Westminster Record - Summer 2019 by RCWestminster

Westminster Record

Summer 2019 | 20p

Intrinsic Good of Every Life

Our Eucharistic Journey

Spirit in the City

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Christian marriage is worth celebrating by Deacon Roger Carr-Jones, Marriage and Family Life Coordinator Did you know that in June over 600 couples, each called to be missionary disciples in their different ways, attended our Mass of Thanksgiving for Matrimony? I was fortunate to meet a number of couples and to share not only in their moment of joy but aspects of their stories: each a small reflection of the good news of marriage. As Christians, having heard the Good News of Jesus Christ, we now have to live it, every day! To do this we need to be effective, confident and joyful witnesses and learn to be ‘missionary disciples’ rather than passive recipients of the Good News. This is very achievable, especially in the sacrament of marriage, not always through great dramatic gestures, but through the ordinary everyday expressions of daily life, which reflect the vocation to marriage. Do you agree that the Good News of marriage is worth celebrating? Apparently, if a storyline implies something rotten has happened, or that the world is in a terrible mess, we are more likely to pay attention to it. This insight is supported by psychologists who tell us that ‘bad news sells better than good news’. Perhaps this is because we are conditioned by our development to be aware of dangers and so we notice what is a threat in preference to enjoying sources of joy. Researchers call this ‘negativity bias’, a psychologists' term for our collective hunger to hear and remember bad news. It is

‘Daily witness to the vocation of marriage’ © Mazur/catholicnews.org

not that bad news does not merit attention, it is just that if we lose sight of the good news in our world and in our lives, we are not in balance. We sometimes fall into this trap when we focus too much on the decline in marriage and the subsequent impact on family life, without giving sufficient attention and affirmation to the alternative living narrative. By this I mean highlighting those who live out the vocation of marriage, bear witness to its joys and challenges, thereby revealing God’s plan for love to each other and society.

My role is to focus on and sustain the good news of marriage. In celebrating the significant anniversary of over 600 couples, the cathedral was buzzing with the collective joy of so many successful marriages, and their impact on their families and our wider society. Reflect for a moment on where you have seen this vocation being lived out: your parents, your marriage, or that of friends. Our annual celebration of matrimony may not have made the national headlines. This is a pity as each of the couples, in their different

ways, shared their vocation to marriage through simple gestures: a story, a smile, or children, now adults, helping infirm parents to attend. It was a day of great joy and a reflection of a joy lived out in the everyday events of life. Joy is one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, so it was fitting that this celebration was at the Vigil Mass for Pentecost. This marks the end of Eastertide and through the coming of the Holy Spirit the beginning of the time for witness and living out the gospel. A wedding is a beginning, not an end.

Cardinal Vincent spoke movingly in his homily of the different aspects of married life, of the grace that carried them through difficulties, and to reflect where the Lord has been in their shared journey. The Cardinal thanked the couples for their daily witness to the vocation of marriage, highlighting how this celebration, ‘Is also a witness, a powerful sign of resilient faith and love found in Christian marriage’.

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Westminster Record | Summer 2019

A sacramental way of seeing reality ordinary experiences, we get in touch with God. At key moments in our lives, that experience is particularly intense, and that grace is particularly powerful; there are seven of these moments, fundamental experiences of what it is to be human, or crucial choices we make. We know them as the Seven Sacraments, and this summer’s edition of Westminster Record focuses on several of them. We chronicle activities undertaken by many of our schools in the wake of the Adoremus project, exploring and celebrating the role of the Eucharist at the heart of the Christian life, an experience which will surely bear fruit in the lives of those who took part. We also report on the celebrations of the Sacrament of Matrimony at the joyous Mass for Marriage, reminding us to

Sacraments are not just things the Church does, or has. A sacramental way of seeing reality underpins our whole life, enabling us to meet and experience the living God in our daily lives. God always breaks through; his grace surrounds and bursts in on us. Behind and before you besiege me, as the psalm puts it, and so through everyday and

proclaim and revere the values of married life in our society. There is also a celebration of ordinations, both diaconal and priestly, together with candidacy for Holy Orders; and we must keep these men in our special prayers. Of course, it is the Holy Spirit who renders Sacraments effective, so that in them God happens to us. Thy Kingdom Come is a time of prayer leading up to Pentecost. originating with the Church of England, but warmly supported by the Catholic Church (Pope Francis this year sent a message of support). We report from the culmination of this initiative, in Trafalgar Square, where thousands gave witness to the power of the Holy Spirit in their lives.

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Bishop John Wilson appointed eleventh Archbishop of Southwark

The Holy See announced on 10th June that Pope Francis has appointed Bishop John Wilson as Archbishop of Southwark. Archbishop-elect Wilson succeeds Archbishop Peter Smith, who has been Archbishop of Southwark since 2010. Archishop-elect Wilson, will be the 11th Archbishop of Southwark and his Episcopal Installation will be celebrated in St George’s Cathedral, Southwark, on 25th July. Speaking of his appointment, Archbishop-elect Page 2

Wilson said: ‘Someone once said if you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans. In whatever way I might have imagined God’s plan for my life to unfold, the news of my appointment by Pope Francis as the new Archbishop of Southwark came as a complete surprise. I am grateful to His Excellency Archbishop Edward J Adams, the Apostolic Nuncio, for his encouragement, and for reminding me of C S Lewis’ invitation to be “surprised by joy”. It is the joy of the Gospel, the Good News of God’s love for the world in his Son Jesus Christ, that sustains and animates the Church’s mission in which I am to share in a new way. ‘Aware of my unworthiness and limitations, and with more than a little trepidation, I am grateful to Pope Francis for entrusting me with this new mission in the service of the Lord and his people in the Archdiocese of Southwark. There is so much that is new to me and I know I have much to learn. I rely totally on the Holy Spirit to guide my new ministry of witnessing to the love of God for each person so that we might

be evermore a Church of joyful missionary disciples, alive in Christ, our risen Saviour. ‘Through the great kindness and example of Cardinal Vincent, together with the support of my fellow bishops, and the clergy, religious and lay people of the Diocese of Westminster, I have begun to understand what it means to exercise episcopal ministry. I move to Southwark grateful to the Cardinal for all I have received in Westminster, and not least from the parishes of the western pastoral area and the schools and colleges of the diocese, for which I have had particular oversight. There have been so many blessings for which I thank the Lord sincerely. I also remain indebted to the Diocese of Leeds where I was nurtured as a priest, and to my family and friends for their constant support and encouragement. ‘It is with faith-filled anticipation that I look forward to sharing the Church’s mission with Bishop Patrick Lynch and Bishop Paul Hendricks, and with the priests, deacons, religious and lay people of the

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Archdiocese. Together we step out into the future with confidence, trusting that the Lord is indeed with us. As we deepen our love for him, we will continue to look outwards in the service of our brothers and sisters, not least the weakest and the poorest. ‘The Lord Jesus says to each of us “I call you friends” (Jn 15:15). It is in friendship that I come, a friendship as wide and embracing as the wonderful variety of people and places within the Archdiocese of Southwark, both inside and beyond the Church. ‘My appointment is announced on the feast of Mary, Mother of the Church. May Our Lady, with her heavenly maternal care, pray for everyone in our Archdiocese. May she, the Star of the New Evangelisation, teach us to love Jesus as she loves him so that others too might know his love. ‘Please be sure of my prayers for you and for our journey together in faith, hope, love and joy. And please pray for me as I prepare to begin this new ministry of service as a witness to Jesus Christ.’

Archbishop Smith said: ‘It was with great delight that I received the splendid news that Pope Francis has appointed Bishop John Wilson as the next Archbishop of Southwark. It was nine years ago today that I was installed as the 10th Archbishop of this Archdiocese, and I am pleased to pass on my responsibilities to such a capable successor. The Archdiocese of Southwark has a vibrant and multi-cultural Catholic population to which Bishop John will bring new energy and enthusiasm. I wish him every blessing for his episcopal ministry in Southwark and assure him of my prayers and good wishes.’ Cardinal Vincent said: ‘On behalf of the people, priests and religious of Westminster I assure Archbishop-elect Wilson of our whole-hearted support and prayers as he moves to take up his role as Archbishop of Southwark. We thank him most warmly fort his service in Westminster both as an area bishop and a dedicated part of episcopal oversight of the diocese, especially in education.’

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Protecting intrinsic good of every life

Response to IICSA Report

On 21st June, the Court of Protection ruled that a pregnant woman with disabilities should have an abortion against her wishes. On 24th June, the Court of Appeal overturned this decision. Bishop John Sherrington reflects on the situation.

by Cardinal Vincent Nichols

On Monday 24th June the Court of Appeal overturned the Court of Protection’s initial verdict that a woman, who was 22 weeks pregnant and lived with a ‘moderate to severe’ learning disability, should be forced to have an abortion against her will. Mrs Justice Lieven in the Court of Protection had argued this would be in her ‘best interests’. The mother who wanted to continue her pregnancy, her own mother, her Bishop John presiding at Requiem Mass on 50th anniversary of Abortion Act in 2017 social worker and her legal team argued that the pregnancy continue the pregnancy does not grandchild, argues that the should continue. The final suggest that there is a risk to her forced abortion was not only an judgment is to be welcomed. ‘immense intrusion’ (to use the mental health (a further legal We can rejoice that both the life reason for abortion). The Judge’s words) into their lives of the unborn child has been but also gravely unjust. abortion could pose a greater protected and the mother’s The decision raises many risk to the health of the mother wishes respected. A grave and induce post-traumatic stress questions about the meaning of injustice has been stopped. ‘best interests’. When abortion is as well as the death of the child. The initial judgment by the seen as the ‘solution’ to the Mrs Justice Lieven argued Court of Protection raises a that to give birth to the child and ‘problem’ of pregnancy, it is number of serious concerns. then have the child remain in the likely that many will see this as As the judicial proceedings a solution to a complex family or be fostered would are not available in the public situation. According to such a cause more distress than if the domain at the time of writing, mindset, the problem ‘simply abortion took place. This we must rely on news reports goes away’. On the other hand, overlooks the loss that the for information about what the desire of the mother to mother would feel and the took place. The Court of continue the pregnancy, the trauma of the late abortion Protection became involved birth and the joy of a baby are which could have lasting because the NHS Service caring consequences on her already important factors that only the for the pregnant woman argued fragile and vulnerable mental Court of Appeal sufficiently that she lacked mental capacity well-being. Fortunately, the recognised. and that abortion was the best It is paradoxical that when Court of Appeal recognised the option. They were worried the social narrative is serious harm of this decision. about her psychiatric health dominated by the language of The mother has a learning and that her behaviour could choice and the rights of persons disability. Mrs Justice Lieven pose a risk to the baby (BBC with disability, the initial verdict explained her decision by News 24th June 2019). Such a arguing that the abortion was in went against both of these risk could be mitigated by the factors and argued that a forced her ‘best interests’. She said, ‘I care and support of her family abortion be carried out. think she would like to have a around her. The death of the The debate must continue baby in the same way she child was ignored. about the rights of a mother would like to have a nice doll’. The right of a mother to bear Further, ‘Pregnancy, although living with a disability, the right a child is a human right, and of the unborn child and the real to her, doesn't have a baby that child has the right to life outside her body she can touch.’ limits to the right of the State to and to be brought up in a (Sky news 23th June 2019) These intervene and force an abortion. family. Both these rights were Society needs a moral are both highly disparaging argued by the child’s mother, framework with safeguards to comments. Children, even at a grandmother and her support protect the intrinsic and very early age, can distinguish team. There is no evidence that between a doll and a baby. In incommensurate good of every they would be unable together fact, they have a natural affinity human life, especially the to care for the baby. weakest and the most with babies. Adults with Both the child and the mother learning disabilities are often vulnerable. It is hoped that the are healthy. Aside from the judgment of the Court of the most loving of people and moral questions that this case Appeal will further this aim and can teach us a lot about raises, even the legal reasons for spontaneity, joy and childlike help change minds and hearts abortion, that the continuation of love. The fact that the to care for unborn children and the pregnancy poses a risk to the grandmother, who has cared for their mothers. physical health of the mother or her daughter and probably that the child has the probability knows her best of all and is fully Bishop John Sherrington is the lead of disability, are not present. The supportive of her daughter’s bishop on life issues for England fact that the mother wishes to and Wales. pregnancy and the care of her Follow us on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/diocese.westminster

The Independent Inquiry into Childhood Sexual Abuse (IICSA) Report into the Archdiocese of Birmingham covers a period of 70 years. One of its overall conclusions is that the response of the Archdiocese to the sexual abuse of children was to care more about its reputation and its priests than to respond properly, with care and a focus on justice, to those who had suffered that abuse. This is undoubtedly true. Both the Archdiocese and myself, as Archbishop for nine of those 70 years, have apologised unreservedly. Since 2001, when the Catholic Church in England & Wales adopted the recommendations of Lord Nolan’s independent inquiry including passing on all allegations of abuse immediately to the police to investigate, much has been learned by everyone in the Church, and in our wider society, about the disastrous, long term effects of childhood sexual abuse. As I stated in my evidence to IICSA, 'Abuse shatters the most precious human capacity: the capacity to trust another person. In a victim of abuse that capacity is radically damaged, if not destroyed. It can leave that person's life as no more than a shell of survival, devoid of stable, lasting relationships. Or, where such relationships are achieved, they are fragile and easily broken not least by the resurfacing of horrid memories of childhood abuse'. As bishops we have come to understand these crucial dimensions of the impact of abuse on survivors and are responding to it in significantly different ways. For example, we have established a Survivors' Advisory Panel at national level to help us, as bishops, in our response to those who have suffered and in our continuing efforts to do all we can to ensure that the Catholic Church, in all its activities, is a safe setting for children and for vulnerable adults. The Panel works closely with our National Catholic Safeguarding Council in its current review of all our safeguarding work. Survivors are now at the heart of this work. Follow us on Instagram at: @rcwestminster

At a far more personal level, all the bishops of England and Wales spent three days in May with survivors of sexual abuse, guided by professionals in this work. Over these days the survivors spoke to us directly and with great feeling about their experiences of abuse, their sense of helplessness, of being exploited in their vulnerability, of the heartless manipulation by their abusers who left them, the victims, carrying guilt, shame and the long-term radical isolation that is one of the deep scars of that abuse. We sat and talked, shed tears, ate and prayed together and, gradually, relaxed in each other’s company. At the end of this meeting we said: 'These have been days which have touched every bishop very deeply. We have listened to the deep and lasting confusion, pain and despair, inflicted by the people who abused them. We have listened with horror to the ways in which precious gifts of our faith have been used to groom and dominate both children and vulnerable adults in crimes of abuse. ‘We humbly ask forgiveness of all who carry this pain, for our slowness and defensiveness and for our neglect of both preventative and restorative actions. For us bishops these days are a watershed.' I believe that this marks a new step in the Catholic Church's struggle against this gross evil which has found a home in our Church. We are now working out together the practical consequences of this shared experience at local and national levels and, more importantly, in our personal conversion of heart. There is much to do. First of all, I express my thanks to those survivors who courageously put before us, face to face, their heartache, their wounds. Thank you. The work of IICSA continues. In the autumn its hearings will focus on the present practice of the Catholic Church in England and Wales. We are cooperating fully in this work. I trust that the recommendations which will be formulated by the Inquiry will help us not only reflect on past mistakes but on improving considerably our present and future practice. Page 3

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Mini Vinnies gather to give thanks

On Tuesday 11th June Westminster Cathedral was filled with the vibrant spirit of 800 ‘Mini Vinnie’ children when the St Vincent de Paul Society (SVP) held a Mass to give thanks and celebrate the Mini Vinnies’ talents and voluntary work. Mini Vinnies programme is the youngest of the Young Vincentian Programmes which are run in schools and in parishes around the country. Children, aged 7 to 11, are encouraged to ‘see, think, do’ something about any issue around them in their school, church or community. The apostolates allow children a practical way of expressing their faith, and their concern for their communities. Mini Vinnies travelled from all corners of the country to meet one another, pray together, and worship in the spirit of the Patron Saint of the SVP, St Vincent de Paul. The Mass was celebrated by Bishop Paul McAleenan and the Spiritual Advisor for the SVP Youth Committee, Fr Ged Walsh. The children were involved in the readings, bidding prayers, offertory, altar serving and banner procession. The Mass brought together chaplains, adult volunteer coordinators and members of the SVP staff team. Shell Roca, a sign language interpreter from Westminster Caritas Deaf Service was present. Programme Manager Moira Dawe said, ‘We are delighted that this Mass to mark and give thanks for our Mini Page 4

Vinnies took place. It offered a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the faith and contribution of our children to their communities, and also to give thanks to the adult volunteers who are so vital to that work too. As St Oscar Romero said, it is about planting and watering seeds, knowing, “That they hold future promise.”’ Bishop Paul said, ‘It was an honour for us at Westminster Cathedral to host the young Mini Vinnies who are following in the footsteps of St Vincent de Paul. ‘It was an opportunity to thank them and to acknowledge all they are doing in their own communities. I hope that this gathering and celebration inspired and encouraged the Mini Vinnies to continue to love God and to serve all God’s people, especially those who are most in need.’ Fr Ged said, ‘In the light of Easter and the dawning of Pentecost, it was an absolute joy to celebrate the faith in action of our Mini Vinnies. May the Holy Spirit continue to work through them to bring the light of the Risen Christ to those in most need through good works.’ If you are interested in setting up a Young Vincentian programme in your school, parish or college, please contact the team at youngvincentians@svp.org.uk . Find out more about the SVP at www.svp.org.uk or telephone 02077033030.

