Catholic Today met up with Debbie Isitt the writer and film director to talk about her new film Nativity 2,  Danger in the Manger.

It is a British film with a British cast and is currently Number 3 in the UK Box office just behind SkyFall the new Bond Film.
The film has a host of famous British stars in it: David Tennant (Dr Who), Joanna Page (Gavin and Stacey), Pam Ferris and Marc Wootton. The film was the official Children in Need film 2012.

The staff, Governors and children at St John Bosco Catholic Primary School in West Bromwich have introduced the Year of Faith in school, with a Special Assembly.

On Sunday 23 September 2012 the Archbishop of Birmingham, the Most Reverend Bernard Longley, consecrated St Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Oldbury.

As some of you may remember, a few months ago a run to raise money for our diocesan pilgrimage to World Youth Day 2013 in Rio de Janeiro was mentioned. Well in the past months a group of 14 trained for the Birmingham half marathon.

As well as the official logo for the Year of Faith from the Vatican, the Archdiocese has its own logo. It is an attempt to bring together in this symbol some of the meaning of the Year of Faith.

The Most Reverend Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham, presided and preached at the Ordination to the Sacred Priesthood of Father Roger Raven, a priest of the Archdiocese of Birmingham, on Saturday, 22 September.

It was an evening of double celebration at Father Hudson’s Society’s St Joseph’s home  in Coleshill on Wednesday 19 September. 2012 is the year St Joseph’s celebrates its 10th  birthday. The evening also marked  the official opening of St Joseph’s new conservatory paid for thanks to the efforts of the Father Hudsons Ball Committee, what a great birthday present!!

Bishop William Kenney CP, Auxiliary Bishop of Birmingham was principal celebrant at a special Mass of Thanksgiving in the Metropolitan Cathedral of St Chad, Birmingham, on Tuesday 11 September, to celebrate the Silver Jubilee of his Ordination to the Episcopate.

The Year of Faith, announced by the Pope last year, will officially begin on October 11, 2012.

It will celebrate both the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council and the 20th anniversary of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

At the same time, the opening of the Year of Faith will coincide with the next General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops with the theme of The New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith.

The Smiling Pope, Albino Luciani

Welcome to the Year of Faith in the Archdiocese of Birmingham.

The Year of Faith begins in October and, with just one month to go, we are making our final preparations in the Archdiocese for this important event. The Olympic and Paralymic Games have just ended as the Year of Faith is inaugurated during the Synod of Bishops in Rome on the theme of the New Evangelization. Pope Benedict announced the Year of Faith in his Apostolic Letter Porta Fidei and noted that it celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of the Second Vatican Council and the twentieth anniversary of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Lourdes 2012

On the morning of 30 June, the Most Reverend Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham, ordained eleven deacons in a spectacular ceremony which saw the beautiful chapel of St Mary’s filled to capacity.

Nearly 2,000 years ago an event on Calvary changed the whole history of time. And very few people knew about it.

On the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, Sunday June 10, 2012, Coventry’s second oldest parish, St Mary and St Benedict’s, on Raglan Street, marked the 80th anniversary of the consecration of its church, with a Holy Mass celebrated by the Most Reverend Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham assisted by Bp Philip Pargeter and the Parish Priest,
Fr Jimmy Lutwama of the Apostles of Jesus Religious Missionary Order from Uganda.