The chapel of St Ignatius was the first Catholic church built in Oxford after the Reformation. The builder was Fr Charles Leslie, a younger son of Patrick, 21st Baron of Balaquhain. He had joined the Society of Jesus, and on its suppression in 1773 continued to work as a priest under the Vicars Apostolic.

In 1792  Fr Leslie moved to Oxford and bought a house, using one room as a chapel (the 1792 Quarter Sesssions register “a chapel situate in the parish of Saint Clements in the Suburbs of the City of Oxford in the possession of Charles Leslie, Priest, recorded as a place for the religious worship of Roman Catholicks”). The following year the existing building was constructed in the grounds of his house, set well back from the road, as anti-Catholic sentiment was still strong, despite the passing of the 1791 Catholic Relief Act.

The Chapel of St Ignatius may be seen above in the nineteenth century. The house at the front was the Presbytery, completely rebuilt in 1829, but later replaced by a school building, which is still standing. This school, which began in a room of the presbytery in 1869, later on had its boys’ section next to St Aloysius’ Church, and so was known as St Aloysius’ School. In 1932 it was decided to have two separate, mixed, elementary schools, and so the school which remained on the St Ignatius’ site became St Joseph’s, while the school next to our church retained the name St Aloysius’. Here below is the school building at St Ignatius’:

When St Aloysius’ Church was built in 1875, St Ignatius’ became a Chapel of Ease, until 1911 when the church of SS Edmund & Frideswide (now Greyfriars) was built and became a separate parish. The St Ignatius’ buildings were then used exclusively by St Aloysius’ School.

The Chapel of St Ignatius, though small, has a distinguished history, being the place where Blessed John Henry Newman went to Mass in his early days as a Catholic in 1845.

Today being the feast of St Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus, it was a good day for a Blue Plaque to be unveiled, 225 years after Fr Leslie built his chapel. Fr Joseph Munitiz SJ spoke about how Fr Gerard Manley Hopkins, curate at St Aloysius’, celebrated Mass and preached in the chapel, and Sr Marie Anne from St Joseph’s School described how Fr Hopkins would come to instruct the children.

Bishop William Kenney CP recalled that Blessed Dominic Barberi preached in St Ignatius’ Chapel, and then unveiled the plaque commemorating this important place in the post-Reformation history of the Church in our city:

Fr Oliver celebrated his first Mass on Saturday 30th June:

Fr Dominic preached the sermon which is reproduced below:

Sermon: First Mass of Fr Oliver Craddock

 Many years ago now, I recall Monsignor Stark (formerly Master of the Guild of Ransom) telling how his grandfather, a member of the SVP of a parish adjacent to the Birmingham Oratory, in the 1880s, had cause to go to the Oratory to fetch a priest to minister to a sick woman. The porter went off in search of one of the Fathers, leaving Mgr Stark’s grandfather alone in the darkened front hall. Presently he noticed a little bundle seated in a corner – the “little bundle” spoke to him: “If none of the Fathers can be found, and if you get me a cab, I will come with you. After all, I am a priest.”

I don’t recall whether or not in the event our Cardinal did have to go, but I am certain that neither his great and venerable age, nor his eminence, would have prevented Blessed John Henry from going to anoint and comfort a dying woman, for he who reminded us that “God has created us for some definite service”, never forgot that service for which he had been made: to serve God and his people as a priest.

My dear Father Oliver,

Last night, you had conferred on you the grace of ordination to the sacred priesthood: you were called out from among the people whom you shall serve, hands were laid on you, your own hands were anointed by the bishop and you rose from your knees a priest, Christ’s servant and friend.

We say many beautiful things about the priest, don’t we? We call him “alter Christus”, “sacerdos in aeternum”, “sacerdos et hostia”, all so beautiful and true. Yet keep in mind, above all, dear Father, that you are Christ’s servant and friend. Live these two realities and you will indeed become another Christ, and if you continue faithfully along the path on which you are now set, you will be a victim, offering yourself each day alongside your Lord, for his flock, which you tend in His name.

You will do this, I know, in St Philip’s way with “gentleness and kindness” and with a profound sense of joy. Imitate our saintly father, not in his quirkier eccentricities, but in his forbearance with others. Imitate him in his love and desire for prayer. Be with your people, encourage them by your example as you struggle alongside them. They need to know that you are with them, that you “are there for them”.

You’ve probably already discerned that what a priest is, speaks louder than what he says, and that to some extent, the priest’s life is the sermon people will rate. It has been said that he often speaks best when his mouth is shut. The messenger is never more important than the message he bears, but having been charged with the responsibility of delivering that message, makes him a part of it. So, he must love it with all his heart and love the people to whom he is sent, otherwise he will not care whether or not they accept that he brings the Good News of Jesus Christ, or whether or not they become saints. And that is our business here, “to help people become saints in their own homes”. In an Oratorian parish, we set out to do this together.  Of course we make mistakes, and as I told you years ago when you began your novitiate, we have to learn to live with them. There will be misunderstandings and fallings out. In an ideal world, Church or community, these things wouldn’t happen, but they do, and when they do, do your best to put things right as quickly and gently as you can, for part of our priestly ministry is concerned with healing.

I like the image of the priest as “pastor”, as shepherd: he is called to be a priest after the heart of Jesus, the Good Shepherd; and this surely means learning to love like Him.

The last time St Peter met Our Lord was when they took breakfast together by the shore. As soon as the meal was finished, Jesus turned to Peter and asked him, not once, but three times, “Do you love me?”. Three times the Apostle replied, “Yes, Lord, I love you”. Now, Our Lord was not being “needy” when he pushed Peter on this point: rather he wanted to know that Peter was back on track, on side, after his triple denial, and he wanted Peter to know that he was quite, quite forgiven, when he charged him with that awesome responsibility, “Feed my sheep”. I wonder if the final answer Our Lord wants from those who claim to love him is an answer that isn’t so much spoken as lived. Actions, not words.