Celebration of Priesthood On the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the day of universal prayer for priests, which this year occurred on 28th June, secular priests from every diocese in England and Wales were invited to attend a Mass of celebration of diocesan priesthood in Westminster Cathedral. Welcoming the hundreds of priests who attend the Mass, Cardinal Vincent said: ‘Today is about you, my brother priests, about your faithfulness, your steadfast generosity, your ministry of healing, your

endurance…I thank you for your faithfulness, your generosity, your perseverance. I thank you, as do each of us bishops, and the people of your parishes. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you!’ Each priest received two gifts: A Celebration of the Diocesan Priesthood of England and Wales by Judith Champ, written especially for the day, and a special edition of ‘Meditations and Devotions’ by Blessed John Henry Newman. Newman is, the Cardinal said, ‘soon to be declared a

To read the Cardinal’s homily, please go to//bit.ly/2FEKOns

Remembring Cardinal Hume On Monday 17th June, on the 20th anniversary of the death of Cardinal Basil Hume, Cardinal Vincent, along with a number of bishops and priests, celebrated a Memorial Mass for the late Cardinal. Sharing many memories of the Cardinal Hume, Cardinal Vincent said: ‘What I cherish most about Cardinal Hume is his stature as a man and teacher of prayer. He knew, I know, you know, that only prayer can answer the aching emptiness so often deep in our hearts.’ He thanked the Cardinal Hume Centre for their help in the preparations of Mass and for producing the booklet, which, he said, ‘contains many lovely memories and reflections’. At the end of Mass, bishops, priests and the faithful, processed to the Chapel of St Gregory and St Augustine where Cardinal Hume is buried, for prayers and blessing of the memorial stone.

Blessing of Cardinal Hume’s tomb

Migrants’ Mass: It was the turn of Westminster Cathedral to host the annual Migrants’ Mass, which took place on Monday 6th May, with Bishop Michael Campbell OSA presiding. In his homily, he spoke about the contribution of the international community to making London such a vibrant place. Over 2,000 people were present, many in their national dress with banners, flags and parasols. It was a time to reflect and celebrate the truly multicultural nature of London.

by Anita Boniface

saint, a saint from among us, a priest who served the people of the parish with love and devotion.’ He added: ‘There is so much to learn from the heritage we celebrate today, so much that is deeply written in our priestly DNA. It begins and ends in this love of the Lord. Today let us love him in the depth of our hearts, in our moments of solitude, in time spent alone with him, without which we cannot flourish. Today let us love him in all our efforts to serve a good and holy order in his Body, the Church. Today let us again love him in our readiness to fulfil his mission, given by the Father, to bring this Word of compassion, mercy, forgiveness to our world, especially to his vulnerable brothers and sisters in their moments of need.’ Joining the bishops and priests at this Mass were many of the faithful who came to pray for their priests in thanksgiving for their dedication and service.

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Reflections on the March for Life the USA, the March in London is vibrant, joyful, lively, and youthful; an annual event to look forward to because we can meet Catholics from all over the country, many of whom we might have only ‘met’ online! We congregated at Parliament Square for an energetic and happy celebration of the pro-life message, and after some moving testimonials and stirring speeches, Bishop Keenan of Paisley led everybody in prayer. The struggle against abortion is, at essence, a spiritual battle, which is why the march and other pro-life activities must begin and end with prayer. For, as Jesus said, ‘apart from me you can do nothing’ (Jn 15:5).

Chaldean Catholic Archbishop Bashar M Warda CSsR, Archbishop of Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq, celebrated Mass at Westminster Cathedral on 18th May, during a visit to the UK to meet with government officials. At the end of Mass, he blessed two desecrated artefacts which were found in destroyed churches in Nineveh: a cross from Baqofa and a chalice from Karamles. Both will eventually go to Farm Street Church. Pictured with Archbishop Warda is Fr Dominic Robinson SJ, Parish Priest of Farm Street Church and Ecclesiastical Assistant to Aid to the Church in Need (UK)

London’s 2nd March for Life took place on 11th May this year, and it was preceded by an all-night vigil of prayer and Eucharistic Adoration in the Rosary Shrine. A hundred or so people made this necessary sacrifice of prayer, gathered around Our Lady, the New Eve and true Mother of All who Live. Happily, thousands made the crucial sacrifice the next day to walk with flags, banners, and placards from Church House in Westminster to Parliament Square. Although the March for Life in London is still growing in numbers, I found that it compared favourably to the venerable March for Life in Washington DC which I have attended several times. As in

by Fr Lawrence Lew OP

Hospice give thanks to Fr Paul Chaplain’s vital work A number of parishioners from St Thomas More, Swiss Cottage, gathered at the Marie Curie Hospice, Hampstead. The hospice wanted to thank our Assistant Priest Fr Paul Diaper and present him with a gift for his contribution and commitment to Marie Curie’s Catholic patients, and to acknowledge the prayerful support of parishioners. We were welcomed warmly by Rev Tony Kyriakides, the lead chaplain to the hospice. Jackie Bennett, the hospice manager, gave an overview of the holistic care of patients, which importantly includes the spiritual and pastoral care of the patients and their families. She thanked Fr Paul for what he does for the patients and surprised him by revealing the estimated number of patients he has seen over the years. Fr Paul goes to the hospice every Friday to administer Holy Communion and is on

call for patients nearing the end of their lives. Jackie read out a message from Matthew Reed, the Chief Executive of Marie Curie, who thanked Fr Paul for his great ministry and to the spiritual and religious support he brings to the hospice. Fr Paul was invited to say a few words and spoke about his visits and thanked everyone at Marie Curie for what they do. He quoted St Teresa of Calcutta who said that, in looking after the sick, we also must consider what we gain from those visits. Fr Paul was then presented with a box containing a lovely colourful paper weight which had the Marie Curie signature daffodil inside it. He also received a certificate of appreciation from the hospice. I’m sure all the parishioners of St Thomas More would like to thank Fr Paul also for the way he ministers to everyone at the hospice.

with seafarers

by Veronica O’Farrell

by Greg Watts Last September, Wojciech Holub, Stella Maris, Apostleship of the Sea (AoS) chaplain to the port of Tilbury on the Thames in Essex, provided pastoral support to the crew of the chemical and oil tanker Key Fighter after two seafarers died on board. The two men, a Spaniard and a Filipino, were found unconscious in an empty cargo tank, which they were cleaning, after being exposed to hydrogen sulphide gas. Other members of the crew lifted them out of the tank and performed first aid. The men were airlifted by helicopter to a hospital in Norway, but died a few hours later. Each of the men left behind a wife and two

children. Wojciech boarded the ship when it docked in Erith, on the south shore of the Thames. ‘The crew were terribly distraught and overcome by sadness. One of the dead men was very much a father figure to the crew, while the other was a close friend to several of his crew mates,’ he said. At the request of some of the Filipino crew members, Wojciech blessed the cabins and the cargo hold area. ‘We prayed together, and I encouraged them to speak about their grief. It was very emotional and several of them broke down in tears during our conversations. One of the deceased seafarers had been due to retire and was on his final contract of Follow us on Instagram at: @rcwestminster

employment. He had joked that he would probably die while at sea. It really was his final voyage. Another crew member said he found it particularly difficult to accept the situation because he recently lost his son to an illness and had now lost a very close friend. It was a terrible time for the seafarers, but they were grateful for our presence and reassured by the pastoral support AoS provided.’ Incidents like this rarely make the news, but there are many accidents and deaths at sea each year. According to the most recent figures from the International Maritime Organisation, in 2015/16 there were 206 incidents, 86% serious or very serious. How many injuries and deaths occurred is not known, but in 2012, 1,100 seafarers lost their lives at sea. In the past year, AoS port chaplains around the coast of Britain have dealt with 60 cases where seafarers have been injured or died at sea. Sea Sunday, a universal day of prayer for seafarers, their families and all who support them, is celebrated on 14th July. Page 5

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Our Eucharistic Journey: Our Adoremus Legacy by Elaine Arundell, Primary RE Adviser, Education Service

On Corpus Christi 2018, the Education Service launched Our Eucharistic Journey, a yearlong initiative and a response to Adoremus, the main aim of which was to rejuvenate a great love of the Eucharist in schools and create a long-lasting legacy. The fruits of the initiative have indeed been profound: there has been a vast increase in the frequency of Adoration and Benediction in schools as well as a deeper understanding of the Eucharist, for both staff and pupils. What has been the most appreciated treasure of this initiative, however, is the peace and calm that Christ has brought into every heart that has been open to this Sweet Sacrament. Numerous headteachers have reported that Adoration, which has been introduced or developed as a result of this

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initiative, has allowed pupils as well as staff to simply ‘be’ and experience Christ’s healing and peace. Headteacher Sarah Alley commented: ‘There was a real sense of awe and wonder which swept over the school. It was a wonderful feeling! Christ brought calm to our busy lives.’ Pupils’ responses have been overwhelming about their growing relationship with Our Blessed Lord as well as their developing prayer life: Mapel from St Vincent de Paul, Westminster, wrote, ‘When I went to Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament I felt as if Jesus was talking to me when the monstrance passed by, as I prayed.’ Hannah, a pupil from St Mary of the Angels said, ‘I felt that Jesus and Mary were in the room with me and I could see Jesus in my mind. I like that it made me feel that I wasn't alone

and that someone is always there for me.’ Tony from the same school affirmed that he ‘felt calm and back in God's arms again.’ Eucharistic worship has been strengthened, not only in individual schools, but also in deaneries. A walk took place in spring for Year Six pupils from every school in the Kensington and Chelsea Deanery which culminated in a beautiful service in Westminster Cathedral. Anthony Jeffery, the RE Lead at St Philip’s Prep reflected on this: ‘For those of us there it was a tremendously moving occasion and one which made a deep impression on all the children and adults alike. To have time before Our Eucharistic Lord at the start of Lent in such beautiful surroundings brought to mind the words of St Peter to Jesus, seeing him transfigured: ‘Lord, it is good that we are here’ (Matt 7:14). We all certainly felt that.’ In Lea Valley Deanery, a primary retreat day was held for all Pupil Leaders in RE during which members reflected on the meaning of the Eucharist through music, song, activities and worship. The feedback, once again, was positive. A pupil from Lea Valley said: ‘Mr O'Connell

spoke to us about how we are all special. I felt very special when he said that if I was the only person on earth, Jesus would still have come to save me.’ Another group of Pupil Leaders at St Charles Primary in Kensington and Chelsea have composed a prayer to the Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the first one of its kind. It has clear links to Corpus Christi which marked the beginning and end of this special year, as well as to our unique cathedral which is dedicated to the Precious Blood. Throughout the year, the Education Service has been

working in partnership with diocesan schools, clergy, Evangelisation, Caritas Westminster and the cathedral to create materials and resources for this initiative and beyond. These can be found at https://education.rcdow.org.u k/re-catholic-life/adoremus/ It is hoped that these resources will continue to inspire all members of our schools and parishes on their own personal Eucharistic journey so that restless yearnings cease and hearts will continue to find their home and true peace in Our Lord Jesus Christ.

‘Our Eucharistic Journey’ Mass

On Tuesday 18th June representatives from 14 diocesan schools joined Cardinal Vincent at Westminster Cathedral for a celebration of Mass, ending the year-long ‘Our Eucharistic Journey’ initiative, the diocesan response to Adoremus. Throughout the year, pupils created images on the theme of the Eucharist, which were organised in deanery folders and presented to Cardinal Vincent during the Mass. The folders were put on display after Mass in Vaughan House where ArchbishopElect John Wilson came to inspect the fruits of the pupils’ creativity. Cardinal Vincent based his homily on some much-loved Eucharistic hymns, asking the pupils to join him in recalling the words of these hymns. Jon White, Headteacher of St Vincent de Paul Primary

School in Stevenage, said afterwards: ‘It was lovely how His Eminence focused so carefully on the words of ‘Sweet Sacrament Divine’. As a school, we are also now committed to learning Bread of Life. How beautiful!’ Reflecting the sentiments of a number of other schools who also wrote in to thank the Education Service for organising the Mass, he added: ‘It was powerful to feel on pilgrimage today as a deanery, having travelled together we ended with a photo on the steps of the cathedral and really felt “at home” in the words of Cardinal Vincent.’ The Mass was truly a celebration that brought together diocesan schools from all across London in appreciation of the ‘treasure’ of this great Sacrament in the hearts of pupils, staff and parents alike.

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Corpus Christi: Sweet Sacrament Divine Quarant’Ore, also known as forty hours of devotion, took place at Westminster Cathedral during the week leading to Corpus Christi. From the 5.30pm Mass on 18th June until the closing Mass and Blessed Sacrament Procession on 20th June at 5.30pm, there was continuous Adoration. The cathedral remained open throughout the night and all were encouraged to take the opportunity to come and spend time in prayer before the Lord. Following the procession, Benediction was given in front of the cathedral, with the faithful kneeling in Adoration on the steps and in the piazza.

For the first time in many years, a Blessed Sacrament Procession took place in Whitechapel this year at Corpus Christi. Parishioners of St Anne’s and a number of groups from the Brazilian Chaplaincy worked together to design a carpet for the aisle to create a fitting route for the Blessed Sacrament from the sanctuary of the church. Parish Priest and Principal Brazilian Chaplain Fr Paulo Bagini led the procession through the streets around the church, taking the Lord out to the local community.

Cardinal Francis Arinze celebrated a Pontifical High Mass in the Extraordinary Form on Thursday 20th June at the Blessed Sacrament Shrine, at Corpus Christi Church, Maiden Lane. The Mass opened the parish’s annual Quarant’Ore and the Blessed Sacrament was exposed from the end of the Mass until midnight. Following Mass on Sunday 23rd June, Fr Alan Robinson, Rector of the Shrine, led the Corpus Christi Procession around Covent Garden.

Five members of the same class of the Sacred Heart School, Ruislip, came to St Gregory the Great, South Ruislip, to celebrate the 70th anniversary of their First Holy Communion which took place at the Church of the Most Sacred Heart, Ruislip. They are pictured, left, with Parish Priest Mgr Canon Paul McGinn, with one holding a group photo of their First Holy Communion (far left).

