Eileen

Much loved community matriarch Eileen Burke died last Saturday, February 14, aged 96. An integral part of the Redfern community for so many years, she had been in hospital since last occupying her chair at St Vincent’s on Christmas Eve.

Eileen’s funeral will be held on Friday 20 February at St Vincent’s Church, beginning at 10.30am with “The Placing of Symbols” (on Eileen’s coffin) preceding the requiem mass to be celebrated by Fr John Ford.

Neocat paparazzi

For years now, many at St Vincent’s have been unable to take communion from the Neocat clergy who despise the community so, and have elected to share only in the Blood of Christ from the solitary non-Neocat Eucharistic minister.

This seems to have recently come to the attention to the ever alert Clesio Mendes, who queried communicants a week or two ago as to why they weren’t queuing up for the Eucharist from the Neocats.

So today parishioners were intrigued by a dark haired woman who appeared to be using her mobile phone to photograph those receiving the Blood of … Continue reading

Neocat slander and persecution

The following email just arrived:

date Wed, Jan 14, 2009 at 3:23 AM
subject greetings from Spain

Dear friends from Church Mouse, greetings from Spain.

I follow your website from time to time, and your struggles with the Neocats.
I send you the url to a bulletin of a spanish diocese (Orihuela-Alicante), near the mediterranean coast. I found it accidentally.
It contains news of a Neocat family from one of their parrish churches (Andres, Ester and their children), sent as missionary team to St Vincent’s Redfern, and some photos with parrish priest Fr. Clesio … Continue reading

Thanks be to George

Well folks, in the absence of any notification to the contrary – or any notification at all, despite numerous attempts to contact the presbytery about the matter over the last week – the customary Sunday Mass was celebrated at St Vincent’s today.

Before saying Mass, Clesio Mendes read out the following letter from Cardinal George Pell:


Message to Redfern Parish – Cardinal George Pell, 20/12/2008

The Church Mouse welcomes this even-handed request for peace at Redfern from one who has in the past given the … Continue reading

Sunday Mass denied and Christmas Meal threatened


Notice that appeared on the church door today Clesio Mendes, and, it would appear, Cardinal George Pell and Bishop Julian Porteous, have unilaterally found the St Vincent’s community guilty of interrupting the Mass.

In fact, the Mass was interrupted by Pelle and Mendes, who tried to stifle the Prayers of the Faithful – see Denied Sunday Mass Again.

Their action precipitated numerous letters from the community to Bishop Porteous, administering the archdiocese in Cardinal Pell’s absence

The following email was received on Friday night:

Date Fri, Dec … Continue reading

What’s on

Morning Tea

Last Sunday of the month – join us after the 10am Mass for a chat over a cup of tea.

Sharing the Meal

Tuesdays and Fridays in the church – early lunch

Christian Meditation

Some quiet time out at the end of the week.
Fridays, 5pm – 6pm

Gospel Discussion Group

Come and share insights into the weekend’s readings with the group which has been going for 30-odd years.
Fridays 6pm – 7pm


Come back for Christmas

Adeste Fideles!

Dear All,

It is time to re-issue the call to come back to St Vincent’s.

Over the last five or six years, we at St Vincent’s have been challenged to reconsider our faith in unexpected ways ever since a gracious Cardinal recommended to an ailing Ted Kennedy that it might be time for him to retire, with an assurance that the fruits of three decades of priestly labour would be respected.

Redfern today remains the … Continue reading

Denied Sunday Mass again

At the prayers of the faithful this morning, Len started with the following:

I came across some words on the internet the other day:

“Everyone has a place in the church, every person without exception should be able to feel at home and never rejected”

They were on a banner outside St Mary’s church in South Brisbane.

Some might describe these as words of “pretend christianity”, but they were actually spoken by Pope Benedict XVI.

I pray for a church where positive words like these are put into action.

He got as far as “pretend christianity” (a phrase borrowed from … Continue reading