Pilgrimage in Honour of the English Martyrs

There will be a pilgrimage in honour of the English Martyrs at Preston on Saturday 5th May.  Pilgrims are invited to gather  at 11.45am in St Walburge's Church, where there will be devotions, before the procession sets off at noon. 

As you can see from the picture, St Walburge's  has a very tall spire.  In fact it is the third highest spire in England, after Salisbury Cathedral an Norwich Cathedral.  It can be seen for miles around, so should not be too difficult to find.  The Postcode is PR2 2QE for those navigating with the aid of satnav.

It is a little under a mile to the church of the English Martyrs, where Mass will be celebrated at around 12.30 pm.

As you can see from this photograph, this is also a large church, although it's spire never got built.  Both churches are magnificent inside, although the following pictures do not do them justice.

The Church of the English Martyrs occupies a very historic site, as it was built at the place of execution of  some of the leaders of the 1745 Jacobite Rebellion  -  a very good reason to attend the pilgrimage.

Another good reason to attend the pilgrimage is that it is being led by the Institute of Christ the King, Supreme Priest -  something that will surely guarantee the success of the event.

Religious Affiliation in the UK

According to a report by Stephen Bullivant, Professor of Theology and Sociology at St Mary's University, just under 10% of young people aged 16 to 29 regard themselves as Catholic.  This compares with 7% who claim to be C of E and 6% Muslim.  This is based on a European Social Survey conducted 2014 to 2016.

The survey is a snapshot, so does not strictly indicate trends.  However, the fact that the figures are only for young people does indicate that within the next 15 years, there will be more Catholics and more Muslims than members of the Church of England.

The report does not mention that the survey covers the whole of the UK, whereas the C of E only covers England.  I presume adjustment has been made for this.

Requiem Mass Tuesday 6th March.

The Requiem Mass of Francis (Frank) Shepherd will take place at the Church of St Mary and St Joseph, Hedon, on Tuesday 6th March at 12 noon.

Frank Shepherd, who lived in Hedon, has been attending the the Sunday Latin Masses in York and Hedon.

Ash Wednesday

There will be a Mass in the Extraordinary Form, preceded by the blessing and distribution of Ashes at St Wilfrid's Church in York on Wednesday 14th February.  Ash Wednesday is a day of fast and abstinaece.

Bishop of Lancaster Appointed

Canon Paul Swarbrick , a priest of the Lancaster Diocese, has been named as the next Bishop of Lancaster.  Canon Swarbrick (59) trained for the priesthood at Ushaw College, and was ordained to the priesthood in 1982.  He has served in various parishes in the Lancaster Diocese as well as spending a spell in Zambia.

It will be of particular interest to readers of this blog that Fr Swarbrick has, in the past, served at both the churches in Preston now run by the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest.  On his return from Africa, he was briefly Assistant Priest at English Martyrs.  Later he was Parish Priest of the Sacred Heart Church, a parish that included St Walburge's Church.  In fact, an article in the Lancaster Evening Press announcing Canon Swarbrick's appointment has a picture of him inside St Walburge's Church. 

Title Page

I have to ask readers to ignore the information at the top of this blog. The Masses in Redcar no longer take place, neither do the Wednesday evening Masses in Hull.  However, the information concerning activities in York are correct, and we now have a regular monthly Sunday Mass in Hedon.  It is at 5pm on the second Sunday of the month at the Church of St Mary and St Joseph.

Unfortunately. I am unable to change that part of the blog.

Sunday 11th February

On Sunday 11th February, being the second Sunday of the Month, there will be a Low Mass in the Extraordinary Form at the Church of St Mary & St Joseph in Hedon.  It will be at 5pm and celebrated by Fr Mark Drew, who is Parish Priest there. 