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Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Dedication of the Altar at Farm Street Church

The Solemn Mass of Dedication of the new altar at the Jesuit Church of the Immaculate Conception, Farm Street, was celebrated by Bishop Nicholas Hudson, on Wednesday 19th June 2019. The new altar enhances the beauty of the church as well as enable, for the first time in many years, the recently restored nineteenth-century

Pugin high altar to be visible from all parts of the church. The new altar is made from a fine white marble which was quarried at Carrara in Northern Tuscany. These famous quarries, dating back to the Roman Empire, are perhaps best known for having supplied marble to Michelangelo for his stone sculptures. The church commissioned Paul Jakeman of

Paul Jakeman Stonecarving, London, one of the country's respected ecclesiastical stone carvers, to decorate its new altar. Farm Street Church opened its doors in 1849 as the Jesuits’ flagship London church. At the heart of contemporary London, Farm Street is now a place of welcome and hospitality to all, with a focus on service to the disadvantaged, especially the homeless and refugees. The church itself is well decorated with both historic and contemporary religious paintings and sculptures, using the arts as a means to enliven faith. The new altar will serve to support this mission. During his homily Bishop Nicholas reflected on the importance of the altar in our lives, 'We gather faithfully around this stone altar not simply to celebrate our communion with Christ but to receive the food we need to become living stones which announce Christ beyond the confines of this place. We consecrate the bread and wine

DECREE CONCERNING THE MERGER OF THE PARISHES OF OUR LADY OF GRACE & ST EDWARD (CHISWICK) AND ST DUNSTAN (GUNNERSBURY) Following consultation with the Council of Priests in accordance with Canon 515 §2, and conscious of the views expressed by the lay faithful of the above named Parishes, I, Vincent Cardinal Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, have determined that the spiritual welfare and pastoral needs of the faithful of the parish of Our Lady of Grace & St Edward, and of the faithful of the parish of St Dunstan, will be better served by merging these two parishes into one new parish. Therefore, I hereby decree that the Parish of Our Lady of Grace & St Edward and the Parish of St Dunstan are united to form a new parish. The ecclesiastical goods and patrimonial rights of the former Parish of Our Lady of Grace & St Edward, and of the former Parish of St Dunstan, together with their respective obligations, in accordance with Canons 121-122, are ceded to the newly erected parish. Respecting archival evidence attesting that when the former Parish of St Dunstan was first erected its territory came largely from the former Parish of Our Lady of Grace & St Edward, the name of the newly erected parish shall be ‘Our Lady of Grace & St Edward, Chiswick’. The territorial boundaries of the new parish shall be the combined boundaries of the former Parish of Our Lady of Grace & St Edward, and the former Parish of St Dunstan. I designate the Church of Our Lady of Grace & St Edward as the Parish Church. This Decree, to be published in the Westminster Record, shall be effective from 1 July 2019 and shall be communicated to the parishioners at the earliest opportunity. Given this 17th day of June, 2019 at Westminster. Archbishop of Westminster Page 8

in order that the world might be consecrated to Christ and that we might consecrate the world to him. Yes, we are a temple of people but only so that we might become living temples ourselves.' Speaking to the regular parishioners, he added: 'For all

of you who worship here regularly, I hope that all the allusions, prayers, supplications, symbols and images of this celebration will continue to resonate with you as you return faithfully, many of you daily, to this place, “Ever toward this place”.’

Missionaries of Sacred Heart to bid farewell to St Albans Parish On Pentecost Sunday, Fr Carl Tranter MSC, Provincial of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart, visited St Alban and St Stephen to announce the sad news that the Order would be withdrawing from the parish, following the retirement or death of a number of the MSC community in recent years. The following is an abridged version of his message. With deep regret we have decided to hand the parish back to the pastoral care of the Diocese of Westminster later this year. Like many Religious Congregations in Europe, we are currently experiencing a period of rapid decline and diminishment in the Irish Province of the MSC. Sadly, the reality is that we simply do not have the personnel to provide continued ministry here in St Albans. We began our service in St Albans 120 years ago, in 1899, at the initiative of our Founder, Fr Jules Chevalier, and it is our longest serving place of mission in England and Ireland. It has been a graced place to live and minister for successive generations of Missionaries of the Sacred Heart. It has been and is a wonderfully alive, passionate and committed parish and it has been a privilege to be part of the joys, struggle, growth and development of the Catholic community here for the last 120 years, a time which has seen enormous changes in our country and Church as well as in this city and the parish. Together as MSCs and parishioners many generations have lived and celebrated their faith here through the best of times and the worst of times, including two world wars, and despite challenges and failures along the way, I know we have

all sought to be authentic and credible witnesses to Christ and his Church here in St Albans. On this day of Pentecost especially, however, we are reminded that the Church is Christ’s, assured and animated by his Spirit. It is not the possession of any one of us. The parish of St Albans does not belong to the MSCs; we are simply missionaries, those who like the disciples have been sent by the Lord to serve. For us as MSCs our special missionary mandate is to give witness to a God who loves us with a human heart in the person of Jesus Christ. We have had the joy, honour and privilege of serving that mission here for 120 years. Now it is time for others to be sent and to continue that service. I know there will be many among you who are saddened by this decision, as also there will be many MSCs. There will be ample occasion over the coming months to give thanks to God and to one another for the experience and memories of our shared Christian pilgrimage together over the last 120 years. Thank you for the many ways in which you have welcomed, supported and worked with successive MSCs over the years, and thank you for continuing to work in close partnership with Frs TJ, Jimmy and Alan over the coming months as we prepare for September’s handover. May the Holy Spirit, who empowers us all to live fully and boldly our faith, continue to abide in and inspire the local Church here in St Albans now and in the years to come. With effect from September, Fr Michael O’Boy has been appointed Parish Priest and Fr Julian Davies (to be ordained on 27th July) Assistant Priest.

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Launch of Blessed Family Academy Trust Launch of the first new Catholic Academy Trust in the Diocese of Westminster As spring heralds change and renewal the message from four schools in Harrow in May was also about change as they become academies. In line with the approval of and direction from the Trustees of the Diocese of Westminster St John Fisher Catholic Primary School, St George’s Catholic Primary School, St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School and the Sacred Heart Language College are joining together to form the Blessed Holy Family Catholic Academy Trust. Their governors have agreed that by coming together they can protect, secure and develop the Church’s mission in education. Some academy trusts are in the process of being extended across the diocese but the creation of the Blessed Holy Family Trust is the first to evolve in response to the diocesan wish to create local families of schools. On 1st May Bishop John Wilson, Chair of the Education Commission, in his address to pupils, parents, staff and governors from the four schools at their celebration Mass called this a ‘momentous occasion’,

describing the creation of the trust as a work of love to strengthen and secure Catholic education. Concelebrating with Bishop John were Fr Frank Waters and Fr Paul Harris from St Joseph’s Church, Wealdstone who have been great supporters of the work of Catholic education locally. Bishop John was keen to point out that ‘each school retains its distinctive identity, while now also belonging to something greater: to a family of schools.’ Reflecting on the meaning of Catholic education, he added: ‘As history shows us, Catholic education does not happen by chance. It requires the sustained effort and commitment of so many people to ensure that this work of love, so integral to the mission of Christ’s Church, serves our young people, their families and their local communities.’ The move is in line with diocesan strategy and policy approved in 2016 heralding the move to academisation across its schools. JP Morrison, Director for Education, said: ‘I am delighted that the Catholic family of schools in Harrow have established a new

Catholic Academy Trust. This is an exciting opportunity for our schools to do more with each other and for each other. It will continue to ensure that Catholic education in Harrow develops further partnerships and benefits for pupils and staff alike.’ James Coyle, the Chair of the newly-formed Trust, spoke about the commitment of the governing bodies to make a difference to the families they serve in the local community and their willingness to come together for the good of Catholic education. This marks a significant move towards realising the Trust’s vision to present to the

Catholic community in Harrow a joined-up offer of education for their children from nursery to preuniversity.

Geraldine Higgins, as the new CEO of the Trust, spoke on behalf of the headteachers about how fitting it is that the Trust is named the Blessed Holy Family because that is what they are striving to emulate: a family of schools with love, service and faith at its heart. She said: ‘As a group of headteachers we are excited by the chance to create something new and special that will have a direct impact on the success of our pupils today and for future generations in the foundations that we build.’ The headteachers collaborating in the Trust are Deirdre Monaghan at St George’s, Maria Conlon at St John Fisher, Christopher Briggs at St Joseph’s and Geraldine Higgins at Sacred Heart.

Celebrating 140 years of Catholic education at St Aloysius College Past and present students, staff and parents gathered at St Joseph’s Highgate to give thanks on the 140th anniversary of St Aloysius College at a Mass celebrated by Bishop Nicholas Hudson. The school was founded in 1879 by the Brothers of Our Lady of Mercy on the site in Hornsey Lane, Highgate, where the current school stands. Over the years, the school has undergone many transformations, from an independent school to a Voluntary Aided Grammar and then a Voluntary Aided Comprehensive. Among its alumni are Archbishop of Liverpool Malcolm McMahon, Archbishop of Cardiff George Stack and Emeritus Bishop of Middlesbrough John Crowley.

Speaking of the school’s patron saint, St Aloysius Gonzaga, as a ‘true hero’, Bishop Nicholas said: ‘It happens in every generation that there rise up young people who are shining examples of Christianity.’ St Aloysius showed ‘extraordinary courage’, asking to look after victims of the plague, which became the cause

of his own death at age 23. Because of his heroic courage, ‘we’re still talking about him five centuries later,’ said Bishop Nicholas. Like St Aloysius, Bl Piergiorgio Frassati was a young man who ‘lived out radically Jesus’s command, that you must love God and your neighbour; and that you must love your neighbour as yourself. These two young men were shining examples in their time.’ ‘The question is,’ asked Bishop Nicholas of the students, ‘who will be the shining examples of the twenty-first century? Could it be someone you know; or could it even be you?’ Mass was followed by a reception in the school main hall.

Bart, the St Benedict’s therapy dog St Benedict’s, Ealing, has introduced a therapy dog to the school, to help pupils with exam nerves. Bart, a very friendly sevenyear-old Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen, has taken up residence at St Benedict's School in Ealing, where he is more than happy to meet pupils of all ages, at break, at lunchtime, and whenever they have a spare five minutes to come in and say hello. Bart is proving very popular and is doing a great job in calming exam nerves, which seems to confirm Sir Anthony Seldon’s view that ‘every school should have a dog or another Follow us on Instagram at: @rcwestminster

pet to reduce stress.’ The University of Buckingham vicechancellor said: ‘The evidence is very clear that it works, and every single school, primary, secondary, special, should have dogs.’ The Education Secretary Damian Hinds has noted that more schools seem to have ‘wellbeing dogs’: ‘At first I was a bit surprised, but actually it's a great thing,’ although, he added, that there were no plans for a ‘central dog policy’. Alfie, who is in Year 7 at St Benedict’s, said: ‘I really like coming in to see Bart, even though my exams finished two weeks ago!’ Page 9

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Escape from the Tower The guard who had borne their messages Fr Gerard did not wish to suffer. So Fr Gerard left the guard a letter telling him of a safe house to which he should flee and where he would receive an annual salary. The guard lived to tell the tale, enjoying a ripe old age. ‘Next time you pass the Tower,’ Bishop Nicholas told the children, ‘look up at the Salt Tower, it’s the one nearest to the Bridge, and say a prayer of thanks to God for the courage of Fr John Gerard and so many priests who risked their lives in order that Catholics might continue to celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. We would not be here without them.’

Fr John Gerard’s dramatic escape from the Tower of London was the story told by Bishop Nicholas Hudson to celebrate the English Martyrs School’s 50 years at Tower Hill. The children were captivated to hear how Fr John Gerard, imprisoned in the Salt Tower, used orange juice to pen an invisible message to a fellow-prisoner: invisible till the paper was held over a fire! The two prisoners sent a similar invisible message to friends whom they persuaded to come alongside the Tower in a boat, throw up an iron ball attached to a rope which they caught and tethered to the battlements to enable them to slide down from the Tower onto the boat and to their freedom.

Cardinal Newman Canonisation

Pope Francis will canonise Blessed John Henry Newman in St Peter’s Square on Sunday 13th October 2019. Cardinal Newman is the first English person who has lived since the 17th century to be officially recognised as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church. Pope Benedict XVI declared him Blessed in Cofton Park near Birmingham in September 2010, as part of his historic visit to Britain.

Record number of Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards for St Benedict’s Pupils

Pupils from St Benedict’s School, Ealing have achieved a record number of Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards this year. On 1st May 2019, 192 awards were handed out in a ceremony attended by the Mayor of Ealing, Councillor Tejinder Singh Dhami. The scheme is open to pupils from Year 9 onwards and encourages students to participate in increasingly challenging expeditions to achieve either a Bronze, Silver or Gold Award. Each award takes pupils out of their comfort zone, teaching them map reading skills as they trek with heavy backpacks and camp out over several nights. The Gold Award expedition takes place on the mountains of Snowdonia, Wales. Aside from outward bound pursuits, pupils are also encouraged to engage in extraPage 10

curricular activities such as music and sport, and volunteer in their local communities. At the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award presentation evening, St Benedict's Headmaster, Andrew Johnson, said: ‘I am delighted that more and more of our pupils are undertaking and completing Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards, which provide excellent opportunities for developing independence, self-reliance, resilience and team-work, as well as encouraging pupils to develop their talents and be of service to others.’ Two Gold Award holders, Phoebe Daly-Jones and Cerys Edwards (Year 13), told the audience about their D of E Gold experience. Each said that the residential and voluntary work element of the award had made them more confident when meeting and working with new

people. Valentina Elner-Kupcha (Year 12) talked about her Silver award expedition, describing trials and tribulations such as walking through a field of bulls! Musical entertainment was provided by pupils who had developed their musical talent as part of the awards’ skills component. Alex Dupuy (Year 13) played a piano improvisation inspired by Debussy and there was a jazz performance from Gregor Brindle, Joshua Macdonald and Jem Mawer (all in year 10). Whilst presenting the pupils’ certificates, the Mayor of Ealing congratulated everyone for their success and praised the scheme for its wide-ranging challenges. Later this year, the Gold award holders will go to Buckingham Palace to receive their awards formally from HRH Prince Edward.

Runners up awards for St Augustine’s Priory Farm St Augustine’s Priory Farm has received runners up awards in the Schools Farm Network awards, for Student Farmer of the Year and School Farm Environmental Impact. Many are surprised to find the 13-acre Priory Farm just off the busy and complex Hanger Lane, Ealing. Launched in 2017 as part of British Science Week, the farm incorporates allotments, chickens, micro-pigs and an endangered variety of sheep. Sheep are rotated around the grounds reducing the need for using lawn mowers; pigs’ ‘black gold’ becomes manure in their allotment where pupils, parents and staff grow vegetables; wool from the sheep deters slugs and snails;

apples are collected from the grounds to be given to families or pressed into juice to be sold. Students are encouraged to play an active role in the dayto-day running of Priory Farm, including weekends and holidays. In the two years it has been running, the incidence of illness at the farm has been incredibly low. A great deal of this is due to the care and diligence of the pupil farm managers. There are now more than 116 school farms in the UK; St Augustine’s Priory is one of the very few London schools with a farm. St Augustine’s Priory welcomes visits from schools in the area who will enjoy an experience rare for London school children.

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

A church in celebration in Harrow-on-the-Hill

On 4th May 1894, sixteen priests from the diocese together with representatives from church associations, parishioners and dignitaries from the Harrow, including the Mayor of Harrow, accompanied by the 9th Middlesex RVC Brass Band witnessed the formal laying of the foundation stone at the Church of Our Lady & St Thomas of Canterbury, Harrow-on-the-Hill by Cardinal Vaughan, thenArchbishop of Westminster.

