Welcome:
Welcome to the web site for the Roman Catholic parish of St. Mary Magdalen Ipswich. We welcome all visitors and newcomers to the Church, and hope that you find everything you are looking for on this site. Our aim is to keep this web space up to date with current parish news, information and events, aiming to be accessible for the people of the parish and the community in which we are situated.
Under the guidance and leadership of our parish priest, Fr Luke Goymour, we are looking to expand and enrich our community in youth projects, music in worship, children's liturgy and other areas. If you want to be active in our future please speak with Fr Luke at the church, or use the contact page.
If you have any comments about this site, its content or suggestions for additional content, particularly if you could not find the information you were looking for, please use the contact form to send a message to the webmaster.
On-Line Giving
During the times when our ability to attend church in person was impacted by Coronavirus restrictions, on-line donations to our offertory collection were a lifeline for the parish. Even if you are now attending again in person, please consider donating on-line to our offertory by setting up a regular payment by standing order from your bank account, or alternatively you can make a one-off payment. This is easy to do - you can find details here.
A Prayer for Ukraine
Mary, Our Lady of Kiev, Mother of God,
we ask you to intercede for the people of Ukraine,
for their government
and all who suffer as a result of war.
Be with them as you stood beside your son,
suffering on the cross at Calvary.
Give them strength and courage
through faith, hope and justice.
May we, in our turn,
support them through prayer and generosity
that human lives may be saved,
that the injured may be healed,
that the dead rest in peace,
that there will be peace after the war.
Amen
Prayers for the Sick
Almighty and Eternal God, You are the everlasting health of those who believe in You. We ask you to remember those in our parish who are unwell, afflicted or distressed. Grant them comfort, relief and consolation of your Holy Spirit and through the aid of Your tender mercy, restore them to bodily health. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Find our Facebook Page
Use the QR Code below to find the St Mary Magdalen Facebook group which you can join.
St Mary Magdalen's Parish Newsletter
The latest issue of the parish newsletter is available on-line: you can find it here.
Back copies of the parish newsletter from 2018 to date are also available on-line in the newsletter archive- select Newsletters from the menu bar, and then select the year required.
The Diocesan Newspaper
You can read the latest edition of Catholic East Anglia, the Diocesan newspaper on-line: you can find it here.
Fr Luke's Homilies
Each week, Fr Luke Goymour records and publishes his homily. You can listen to these recordings by clicking here.
The Most Holy Trinity - Sunday 31st May 2026
This week we return to the liturgical season of Ordinary Time. This Sunday and next, however, are designated as solemnitie - special days that call our attention to central mysteries of our faith. Today on Trinity Sunday we celebrate the mystery of the Holy Trinity, one God in three persons.
Today’s Gospel is from the beginning of John’s Gospel. The passage we read follows Jesus’ conversation with a Pharisee, Nicodemus, about what it means to be born of both water and the spirit. Nicodemus approaches Jesus at night and acknowledges Jesus as a teacher from God. Jesus tells him that only those who are born from above will see the Kingdom of God. Nicodemus misunderstands and questions how a person can be born more than once. Jesus tells Nicodemus that no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. Jesus is essentially explaining Baptism, which we celebrate as a sacrament today. Yet Nicodemus, we are told, still does not understand what Jesus is saying. Jesus continues by testifying to the need to be born from above so that one might have eternal life.
After the dialogue with Nicodemus, the author of the Gospel offers his own explanation of Jesus’ words and this is what we read in today’s Gospel.
In the context of today’s focus on the mystery of the Holy Trinity, the reading calls our attention to the action of God, who reveals himself in three persons: God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit. God the Father, out of love for the world, sent his Son into the world in order to save it. Through the death and resurrection of the Son, we have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit. As three persons, God acts always as a God of love; he does not condemn the world but acts to save it.
The Gospel also calls attention to the response that is required of us. God’s love for us calls us to respond in faith by professing our belief in God’s son, Jesus, and the salvation that he has won for us. This profession of faith is a sign of the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Courtesy Loyola Press
Parish Missional Prayer
God our Father, we give you thanks and praise for calling us to share in the fullness of life and love that Jesus won for us. Pour out your Holy Spirit upon our parish community. Pour out your Holy Spirit upon our parish community. Changed by your Spirit, may we become a community of disciples, attentive to the needs of all who come through our doors, and even those who don’t. We pray for your blessing upon every person in our parish community, and on all who live in and around our parish. May they know your love, your presence, and your power in their lives. For all who are struggling at this moment, we ask that you enter their lives and lift them. May our parish become a place of adoration, where the hungry are fed, the sick are healed, the bereaved are comforted, and all are made whole. Soften our hearts to your will. Make us open to what you desire to do in and through our parish, and give us the courage and strength to follow your call. Courtesy Loyola Press
We make this prayer in Jesus' name. Amen
The Divine Mercy
You expired, Jesus,
but the source of life gushed forth for souls,
and the ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world.
O Fount of Life, unfathomable Divine Mercy,
envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us.
This picture of the Divine Mercy was painted by Ben Goymour and hangs in St Mark's Catholic Church, Ipswich.
