Shrewsbury Masses in Monastic Sites

On Saturday, June 8 and Sunday, June 23, Masses were celebrated during the Year of Faith in two former Catholic abbeys. On June 8, the Bishop of Shrewsbury celebrated Mass at Shrewsbury Abbey:

The Mass was arranged by the Shrewsbury deanery with the permission of the Church of England and was celebrated by the Rt Rev. Mark Davies, the Bishop of Shrewsbury.

The abbey was full to capacity as hundreds of local Catholics and about a dozen priests turned out for the event on a blazing Saturday afternoon.

The Mass began with the singing of the Te Deum, in which the congregation asked for the intercession of such saints as St Winefride, whose tomb used to lie in the abbey, and such local martyrs as the Elizabethans Blessed Robert Johnson and Blessed Richard Martin.

[Shrewsbury Abbey, the site of Ellis Peter's Cadfael murder mysteries, is an Anglican parish now.]

Shrewsbury Abbey was founded in 1083 and by the early 16th century was one of the most wealthy and important of more than 600 monasteries throughout the country, and was ruled by a “mitred abbot” who also sat Parliament.

It was dissolved in 1540 by King Henry VIII and the shrine of St Winefride, today a patron of the Diocese of Shrewsbury, was desecrated.

Following improvements in ecumenical relations since the Second Vatican Council, Benedictine monks were about a decade ago permitted to celebrate Mass at the abbey for the first time since its dissolution.

The Mass at Norton Abbey was scheduled to be celebrated in the outdoor ruins of the Augustinian priory, but the weather did not cooperate:

Catholics in Cheshire have attended Mass on the site of a Medieval abbey church for only the second time since the Reformation.

The Mass at Norton Priory, Runcorn, was celebrated to mark the Year of Faith opened last October by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.

It brought together more than 600 faithful from the five Runcorn churches of the Holy Spirit, Our Lady, St Augustine, St Edward and St Martin de Porres and the Frodsham parish of St Luke that make up Local Pastoral Area 12 of the Diocese of Shrewsbury.

Initially, an outdoor Mass had been planned amid the ruins of the former Augustinian priory but the uncertain weather persuaded organisers to transfer the celebration to the 12th century undercroft. . . .

The Mass was concelebrated by Runcorn priests Fr Peter Wright, who preached, and Fr George Malecki and by Fr Peter O’Neill, the parish priest of St Luke’s. The Rev. Deryck Sankey, a Warrington-based deacon, also attended.

The Mass was also attended by the children of six primary schools, with their families, as well as pupils and teachers from St Chad’s Catholic and Church of England High School, Runcorn.

The congregation included a small group of Kenyans who were visiting Runcorn from St Mary’s Catholic School in Nyeri, which is twinned with St Chad’s. . . .

Norton Priory has now become an acclaimed tourist attraction with an award-winning museum, managed woodland and 18th century walled gardens open to visitors.

Much of the original layout of the buildings – the cloisters, church, refectory and dormitory – can be seen, though few of the original buildings remain standing.

One of the greatest surviving items is an huge statue of St Christopher carrying the child Jesus on his shoulders [pictured in the article] which was preserved by the Brooke family and is now on view at the museum.

The Mass was only the second Mass to be celebrated at the site of the priory since the 16th century.

The first was celebrated by the priest and parishioners of St Augustine’s, Runcorn, about 30 years ago.

These are fascinating historical events! It is good for English Catholics to demonstrate their heritage in their native land, and it is very hospitable for the Church of England pastor to make his church available for the celebration of the Mass--but the church was consecrated for the celebration of Holy Mass and the Sacraments of the Catholic Church, after all!

[Both photos are from wikipedia commons.]

The Church of England Says "NO" to Female Bishops

In rather surprising news, the Church of England rejected the cause of female bishops this week:

The Church of England's governing body blocked a move Tuesday to permit women to serve as bishops in a vote so close it failed to settle the question of female leadership and likely condemned the institution to years more debate on the issue.