In 2017 the church’s current Parish Priest, Fr Guy Sawyer set out on a mission to mark in May 2019 the 125th anniversary of the laying of that foundation stone. He approached the parishioners and diocesan Art and Architecture Committee for their permission to redecorate the church inside and out, and to reorder the sanctuary. Permission was granted and in the autumn of 2018 work commenced on restoring sections of the church’s leaded

roof, the external painting of the church and the installation of a new church boiler. Following on from that, lighting and sound engineers moved into the church as did decorators, stone masons and carpenters who immediately set about the reordering of the sanctuary and the restoration of the church interior. On Friday, 24th May 2019, with the reordering of church sanctuary nearly complete, Bishop John Sherrington, together with Fr Guy Sawyer, Canon Brian O’Shea, Mgr Phelim Rowland, Canon Robert Plourde, Canon Michael Brockie, Canon Michael Munnelly and Mgr Vincent Brady, celebrated Mass and blessed the church’s new baptismal font and ambo. After the blessing, Bishop John processed to the back of the church where he blessed a newly-hung icon of St George, Patron Saint of England and of the Scout Movement, in memory of Bernard Brickell who founded the parish’s 17th

scout group in 1924 and of Frederick Clifford and Lawrence Philpot who followed in his footsteps and who upheld, for many years, the great traditions of the Scout Movement. Their wives, Rosemary Clifford and Maureen Philpot attended the blessing. On Sunday, 23rd June 2019 with the reordering of the sanctuary complete Cardinal Vincent consecrated the new altar into which he placed the

relics of St Thomas of Canterbury and St Edmund of Canterbury, which were then immediately sealed into the altar. After the consecration, the parish family gathered socially with the Cardinal; it was, ‘a church in celebration’. The church had been suitably enhanced for the benefit of all, both young and old, and for the greater glory of God, Our Father in heaven.

by Maurice Garvie

150 years of nurturing the faith in Sunbury-on-Thames Saving our common home On 19 May 2019, Cardinal th

Vincent visited St Ignatius of Loyola Church in Sudbury-onThames, Surrey, to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the opening of the church. More than 300 people crowded into the church to mark the anniversary of Cardinal Manning’s inaugural Mass on 23rd May 1869. Cardinal Vincent described the occasion as a ‘really lovely and special moment’ for all those in the parish. The Cardinal told the congregation: ‘We stand in a long line of people who have come here to nurture and express their faith in God who loves us’. That ‘line of people’ extends right back to the 1840s, when the first Catholic school was established in Sunbury. He said that, ‘In a school the living stones of the Church are preformed and those living stones will take care of the building of the church’. The first Catholic school in Sunbury was a converted stable, used as a place of education during the

week and of worship on weekends. Most Catholics in the area had fled the Irish Potato Famine and settled in Sunbury for farm work. The foundations of the church were dug out in 1868 by parishioners themselves, many toiling after putting in a full day’s paid work elsewhere. As most parishioners were poor, labour was their contribution. Cardinal Vincent recognised their contribution: ‘The church was built by men who came

and did it after their day’s work because they wanted a permanent expression of their faith and a dignified place where people would come to worship and put their lives before God and draw the nurture we all need.’ At the end of Mass Parish Priest Father Michael Tuck thanked the Cardinal for his presence and congratulated him on having served ten years as Archbishop of Westminster.

On Sunday 19th May, Canon Gerard King presided at the first Creation Celebration Mass in the diocese at St Joan of Arc, Highbury. The new Director of CAFOD, Christine Allen, was in the packed congregation and afterwards spoke about her vision for CAFOD and the Our Common Home campaign which is CAFOD’s response to the urgent clarion call of Pope Francis in Laudato Si’. The Pope named the refusal to acknowledge the sinfulness of continuing to exploit, pollute, and destroy the natural environment without regard for the needs of the poor, as sins equal to violence and theft. Laudato Si’ had a notable impact on the world’s governments at the Paris conference, which marked a commitment to combatting global warming. Now CAFOD is working to put pressure on the British Government to commit itself to accepting the target of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045. Follow us on Instagram at: @rcwestminster

Almost 200 parishioners in Highbury signed a petition urging this action which, if taken globally, will limit the rise to 1.5 ºC above pre-industrial temperatures. It is hoped that the debate and dialogue will progress in all parishes and it is already well under way in Highbury, led by Cindy McCormac, Becky Littlewood and Francesca Mansi. CAFOD diocesan coordinator Tony Sheen, said ‘Thank you to all at St Joan of Arc for being the first parish in the diocese to hold a Creation Celebration and organise the Our Common Home petition. We hope many other parishes will do the same in the coming months.’ For further information, please call 0208-449-6970, email westminster@cafod.org.uk or visit https://cafod.org.uk/Campaign/Clim ate/Climate-Change Page 11

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Permanent deacons give witness to service

‘Allow Holy Spirit to shape your life’ Bishop John, in his homily, invited the men to take St Bede as their example: 'The life of Bede reminds us of the need for contemplation in the midst of a busy apostolic life.' 'Bede also teaches us two important aspects about life,' he added, 'one about death, the other about gladness. As priests, we spend many hours at death beds. It is always a precious moment and people will forgive you many faults if you make the effort to go to the hospital, to be at the bedside, and say the prayers of the dying and offer consolation. He also teaches us

by Deacon Anthony Clark

to be men of gratitude and at the end of each day to sift out under the gaze of the Holy Spirit the gladness in the day and give thanks to God for it. All is sheer gift!' He enjoined the men to listen to the prompts of the Holy Spirit: 'As you are admitted as candidates for your dioceses, allow the Holy Spirit to shape your life "in mind and spirit to give faithful service to Christ the Lord and his body, the Church."' Please pray for these men as they continue their formation for the priesthood.

An engagement with the Lord Looking forward in hope and anticipation by Matteo Di Giuseppi I consider becoming a candidate for Holy orders a real gift from God and also a sign of his faithfulness towards me. It is also recognition from Mother Church of the genuineness of God’s calling in my life. I have, therefore, the guarantee that both God and the Church will guide me with greater care in this journey towards priesthood. On my side, I am experiencing the love of God which urges me to love him back by putting all my skills and gifts, those which he entrusted to me, at the service of the Church. For me, to receive candidacy means to enter into an engagement with the Lord and the Church which is also expressed by wearing the clerical collar, an exterior sign, which is similar to the engagement ring that is exchanged by a man and a woman preparing for marriage. Today, to know that the Lord has accepted me despite all my fragilities is Good News for me. He is the rock on which I am called to build my house, so that I may become a shelter and a help for all people who are in need of a shepherd. This is a time for me to enter into a deeper intimacy with the Lord so that this house which is his temple may become a holy temple, so that this inner reality may be expressed exteriorly, not only Page 12

by Tim Mangatal by the collar I will be wearing, but also in deeds and words. Candidacy for me is a privileged way of being a witness to the love of God, by reflecting how I have been loved by Jesus Christ, who gave me his life when I did not have one, when my life had already lost its meaning. It was then that the Lord called me, and offered my life a new and wonderful meaning and direction which I could never have thought of before. He was calling me to serve him and the Church through the priesthood. It is only out of love and gratitude to Christ and the Church, who has always been ready to support me and guide me in the Christian life, that on the 25th May in the presence of Bishop John Sherrington, the formation team of Allen Hall Seminary and Redemptoris Mater House of Formation, my brother seminarians, my family and my Neocatechumenal community and other members of the Church, I was able to say ‘yes’ and indicate my willingness to continue my journey towards priesthood. Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity to ask all the brothers and sisters in the Diocese of Westminster to pray for me so that the will of God, and not mine, may be fulfilled in me.

Becoming a candidate for Holy Orders has sharpened my focus on Christ and has granted me both encouragement and reassurance that I am where God wants me to be. I have certainly matured both spiritually and humanly since I started my formation to be a priest in 2014. My admission to Candidacy on 25th May (also my birthday) brings much joy and excitement as the reality of being ordained draws ever closer. My relationship with the Lord has become more intimate over the last five years. It is something that requires patience, fidelity and perseverance, values and virtues that can often be

difficult to attain in a world which promotes instant gratification, infidelity and the culture of constant change. Faith in God needs to be nurtured in order for it to grow and flourish. This I truly believe can only happen by prayer and the sacraments, in particular the Mass and a readiness to admit one’s own shortcomings and seek forgiveness and absolution, available by God’s infinite mercy in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. At the heart of this sacrament is humility, a virtue in which Christ clothed himself and I, for my part, am trying to do. I have much to learn, not least academically but also humanly, spiritually and pastorally. My varied pastoral

placements over the last few years have proven to be vital to my training as a future priest and I am very thankful to have been given such formative opportunities. The lay faithful, who, God willing I will serve one day, deserve the very best of their priests. Many look to them as men called by God and the dignity of this vocation and office must be upheld at all times. Although there are challenging moments along the way in formation, it is the best decision I have ever made and can sincerely say that I have no regrets and now look forward in hope and anticipation to being ordained for the Diocese of Westminster. On Wednesday 19th June, some of our Jubilarians joined Cardinal Vincent, himself a Jubilarian this year, and Bishops John Sherrington and Nicholas Hudson to celebrate Mass in thanksgiving for 25 and 50 years of priesthood. Pictured front row from left: Fr Francis AntwiDarkwah, Fr Dominic McKenna, Cardinal Vincent, Fr Desmond Baker and Fr Richard Harris; back row from left: Bishop Nicholas Hudson, Canon Shaun Lennard, Mgr Vladimir Felzmann, Bishop John Sherrington, Fr Richard de Lord.

In a joyful ceremony at Westminster Cathedral on Saturday 22nd June, the Cardinal ordained five men to the permanent diaconate. Four of the men are married with children while the fifth, Deacon William Lo from Stonebridge Parish, is single and will now remain so. The others are Deacon Ian Coleman from New Southgate, Deacon Joseph Estorninho from St Margarets-on-Thames, Deacon Andrew Goodall from Northfields and Deacon Wayne O’Reilly from Fulham. Their wives presented their dalmatics, the vestment of a deacon, at the moment of vesting in the course of the ceremony. Referring to these dalmatics the Cardinal said: ‘The vestments of the deacon point to the witness he is to give to service. It is this he brings to the altar when vested, just as the priest and bishop, with their distinctive vestments, witness to prayer, sacrifice and holy order as characteristics of the Christian life.’ He made the further point that there is more to being a deacon than wearing a dalmatic: ‘Personal holiness should always accompany sacred office. Indeed what goes on in a person’s heart is more important than the vestments he wears.’

The feast day on the day of ordination was that of St John Fisher and St Thomas More. On display in the centre aisle of the cathedral was the body of St John Southworth, one of the Forty Martyrs and one of the patron saints of the diocese. The Cardinal mentioned the robes of bishop and chancellor that St John Fisher and St Thomas More wore respectively, the robes of high office: ‘They were stripped of them at the moment of their martyrdom. Then their inner life was laid bare before the world. This was their witness: wholeness of life and trust in God’s mercy.’ He emphasised that every deacon, as every Christian, should witness to these virtues.

The newly-ordained deacons will continue in their regular day jobs, earning a wage to support themselves and their families. They will serve in the parishes in a special way, reading the Gospel, preaching, and being involved with initiatives of service and support. For example, Deacon Joseph will be helping young offenders at Feltham. Following the ordination, in a toast to the newly-ordained deacons, the Cardinal also thanked Deacon Don Hopkins for his time as an Assistant Director of the deacons in Westminster. Deacon Don is stepping down and his role is being taken on by Deacon Tony Barter. May God bless our new deacons and their families.

On Saturday 25th May, Tim Mangatal and Matteo di Giuseppe from Westminster and Anthony Asomugha from East Anglia were admitted to Candidacy during a Mass celebrated by Bishop John Sherrington at Allen Hall on the Memorial of St Bede the Venerable. The admission to Candidacy is a public statement of intent, on their part to go forward for ordination. It is also an acceptance by the Church of this desire, and a formal recognition of the journey towards the priesthood.

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

L-R with Cardinal Vincent: Deacons Joseph Estorninho, William Lo, Ian Coleman, Andrew Goodall and Wayne O’Reilly

‘Faith is the beacon that will guide your ministry’ Three men were ordained to the diaconate for the diocese on Saturday 15th June by Archbishop-elect John Wilson, in one of his last functions as Auxiliary Bishop of Westminster. Axcel Soriano, David Knight and Adam Dora (pictured left to right) will now serve and teach the people of God while they continue their formation for the priesthood in Allen Hall Seminary.

In his homily, Archbishopelect John urged the candidates to be awake, dressed and ready for action, drawing on the Gospel reading the men had chosen for the occasion (Luke 12:35-44): ‘See that you are dressed for action and have your lamps lit. Be like men waiting for their master to return from the wedding feast, ready to open the door as soon as he comes and knocks. Happy those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes.’ Elaborating on this theme, he instructed the candidates that faith is the beacon that will guide their ministry, that it must 'shine through everything you are, everything you say, and everything you

do.' Through promises of celibacy and obedience, these men may be ever more ready to serve God and his people, through their teaching and devotion; loving 'without limitation.' ‘Receive the Gospel of Christ, whose herald you now are. ‘Believe what you read, teach what you believe, and practice what you teach. Please pray for Adam, David and Axcel as they undertake their new ministry and continue their formation for the priesthood, and for Archbishop-Elect John as he prepares for his new role as Archbishop of Southwark. The full homily is available at http://bit.ly/2Jmkwro

Fr Chinedu serving as a deacon at Mass shortly before his ordination.

Fr Chinedu Enuh CM: Reasons to give thanks by Canon Stuart Wilson, Vocations Promoter A lot of bonds are made in silence. In seminary life you spend many hours in silence in the chapel whilst, all around you, others are doing the same. For the last year behind me in Allen Hall Seminary chapel sat Deacon Chinedu. He was a Vincentian brother in formation for the priesthood. As a deacon he had a special responsibility every other week of giving us a short one-minute reflection on the Mass readings of the day. When he invited me to his ordination, I decided to go to honour this bond that had been made. Rev Chinedu was to be ordained in the Church of the Sacred Heart and Mary Immaculate in Mill Hill, the home of the Vincentian Order in our diocese. The church was full of people from so many places. Pride of place was given to Rev Chinedu’s proud parents who were making their first visit to the UK from Nigeria. His brother priests from the Vincentian Order were there as were a good number of priests from our diocese, a sign that Rev Chinedu is held in warm regard by so many. Celebrating the Mass was Bishop John Sherrington. At the end of Mass, Bishop John revealed a secret. He told Fr Chinedu (and all of us) that this was the first time he has ordained a priest. Thinking back, we should have guessed it. Bishop John preached an

excellent homily and performed the ordination ceremonies with a care and a love which touched everyone. He had told us that he had many special links in his life with the Vincentian community but I think it was the emotion of ordaining his first priest which touched us all. Addressing Rev Chinedu, Bishop John said: ‘Your ordination here in Mill Hill is a reminder of the mission of the province to Nigeria and the foundation of the province there. Now you return to serve in this province and help renew it. May this ordination be the beginning of a new stirring of faith in the life of your congregation.’ When the Mass was more or less done, the Provincial of the Order, Fr Paschal Scallon CM, gave his thanks. He reserved special thanks to Fr Chinedu. This was not simply for his willingness to respond to God’s call, but for another reason as well. Fr Paschal explained that, with this ordination, Fr Chinedu was now the newest priest in terms of years of ordination. He had replaced the priest who until then held that title. You’ve guessed it: the last priest to be ordained into the UK Community was Fr Paschal himself and that was 27 years ago! Blessed be God. For the full text of Bishop John Sherrington’s homily, visit http://bit.ly/2Nm8687 Page 13

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Permanent deacons give witness to service

by Deacon Anthony Clark

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

L-R with Cardinal Vincent: Deacons Joseph Estorninho, William Lo, Ian Coleman, Andrew Goodall and Wayne O’Reilly

Fr Chinedu serving as a deacon at Mass shortly before his ordination.