Dear Father Oliver, by God’s grace and mercy, you have reached the starting line; and you are off! Run the race that is set before you, run with Christ and towards Him. Take with you those whom the Lord entrusts to your special care. Love them, protect them and guide them with a father’s love, feeding them by God’s Word and the sacraments, most especially in the Holy Eucharist, “that touch of love from Christ which heals, transforms and gives life”. (Cardinal Hume)

Go in search of the lost sheep – the ninety-nine will be in good hands. There are, I think, many lost sheep out there, waiting and wanting to be found.

Go to those for whom religion makes no sense at all; help them to come to see that the message you are bringing is good news, worth listening to, of great importance and supreme beauty. This you can do through your preaching, your prayers, your generous availability to those who come to you in need, and your cheerful example.

I remember the preacher at my first Mass – you were but a month old! – saying to the people, “You get the priests you deserve”. I couldn’t tell if he was commiserating with them or perhaps admonishing them; I’m not certain he was congratulating them! But if this is true, then be the priest, the pastor, to them who will make them feel loved and in safe hands, knowing that what you teach them is the truth and that whatever you do, be it at the altar, the pulpit, in the Oratory, wherever, that it all matters, because God matters, and that, consequently they matter.

May the Lord bless you, Father. May St Philip help you by his prayers to remain faithful to your calling to serve, so that many years hence, when you are old and feeling your years, when you feel you have given your all and done everything you can, like Blessed John Henry, you may remember with profound gratitude your God-given purpose and say, “I am a priest”, for which God be thanked!

Incensing the altar:

Standing at the Altar of God:

The elevation of the chalice:

Ecce Agnus Dei:

The final blessing:

Leaving the sanctuary at the end of Mass:

Giving first blessings after Mass:

On Friday 29th June 2018, the Solemnity of SS Peter & Paul, Br Oliver Craddock was ordained priest in our church by Bishop Robert Byrne, Cong. Orat.

The ordination chasuble stands ready in the Lady Chapel:

The clergy assemble before Mass:

The entrance procession:

The Bishop’s Sermon:

Br Oliver stands before the Bishop:

The candidate lies prostrate during the Litany of the Saints:

The candidate is made a priest by the laying on of hands:

The new priest is clothed in the stole and chasuble:

Fr Oliver’s hands are anointed with Chrism:

Sister Barbara Claire and Sister Carolyne Joseph of the Sisters of the Blessed Virgin Mary bring forward the gifts at the Offertory:

The new priest is presented with the chalice and paten:

Fr Oliver takes his place at the altar:

The celebration of the Holy Mass:

Party time!

Women’s Oratory went for their summer dinner last night. The group meets on the first and last Monday of each month in the Parish Centre for a talk, prayer and recreation. New members are always welcome.

This year marks the 450th anniversary of St Aloysius’s birth in 1568. The choir of Downside School this evening sang at Solemn First Vespers and Benediction in honour of our parish’s patron saint.

Tomorrow (21st June) is the Solemnity of St Aloysius. There will be a sung English Mass with St Aloysius’ School at 10am. Bishop William Kenney C.P. will celebrate a Pontifical High Mass at 6pm at which Fr Matthew Power. SJ. will preach.

During this Jubilee Year a plenary indulgence is available every day in our church under the usual conditions (until 9th March 2019).

Here is a letter from the General of the Society of Jesus about the Jubilee Year:

And here is the Decree announcing the Plenary Indulgence:

We could have filled the available spaces on the flower arranging workshop twice over. For those who did manage to get a place, the day began with a fortifying cup of coffee and a biscuit before everyone settled down to what turned out to be a remarkably professional presentation from two of our parishioners, Anna Jones and Freddie Quartley. However random flower arranging may appear to the uninitiated, in fact a great deal of planning is needed. First, suitable flowers have to be identified:

Then the shape of the display has to be planned :

Slowly, carefully, and piece by piece, the foliage is put in place. Not a bloom goes anywhere near the arrangement until the greenery is good enough to form a display all on its own:

Everyone then has a try at wiring the stems of some of the blooms :

before the flowers themselves begin to be placed, until eventually the display is completed:

Et voila! Four outstanding displays, two for the main sanctuary and two for St Philip’s chapel:

A huge thank-you to Anna and Freddie for all their hard work, and well done to everyone for producing beautiful arrangements!

Oxford Corpus Christi Procession 2018

On Sunday we had a beautiful summer’s day for the annual Procession of the Blessed Sacrament.

Petals are ready to scatter:

The Conventual Franciscan Friars are instructed about their canopy-carrying duties:

The Blessed Sacrament is exposed upon our altar:

The Dean, Fr John Hancock, carries the Blessed Sacrament from our church:

Emerging from the Oratory courtyard:

Along St Giles’:

As the Procession enters Blackfriars, the Dominicans sing the Lauda Sion:

Fr Simon Gaine, OP, Regent of Blackfriars, carries Our Lord through the Priory Church:

Crossing St Giles’:

The view along Magdalen Street:

See today before us laid

The living and life-giving Bread,

Theme for praise and joy profound:

St Michael’s Street:

New Inn Hall Street:

Fr Matthew Power, SJ, Chaplain to the University, carries the Blessed Sacrament along St Ebbe’s:

Brewer Street:

Benediction at the University Chaplaincy:

The Witney Town Band did a magnificent job in accompanying the whole procession, and Benediction at the Old Palace:

Welcome refreshments, courtesy of the Chaplaincy:

Debriefing: