishioners who have died, recorded in date order. Every day we turn the page and pray especially during our daily mass for those whose anniversary occurs.
Sacred Heart Statue
(by Michael Clark F.R.B.F.)
There is a long tradition in the Church of devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The image of the exposed heart on the statue is a symbol of Christ's unfailing love and compassion for us all. Near to the statue (both in concept and on the wall) is an image of Christ that symbolises the "Divine Mercy" of God. Both these images encourage us to seek God's help in our difficulties and to acknowledge the love he shows us each and every day.
Anima Christi (by Cardinal Newman)Soul of Christ be my sanctification,
Body of Christ be my salvation,
Blood of Christ fill all my veins,
Water from the side of Christ wash out all my stains.
May Christ's passion strengthen me.
O good Jesu hear me.
In your wounds I fain would hide,
Never to be parted from your side.
Guard me when my foes assail me,
Call me when my life shall fail me.
Command me then to come to thee
That I for all eternity
With your saints may praise thee. Amen
Prayer at 3.00 P.M.
You expired, Jesus but the source of life gushed forth for souls and an ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world. O Fount of Life, unfathomable Divine Mercy, envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us. Amen
St. Patrick and St. George
(by Michael Clark F.R.B.F.)
These two statues at the back of the church, either side of the aisle, depict the patron saints of England and Ireland. St. George, whose feast day is celebrated on 23rd April, is depicted as the triumphant slayer of the dragon.
St. Patrick, whose feast day is on 17th March, was born in Roman Britain in 385. he was enslaved in Ireland in teenage years but escaped to France where he trained as a priest. In 432 he felt called in a dream to return to Ireland and he preached the Gospel there with great success until his death in 461.
In his own words: "I Patrick, a sinner, owe it to God's grace that through me so many people should be born again to him." St Patrick's Breastplate Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ within me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ where I lie, Christ where I sit, Christ where I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of every man who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me, Christ in every ear that hears me.
St. Joseph and the Holy Family
(by Adam Kossowski)
This ceramic tile work was made by famous Church ceramicist, Adam Kossowski who devoted his life and talent to glorifying churches after his release from a Polish Labour Camp.
The centrepiece depicts St. Joseph with the infant Jesus and the surrounding images depict his visitation by an angel, his marriage to the Virgin Mary, the flight into Egypt (to escape the slaughter of all infants ordered by King Herod after Jesus' birth), and the discovery of Jesus found preaching in the Temple as a young boy. St. Joseph selflessly devoted his life to caring for God's son on earth. A carpenter by trade, he is the patron saint of fathers and of workers. His feast days are celebrated on 19th March and 1st May, this latter feast of St. Joseph the Worker having been instituted by Pope Pius XII in 1955.
St. Joseph's Prayer:
Almighty God, you chose St. Joseph to be the husband of Mary and foster father of your Son. By his quiet dedication he showed Jesus the dignity of human work and under his watchful care your Son grew in wisdom and knowledge. Help us to undertake our daily tasks to the best of our ability and to understand that our work is a share in your creative love for humanity. Help those who are unemployed to find work and those who cannot find work to discover a sense of purpose in their lives. Help all parents to provide for the welfare of their children and may we all grow in wisdom and knowledge of you. Amen
This is the focal point of our church. The parish gathers each Sunday before the High Altar for the celebration of Mass.
During the sacrifice of the Mass, which is, a memorial of the Last Supper Jesus becomes truly present and is given to each person in Holy Communion. To the left of the altar, on the Sanctuary, is the lectern, the "Altar of the Word" from where the Gospel is proclaimed each Sunday.
Above the altar is our beautiful statue of the Risen Christ, made by Michael Clark. It is more usual to have a crucifix here - Christ crucified on the cross - but our statue emphasizes that we are an "Easter People" whose faith is in Jesus who died for us on the cross but who rose again to share his life with us for ever. It is with Thomas the Apostle then, that we can contemplate the wounds of crucifixion still present in the risen Christ:
Prayer Before Christ, Risen From The Dead: Behold, O kind and most sweet Jesus, I cast myself on my knees in your sight, and with the most fervent desire of my soul I pray and beseech you that you would impress upon my heart lively sentiments of faith, hope and charity, with a true repentance for my sins and a firm desire of amendment, while with deep affection and grief of soul I ponder within myself and mentally contemplate your five most precious wounds; having before my eyes that which David spoke in prophecy of you, O good Jesus: "They have pierced my hands and my feet; they have numbered all my bones".
The ceramics here are the work of Adam Kossowski (see St. Joseph) and depict the angels carrying messages and prayers between heaven and earth.
The statue of the Madonna, Mary the Mother of God, was made by Michael Clark. As Mary was so close to Jesus, we can focus some of our thoughts and prayers on her in order to gain special insight into his life on earth. Thus grew up a long tradition of devotion to Our Lady and we often seek her intercession for our needs.
Many people use the Rosary to pray in this way remembering the Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious events or "Mysteries" as meditations. We can also light a candle here for our intentions and in her honour. It will gently "flicker" our prayer long after we have left the Church. May and October are special months of devotion to Our Lady and there are many feast days in her honour.
In front of the chapel is our Baptismal font, in the waters of which new members are joined to our church family through baptism. Holy water from the font is kept in the chapel just behind, in a large jug. Many people take this water to their homes and bless themselves with it as a reminder that God has entered their lives.
Beside the font is our Easter Candle which when lit, symbolises Christ's risen life among us. It is renewed and blessed each year at our solemn Easter Vigil, the greatest celebration of our Church year.
The Hail Mary
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us now, and at the hour of our death. Amen
The Stations of the Cross
(by Michael Clarke, F.R.B.F.)
There are by tradition 14 Stations of the Cross, depicting the events of Good Friday.
The Stations are placed around the walls of the Church at regular intervals, starting by the Chapel of Our Lady, and finishing in our Blessed Sacrament Chapel.
They enable us to meditate on Christ's suffering and death by making "stops" along the "Way of the Cross".
They are:
I. Jesus is condemned to death
II. Jesus receives the Cross
III. Jesus falls the first time under his Cross
IV. Jesus is met by his Blessed Mother
V. The Cross is laid upon Simon of Cyrene
VI. Veronica wipes the face of Jesus VII. Jesus falls the second time
VIII. The women of Jerusalem mourn for our Lord
IX. Jesus falls for the third time
X. Jesus is stripped of his garments
XI. Jesus is nailed to the Cross
XII. Jesus dies on the Cross XIII. Jesus is taken down from the Cross
XIV. Jesus is placed in the sepulchre
We usually pause then to consider the empty tomb and Christ risen from the dead. Prayer at Each Station: We adore you O Christ and we praise you,Because by your Holy Cross you have redeemed the world.