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Bringing Light to the Darkness: Rosary Shrine opens new Rosary Garden mysteries of the Rosary as the Mysteries of Light, or the Luminous Mysteries. Pilgrims to the Rosary Shrine in London, perhaps unaware of the relative novelty of the Luminous Mysteries, sometimes wondered why these mysteries were not represented in the Rosary Shrine, a church that was completed in 1883. The Dominican friars were conscious of this pastoral need, and they also reflected on the Cardinal’s invitation to them to reinvigorate the preaching and praying of the Rosary at the Shrine. Hence, a decision was made in 2017 to turn the disused land behind the Lady Chapel into a Rosary Garden commemorating the Luminous Mysteries, and a fundraising campaign was launched. Thanks to the generosity of parishioners and benefactors, what was once a dark and barren wasteland, unused for decades behind the church, has now been transformed into a Marian sanctuary of beauty, colour, and light. A wheelchairaccessible oval sandstone path, with black granite beads marking out a Rosary on the path, has been marked out in the centre of the garden. Around this are five comfortable memorial benches, nestled between rose bushes and swaying foxgloves, where one can sit and contemplate and pray. In the heart of the garden, ringed by this path, is a bed of beautiful Marian flowers which surround five plaques illustrating the five Mysteries of Light: the Baptism of the Lord,

The Dominican friars have been propagators of the devotion of the Holy Rosary for centuries. Indeed tradition holds that Our Lady gave the Rosary to St Dominic (pictured below), and, for almost 800 years, the Dominicans have been preaching and teaching the Rosary as a prayerful meditation on the saving mysteries of Christ. The Dominican custom was to group these mysteries into sets called the Joyful, Sorrowful, and Glorious Mysteries, and this arrangement is seen in the architecture of the Dominican church in Haverstock Hill, which has chapels and stonecarved altars dedicated to each of the traditional fifteen mysteries of the Rosary. In 2016, Cardinal Vincent thus declared this unique Church of Our Lady of the Rosary and St Dominic to be a Rosary Shrine for the whole diocese. At that time, he also called on the Dominican friars to continue their mission of preaching the Rosary. It wasn’t until 2002 that Pope St John Paul II introduced a new set of mysteries to the traditional Rosary, and he did this in order to renew this ancient devotion, and to extend its Christological focus so as to include the ministry of Christ and the sacramental order that he established. These five new mysteries were probably inspired by a set preached by the Maltese saint, George Preca, in 1957; Pope John Paul II had only just canonised him in 2001. They both referred to these new

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the wedding at Cana, the preaching of the Kingdom and call to conversion, the Transfiguration, and the Institution of the Holy Eucharist. These plaques were made by the nuns of the Monastic Family of Bethlehem. The centrepiece of the garden, however, is a speciallycommissioned statue of Our Lady of Cana, whose lips are open to say: ‘Do whatever he tells you.’ (John 2:5) This elegant and serene statue was designed and sculpted by the internationally-renowned Catholic sculptor Cody Swanson, who is based in Florence. The statue, made from a special sculpting clay, was created in Florence, and then shipped to London and personally installed by the artist just days before the garden opened. The Luminous Mysteries Rosary Garden was opened and blessed on 24th May 2019. The Dominicans observe the feast of the Translation of the Relics of St Dominic on this day (see opposite page), but it is also, fittingly, the feast of Our Lady Help of Christians, an invocation that is linked to Pope St Pius V who prayed the Rosary and implored her help during the battle of Lepanto in 1571. At the Garden Inauguration Mass, the Rosary School choir sang motets in praise of Our Lady, and afterwards, the children handed out prayer cards of each of the Luminous Mysteries which they had made. Present at that Mass was the acclaimed Catholic composer Sir James MacMillan CBE, who enthused over the splendid sung liturgy of the Rosary Shrine; and he especially praised the children for their sweet singing of the Gregorian chant Ordinary of the Mass. After the Mass, the friars and congregation processed to the Rosary Garden, singing the Dominican Litany of Our Lady. The Garden and Marian statue were blessed by Abbot David Charlesworth OSB, from Buckfast Abbey which has just celebrated its

by Fr Lawrence Lew OP

Statue of Our Lady of Cana in the Luminous Mysteries Garden

millennial year, and then Fr Thomas Skeats OP, Parish Priest, crowned the statue of Our Lady of Cana. At this point, the Rosary Shrine choir broke out into a madrigal-like composition by Martin Stacey, Director of Music at St Dominic’s. A public path runs directly past the new Rosary Garden, so it has gained much attention from passers-by as it was being put together. Now that it is opened, the friars and parishioners have found that the garden is a wonderful bridge for conversations and dialogue with local people, and many who would not enter a church happily come into the garden and talk to the priests and laity. Children especially

love the garden, and they have even played with the Priory cat when he’s in there too; the garden has become a tool for pre-evangelisation. The Westminster Curia of the Legion of Mary became the first group to pray the Luminous Mysteries in the garden, and other pilgrims and visitors have come to pray, sit, and reflect in the company of Our Lady of Cana. The Rosary Garden is currently opened only when there are volunteers to supervise, and the weekly opening times are online at http://rosaryshrine.co.uk and https://www.facebook.com/ RosaryShrineUK/

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Celebrating saints’ feast days by Fr Lawrence Lew OP The universal Church celebrates the feast days of saints for whom there is a global following and worldwide popularity. However, there are more local celebrations of saints, which are limited to a particular local church, such as St David in Wales, or a diocese, such as St John Southworth in Westminster. Religious orders and congregations also have their own calendar of saints’ days that are only celebrated within that order or congregation. Most of the time, these are celebrated on the day that a saint or blessed died, and thus made his or her transitus into heaven; in other words we celebrate their heavenly birthday. Hence, St Dominic, who died on 6th August 1221, is celebrated on the day closest to his death, which is currently on 8th August. However, other events related to an order’s saints are also celebrated. So, for example, there is the feast of the conversion of St Augustine (24th April), or the Reception of the Stigmata of St Francis (17th September). The Dominicans keep 24th May as a feast recalling the translation, i.e., the transfer, of the relics of St Dominic from their original burial site in the friars’ church in Bologna into a new, more noble shrine in 1233. According to an eyewitness account, ‘as soon as the stone was taken away, the body gave forth a wonderful odour through the opening; its sweetness astonished those present, and they were filled with wonder at this strange occurrence.’ This miraculous event is thus commemorated with a feast day that is celebrated in all Dominican churches. Therefore, although St Dominic’s main feast day is on 8th August, there is, if you like, a ‘little St Dominic’s day’ that is also observed by the sons and daughters of St Dominic on 24th May.

Cardinal thanks married couples for their quiet witness On Saturday 8th June Cardinal Vincent celebrated the Annual Mass of Thanksgiving for Matrimony at Westminster Cathedral with 630 couples marking significant wedding anniversaries. In his welcome address Cardinal Nichols asked the couples to reflect on the ways in which the Lord has been active in their marriage and to rekindle that sense of joy that marked their wedding day and life together. Joy is a gift of the Holy Spirit and it was certainly very evident on this day as it filled the cathedral and spread outwards to the piazza beyond. The cathedral was filled with smiling faces, mutual joy and shared happiness, qualities much needed by the world. In his homily Cardinal Vincent expressed his personal gratitude to the couples for their daily witness to the vocation for marriage. He highlighted how this celebration 'is also a witness, a powerful sign of the resilient faith and love found in Christian marriage'. The Cardinal contrasted the witness that marriage brings to society with a public culture that prefers to sing about individual freedom that often means turning away from others. The Cardinal thanked the couples for the quiet way in which they bear witness to the deeper freedom and truths of their very nature that marriage brings. In particular, service above self, the hard graft of faithfulness above self-sufficiency and the ways in which they grow as a married couple by exposing their vulnerabilities to another. Of the 630 couples present, around a quarter were celebrating anniversaries of 50 years plus, and one couple was celebrating 71 years of marriage.

Continued from page 1

‘Matrimony is a silent homily for everyone else, a daily homily.’

day of our marriage. Renewing our vows renews our commitment to one another, it allows us to contrast the moments of bad news, where through difficulties we have grown closer, and to give thanks for the moments of joy, the knowledge that we are no longer two ‘I’s’ but a single ‘we’. The vocation to marriage is a wonderful calling and like a good wine, it gets better with age.

Perhaps it is fitting to finish with a few words from CS Lewis in Mere Christianity, ‘Being in love is a good thing, but it is not the best thing. There are many things below it, but there are also things above it. You cannot make it the basis of a whole life.... “being in love” first moved them to promise fidelity: this quieter love enables them to keep the promise. It is on this love that the engine of marriage is run: being in love was the explosion that started it.’

Pope Francis

Pope Francis has said, ‘Man and woman are created in God’s image and likeness; and for this reason, marriage likewise becomes an image of God…. this makes marriage very beautiful. Matrimony is a silent homily for everyone else, a daily homily.’ This was the first time that I have attended the Mass for Matrimony and it reminded me that there is safety in numbers. On our 25th wedding anniversary, my wife and I renewed our wedding vows in the church where we were married. The priest very helpfully placed our chairs in the centre of the aisle, so that we were as nervous and anxious as on the

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Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Jean Vanier: A Prophetic Voice

A ‘beautiful and happy year’ by Ellen Teague

‘Do you love me?’ That was the cry Jean Vanier heard in the people with an intellectual disability whom he met in a Picardy psychiatric hospital in 1964. His heart was so touched that he invited two of them to share his home. He called it ‘L’Arche’, the Ark. Jean used to say he had no idea that he was creating a world movement: ‘All I knew was that I was doing something irrevocable,’ he said. I first met Jean when I was a young priest getting to know the L’Arche community in Canterbury, L’Arche’s first in the UK. Jean invited me to join him in leading retreats for hundreds of Assistants, young adults who had come from all over the world to share their lives with people who had an intellectual disability. Listening to them opened my eyes to a profound truth, so often expressed by Jean himself: if you share your life with the poor, they will change you. Jean said in his last book, A Cry is Heard, that he discovered in people with an intellectual disability nothing less than ‘a path towards God’. He said he had grown used to people thinking those with an intellectual disability ‘are poor little things we need to take care of’ but he knew them to be, in fact, nothing less than ‘messengers from God’, ‘messengers from God who bring us closer to Jesus.’

Bishop Nicholas Hudson remembers his friend, the founder of L’Arche.

Jean Vanier and friends celebrate at the Templeton Prize presentation.

Relationship with Jesus was at the heart of Jean’s whole way of being. He loved the Gospel of St John. He understood his whole life to be a response to Jesus’s invitation to ‘make your home in me’ (Jn 15:4), a response to the cry which is at the heart and climax of John’s Gospel, where Jesus asks his friend, ‘Do you love me?’ (Jn 21:15). ‘How are things between you and Jesus?’ he would ask those who came to him for spiritual accompaniment, in a way which both challenged and consoled. His other great love was Aristotle. Aristotelian aphorisms would pepper and enliven his retreats to great effect: ‘To be good friends, you need to have shared a sack of

salt’ and ‘He who is not loved seeks to be admired’ were just two of them. But Jean’s most enduring legacy will surely be the prophetic. I heard it given most eloquent expression as I stood in St Peter’s Square, Rome, for the Great Jubilee of New Ecclesial Movements in the Year 2000. As each Movement presented itself to Pope St John Paul II, Jean chose simply to say, ‘Holy Father, I want to tell you about a little man called Antonio who died last week. He was one of the frailest members of our community and yet he was at its heart.’ Jean was describing, in fact, one of the most disabled people I have ever met: paraplegic and mute, and yet with a radiant

As more than 1,000 disabled children and their groups left the annual HCPT Trust Mass in Lourdes during Easter Week, the President of HCPT described this year’s celebration as ‘another beautiful and happy year’. Archbishop Leo Cushley, Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh, had concelebrated with eight other bishops from England and Wales, Scotland, Ireland and the USA. HCPT Group 144 from Chiswick, was one of the Westminster groups participating. At a regional Mass, group leader James Teague assembled a large wooden heart made up of decorated jigsaw pieces of groups in the London Region. At the huge Trust Mass the congregation of more than 2,000, sitting in their distinctive smile which created an group colours, raised the roof extraordinary communion of the Salle Bernadette Church around him! ‘People like opposite the Grotto with such Antonio,’ Jean proclaimed to hymns as ‘Sing it in the Valleys’ the masses, ‘God is using to and ‘Rise and Shine’. Disabled announce the kingdom.’ And children read the bidding quoting St Paul, Jean went on to prayers, reminding us that on say, ‘“What the world considers this pilgrimage the children folly, God has chosen to come first. Each child was confound the wise” (1 Cor 1:27).’ cheered after prayers were said, Antonio and so many remembering the sick, poor, others knew themselves to be homeless and families at home. ‘strangers’ in this world. What joy to imagine the ecstasy as each of them waits his or her turn now to tell him, ‘I was a stranger, Jean, and you welcomed me. You heard my cry and made your home in me.’ Jean Vanier, born 10th September 1928, died 7th May 2019.

Catholic Voices seeks new applicants Originally created for the 2010 papal visit to the UK, Catholic Voices trains ‘ordinary’ Catholics to tell the Church’s story and create a new generation of confident media and public speakers. The project has transformed the way Catholics are perceived in the media, receiving the backing of bishops and broadcasters alike. The work of Catholic Voices is currently expanding in the Page 16

UK, as they seek to create an even greater number of confident Catholic speakers. Recently, their focus has turned towards creating the next generation of Catholic public speakers who, together with the existing teams, make themselves available to speak in parishes, schools, chaplaincies to deliver workshops (some of whom may then go on to appear in the media). The Public

Speakers’ Programme aims to give world class training to ordinary Catholics so they have the skills to become public speakers. Their training programme has resulted in over 100 Catholic Voices speakers making over 1,200 appearances on TV and radio programmes, commenting and debating the Church’s positions on a large range of topics. More recently since the

official launch in 2017 of their Public Speakers’ Programme, they have delivered nearly 600 workshops and talks to over 100,000 people in a variety of contexts including parishes, schools and universities. Applications for the 8th National Speakers’ Training Programme, which will be held in London in September 2019, can be made at: www.catholicvoices.org.uk. Follow us on Instagram at: @rcwestminster

The Westminster groups could be seen visiting the Grotto, where Our Lady appeared to Bernadette in 1858, the Cachot prison cell where Bernadette lived at the time of the apparitions, and the Stations of the Cross by the shimmering River Gave. A final visit to the Grotto saw groups place large candles decorated with group names, hearts, stars and hands of service, in the domain area, in thanksgiving for the blessings of the pilgrimage.

Westminster Record | Summer 2019 Our vocation is like a gift from a close friend, Jesus, who gives us something that perfectly fits who we are. It may well be a challenge because it calls us to become a greater gift for others, to change. But it’s a transformation that’s worth it because it’s where we will find our fulfilment. Often, vocation will result in a commitment to a state of life because such a commitment frees us to give ourselves more fully for the other, just as the exclusive Fr Mark Walker, Youth Chaplain commitment of a husband and wife enables them to love each For almost a year-and-a-half other more fully. now, Westminster Youth Part of the task of Ministry has been giving accompaniment that Pope young adults the opportunity Francis calls us to in youth to come together with one of ministry, therefore, is to help the bishops of the diocese, young people realise that pray, reflect and talk about vocation isn’t an artificial and their experiences of living the unwelcome external imposition faith in the contemporary on us from God. It’s the way world. These meetings were we use the natural gifts and first held in preparation for talents God has given us to the the meeting of the Synod of full for others. When we work Bishops, which discussed the with God in discerning this, we theme of ‘Young People, the discover that we’re often Faith and Vocational capable of a much more Discernment’. With the generous form of service than release of Pope Francis’ we might have otherwise Apostolic Exhortation, thought. Christus vivit (Christ is alive), in response to the synod meeting last October, our meetings with young adults have been a great opportunity to reflect on the Holy Father’s by Stanley Sayer message. My name is Stan, I am 25 Many young people years old and come from struggle with the concept of Portsmouth. I studied ‘vocation’. They might have a Business and Japanese at sense of the job they might Cardiff University, graduating eventually want but don’t see in 2016, and spent some time how God has much to say to as an English teacher in Spain that. The term ‘vocation’ is afterwards. often either understood as A friend encouraged me to strictly referring to states of do a mission year after helping life like marriage, priesthood parishes to run Confirmation or religious life, or else is watered down into a nebulous retreats, but I found it difficult to see myself regularly and meaningless concept: working with large groups of ‘we’re all called to something people, as I am a naturally shy in life’. individual. Pope Francis’s Apostolic I eventually joined SPEC as Exhortation, Christus vivit, offers some helpful thoughts in a volunteer missionary in September 2018 and have spent this regard. He asks young this past academic year people to ask themselves not ‘who am I?’ but ‘for whom am working with young people in retreat ministry. As my I?’ He describes vocation as ‘a missionary commitment is call to missionary service to coming to an end in August, others’. Vocation is, therefore, I have been invited to reflect on the way we can use the gifts how I have found this and talents God has given us experience. in the most generous way we I have made many happy can for others. When we do discoveries over the course of this, we become more and the year. The first has been that more who God made us to be.