The church is in Baxtergate and the postcode is HU12 8JN.  Baxter ate is part of a one way system in Hedon, so most people will have to approach via St Augustinegate, which is the main street.  The church is hard to spot, because it is behind the presbytery.  The most noticeable thing is a large crucifix in the garden, but by the time you have noticed that, you will probably have passed the entrance, and may have to go round the one way system again.  It is best to look for the Shakespeare Inn.  The entrance to the church is next to the pub's car park.

Candlemas

Yesterday morning, the Feast of the Purification, I noticed on Fr Z's blog a poem for Candlemas written by John Henry Newman.

 THE Angel-lights of Christmas morn,

Which shot across the sky,
Away they pass at Candlemas,
They sparkle and they die.

Comfort of earth is brief at best,
Although it be divine;
Like funeral lights for Christmas gone,
Old Simeon’s tapers shine.

And then for eight long weeks and more,
We wait in twilight grey,
Till the high candle sheds a beam
On Holy Saturday.

We wait along the penance-tide
Of solemn fast and prayer;
While song is hush’d, and lights grow dim
In the sin-laden air. 

And while the sword in Mary’s soul
Is driven home, we hide
In our own hearts, and count the wounds
Of passion and of pride.

And still, though Candlemas be spent
And Alleluias o’er,
Mary is music in our need,
And Jesus light in store.

In the evening, I went to Mass at St Wilfrid's in York , where there was blessing of candles and a procession.  The poem was sung as a hymn at the end of Mass.   I had not heard it before.

Mater Dei Latin Mass Parish, Irving, Texas

Here is another report on the spectacular expansion of Latin Mass provision in the USA.

The Priestly Fraternity of St Peter have a parish in Irving, Texas.  I understand that it is canonically erected as a Personal Parish within the Diocese of Dallas.  That means that it has no geographical boundaries, but that it has the same responsibilities (eg maintaining parish records) as any other parish in the diocese.  I understand that the church, which has a small spire, was built as recently as 2009, and so is modern, but nevertheless a decent looking building.

The interior is a little plain, but spacious and not at all bad by modern standards.

Although the church can seat 300, it is considered too small for their requirements.  Currently there are five Masses on Sundays: (7.30am, 9.00am, 11.30am, 1.00pm and 5.30pm) serving a total congregation is over 1,100.  At some Masses, especially on Holydays, some of the congregation have to stand.

The parish has launched an appeal to raise $2,500,000 to build a new church.  Already nearly $1,000,000 has been raised in cash and pledges.  The new church, which will seat 900, will have confessionals, a baptistery and a choir loft, facilities that are lacking in the present building.

The remarkable thing about this story is that a building that was considered big enough in 2009, now needs to be replaced by one three times the size.  Such is the growth in interest in the Latin Mass in Texas over the last 9 years!

Priest, Deacon and Server Training

Bookings are now open for the Priest, Deacon and Server Training Conference to be held at Prior Park College near Bath from 9th to 12th April.   These conferences, organised by the Latin Mass Society, have been held most years since 2007, the year of Summorum Pontificum.  Over this period hundreds of priests, deacons, seminarians and laymen have been introduced to, and learned the rubrics of the Latin Mass.

Tuition in celebrating Mass in the Extraordinary Form is given to priests (and soon to be ordained seminarians) in small groups by experienced priests.   Low Mass, Missa Cantata and Solemn Mass can be studied according to the requirements of each student, although priests are expected to master Low Mass before moving to the more complicated forms.

Servers are also instructed in small groups according to requirements, and again, they are expected to master Low Mass before progressing to Missa Cantata and Solemn Mass.  Most tuition is around an altar, to give a hands on experience.

Prior Park has a beautiful chapel with several side chapels that are well suited to Mass in the Extraordinary Form.  There will be a resident choir so that the daily Mass and the other liturgies can be examples of best practice.

Accommodation is in single rooms (not en suite) conveniently located close to the chapel and the dining room.  The fee for attending is £120, although there are concessions and seminarians are can attend entirely free.  Fuller details and the booking form can be found on the website of the Latin Mass Society.  Places are limited so early booking is advised.