The big news at Saint Joseph's is that the Pope is coming! Not to Pickering, it is true, but to this country. This is only the second time ever that a Pope has come to England (the first was the visit of Pope John Paul II in 1982) and this will be the first ever official state visit of a Pope, with Pope Benedict coming as a Head of State at the invitation of Her Majesty the Queen. The public events of the visit will include a Mass at Westminster Cathedral (to which Mrs Betty East has been specially invited) and a Mass in Birmingham for the Beatification of Cardinal John Henry Newman. Several members of St Joseph's will be attending this, and Fr Bill East will be concelebrating with the Pope, the Bishops of England and Wales, and a large number of other priests. Here in Pickering, St Joseph's will prepare for the visit with a meeting on Tuesday 14th September following the 7 pm Mass. This will take the form of a question-and-answer session. Questions will be invited about the papal visit, the role of the Pope in general, and the mission and work of the Catholic Church in this country and worldwide..

 Fr Bill East.