Chaplain’s Corner

Director’s Spotlight

Andrzej Wdowiak Director of Youth Ministry We are now entering the summer holidays. For many, it is a long-awaited break from studies or work and a time of relaxation before the next academic year or the next big step in life. Summer often seems to be frantic with sacramental activities. At the Diocesan Retreat Centre, we are busy with retreats for Confirmation and school groups. There seems to be always a feeling of urgency that the school year is coming to an end and there are all those spiritual ‘provisions’ that should be offered to our children and young people.

It is good that we are mindful of the faith development of our young Catholics. On the other hand, if we use the analogy of electric battery charging, it is normally better to charge the battery slowly as it tends to last longer. Yes, technology has moved on quite a bit and short bursts of charge can nowadays be equally effective; however, the principle of slow charge remains. Similarly, it is probably better to spread retreats throughout the year rather than have them concentrated in one particular season. Also, an experience of residential retreat will have more impact on a young person than a short visit to SPEC in Pinner for a day retreat. Perhaps this is something to think about and plan for the next academic year. The beginning of summer holidays marks also the end of SPEC volunteers’ mission year, without whom retreats would not be possible. We would like to say thank you to all of them for their hard work and commitment and wish them every blessing in their life and faith journey.

We are looking forward to welcoming a new group in midAugust; it is still not too late to join the volunteer community at SPEC if you are a young person under 24 who wants to commit to a year of mission at the Retreat Centre. For the next year, we are planning to offer a refreshed formation programme for our volunteers and we are very excited about this prospect. Likewise, the Westminster Youth Ministry outreach team is planning some new and not-sonew activities across the diocese from September. We will have our first diocesan Summit on 18th October 2019 at Westminster Cathedral. Also, we have planned a quarterly Youth Mass in the Crypt of Westminster Cathedral. Please keep an eye on our website for all those events. We are getting ready for the Lourdes pilgrimage to provide chaplaincy support for Red Caps. I wish you a restful and peaceful summer. I hope that there will be opportunities to recharge our batteries so that we can start the new academic year with new energy for our life and faith journeys.

My Year at a Retreat Centre

in ministry you are free to be yourself. I really admire members of our team who feed off the energy of the groups who visit us and who thrive off engaging with large groups of new people all at once, day after day. I have also really enjoyed trying to take an extended interest in individual students as we interact with them throughout their retreat. I have come to appreciate that, as missionaries and retreat leaders, we can depend on each other as a team. We all have different personalities, which is great because we can better accommodate the diversity of young people when we are together than when we are on our own. As a team we can connect and relate to every young person we encounter. This means investing in each other has also been really important. Looking back on the year, I am so grateful for the brilliant effort my fellow missionaries have made to

support and encourage me and I hope that I have done the same for them. Being able to celebrate each other is one of the best things about living and working together as a community. On retreats, I have been really surprised by how much I have received from the young people themselves. They are very good at being open and honest and it’s incredibly rewarding to learn that they are having a good time participating in the programmes we have prepared for them. My favourite moments have been listening to their opinions on faith, life and the universe. I always like to remember that God makes the real difference. Our prayer rhythm as a community is very significant to us and our mission. In the chapel, located in our house, we pray Morning and Evening Prayer together, with 45 minutes of Eucharistic

Adoration as part of Evening Prayer. There are afternoons I can go into the chapel feeling tired, deflated and discouraged, but after prayer I leave the chapel completely changed. Most importantly, I love that we get to see the young people encounter the Lord, often for the first time, in those chapel sessions. This is why I came to SPEC. It has been a blessing.

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Westminster Record | Summer 2019

‘Walking the earth like brothers and sisters’

Spirit in the City: Life to the Full

by Qaisra Khan On Saturday 8th June a diverse group of people walked together to a variety of places of worship, where we paused for prayer and reflection. It was 34th Annual London People of Faith Pilgrimage for Peace and Friendship, which had taken place since May 1986. Some of the 120 people taking part had supported Br Daniel Faivre SG on the first walk. The passing years have taken their toll on our bodies but the spirit seemed not to waver. It was also the weekend of Pentecost and Shavuot. One of my favourite images was of people walking out of a place of worship with a light to share. We gathered outside the Merton Civic Centre where the Mayor welcomed us to the Borough. Our first visit was to Baitul Futuh Mosque. There were building works following a fire in 2015, but it did not affect the welcome. We split into three large groups and were shown around the building, following a talk and refreshments. Our next stop was the Buddhapadipa Temple on Calonne Road, a sanctuary of calm with a beautiful garden where nature was at its best. We also saw humanity at its best when SND provided us with a healthy and plentiful lunch. I enjoyed some inspiring conversations and people asked for details of our walk.

Hopefully, they and others will join us in future walks. After lunch, we walked up a hill to St Mary’s Church, on one of the highest points in London, with great views. Its congregation has included William Wilberforce, leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade. Then onto Wimbledon Mosque where, once again, we were welcomed with more food. The last stop of the day was a Hindu temple that has been doing a lot of work with the local health authority. At the Sai Baba education project, two of the children sang or chanted prayers from a variety of different faiths. The walk was also a reminder that despite the love and light we all wanted to share, the other side of the coin is visible in communities around the world. Baitul Futuh Mosque was home to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community who had to establish its headquarters in the UK because of persecution. William Wilberforce successfully fought a campaign to end slavery but modern slavery still exists throughout the world. There are other examples which just add to the many reasons we carry on making these pilgrimages. Like Martin Luther King, Br Daniel and my new family, I have a dream that one day we will ‘learn the simple act of walking the earth like brothers and sisters.’

Deep roots to the Spirit by Deacon Adrian Cullen, Evangelisation Coordinator Evangelisation is first and foremost about an encounter with Jesus Christ. For many who passed through Trafalgar Square on Pentecost Sunday, it would have been just that: an Page 18

encounter, maybe for the first time, through his disciples, with Jesus Christ, as thousands of Christians gathered to celebrate the climax of Thy Kingdom Come.

‘I sense that the moment has come to commit all of the Church's energies to a new evangelisation and to the mission ad gentes. No believer in Christ, no institution of the Church can avoid this supreme duty: to proclaim Christ to all peoples.’ (St Pope John Paul II, Redemptoris Missio, 1990) As Leicester Square bustled with its normal Saturday buzz, seminarians from Allen Hall and young men discerning vocations to the priesthood in Westminster joined the Spirit in the City team for an exciting day of evangelisation. The annual event began on Friday 31st May in Notre Dame de France Church in Leicester Square with a celebration of Mass, Adoration and worship, before spilling out into the streets on Saturday with live music, street evangelisation, a tent for Adoration, a Confession tent, foot washing, talks and workshops, question and answer with Catholic Voices, and a prayer ministry with the

faithful leading individuals in prayer. In the evening Bishop Nicholas Hudson celebrated Mass in the church, before the event came to a close at 8pm. Spirit in the City was first organised in 2006 as an initiative by local churches in response to a desire to share something of the Catholic faith with visitors and the West End community. The theme for 2019, ‘Life to the Full’ was based upon John 10:10. Jesus is the gate through whom we enter, in whom we find our safety and in whom our lives are filled to abundance. This was the heart of the day and the prayer for us, and for all those we encountered on the streets of Leicester Square. There were different ways in which the seminarians were encouraged to participate. Mainly, they were following the simple instructions of Christ to go out two-by-two to announce the good news to anyone and everyone! The men each came with their own experience of

The event was just one of many around the country and the world, celebrating the global wave of prayer for evangelisation, between Ascension and Pentecost. The afternoon festival in Trafalgar Square included, on the main stage, music, choirs and prayers, while around the Square there were tents exhibiting and involving visitors in a wide variety of different traditions of the Church. Westminster, Brentwood and Southwark Dioceses, working with the Mission Office at the Catholic Bishops’ Conference and with local parishes and organisations, set up three tents representing particular Catholic Traditions: Corpus Christi Parish in Covent Garden presented an ‘Encounter with Jesus through

the Blessed Sacrament’, as it led visitors in Adoration and, towards the end of the afternoon, Benediction; the Dowry of Mary Tour brought an ‘Encounter with Jesus through Mary’, bringing along the statue of Our Lady of Walsingham, and leading visitors in praying the Rosary throughout the afternoon; and a third tent, supported generously by local priests, enabled visitors to ‘Encounter Jesus through conversation and confession’. A truly ecumenical event, as was another major event at St Albans Cathedral later that day, the afternoon in Trafalgar Square ended with a service led by leaders of all local denominations, including Cardinal Vincent. He spoke of how Thy Kingdom Come reminds us that the Holy Spirit

evangelising, and throughout the day it was apparent that the Holy Spirit was using each person for different things. It was beautiful to see one seminarian opening the Scriptures for members of the public, while others washed feet, danced and enjoyed the wide variety of music that was being provided for the event. Many of the volunteers were witnesses to beautiful moments with members of the public, with some instant fruits of this evangelisation being visible, while we pray that this witness of the love of God for every person will continue to bear fruit going forwards in people lives. At Mass, Bishop Nicholas preached in the French Church about Jean Vanier, who had sadly passed away recently. He preached of the evangelisation of a humble man who founded the L’Arche communities which in their own unique way gave value to those with disabilities. In this way, looking at the evangelisation and mission of the Church he brought the day together with an image of one Church and one mission. ‘Go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’ (Mt 28:19-20 )

is constantly at work. He said that even in a barren landscape where there are no rivers visible, trees stay green because they have deep roots that reach down to underground streams. Likewise, if we have deep roots through keeping God’s commandments, we are able to reach down to an underground spring which is the Holy Spirit. What better time of year than the summer months, when trees stay green no matter how hot it gets as they reach down to hidden streams, to be reminded that through our deep roots of faith, we are constantly being refreshed by the Holy Spirit, enabling us to reach out to others, so they too can encounter Jesus Christ. For video footage of Trafalgar Square and other events see www.thykingdomcome.global

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

The Holy Father’s Prayer Intention for July 2019 by Fr David Stewart SJ At the end of June, the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network gathered in Rome to celebrate 175 years since its founding. From those early days in France, this pontifical service has grown to become the Church’s largest prayer group, operating in at least 97 countries. Known to millions for many decades as the Apostleship of Prayer, this work underwent a major renovation in the last decade, transforming itself into the Prayer Network together with its youth branch, the Eucharistic Youth Movement. More recently, it has grown in other ways too, such as its massive expansion into the digital world, notably with the Click-to-Pray online platform and downloadable App. Pope Francis at the 20th January Sunday Angelus in St Peter’s Square presented Click-to-Pray and launched his own profile! You can see that in the News tab on our international website, www.popesprayer.va. While online, you can also take a look at our Pope Video initiative, in which the Holy Father personally presents each month’s Intention and appeals to us to pray with him. In July we are invited to pray with the Pope for ‘The integrity of justice: that those who administer justice may work with integrity, and that the injustice present in the world may not have the last word’. There are several ways of understanding justice, for example legal or criminal justice, social justice and environmental justice. With this month’s intention, the Holy Father wishes to highlight that we must always be aware of the times and places where injustice in the world might look like it is having the last word. In our Living Prayer booklet you’ll find another reflection on each month’s Intention. We’re reminded of how, in a General Audience in 2016, Pope Francis suggested that we should root justice in ‘the heart of a Father who goes beyond our little concept of justice to open us to the limitless horizons of his mercy’. That boundless mercy is where we derive the genuine

history. The heart of the Trinity is pained by how far humanity has strayed from the Trinity’s highest hopes for us, not least in how we have treated each other but also our common home, this planet. The Trinity sees much love on the earth but also much injustice, socially and environmentally. Imagine then the surge of divine love that becomes the Incarnation, as the very heart of God becomes a human heart, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, entering our reality where we most need it. Speak, directly to his Heart, whatever words seem right; let him speak to you, with or without words.

Good Father, I know you're with me. Here I am in this new day. Put my heart once more next to the Heart of your Son Jesus, that is given for me and that comes to me in the Eucharist. May your Holy Spirit make me your friend and apostle, available to your mission. I put in your hands my joys and hopes, my works and sufferings, everything that I am and have, in communion with my brothers and sisters of this worldwide prayer network. Together we pray with the Holy Father and the whole people of God for this month’s Intention. Our Father … Hail, Mary … Glory be …

DOWNLOAD/VISIT: www.popesglobalprayer.net; www.popesprayer.va, www.clicktopray.org, www.thepopevideo.org

integrity for which we pray as we join the Pope in this month’s Intention. We’re praying, in the words of this Intention, that mercy, not injustice, will have the last word; with that goes our commitment to do what we need to do, for this to happen. Another excellent reflection on this month’s Intention appears on the online US & Canada section of our Network (www.popesprayer.va), where the writer notes: ‘There is an integrity that is demanded in each person, and especially in authorities who are entrusted with various powers intended to be used for the common good. It is not enough to use high-sounding words. We must steadily pray that God give his wisdom to those in authority, and we must ourselves act prudently to restrain those who undermine the rule of law and claim for themselves power without moral restraint’. The writer concludes: ‘we must ourselves act prudently to restrain those who undermine the rule of law and claim for themselves power without moral restraint’. There is our call to action, as we offer ourselves for Christ’s mission each day!

THREE CHALLENGES for the MONTH: 1: Think of, or chat with others about good practices in the administration of justice, pondering these as a way to underline the importance of doing justice with integrity and truth; look for opportunities to tell others about them. 2: Reflect, on your own or in your family, community or friendship circles, and do an examination of conscience on how we can easily tolerate injustice, in our interpersonal relations and our politics, particularly when minorities or those already marginalised might be injured. 3: Promote in your parish or community a time of reflection and prayer for those who administer justice and reflect on unjust situations, especially when injustice seems to have the last word, and on ways to overcome them. REFLECTION MOMENT: As St Ignatius of Loyola suggested, in his Spiritual Exercises, that we can use our imaginations to be present to the Blessed Trinity gazing on the earth and on all of human

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Westminster Record | Summer 2019

England is Mary’s Dowry: A New Dedication for Today

by Mgr John Armitage, Rector of Walsingham Shrine

Why is England called the ‘Dowry of Mary’? Unique among all the nations, the Catholics of England have believed for centuries that their country is in a special sense the Dowry of Mary. The word ‘dowry’ (from the Latin dos, meaning ‘donation’, ‘gift’ or ‘endowment’) is commonly understood as the donation accompanying a bride upon marriage. In medieval English law, however, the meaning was reversed, in that a husband would set apart a portion of his estate designated for the maintenance of his wife, should she become a widow. On landed estates the Dower House is a property set aside for precisely that purpose. The historical understanding of England as Mary’s Dowry is understood in this sense: that England has been set apart for Our Lady. Indeed, the very use of the term ‘Our Lady’ or the ‘ Lady Mary’ to refer to the Blessed Virgin Mary, although common in Western Europe from the twelfth century onwards, has a more ancient history in England, where the first extant example comes from an Anglo-Saxon poet at the end of the eighth century. The title ‘Dowry of Mary’ is believed to originate from the reign of St Edward the Confessor (1042-1066) though the precise origin is unclear. It had become widespread by the middle of the fourteenth Page 20

century and around the year 1350 a mendicant preacher stated in a sermon that ‘it is commonly said that the land of England is the Virgin's dowry’, thus reflecting the origin of the title in the deep devotion of its people to the Mother of God in the Middle Ages. On the feast of Corpus Christi in 1381, King Richard II (1377-1399) dedicated England to Our Lady in a ceremony at Westminster Abbey as an act of thanksgiving for his kingdom being saved in the wake of the Peasants’ Revolt of that year. In 1399 Thomas Arundel, Archbishop of Canterbury, wrote to his suffragan bishops: ‘The contemplation of the great mystery of the Incarnation has drawn all Christian nations to venerate her from whom came the first beginnings of our redemption. But we English, being the servants of her special inheritance and her own dowry, as we are commonly called, ought to surpass others in the fervour of our praises and devotions.’ The Archbishop of Canterbury’s letter is thus a further indication not only that the title of England as the Dowry of Mary was in common usage at the end of the fourteenth century but also suggests an earlier origin. It was believed that England belonged in a particular way to Our Lady, who was seen as the country's protectress and who, through her power of intercession, acted

