We are delighted to announce that work is about to begin on the re-building of the church, and the timetable has been set out as follows:
1. The church will close after the 12.15 pm Mass on SUNDAY 10 MARCH.
2. A week will be spent in removing everything from the church to the hall. Unfortunately this means there will be no Mass in St. Matthew’s during that week. Likewise, the hall will be closed while it is set up for use as our church during the building work.
3. On Saturday 16 March, the hall will begin to function as our temporary church, beginning with the 5.30 pm Vigil Mass.
4. It is expected that the work on the church will take one year, so we hope to be back in the church in good time for Easter 2020!
This is going to be a challenging but also a very rewarding time for us; it is to be hoped that you will continue to support the parish during the work, and that our worshipping community will continue to gather for Mass in the hall during this period.
Please note that the church will be emptied of EVERYTHING: After Friday 15 March, only the shell of the building will remain. All pieces of furniture, objects, anything belonging to ANY groups or individuals remaining on by that date will be thrown out!
Of course, during the renovations we will still need all ministries – Extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, Readers, Altar Servers, Musicians, Pass keepers, Church Cleaning, hospitality. The hall will be the church for a year, and we need as much, if not more involvement of the parish community, in celebrating the liturgy as ever! NEW VOLUNTEERS WELCOME!