English Martyrs Pilgrimage

The pilgrimage in honour of the Martyrs of England & Wales held in Preston last Saturday went very well.  It was a beautiful day with a completely blue sky, which enabled some excellent photographs to be taken.

Starting at St Walburge's Church, the procession moved through pleasant tree lined streets to the English Martyrs Church, a distance of about a mile. The Rosary was recited, as was a litany of the English Martyrs, and hymns were sung.  A couple of main roads were crossed, but this caused little disruption and vehicles courteously gave way to the estimated 150 people taking part.

About another 50 people were waiting at the English Martyrs Church for the Solemn Mass.  The Sisters sang the propers of the Mass beautifully, as did the choir who sang Byrd's Mass for Three Voices.

Afterwards refreshments were served in the adjacent hall.

Here are some pictures;

Procession leaving St Walburge's.

Bier carrying relics

Canon Tanner preaching

Two sisters venerating the relics

Institute of Christ the King Vocation Discernment

Last November, the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest opened a House of Discernment for young men exploring their priestly vocations.  Four potential priests took up residence in the presbytery attached to St Walburge's Church in Preston.  As it has turned out, one dropped out of the scheme part way through, but two are now submitting their applications to join the Institute's seminary at Gricigliano.  A further one has decided to pursue a vocation as an Oblate in the Institute.

This is very good news.  The Institute is now advertising for candidates for next year's intake, who will enter the House of Discernment in November.  Let us hope that there will be plenty of applicants.

No Latin Mass at Hedon on Sunday 13th May

Due to the absence of Fr Drew, there will be no Latin Mass at Hedon on Sunday 13th May.

I may have caused some confusion in an earlier post by saying that there will be no Mass on 6th May.  This was an error.  The Latin Masses at Hedon are on the second Sundays of the month at 5pm.

Feast of the English Martyrs

5th May is the Feast of the Martyrs of England and Wales.  It will be celebrated in Preston on Saturday 5th May with a pilgrimage jointly organised by the Latin Mass Society and the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest.

Pilgrims should assemble at St Walburge's Church at 11.45 for the procession that will depart at noon.  It is about a mile to the Church of the English Martyrs where a Solemn Mass will be offered.
The weather forecast is good, so the organisers are hoping for a good turnout.  Bring banners if you can.

The Usus Antiquior and the Seminarians of Paris.

Fr Michael Brown has picked up an interesting story from a French website.  Apparently it is the custom at the seminary serving the Archdiocese of Paris, that each year the students are given the opportunity to study an extra subject that is normally outside the curriculum.  The subject is selected by some form of ballot.

It is reported that this year the eighty students voted by an absolute majority to study traditional litergy and the motu proprio Summorum Pontificum.  It is reported that, despite the disquiet of several bishops,  this tuition is now being provided.  For those whose French is better than mine, the whole story can be read on the website 
renaissancecatholique.org/les-seminaristes-de-paris-a-la-decouverte-de-la-messe-traditionnelle/

Success of Rosary on the Coast

On Sunday I was one of 30 people who traveled by coach from York to Scarborough for the Rosary on the Coast.  There, we met 100 others gathered next to the life boat station to recite the Litany of Loretto, sing hymns and say the Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary.  We were one of about 400 groups around the coasts of the British Isles doing the same thing at the same time.  If our gathering was of typical size, that would amount to about 52,000 people involved.  The organisers, who are mostly lay people,  must be congratulated on a great success of this project.

I do hope that the project will be repeated in future years.  If that happens I would be keen to give a hand with the organisation, with a view to getting even more groups involved. There is surely scope for expansion.  Along the length of the coast of the Diocese of Middlesbrough there were seven locations, namely: Redcar, Saltburn, Whitby, Scarborough, Hornsea, Withernsea, Hull and Hessle.  It would be nice if a few more, such as Filew and  Bridlington, were added.  Indeed, looking at the map of all the locations, the Yorkshire coast had relatively few flags compared with most parts of the country.

One small amusing anecdote.  Our group gathered at the highest part of the beach at Scarborough, with the water line several yards away.  There did not appear to be any threat from the rising tide, but as the rosary progressed, the water came closer and closer at a remarkable speed.   Those at the lower end of the group had to close in on the others.  By the time we dispersed, there was no beach left with everyone huddled on a paved slipway.  I don't know whether anyone checked the tide times before the event, but if it had been 30 mins later, we would have been in trouble.

Sunday 6th May

There will be NO MASS at Hedon on Sunday 6th May, due to Fr Drew not being available.

Rosary on the Coast

Next Sunday, 29th April, is the day designated for Rosary on the Coast.  The idea, copied from Poland is to have groups reciting the rosary for faith, life and peace all around the coast of Britain.  A few day ago, it was reported that 10,000 people were expected to participate at 247 locations notified to the central organisers.  However, more information is coming in all the time, so these numbers will almost certainly be exceeded.

A group from St Wilfrid's Church in York will be departing by coach for Scarborough at 1.30pm and should be back in York for 5.30pm - just in time for vespers.  The last I heard was that there were 33 booked on the coach, but that bookings were still coming in.  There is still time to book a place on the coach, cost £10.  Telephone Sue Whittaker 07973 321555 or email  suewhitaker@icloud.com

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.