seat of Parliament. Beside the palace was the Royal Chapel of St Stephen to which was annexed a smaller one dedicated to Our Lady of the Pew. These chapels were converted into use by Parliament during the reign of Edward VI (1547-1553) and the paintings on the wall were covered over with oaken panels. However, when the Act of Union (1800) joined together the English and Irish Parliaments, some alterations had to be made to the chamber. When the panelling was removed from the wall, paintings were revealed in the interstices and were found to Artistic representations be as fresh and clear as on the The first artistic evidence day they had been covered up. for the title was found in a painting which once graced the According to the parliamentary walls of the English Hospice of reports of the time, behind the Speaker's chair was a picture of St Thomas of Canterbury in the Virgin and Child with St Rome, now the Venerable Joseph bending over them, English College. The picture together with King Edward III showed Richard II and his (1327-1377) and his Queen, consort, Anne of Bohemia, Philippa of Hainault, and their kneeling before Our Lady and sons and daughters making an offering England to her. The King holds a parchment with a offering to Our Lady. What are we to make of this Latin inscription: ‘This is your picture? In Our Lady’s Dowry dowry, O pious Virgin.’ It is (1875) the historian Fr Thomas possible that the painting Bridgett answers thus: ‘It may portrayed Richard presenting either have commemorated an England to Our Lady as her historical event, or its execution Dowry in Westminster Abbey on the feast of Corpus Christi in may be considered an historical event in itself. It is not, nor 1381. This painting does it record, an act of private disappeared from the College devotion... Acolytes were during the French occupation holding lighted tapers and two of Rome in the 1790s. angels were represented as The Wilton Diptych, now housed in the National Gallery taking part in a solemnity. It is the consecration of England, in London, was completed through its Sovereign to the around 1395 and depicts Blessed Virgin. It was before Richard II kneeling before the the eyes of every King and Virgin and Child. Carried by a supporting angel is the Cross of noble until hidden by Edward VI.’ St George, the staff of which is In the wake of the surmounted by an orb Reformation, the notion of featuring a minuscule map of England enjoying a special England. An altarpiece from association or relationship with the same era showed Richard Our Lady became an important handing the orb to Mary, with aspect of recusant Catholic the inscription ‘Dos tua Virgo pia haec est,’ ‘This is thy dowry, spirituality. In one of the English seminaries was the O Holy Virgin,’ words similar College of St Gregory the Great to those on the painting in in Seville, there was a Dowry Rome. The Palace of Westminster is painting which depicted Our so called because it served that Lady with her arms outstretched, and a group of purpose for the Kings of English seminarians at her feet England before it became the as the country's defender or guardian. In the reign of Henry V (1386 -1422) the title was applied to England in Latin texts and, according to the monastic chronicler Thomas Elmham, English priests sought the intercession of ‘the Virgin, protectress of her dower’ on the eve of the Battle of Agincourt (1415). The Dowry of Mary is thus a title of England, established by a Royal act and proclaimed by an Archbishop of Canterbury, a title which has never been rescinded by either the Sovereign or by Parliament.

with the words Anglia Dos Mariae (England is Mary’s Dowry). This painting is now in the Royal College of Medicine in Seville. In the Royal English College of St Alban in Valladolid, Spain, founded in 1589, it was reported that there once was a painting which depicted Mary being handed a scroll carrying the words ‘We will remain under the shade of your wings till the wickedness passes’. It is no longer in the College. Papal recognition On the feast of Sts Peter and Paul, 29th June 1893, the Bishops of England & Wales, in response to the wishes of the Pope Leo XIII, consecrated England to the Mother of God and to St Peter. This took place at the hands of Cardinal Vaughan at the Brompton Oratory Church in London. The action was a direct result of an audience with Pope Leo in which he recalled that England had long been known as Our Lady's Dowry, thereby giving papal approval to what had been a hallowed tradition. The Pope spoke of ‘…the wonderful filial love which burnt within the hearts of your forefathers towards the great Mother of God... to whose service they consecrated themselves with such abundant proofs of devotion, that the Kingdom itself acquired the singular title of Mary's Dowry’. He also recalled the special devotion paid to St Peter, referring to him as the ‘principal patron’ of the country, and desired that devotion to these ‘two patrons of the faith’ and ‘guardians of all virtue’ be revived and a new consecration made by a solemn rite. Pope Leo foresaw such an action bringing great benefit on the people at that time, an era which marked a new beginning for the Catholic faith in England. The Bishops, in a pastoral letter read in Catholic churches throughout England, stated:

‘To sum up all, it may be said that, in the mind of the Holy Father, and in our mind, the object and purpose of this solemn consecration of England to the great Mother of God and to Blessed Peter is to obtain an abundant outpouring of blessings upon the whole country and people of England the blessing of unity in Faith, Hope and Charity, the blessing of such temporal plenty and prosperity as may redound to the glory of God and the salvation of souls.’ This dedication to Our Blessed Lady was to be remembered each year on the feast of the Holy Rosary (7th October) and that to St Peter on the Sunday after the 29th June. In more recent times, Cardinal Heenan, acting on behalf of the Bishops of England & Wales, petitioned Pope Paul VI for permission for the Hail Mary to be recited at the conclusion of the bidding prayers in recognition of the special devotion of the people of England reflected in the unique title Dowry of Mary. At their meeting in October 1966 the Bishops directed that such inclusion of the Hail Mary was to be obligatory. Marian Shrine of Incarnation When England returns to Walsingham, Our Lady will return to England These prophetic words of Pope Leo XIII seem to indicate that Walsingham is intimately associated with the spiritual health of England. Mary was the first disciple, who has guided and inspired the Church since the beginning. She was the one who accompanied her Son from the moment of his conception at the Annunciation to his death and Resurrection and was present at the birth of the Church at Pentecost. This was the cause of Mary’s joy, that she witnessed the events of the life of her Son. The establishment of the shrine of Our Lady at Walsingham arose out of the devotion of the Lady Richeldis, who had a great desire to honour the Mother of God. Walsingham is certainly not the oldest Marian shrine in England, but it is the place where Our Lady made herself known in spirit and asked for the replica of the Holy House of Nazareth to be built so that ‘all could share in the joy of my Annunciation’. The fruits of this manifestation of the Holy Spirit

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

brought joy, comfort and hope to all who came and continue to come on pilgrimage: O England, you have great cause to be glad For you are compared to the Promised Land, Zion You are called in every realm and region The Holy Land, Our Lady's Dowry. In you is built new Nazareth, A house to the honour of the Queen of Heaven And her most glorious Salutation When Gabriel said at Old Nazareth, Ave, This same joy shall here be daily and forever remembered. The Pynson Ballad Rededicating England In the past, England was given as a gift to Our Lady, a donation reflecting the great love of her people who sought Mary’s prayers and protection. The gift to be given in 2020 will likewise reflect that same love of the Mother of God, but what will be offered will not be the country of England, but the gift of the personal faith of the people of this country as we seek once again the prayers and protection of the Mother God. In particular, we ask Our Lady, Star of the New Evangelisation to assist the Church in bringing the Good News of Jesus Christ to the people of today by the witness of the Catholic community. In his Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, Pope St Paul VI reflected on the

power of witness: ‘Above all the Gospel must be proclaimed by witness. Take a Christian or a handful of Christians who, in the midst of their own community, show their capacity for understanding and acceptance, their sharing of life and destiny with other people, their solidarity with the efforts of all for whatever is noble and good. Let us suppose that, in addition, they radiate in an altogether simple and unaffected way their faith in values that go beyond current values, and their hope in something that is not seen and that one would not dare to imagine. Through this wordless witness these Christians stir up irresistible questions in the hearts of those who see how they live: Why are they like this? Why do they live in this way? What or who is it that inspires them? Why are they in our midst? Such a witness is already a silent proclamation of the Good News and a very powerful and effective one. Here we have an initial act of evangelization.’ To this end on Sunday 29th March 2020, the Sunday after the Solemnity of the Annunciation at 12 noon, the time of the Angelus, individuals will be invited to recite the new prayer based on the Angelus called the Angelus Promise. This may take place during Mass, or a Liturgy of the Word, or in one’s home, or people may wish to make a pilgrimage on that day to a shrine or their cathedral. The Act of Dedication will begin after the recitation of the Angelus Promise with the reading of the words of Archbishop Arundel: ‘The contemplation of the great mystery of the Incarnation has drawn all Christian nations to venerate her from whom came the first beginnings of our redemption. But we English, being the servants of her special inheritance and her own dowry, as we are commonly called, ought to surpass others in the fervour of our praises and devotions.’

R: Behold the handmaid of the Lord. V: Be it done to me according to thy Word. Mary’s simple yes, opened her heart to God’s grace and all things become possible. Let my yes take away fear as I embrace God’s will and like Mary ‘ponder these things in my heart’. Hail Mary full of Grace… R: And the Word became flesh, (bow or genuflect) V: And dwelt among us. Mary’s faith filled yes, conceived first in her heart, led to the birth of our Saviour; as I commit myself to my faith filled yes today, I accept my Saviour into my heart bringing his life to my world. Hail Mary full of Grace… R: Pray for us most holy Mother of God V: That we may be made worthy of the promises of God. Let us pray: O Holy Mother of God pray for us and assist us as we dedicate ourselves this day. Your yes at the Annunciation brought our Saviour Jesus into the world, and you invite us to contemplate the great mystery of the Incarnation, sharing your joy in announcing that ‘the Word was made flesh and

lived among us’. May our yes, this day, open our hearts to serve our sisters and brothers in this your Dowry, that they too may share our joy in the Good News that God walks among us. We make this prayer through Christ our Lord. Amen. ‘As followers of Jesus Christ, we must learn to follow and to follow we must learn to trust. A physical pilgrimage through unfamiliar territory is a great lesson in trust; one must accept whatever the road has to offer: the accommodations, fellow travellers, the weather, the inconveniences, the hardships, the annoyances. A pilgrim heart looks to the journey with willingness, openness, and a good sense of humour. If we choose to trust that God has called us on this journey and he is directing it, we can relax and be open to the lessons he is seeking to teach us. We trust that God will walk the way with us, no matter what happens. He doesn’t promise to make the way easy; he simply says, “I will be with you.”’ (Message of Pope Francis to pilgrims to Loreto)

The Angelus Promise R: The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary. V: And she conceived by the Holy Spirit. As God once called Mary, so today he calls me to seek his Word in my life. Hail Mary full of Grace…

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Fr Denis Patrick Watters RIP ‘Non nobis Domine sed nomine tuo da gloriam’, ‘Not to us Lord, not to us, but to your name give the glory’. This was Fr Denis’ motto that featured on his personal stationery in correspondence from his home in Ballyheigue, Co Kerry in Ireland. Taken from Psalm 113 in the Vulgate numbering of the Psalms, it was also the motto of the Knights Templar, the Order that cared for pilgrims travelling to sites in the Holy Land and seeking to journey closer to God. As a priest, Fr Denis cared for the parishioners he served, and they cared for him. He knew himself to be a fellow pilgrim, called to follow and called to serve, putting at the service of God and the Church his faith, his vocation and his humility. Denis Patrick Watters was born in London on 29th March 1947, the son of Thomas and Josephine. He is survived by his younger sister Kate. Denis was baptised at St Joseph’s, Wembley, and educated at the parish primary school and St Gregory’s High School, Kenton and at Breakspear College in Abbots Langley. His sense of

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vocation led him to apply to the diocese and he was accepted and went to Allen Hall Seminary at St Edmund’s College, Ware, Hertfordshire where began studies in 1966. He was ordained to the diaconate at St Edmund’s College on 4th July 1971 and to the priesthood at St Joseph’s Church, Wembley by Cardinal Heenan on 27th May 1972. Fr Denis’ first appointment as an Assistant Priest was to Ss Mary and Joseph, Poplar, from 1972 until 1978, the parish where he served the previous year as a deacon. While at Poplar Fr Denis played football for a local team in a Sunday morning league. With Fr Denis’ skill, the team won the league and the local newspaper carried a photograph of the victorious team with the cup and including Fr Denis in team kit; the accompanying article mentioned that Fr Denis also fulfilled his priestly duties on Sundays! He was then appointed Assistant Priest at All Saints, Kenton and Chaplain at St Gregory’s School until 1984. His next appointment was as Parish

Priest to St Joseph’s, Bunhill Row, serving as Chaplain to Moorfields Eye Hospital, where he remained until 1990 when he was appointed Parish Priest at St Gabriel’s, Archway. In 1997 Fr Denis had sabbatical leave. He was then appointed Parish Priest at Stevenage, living at St Joseph’s, Bedwell from 1998 until his premature retirement from full time parish ministry for reasons of poor health in June 2011. Writing from his home in Ballyheigue in February 2012 Fr Denis commented on how much he missed active parish life as a priest: ‘But I count myself fortunate in having a kind and considerate Parish Priest who tries to involve me in the activities that go on here.’ Throughout his life Fr Denis had a keen interest in all sports, including golf, fishing and basketball. In Co Kerry he had more time for golf, living near the renowned Ballybunion course. Deteriorating health and the need for care necessitated Fr Denis’ return to England. In May 2016 he went to live at his sister’s residential care home at Burnham Lodge, Slough, where he enjoyed walking in the spacious grounds, and subsequently to Oaken Holt Nursing and Residential Home, Farmoor near Oxford where he died peacefully on Saturday 1st June. A humble man, he was dedicated to his ministry and faithful to his friends. A parishioner of Bunhill Row recalls Fr Denis taking them down to the dark and unlit crypt of the church, populated with life size statutes of saints and martyrs, with graphic descriptions of how they died. Fr Denis explained that, on his arrival the small church was full of them, ‘leaving little room for the living’. Fr Denis brought new life to the community. Fr Denis was an intelligent and insightful man, always respectful of the views of other people and able to analyse situations and face challenges, and winning the respect and loyalty of parishioners. His abiding kindness and deep compassion for people who were troubled or suffering brought comfort to many. His self-effacing and dry sense of

In Memoriam: July

In Memoriam: August

1 Mgr Anthony Howe (2011) 3 Fr William M Brown (1989) Fr George Ennis (2007) 4 Fr Joseph Anthony Carr (1999) 6 Fr Terence Wardle (2010) 7 Canon Alfred Cuming (1978) Fr Frank Morrall (1995) Fr John Power (2002) 8 Fr Joseph Gardner (1992) 9 Fr Christopher Pemberton (1983) Fr John Norton (1989) 10 Fr Peter Harris (1976) Fr Thomas Kelly (1983) 12 Fr Daniel Higgins (1996) 14 Mgr Canon Joseph Williams (1991) 15 Fr Christopher McKenna (2003) 16 Fr Michael Giffney (1987) Canon John McKenzie (1988) 17 Fr Horatio Hosford (2014) 19 Fr Peter Pearson (1971) Canon Peter Gilburt (2017) 21 Canon Philip Moore (1976) Fr Anthony O’Sullivan (1997) Fr Norman Kersey (1999) Canon Herbert Veal (2005) 22 Fr Tom Allan (2007) 26 Fr George Fonseca (1998) Fr David Roderick (2005) 27 Fr Graham Feint (2000) 28 Fr Ralph Gardner (1976) Fr Patrick Whyte (1988) Deacon Sydney Adams (2005) 30 Fr Calum MacLean (1982) Fr Vincent Commerford (1997) 31 Fr Malachy Riddle (1969) Fr Albert Vaughan (1995)

1 Fr Richard Johnson (1992) Fr Ignatius Tonna (1993) 2 Fr Thomas Stack (1984) Fr Michael Archer (2014) 3 Mgr Canon John Mostyn (1981) 5 Fr William Lynagh (1977) Fr Alan Fudge (2011) 6 Fr Anthony Sacré (2015) 9 Fr John Greene (1980) 11 Fr Laurence Allan (1981) Fr Guy Martin Heal (2009) 12 Fr Roderick Cuming (1981) Fr Wilfrid Soggee (1990) Fr John Milne (2001) Fr Joseph Finnegan (2002) Fr John D’Arcy Dutton (2013) 14 Fr Philip Dwerryhouse (1986) 15 Fr John Adam (1979) Fr Bernard Mortimore (1980) 16 Canon Denis O’Sullivan (1983) Fr Peter Latham (2005) 17 Mgr Walter Drumm (2015) 19 Canon George Davey (1986) Fr Leslie Cole (1997) Fr Michael Durand (2018) 20 Cardinal Bernard Griffin (1956) Fr Joseph McVeigh (1977) Fr Desmond Mullin (1988) 21 Fr Percival Fielden (1990) Fr Edward Houghton (2009) 24 Fr Patrick Cassidy (2007) 25 Fr James Gunston (1972) Mgr Canon Herbert Haines (2004) Fr Raymond Legge (2015) Fr Sean McWeeney (2016) 26 Fr Thomas Kilcoyne (1972) Fr Peter Keenan (1984) 27 Mgr John Coonan (1979) Fr Norman Wrigley (2015) 29 Fr Edward Fowler (1973) Fr Michael Lynam (1984) 31 Fr William Rees (1984) Canon Maurice O’Leary (1997)

humour was never cynical or sarcastic, but able to bring a ray of light to a dark situation. He often told a humorous story at the end of each of his Masses, causing people to leave the church with a smile on their lips, as did the humorous photos and jokes that were characteristic of Fr Denis’ parish newsletters. May this faithful and humble priest receive the reward of his labours, and may he rest in peace.

