Forthcoming events

For any readers who are able to attend here are some events in Oxford, and in one case London. in October and early November which may be of interest:

Tuesday October 8th Night Walk to Littlemore to commemorate the reception of Bl.John Henry Newman into the Church ( "the one true fold of the Redeemer" ) in 1845. The walk begins at 7.45pm in the Oxford Oratory. 9.30pm Candlelit procession from  Rosehill,  10pm Holy Hour in Bl.Dominic Barberi church, conclusion at The College for devotions in the chapel and refeshments. Lifts are normally available afterwards for the return to Oxford. Always a good occasion to participate in.

Wednesday October 9th  6 pm Solemn Mass in honour of Bl. John Henry Newman at the Oxford Oratory.
  
Saturday October 12th  The Rosary Crusade of Reparation, London. Starting at 2.15pm from Westminster Cathedral, the procession will end at Brompton Oratory with Benediction. More details from: http://rosarycrusadeofreparation.blogspot.co.uk

Friday October 18th- Sunday October 20th Forty Hours Devotion at the Oxford Oratory. A highlight of the year - more details to follow. It is also a busy weekend for those keen on liturgical traditional or devotion:
  
Saturday October 19th Latin Mass Society Pilgrimage to Oxford.The annual pilgrimage in honour of the Oxford Martyrs. High Mass in the Dominican Rite at Blackfriars at 11.00am. This is followed by lunch, then procession, beginning at the end of Cornmarket by the church of St Michael at the North Gate, at 2.00pm. The Pilgrimage will then process through the streets to the site of the martyrdomsof 1589 at the end of Holywell Street, the site of the town gallows, and then returns to Blackfriars for Benediction at 3.00pm. Bring packed lunch or have a pub lunch locally.

Meanwhile there is also on the same day

Saturday October 19th "A Seminar on True Devotion to Jesus through Mary" at Greyfriars in Iffley Road, beginning with Mass at 9.30am and talks from 10 until 1. Refreshments will be provided.

Sunday October 20th 12 noon EF Sung High Mass at SS Gregory and Augustine Oxford.

Sunday October  27th  3pm Church of Bl. Dominic Barberi Littlemore will have the celebration of Vespers with Bishop William Kenney, himself a Passionist, presiding to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Bl. Dominic's Beatification. 

Saturday November 9th  Stabat Mater  - a recital by Camerata of Curiosities at the Oxford Oratory in aid of the Oratory Appeal at 8pm. Music by Bach, Monteverrdi, Grandi and Sances. Tickets for donations fron £10 to £10,000...

The Rosary Crusade in London

I took time off from the Forty Hours at the Oxford Oratory to go up to London to participate in the Rosary Crusade this afternoon. I thought we were going to be in for rain as there was sharp shower just before the coach stopped but in fact the afternoon proved dry and sunny at times. I was anxious to go this year, having been unable to do so last year, to remember Fr Hugh Thwaites S.J., the founder of the Crusade who died at the age of 95 in the late summer. As it was also the 95th anniversary of the Miracle of the Sun on this day in 1917 there was an additional cause for commemoration.

I had just arrived in Ambrosden Avenue beside Westminster Cathedral when I was greeted by a friend who is a seminarian at Allen Hall, and we kept company throughout the procession to Brompton. The numbers participating were again impressive, and we seemed as a procession to keep together in recitation of the Mysteries than on some previous occasions. At the appropriate points as we sang the Aves in various hymns most of us waved our hymn sheets in the approved Fatima fashion.

As usual on this occasion I was struck by the friendliness of Saturday afternoon shoppers as we passed by - when we are so often told there is such hostility to religion, here was renewed evidence of tolerance and, indeed, benevolence towards what we were doing.