The General Synod's daylong debate ended with the rejection of a compromise that was intended to unify the faithful despite differing views on whether women should be allowed in the hierarchy. But backers failed to gain the necessary majority by six votes.

"There is no victory in the coming days," said Rev. Angus MacLeay. "It is a train crash."

The defeat was a setback for Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, who retires at the end of December, and his successor, Bishop Justin Welby. Both had strongly endorsed a proposed compromise that would have respected the decision of those who objected to the ordination of women bishops.

Instead of ending decades of debate on the issue in the church, the narrow defeat opens the church, which has around 80 million members worldwide, to further years of internal discussions. It also forms an uncomfortable backdrop to the start of Welby's leadership. He is due to be enthroned in March.

Passage of legislation to allow women to serve as bishops must be approved by two-thirds majorities in the synod's three houses: bishops, priests and laity. Some took heart in the fact that both the bishops and the clergy voted overwhelmingly in favor. But among the laity, the vote fell short, with 132-74.

On his blog, Standing on My Head, Father Dwight Longenecker provides background on the decision here and on the divisions within the Church of England here.

In the former, he notes:

The crisis in the Church of England occasioned by today’s rejection of women in the episcopate is likely to be long, drawn out and bitter. The liberals have campaigned for women bishops for twenty years. The majority of bishops and clergy voted in favor of the measure. It lost in the House of Laity by only six votes. The rest of the British people don’t understand the fuss. They’ve had women priests for twenty years in the Church of England and for most people this is simply a common sense question of equal rights for women.

. . . the negative vote may well have even more serious implications for the freedom of religion in England. If the Members of Parliament decide to over rule the General Synod there may be a constitutional crisis involving the established status of the Church of England and a crisis over religious freedom which will tumble over into serious implications for the relationship between the state and other religious bodies like the Catholic Church.

And in the latter:

The divisions between Liberal, Anglo-Catholic and Evangelical are, in many respects, only superficial and historical. The real division is between those Anglican Christians (no matter how they dress or worship) who believe that the Christian faith is a revealed religion, established by God and therefore unchanging, and those who believe the Christian religion is a human construct developed out of the circumstances of a particular historical and cultural setting.

Those who believe the Christian religion is revealed by God supernaturally also believe that the Church is essentially not of this world. They exist in this world to challenge the ways of this world. They are not supposed to be conformed to the world, but to be transformed. Those who believe that the Christian religion is revealed by God for the eternal salvation of souls see this world as needing repentance and forgiveness and salvation. They don’t mind if the world rejects them. They expect that. When asked to compromise the faith and change the faith to adapt to the world they assume the martyr’s stance. “Offer incense to idols? Bring on the roaring lions, the coliseum and the crowds.”

The second category of Christian are those who believe the religion is a human construct. They think it is the result of certain historical and cultural conditions and accidents. As it was produced by a cultural context, so Christianity has always adapted to the culture in which it finds itself. They see this as a good thing. This is their method of evangelization. They follow the lead of the current cultural climate because they see that as the way of being relevant and connecting with the people in their culture. They do not view the world as full of souls to be saved so much as a wayward child that needs educating and a little bit of discipline in order to reach his full potential. Christianity is for them, a method of personal growth and a system for societal change. It is for them more of an ideology than a theology.

The clash therefore is between those who believe the Christian religion is revealed and those who think it is relative.

Father Longenecker sent me a copy of his new book, Catholicism Plain and Simple for my review, an I'll post it here, of course. I already love the cover, with one of Rembrandt's portraits of Jesus. Looks like perfect reading for the Year of Faith. From the Introduction:

This book presents the basics of the Catholic faith in simple, straightforward language. You will not find here complex philosophical arguments, insider churchy talk or complicated theological language. I have avoided hi-falutin' references and obscure quotations. There aren't any academic notes or quotes in Greek, Latin and Aramaic. This is meat and potatoes religion. This book does not answer all the questions or make all the arguments. It simply starts by explaining why we believe God exists, and then goes on, step by step to explain who Jesus Christ is, what his life and death mean and how the Catholic Church came about. It explains what it means to be a Catholic and how one lives the Catholic faith. This book is an excellent text book for someone who is in RCIA or confirmation class. It also provides an excellent back-up and refresher course for Catholics to know their faith better.

