OUR PARISH MISSION STATEMENT

We are the Catholic Parish in Fleet & Church Crookham, Hampshire, with two churches, and are part of the Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth. Our aim as a community is:

To Build a 'sense of family' of Christians who come together to worship as the Body of Christ.

To Celebrate our faith and community through the liturgies and social activities.

To Welcome all and Minister to one another, in the ordinary and everyday events of our life in mercy and love.

To Reach out to people in need and work with Christians and other members within our community.

Our Mission is founded on a life of prayer, centered on the Eucharist. Our Vigil, Sunday and week-day Masses are well attended and keep the prayer life of the Church constant and strong. Every encouragement is given to continuing a prayer life in small groups both in church and in people's homes. Our faith and spirituality shine forth in our charity works within the church and community.

I AM HERE TO LOVE AND TO SERVE ALL OF YOU!

A MESSAGE FROM FR JOHNPROMISE

I am here to love and to serve all of you. I am a strong believer in the 3 Principles of Divine Renovation – BELONG, BELIEVE, BEHAVE. It is only when people feel they Belong to a welcoming, loving, merciful and forgiving community that they would Believe in what that community tells them and then model their Behaviours on the community’s principles. For the next few years, I would like all of us to focus on BELONGING. Yes, let us make Fleet and Church Crookham a WELCOMING HUB for all peoples be they practicing or lapsed Catholics, Christians of various denominations, people of other faiths and those of none. This is the first principle of Jesus Christ – He met people where they were, and He continues to meet us where we are. Let everyone who comes into our 2 churches find a welcoming, loving, merciful and forgiving community. I am aware many of our parishioners here and elsewhere have been hurt in the past either by the Church or by her Clergy; on behalf of the Church and all Clergy, I apologise to such persons and beg you to forgive us. Come back and join me in making your parish what you wish it to be. We need you and have missed you so much.

My Ministry of Service among you will be an INCLUSIVE ONE and my door will always be OPEN TO ALL. This is your parish and I want you to take ownership of it. I am here to serve you all and to walk with you all in that Synodal Journey of LISTENING and JOURNEYING TOGETHER. I am not perfect at all, and I might make mistakes along the way; however, do correct me when I make mistakes and do not be afraid to point me in the right direction. Remember, I am here to love you and to serve all of you.

FR JOHNPROMISE IKENNA UMEOZURU, BA.Hons, B.Phil, STB, B.Tec, MBA.