At the Oratory itself those who had processed from Westminster and others who had awaited our arrival filled the church - as usual on these occasions I ended up standing in a side chapel. We had a forceful sermon from the Provost of the London Oratory, Fr Julian Large C.O., on the way in which Marian dogmas and devotion counteract heresy, and applying it to the observance of the Year of Faith. More so than in the past the devotions, including the Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, spoke to me as an individual, making me all the more pleased to have made the effort to go. Benediction at the High Altar and the Salve Regina at the Lady Altar closed the devotions. A good way to spend the afternoon - next year's Crusade is scheduled for Saturday October 12th.

Afterwards I met up with two sisters, friends from their student days in Oxford, and their parents. We exchanged news and information about mutual friends before I set off back up Brompton Road and Park Lane to Marble Arch and the coach back to Oxford.

Rosary Crusade - October 13th

On October 13th there will be the annual Rosary Crusade of Reparation from Westminster Cathedral to the Brompton Oratory.

It is not only the feast of St Edward the Confessor, one of the patron saints of the cathedral, but it will also be the 95th anniversary of the Miracle of the Sun at Fatima in 1917, and the procession is always one escorting the image of Our Lady of Fatima. 

Image:Rosary Crusade blogspot

There are more pictures from last year here.

The procession starts from the cathedral at 1.45, proceeds at Brompton for devotions in the Oratory church and concludes with Benediction and enrollment in the Scapular.

This is always an impressive act of witness through the heart of west central London, and draws many pilgrims - why not join them  to begin the Year of Faith?

Processions of witness in London

Due to other commitments I cannot join in either of these two events, but I would urge anyone who can to do so on the next two Saturdays.

Saturday October 1st
There will be a procession of the Blessed Sacrament in thanksgiving for the State Visit last year of the Pope and for the beatification of Cardinal Newman starting from Westminster Cathedral at 1.15pm. The route will be crossing the Thames at Lambeth Bridge and the procession will conclude at St George's Cathedral in Southwark with Benediction at 2.30pm.

Saturday October 8th
The annual Rosary Crusade will depart from Westminster cathedral at, I assume, the usual time of 1.45pm and proceed to the Brompton Oratory escorting the statue of Our Lady of Fatima. The procession will be led by Mgr. Keith Newton, the Ordinary of the Ordinariate of Our lady of Walsingham. The devotions at the Oratory conclude with Benediction and enrollment with the Brown Scapular.

I am very sorry that I shall not be able to participate in either of these events - I really enjoy such processions, and they are a very striking and effective act of witness in the capital city.

Rosary Crusade - caught in the act

My attention has been drawn to this photograph on Joe Shaw's Flickr photostream which shows me on the extreme right (no surprise there I suppose) as we assembled in Ambrosden Avenue at the beginning of last Saturday's Rosary Crusade.

I'm not sure why I'm sharing it - it is not especially favourable to me as a picture, so I suspect it is mere vainglory.

Rosary Crusade

Last Saturday I betook myself to London to take part in the Rosary Crusade of Reparation, with its procession from Westminster Cathedral to the Brompton Oratory, followed by devotions in the church there. This was the 26th anniversary of the Crusade and about the fourth time I have taken part in it. It is always a positive and public act ot witness as we walk through Victoria and Knightsbridge saying the rosary, and in the wake of the Papal visit it seemed all the more important to maintain the momentum of public devotion on the streets of London.

I arrived at the Cathedral piazza to meet up by arrangement with a friend, who had not attended before, and found many of the usual suspects there. So there was the usual meeting up with a friend from the Brothers at Brompton, resplendent in his habit as a member of the co-terminous Confraternity of the Precious Blood, and sightings of assorted clergy, religious and Knights of Malta, plus "Bones" from Brighton (Laurence That The Bones You Have Crushed May Thrill England) with whom I exchanged greetings.

The attendance was good, as always - usually in the region of 3,000 people attend each year, but I did wonder if it is not a somewhat ageing group who form the larger part of the procession - there seemed proportionately fewer younger people than at other similar events. This is surprising given the expectation that one would find youth groups and those more likely to be fit and active wanting to take part in such an event. Maybe it is a matter of publicity. Nonetheless it is clearly esteemed by many who attend year by year.

