FROM THE EDITOR
Fr John writes Dear Parishioners, Friends and Readers of Oremus This edition roams around the world, following Catholic life and themes wherever they can be found. From Syria the puppet Little Amal came to the Cathedral; the Chaplains’ initial incredulity at the prospect was brought to admiration by the Precentor’s skill in creating a suitable liturgical format and by the many who came to greet Amal. Looking across the Atlantic we are reminded of a Cathedral connection with Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico, herself the object of what we now call a terrorist attack a hundred years ago. Going deeper into South America, Bishop Mark Jabalé OSB, who has previously written in Oremus of his experiences building a monastery in Peru, now introduces us to a pilgrimage to Ayabaca, undertaken much in the spirit and discomfort of medieval European pilgrimages. Moving to North America, I am grateful to the magazine Local Culture for permission to reprint material relating to the visions of society expounded in the last century by both Hilaire Belloc and G K Chesterton. Although some of their thought can sound quaint, other aspects chime in closely with current concerns both about the nature and status of the family and also about the intimate relationship which we should have with the land on which we are privileged to live. Readers will see from the Friends’ page that Christina White is, after 14 years’ service as Director of the Friends, leaving the Cathedral for new work with the University in Oxford.
Westminster Cathedral Cathedral Clergy House 42 Francis Street London SW1P 1QW Telephone 020 7798 9055 Email chreception@rcdow.org.uk www.westminstercathedral.org.uk Cathedral Chaplains Fr Sławomir Witoń, Administrator Fr Brian O’Mahony, Sub-Administrator Fr Michael Donaghy Fr Hugh MacKenzie Fr Mike Maguire, Precentor Fr Vincent Mbu’i SVD Fr John Scott, Registrar Also in residence Franciscan Sisters of Our Lady of Victories Music Department Simon Johnson, Master of Music Peter Stevens Obl. OSB, Assistant Master of Music Marko Sever, Organ Scholar Cathedral Manager Peter McNulty Estates Manager Neil Fairbairn Finance Manager Agnes Dabrowska Chapel of Ease Sacred Heart Church Horseferry Road SW1P 2EF
On behalf of all those who have enjoyed the wide range of events which she has so effectively and imaginatively succeeded in conjuring up, Oremus wishes to offer a tribute in print for all her hard work. Her journalistic skill has meant that deadlines have always been met, whilst her shepherding of Friends and their friends – not always amongst the most mobile – on outings means that not one has been lost. And if events build up the wider Cathedral community, then we must not forget that their aim is also to provide the resources to maintain and enhance the Cathedral and its worshipping life; for what has been achieved in that way, we owe Christina our thanks. In particular the maintenance of her Facebook page and provision of online events through lockdown helped greatly in the Cathedral’s work of keeping in contact with parishioners, whilst in recent months she has kindly been loaned part-time to the Cathedral to work on the new website, which you will shortly be able to access and enjoy. Christina, your friends here wish you every blessing as you leave. With my best wishes
DECEMBER 2021
Oremus
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