The captions and images shown below give an idea of activities and special events held at our SDC centre in London. Our main contribution in parishes mainly involves running catechism groups but other activities are held throughout the year for other groups for young people and adults.

See other years here:

Christmas Gifts

This year it was different - Collection only!! Notwithstanding the current restrictions which stopped us having formal meetings for children and parents it was good to see so many coming to collect their gifts today - statues of Baby Jesus or Nativity sets to take home. Another way to help understand the real meaning of Christmas - God made man!

Celebrations with a difference

The celebrations of confirmation and First Communion sacraments that had to be postponed due to the breakout of the C-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown were then held during September and October. This was a different way how to celebrate the sacraments – people wearing facemasks, social distancing and sanitizing hands were the order of the day – but we hope the central theme of celebrating the sacraments remained the focus all the children, young people and adults who took part.

On Social Media

In August, new social media accounts were set up for our London SDC Centre These channels are aimed to facilitate our links with parents, families and others, to promote some of our events during the year and to use as another means to reach more people and share spiritual thoughts, reflections and resources from time to time. To link to our social media accounts click on the links below:

New Publication - Reflections of a Saintly Priest

In July a new booklet was printed with a selection of writings by founder St George Preca. It is made up of 30 extracts from a range of writings by the founder, including some of the best known ones such as the Sanctuary of Christ’s spirit or the Discipleship, as well as other writings that are not as well known. The booklet with the title ‘Reflections’ also includes a short biography of St George Preca. We have already started to use readings from this booklet for reflection and discussion at our SDC Friends meetings. It is also our intention to present a copy of this publication to confirmation candidates to encourage them to read and reflect on key spiritual themes included in the book such as Christ’s spirit, humility, Our Lady and other themes.

Online Meetings

Needs must. As it was not possible to meet for any sort of gathering we have resorted to technology for our SDC Friends and Bible Study group. A tentative initial gathering was arranged for Thursday 23rd April 2020, feast of St George, patron saint of England. Notwithstanding a few technology related hiccups at the beginning it was a good experience. We had a reflection on the life of St George, a reflection on a short Gospel reading, a few prayers and some music. A good number of people joined us and everyone agreed we give it another go so we continued meeting once a week. We carried on with our meetings until the end of July and plan to continue after the summer break. We also set up groups for children in catechism groups, some on Thursdays for the Confirmation candidates but mainly on Saturdays for the children preparing for First Holy Communion.

Coronavirus Interruptions

The Covid 19 epidemic resulted in many activities involving gatherings such as catechism groups in various parishes having to be suspended. This was an unfortunate development that was however a must in everyone’s effort to stop the spread of the virus.

In order to stay in touch with various groups of children, young people and their families efforts were made to produce material that we sent by post or electronic mail or published on our SDC website. These included some worksheets children could use while at home and a PRAY, REFLECT, LEARN flyer with ideas how to use different resources to support spiritual growth and practice in such different times.

Lent Reflection Day

On Saturday 7th March 2020, a Lent reflection day was organised for those who attend the SDC Bible study groups at the Holy Rosary Parish in Brixton and the SDC House, Upper Norwood. This was the first time such an event was organised for both groups together. We first went to the Carmelite Priory in Aylesord for Mass and a short reflection session. We then went to the nearby parish of St John Fisher in Rochester for our main session on the chosen theme ‘The Spirit of Christ’. As it was also the SDC Vocation day and the 113th Anniversary from the foundation of SDC, we also shared ideas and reflections on some of the writings of our founder and used some of his prayers such as the ‘Coram Domino’. We then ended the day with a stroll in the Rochester town centre where we also visited the castle, the Cathedral and High Street.

The God who Speaks

The Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales declared 2020 to be a year of special focus on the Bible. This marks the tenth anniversary of Pope Benedict XVI's Apostolic Exhortation, Verbum Domini, (The Word of the Lord) and the 1600 years since the death of Saint Jerome - who translated the Bible into Latin. On the invitation of our Bishops, this year we thought of using our SDC Bible Study groups at the SDC House as well as the one at the Rosary Parish to explore and celebrate the Word of God through the Scriptures and discuss how we could respond to the "God who speaks" in the way that we live.

Calendar 2020

For the first time ever this year we have printed copies of the English version of the SDC Calendar that is published every year by SDC in Malta. This A3 size calendar which was given out to friends, parents and others who attend different SDC groups includes posters with quotes by our Founder St George Preca for every month as well as information about feastdays and special seasons of the Liturgical year.

Caught on Camera

One Christmas tradition that SDC has now been keeping in Brixton centre for many years is the Carol singing service on the Saturday before Christmas. As in previous years, this year we gathered at the Rosary Parish Hall and walked for Carol Singing by the Tube Station. It was a good group of children and a good number of supporting parents and other adults too. While singing amidst the noise of shoppers and traffic on Brixton Road we caught the eye of a camera crew who stopped and filmed the children singing and also interviewed one of the adults helping the group. The clip was posted on Facebook with links on Twitter and other sites. Many commented so positively about the joy the children’s singing brought to them. One of the comments said: ‘Lovely sound of children singing carols, none better. I'm clapping’ and another said, ‘Isn’t this what Christmas is all about? Beautiful.’ See clip on this link: Caught on Camera.

SDC Juniors

From September 2019 we slightly changed the SDC Juniors programme and we are now meeting at the SDC House in Upper Norwood twice a month, on the second Sunday and third Friday of each month. Our meetings are an opportunity to come together to spend social time together, have something to eat and share some time talking about issues relevant to our Catholic faith. Termly planners with information and dates when this group meets can be downloaded from this website too (see SDC Groups section).

Catechism Groups

Our catechism programmes for the new catechetical year started once more in September. These include preparation programmes for the sacraments at the Holy Rosary Parish in Brixton, Virgo Fidelis Parish in Upper Norwood and St Andrew’s parish in Thornton Heath. Some groups meet in the evenings while others meet at weekends.

Three adults from the SDC Friends group started helping out in different groups this year. Hope this will continue. Year planners for the programmes we run in the various parishes can be downloaded from this website too (see SDC Groups section).

New Bible Study Group

Following a presentation on the life of St John H Newman at the Holy Rosary Parish in Brixton, it was deemed fit to carry on meeting with a group of parishioners on a monthly basis for Bible studies, prayer and reflection in this parish where SDC has now been working for many years by leading the Sacraments preparation programmes. Our new Bible Study group meets on the second Monday of every month in the Annunciation room.

Meet a New Saint - John H Newman

The canonisation of Cardinal John Henry Newman was an opportunity for us to reflect on this ‘new’ saint given to us by the church to imitate when he was formally declared a saint by Pope Francis in the Vatican on Sunday 13th October 2019. To mark this occasion, presentations about the life, works and impact of this English convert were organised for different groups in different parishes. These included a presentation for parishioners at the Rosary parish and to other groups.

Pilgrimage

On the occasion of the canonisation of John H Newman, a pilgrimage to the Birmingham Oratory took place on Saturday 29th September for members of the SDC Bible Study group. We first attended the celebration of the Mass at the Oratory itself. This was the oratory founded by Newman following his conversion to Catholicism. Mass was followed by the devotional prayer and blessing using Newman’s relic. After some time to look around the oratory church itself, there was a presentation on the life and work of this remarkable new English Saint. Our gathering concluded with a reflection and prayer. Later that day we also visited the Catholic cathedral of St Chad and other places of interest in central Birmingham.