So off we went following a four foot high statue of Our Lady of Fatima which had been blessed by Pope Pius XII and borne by members of the Catholic Police Guild. This year we managed more orless successfully to keep saying the same decades of the Rosary as a group as we processed

At a packed Brompton Oratory we had the Fatima devotions and then a sermon from the Abbot of Farnborough which linked the experience of the Papal visit - no, it had n't been a dream to see the Pope in Westminster and Hyde Park, or for us to walk through London saying the rosary - with Bl. John Henry's growing understanding as he moved towards reception into Catholicism inhis last years at Littlemore of the importance of Marian devotion as part of his discovery of the Church as a living organism rather than an organisation based solely on the Bible. Here was the development of doctrine in action and practice.

After Benediction there was, as always, the possibility of being enrolled in the Brown Scapular.

As I was leaving the man taking the collection, seeing my Oriel scarf, said that it was good to see Oriel represented. Who says the old school tie/college scarf no longer matters?

After that it was off to the pub for a pint before my friend and I went to dinner with another friend in Harley Street. Thanks to the curiosities of travel in London the last stage of the journey, to avoid being late, was made in a cycle-drawn rickshaw (with sat-nav) from Bond Street. An interesting, and rather enjoyable ride.

After a very enjoyable evening it was a late journey back to Oxford on Sunday morning - snooze on the coach, walk home, bed at 4, awake at 7, in the Oratory before 9 as collector of the "Wax tax" - selling sponsored candles for the Forty Hours next weekend. Not bad going at my age I reckon.

Next year the Crusade will be held on either October 8th or 15th - look out for details in the Catholic press, and join in, and bring your friends.

There are pictures from the 2008 Crusade here.

Rosary Crusade 2010

I am reproducing this from Laurence England's That The Bones You Have Crushed May Thrill blog. I am not sure at the moment if I can join the Rosary Crusade this year, but I have always enjoyed participating when I have attended. Anyway, read what Laurence has to say...

Forging a Catholic Identity

The Holy Father seemed to spend a great deal of time trying to forge a Catholic identity while he was here in the United Kingdom. The Catholic identity is really grounded in Holy Tradition and the 'Faith of our Fathers'. Also, when those not of the Faith think of Catholicism, they think of veiled women kneeling for Communion and hardened Mafia gangsters going to Confession just before leaving a horses head in an enemies bed. We have to return to this and lose the tambourines!

The recent, incredible scenes in London, Birmingham and Scotland showed just what an impact Catholics can make by proclaiming our Faith in numbers, so what better way to forge a Catholic identity in this country than to participate in the 26th Annual National Rosary Crusade of Reparation, which will take place on Saturday 16th October.

It takes place during the 40 Days for Life which began a couple of days ago, to bear witness to the Gospel of Life and to pray for an end to abortion. The Rosary Crusade of Reparation will assemble outside Westminster Cathedral at 1.45pm (Ambroseden Avenue). Nearest tube station is London Victoria. The Procession will go to Brompton Oratory, Brompton Road, London SW7. The nearest tube to there is South Kensington.

The Procession with the statue of Our Lady of Fatima will be led by Rt. Rev. Dom Cuthbert Brogan OSB, Abbot of St Michael's Abbey, Farnborough, to Brompton Oratory, praying the Rosary en-route. There will be a Consecration to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary and interestingly, the Patron is His Grace Archbishop Vincent Nichols, so let's hope he attends. There will also be Solemn Pontifical Benediction, presumably at the Oratory. Sounds splendid, doesn't it?

The day will end at about 5pm and Mass is the anticipated Mass of Sunday will start at 6pm. For more information contact Francis Carey on 01494 729 223 or Mathias Menezes on 020 8764 0262 or on his mobile on 07950 384515. You can contact him by post at 27 First Avenue, Amersham, Bucks HP7 9BL.