Events & Calendar

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

REGuLAR EVENTS

Liturgical Calendar – July and August

If you have an event, please email: communications@rcdow.org.uk

Prayer Groups SuNDAYS Taizé at St James, Piccadilly W1J 9LL every third Sunday 5pm. Call 020 7503 5128 for details. Tyburn Benedictines Monastic afternoon Every first Sunday 2-5pm Martyrs’ Crypt, Tyburn Convent, 8 Hyde Park Place W2 2LJ. Westminster Cathedral Young Adults meet socially after the 7pm Mass on Sundays and then at the nearby Windsor Castle pub. For further details please contact: westminsteryoungadults@gmail.com

MONDAYS Mothers’ Prayers at St Dominic’s Priory, haverstock hill NW5 4LB Mondays 2.30-3.30pm in the Lourdes Chapel. All are welcome.

TuESDAYS Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament Tuesdays 6-9pm concluding with Benediction at Newman House, 111 Gower Street WC1E 6AR. Details 020 7387 6370. Prayers for London at the Shrine of Our Lady of Willesden Tuesdays 7.30pm. Organised by the Guild of Our Lady of Willesden, Nicoll Road NW10 9AX. Our Lady of Walsingham Prayer Group First Tuesday of the month 2.30pm to 4.15pm in the Chapel of St George and the English Martyrs in Westminster Cathedral. Details: antonia@walsingham.org.uk Vocations Prayer Group Second Tuesday of the month 8pm at 47C Gaisford Street NW5 2EB. Taizé at St James’, Spanish Place W1V 3QY every first Tuesday of the month at 7pm. Email: penny28hb@aol.com or just come along. NFG Prayer Group weekly at 8pm for praise & worship followed by a social. Held in St Mark’s Room, Christ the King Church, Cockfosters N14 4HE. Contact Fr Christophe: christophe.brunet@cheminneuf.org.

WEDNESDAYS Corpus Christi Contemplative Prayer Group for Young Adults Wednesdays from 7pm at Corpus Christi, Maiden Lane WC2E 7NB. Contact ccpguk@gmail.com Our Lady, Untier of Knots, Prayer Group of Intercession every third Wednesday at St Anselm & St Cecilia, Lincoln’s Inn Fields WC2A 3JA. Mass at 6pm followed by Prayer Group. Rosary, Adoration, silent prayer and Divine Mercy Chaplet. Email Antonia antonia4161@gmail.com. Gregorian Chant Explore the riches of the Gregorian chant tradition

every Wednesday 6.30pm to 8pm, Bulbeck room, Ealing Abbey parish centre. New members welcome. For details, email gregorianchantealing@gmail.com

ThuRSDAYS Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament for young professionals at St Thomas More, Swiss Cottage. Begins at 7.30pm, with Confession from 7pm to 8.30pm. The next date is 24th January. Sodality of the Blessed Sacrament first Thursday of the month, Mass 6:30pm at Corpus Christi, Maiden Lane WC2E 7NB followed by Adoration and Benediction. www.sodality.co.uk Jesus Christ the Fullness of Life (JCFL) provides a space for Christians of different traditions to join together in prayer and friendship. For further details please visit www.jcfl.org.uk.

1 Mon 2 Tue 3 Wed 4 Thu 5 Fri 6 Sat 7 Sun 8 Mon 9 Tue 10 Wed 11 Thu 12 Fri 13 Sat 14 Sun 15 Mon

DEDICATION OF THE CATHEDRAL Feria, 13th Week of Year 1 ST THOMAS, Apostle Feria or St Elizabeth of Portugal Feria or St Anthony Zaccaria Friday abstinence Feria or St Maria Goretti, Virgin & Martyr or Blessed Virgin Mary +14th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME Feria, 14th Week of Year 1 Feria or St Augstine Zhao Rong & Comapnions, Martyrs Feria ST BENEDICT, Abbot, Patron of Europe Feria Friday abstinence Feria or St Henry or Blessed Virgin Mary + 15th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME, Sea Sunday St Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor

16 Tue 17 Wed 18 Thu 19 Fri 20 Sat 21 Sun 22 Mon 23 Tue 24 Wed 25 Thu 26 Fri

Feria, 15th Week of Year 1 or Our Lady of Mount Carmel Feria Feria Feria Friday abstinence Feria or St Apollinaris, Bishop & Martyr or Blessed Virgin Mary + 16th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME St MARY MAGDALENE ST BRIDGET OF SWEDEN, Patron of Europe Feria, 16th Week of Year 1 or St Sharbel Makhluf, Priest ST JAMES, Apostle Ss Joachim and Anne, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary Friday abstinence Feria or Blessed Virgin Mary + 17th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME St Martha Feria, 17th Week of Year 1 or St Peter Chrysologus, Bishop & Doctor St Ignatius of Loyola, Priest St Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop & Doctor Feria or St Eusebius of Vercelli, Bishop or St Peter Julian Eymard, Priest Friday abstinence Feria or Blessed Virgin Mary +18th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME Feria, 18th Week of Year 1 or Dedication of the Basilica of St Mary Major + THE TRANSFIGURATION OF THE LORD Feria or St Sixtus II, Pope & Companions, Martyrs or St Cajetan, Priest

Soul Food A Catholic charismatic prayer group for young adults Thursdays 7-9pm at St Charles Borromeo, Ogle Street W1W 6HS. Details www.soulfoodgroup.org.

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St John Paul II Prayer Group Every second Thursday of the month 7-8pm, Mass, Adoration and prayer at Corpus Christi, Maiden Lane WC2E 7NB

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FRIDAYS Divine Mercy Prayers and Mass Every first Friday 2.30-4.30pm at Our Lady, Mother of the Church, 2 Windsor Road W5 5PD Westminster Cathedral Charismatic Prayer Group Friday 7.30pm Prayer, praise and teaching. First Friday is a healing call 020 8748 2632. Queen of Peace Prayer Group at Our Lady of Lourdes, Acton W3 8AA. After 7pm Mass, Exposition, a homily, Holy Rosary and Chaplet of Divine Mercy. Friday prayer meeting 1:30pm to 3pm with Adoration in St Matthew's Hall, Northwood, Middx HA6 1DW except 1st Friday. Summer break- August. Contact Patricia 07918128248

SATuRDAYS Taizé at Notre Dame de France 5 Leicester Place WC2H 7BX at 7.15pm. Call 020 7437 9363. Carmelite Spirituality Group meet first Saturday at St Joseph’s Church, Bunhill Row EC1Y 8LE. 11.30-15.30 for prayer and reflection. Enquiries: Sylvia Lucas 07889436165. holy Cross, Parsons Green first Saturday of every month. Mass at 9.30am followed by Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament for one hour concluding with Benediction.

3 Sat 4 Sun 5 Mon 6 Tue 7 Wed 8 Thu 9 Fri 10 Sat 11 Sun 12 Mon 13 Tue 14 Wed 15 Thu 16 Fri 17 Sat 18 Sun 19 Mon 20 Tue 21 Wed 22 Thu 23 Fri 24 Sat 25 Sun 26 Mon 27 Tue 28 Wed 29 Thu 30 Fri 31 Sat

St Dominic, Priest ST TERESA BENEDICTA OF THE CROSS, Virgin & Martyr, Patron of Europe Friday abstinence ST LAWRENCE, Deacon & Martyr +19th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME Feria, 19th Week of Year 1 or St Jane Frances de Chantal Feria or Ss Pontian, Pope, & Hippolytus, Priest, Martyrs St Maximilian Mary Kolbe +THE ASSUMPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY Feria or St Stephen of Hungary Friday abstinence Feria or Blessed Virign Mary +20th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME Feria, 20th Week of Year 1 or St John Eudes St Bernard, Abbot & Doctor St Pius X, Pope The Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary Friday abstinence Feria or St Rose of Lima, Virgin ST BARTHOLOMEW, Apostle +21st SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME Feria, 21st Week of Year 1 or Blessed Dominic of the Mother of God, Priest St Monica St Augustine, Bishop & Doctor The Passion of St John the Baptist Feria or Ss Margaret Clitherow, Anne Line and Margaret Ward, Martyrs Friday abstinence Feria or St Aidan, Bishop, and the Saints of Lindisfarne

Other regular Masses Deaf Community Mass First Sunday of the month 4.30pm at Westminster Cathedral Hall, Ambrosden Avenue Young Adults Mass with an Ignatian twist Every Sunday at 7pm. Church of the Immaculate Conception, Farm Street Contact: yam@mountstreet.info or visit www.pathwaystogood.org Mass at Canary Wharf Held Tuesdays at 12.30pm at 2 Churchill Place E14 5RB. Organised by Mgr Vladimir Felzmann, Chaplain to Canary Wharf Communities. Details at www.cwcc.org.uk. St Alban’s Abbey Fridays at 12 noon. Mass in the Lady Chapel of St Albans Abbey AL1 1BY. Members of the Westminster LGBT Catholic Community are specially welcomed on 2nd and 4th Sunday of the month for Mass at the Immaculate Conception Church, Farm Street at 5.30pm, and invited to the parish hall afterwards for tea/coffee, where there is anopportunity to learn of pastoral help available. EXTRAORDINARY FORM MASSES Sundays: Low Mass 9.30am, St James Spanish Place W1U 3QY. Low Mass 9am, The Oratory, Brompton Road SW7 2RP. Low Mass 5pm, St Bartholomew, St Albans AL1 2PE. Low Mass 5.30pm, Shrine of Our Lady of Willesden, NW10 9AX. Mondays: Low Mass 8am The Oratory, Brompton Road SW7 2RP Mass 6.30pm Corpus Christi, Maiden Lane WC2E 7NB. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays: Low Mass, 8am The Oratory, Brompton Road SW7 2RP. Fridays: Low Mass 8am The Oratory, Brompton Road SW7 2RP. Low Mass 6pm St Etheldreda, Ely Place EC1N 6RY. First Fri only. Low Mass 6pm St John the Baptist Church, King Edward's Road E9 7SF. First Friday only. Low Mass 6.30pm Corpus Christi, Maiden Lane WC2E 7NB. Second Friday only. Saturdays: Low Mass 12.15pm, St Wilfrid’s Chapel, The Oratory, Brompton Road SW7 2RP. Low Mass 4pm, Lady Chapel, Westminster Cathedral SW1P 1QW. Second Saturday only. Page 23

Westminster Record | Summer 2019

Holy Land Pilgrimage: Learning to know Christ more deeply By Fr Mike Maguire Recently, the ‘under 5’s’ went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. The under 5’s are a group of Westminster deacons and priests who have been ordained less than five years, meeting a few times a year with Fr Gerard Skinner for ongoing formation. Pope Francis describes ongoing formation as: ‘A reminder that the one experience of discipleship of those called to priesthood is never interrupted. The priest not only learns to know Christ but, under the action of the Holy Spirit, he finds himself within a process of gradual and continuous configuration to him in his being and his acting, which constantly challenges the person to inner growth.’ Our pilgrimage to the Holy Land, then, led by Bishop John Sherrington, was an exciting venture of walking in the footsteps of Jesus together as brother-priests, servants of the Lord for our diocese, as we embraced a new and shared way of ‘learning to know Christ.’ The scriptures play a crucial role in our relationship with the Lord as we learn to know Christ, but to be able to experience in the Holy Land what we hear and proclaim in the scriptures every day: to follow Christ’s journey from his birth in Bethlehem, his public ministry throughout Galilee, on to the place of his Passion, death and Resurrection in

Jerusalem truly brought the Scriptures alive in new and exciting ways. It was the eminent and inspiring scripture scholar Fr John Hemer MHM, having taught scripture to most of the group during our seminary formation, who helped us to bring together a reading and living out of the scriptures, both in our own search for personal inner growth and to help us open up the Word of God to our brothers and sisters, as together, we all learn to know Christ more deeply. One of the first places we visited was the Basilica of the Nativity, in Manger Square, Bethlehem, where some of us lined up for a prayerful two hours to venerate the place where Jesus was born. Just before we entered the cave, Fr Gerard read a homily of Pope St Leo the Great, from the office of readings for Christmas Day. I was struck by his famous words: ‘Christian, recognize your dignity and, now that you share in God's own nature, do not return to your former base condition by sinning. Remember who is your head and of whose body you are a member. Never forget that you have been rescued from the power of darkness and brought into the light of the Kingdom of God.’ Priesthood is the means by which Jesus wants me to live out the fullness of his dignity. It

The pilgrims celebrated Mass at Dominus Flevit.

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Published by The Diocese of Westminster, Vaughan House, 46 Francis Street, London SW1P 1QN. Printed by Universe Media Group Ltd., 2nd Floor, Oakland House, 76 Talbot Road, Manchester M16 0PQ, Tel 0161 820 5722. All rights reserved.

Fathers Michael Jarmulowicz, Mike Maguire, Rajiv Michael and Julio Albornoz in Jerusalem

was a privilege to venerate briefly, with the help of ushers anxious to close the church, the place where the one who gives my dignity was born. Fr Damian Ryan On our second day we drove to the Chapel of the Ascension, where an impressive giant footprint is believed to be the right foot of Jesus. We then walked down to the Mount of Olives, a beautiful peaceful place where Jesus had taught the disciples the Lord’s Prayer, displayed there in many languages and dialects. Jerusalem from the hilltop was stunning, including the dome of the rock, a holy site for Muslims and Jews. Celebrating Mass at Dominus Flevit was particularly moving, overlooking Jerusalem in the distance. We walked down the Palm Sunday route into Jerusalem and stopped off at the Garden of Gethsemane. It was extraordinary to be at the spot where Jesus had prayed so fervently before his arrest. We then proceeded to visit the place where Peter denied Jesus and the Upper Room, where Jesus instituted the Eucharist. There was even time to stop by the tomb of King David. Fr Andrew Jaxa-Chamiec

Day three began by concelebrating the Mass of the Resurrection in the Latin Patriarchate, before visiting the Holocaust memorial at Yad Vashem. The great experience of the day was to follow the Via Dolorosa, to make the Stations of the Cross at the actual sites, pressing through the crowds as Jesus did. We entered the Holy Sepulchre through the Ethiopian Chapel, where our appearance was graciously accepted, and joined in the Franciscan-led procession, a daily occurrence since 1624, ending with Benediction. Famously the Holy Sepulchre is a place of quarrels, even violence, between different groups. Even beside his tomb, how desperately is Christ’s peace needed in our divided world! Fr Patrick Allsop

from the house of Mary. Here we renewed our priestly promises in preparation to come home to our parishes and to continue the gift of our priesthood. In the eight days of our pilgrimage, following in the footsteps of Our Lord, we prayed and celebrated Mass together; we socialised together; we laughed and sometimes cried together; but, above all, we lived our priesthood together in new ways, as we look forward to doing so in the years ahead.

To walk in the footsteps of our Lord was a life-changing and profound opportunity, both personally and spiritually. Two of the most moving experiences were an early-morning visit to the site of Calvary, and our last day, when we celebrated Mass in the Church of St Joseph, believed to sit on the site of the Holy Family’s house in Nazareth, about 100 meters Follow us on Twitter at: twitter.com/RCWestminster