The Year of Faith

Pope Benedict XVI proclaimed a Year of Faith beginning today because October 11 is the 50th anniversary of opening of the Second Vatican Council (1962) and the 20th anniversary of the publication of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

The Second Vatican Council is a subject far beyond the reach of this blog, but there is an important aspect of the Council, a specific document in fact, that has a connection to the whole issue of Catholicism and Anglicanism that is certainly a theme of my studies and interests.

In the Decree on Ecumenism, UNITATIS REDINTEGRATIO, CHAPTER III, CHURCHES AND ECCLESIAL COMMUNITIES SEPARATED FROM THE ROMAN APOSTOLIC SEE, paragraph 13, the Fathers of the Council specifically mentioned the Church of England:

We now turn our attention to the two chief types of division as they affect the seamless robe of Christ.

The first divisions occurred in the East, when the dogmatic formulae of the Councils of Ephesus and Chalcedon were challenged, and later when ecclesiastical communion between the Eastern Patriarchates and the Roman See was dissolved.

Other divisions arose more than four centuries later in the West, stemming from the events which are usually referred to as "The Reformation." As a result, many Communions, national or confessional, were separated from the Roman See. Among those in which Catholic traditions and institutions in part continue to exist, the Anglican Communion occupies a special place.

These various divisions differ greatly from one another not only by reason of their origin, place and time, but especially in the nature and seriousness of questions bearing on faith and the structure of the Church. Therefore, without minimizing the differences between the various Christian bodies, and without overlooking the bonds between them which exist in spite of divisions, this holy Council decides to propose the following considerations for prudent ecumenical action. . . .

Blessed Pope John XXIII had previously established the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and Geoffrey Fisher, the Archbishop of Canterbury visited the Vatican in 1960 (unofficially). Anglican observers were present at the Council and there was an Anglican reaction to this statement and the entire program of the Second Vatican Council.

In 1966 Archbishop of Canterbury Michael Ramsey made an official visit to Pope Paul VI and then in 1967, the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) was established. One of the fruits of the dialogue taking place under ARCIC's auspices was the 2005 document on the place of the Blessed Virgin Mary in salvation history and devotion, "Mary: Grace and Hope in Christ".

Just as Canterbury visited Rome, Blessed John Paul II met with Robert Runcie during the former's 1982 pilgrimage to England, while Pope Benedict XVI met with Rowan Williams (set to retire at the end of 2012) during the Pope's official visit in September 2010, speaking at Lambeth Palace:

It is a pleasure for me to be able to return the courtesy of the visits you have made to me in Rome by a fraternal visit to you here in your official residence. I thank you for your invitation and for the hospitality that you have so generously provided. I greet too the Anglican Bishops gathered here from different parts of the United Kingdom, my brother Bishops from the Catholic Dioceses of England, Wales and Scotland, and the ecumenical advisers who are present.

You have spoken, Your Grace, of the historic meeting that took place, almost thirty years ago, between two of our predecessors – Pope John Paul the Second and Archbishop Robert Runcie – in Canterbury Cathedral. There, in the very place where Saint Thomas of Canterbury bore witness to Christ by the shedding of his blood, they prayed together for the gift of unity among the followers of Christ. We continue today to pray for that gift, knowing that the unity Christ willed for his disciples will only come about in answer to prayer, through the action of the Holy Spirit, who ceaselessly renews the Church and guides her into the fullness of truth.

It is not my intention today to speak of the difficulties that the ecumenical path has encountered and continues to encounter. Those difficulties are well known to everyone here. Rather, I wish to join you in giving thanks for the deep friendship that has grown between us and for the remarkable progress that has been made in so many areas of dialogue during the forty years that have elapsed since the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission began its work. Let us entrust the fruits of that work to the Lord of the harvest, confident that he will bless our friendship with further significant growth.

Pope Benedict concluded his remarks by citing Blessed John Henry Newman (before the beatification Mass):

In the figure of John Henry Newman, who is to be beatified on Sunday, we celebrate a churchman whose ecclesial vision was nurtured by his Anglican background and matured during his many years of ordained ministry in the Church of England. He can teach us the virtues that ecumenism demands: on the one hand, he was moved to follow his conscience, even at great personal cost; and on the other hand, the warmth of his continued friendship with his former colleagues, led him to explore with them, in a truly eirenical spirit, the questions on which they differed, driven by a deep longing for unity in faith. Your Grace, in that same spirit of friendship, let us renew our determination to pursue the goal of unity in faith, hope, and love, in accordance with the will of our one Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Another major development in the relationship and dialogue between the Anglican Communion and the Catholic Church, certainly, is the establishment of the Personal Ordinariate, founded by Pope Benedict XVI in response to "groups of Anglicans" requesting some provision for communion with the Catholic Church as communities maintaining some aspects of their Anglican heritage. The Ordinariate Portal has several posts on the effects of the Ordinariate on ARCIC, which last met in May of 2011. Major obstacles to reunion between the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion remain (certainly, the ordination of women as both priests and bishops in the Anglican Communion and the infallibility of the Pope in the Catholic Church are the really big issues) and yet those obstacles become vehicles of conversion for individuals or groups of Anglicans!

Note that Rowan Williams will attend the Mass celebrating the Year of Faith and the Anniversary of the 50th Anniversary of the Second Vatican Council today in Rome. In the U.K. the Catholic Truth Society is offering a wide range of resources for the Year of Faith.

Oxford and Cambridge Events

Once I Was Clever Boy has some great details about Newmanian and Year of Faith activities in Oxford and Cambridge this week:

Blessed John Henry Newman's Feast: 

The Oxford Oratory will begin its celebrations of the feast of Bl. John Henry Newman with a Triduum of prayers on Saturday October 6th and Sunday October 7th at 6, and on Monday October 8th at 6.30.

Following that on the evening of Monday October 8th there will be the annual Night Walk to Littlemore to commemorate the journey of Bl.Dominic Barberi to receive Bl. John Henry Newman into the Church.

The pilgrimage begins at the Oxford Oratory at 7.45, pausing for readings and prayers at places associated with Newman. At 9.30 there will be a candlelit procession from 89 Rose Hill to the church of Bl. Dominic Barberi in Littlemore for a Holy Hour with Exposition beginning at 10, during which Confessions will be available. Following Benediction, at 10.45 the pilgrims will process to the College at Littlemore to conclude in Newman's Chapel there. Refreshments are available afterwards at the College. . . .

On the evening of Tuesday October 9th there will be a Solemn Mass at the Oxford Oratory to mark the feast day of Bl. John Henry at 6.

The beginning of the Year of Faith in Oxford:

There will be a High Mass at SS Gregory and Augustine in Woodstock Road in Oxford on the feast of the Motherhood of Our Lady, Thursday 11th October at 6 p.m., to celebrate the opening of the Year of Faith. The preacher will be Fr Aidan Nichols OP. Palestrina's Missa brevis in F will be sung by the Newman Consort. There will be drinks and light refreshments afterwards in the parish hall. The intention of the Mass will be for the Holy Father.

The beginning of the Year of Faith in Cambridge:

On Wednesday October 10th at 7 pm Mgr Andrew Burnham from the Ordinariate will preach at Solemn Evensong and Benediction for the beginning of the Year of Faith in the marvellous Church of Our Lady and the English Martyrs in Cambridge. Not only will this be a service worth attending in itself but it is an opportunity or excuse to go to the church, which was built in 1885-90. If you have visited OLEM before you will know what to expect. If you have not, then visiting this spectacular church is a treat in store.

How I wish I could be there for these events!