Times of Services and Confessions for Holy Week may be seen below this post.

The Solemn Mass on Palm Sunday was celebrated by Bishop Robert Byrne, Cong. Orat.:

The blessing of the Palms:

The Gospel Procession:

The Gospel is incensed:

The procession into our church:

The singing of St Mark’s Passion:

“And Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed His last”:

The Mass of Palm Sunday:

The Recessional:

25^th March – PALM SUNDAY
Saturday Vigil Mass: 6.30pm

EF Latin Mass: 8am

Sung English Mass: 9.30am

BLESSING OF PALMS & SOLEMN MASS at 11am
Solemn Vespers & Benediction: 5.30pm

Evening Mass: 6.30pm

Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday of Holy Week
Mass at 7.30am, 10am & 6pm; Stations of the Cross at 10.30am

(No Stations on Monday this year, because of Deacon Philip’s funeral)

29^th March – MAUNDY THURSDAY
Low Mass: 12 noon (for those unable to attend the evening Mass)


MASS OF THE LORD’S SUPPER at 8pm
Watching at the Altar of Repose until midnight; Compline: 11.45pm

Confessions: 11am–12 noon and before Mass

30^th March – GOOD FRIDAY
Tenebræ: 9am;

Children’s Stations of the Cross: 11am

SOLEMN LITURGY OF THE LORD’S PASSION at 3pm

Stations of the Cross: 7pm
Confessions: 10am–12 noon, 1.45–2.45pm and after the Liturgy

31^st March – HOLY SATURDAY

Tenebræ: 9am
THE EASTER VIGIL at 8.30pm

Confessions: 10am–6pm

1^st April – EASTER SUNDAY

EF Latin Mass: 8am;

Sung English Mass: 9.30am
SOLEMN MASS at 11am
Choral Vespers & Benediction: 5.15pm

Evening Mass: 6.30pm

2^nd April – Easter Monday – Mass at 10am only

 8^th April – DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY

Divine Mercy Devotions from 2.30pm, including Mass

All the music for Holy Week may be seen by clicking on ‘Music List’ to the right of this post.

This year’s very beautiful Paschal Candle, painted by Mrs Freddie Quartley, depicts first Our Lord being laid in the tomb, and then the angel speaking to St Mary Magdalene by the tomb, while the guards sleep.

Quae sursum sunt quaerite – “Seek the things that are above.” (Colossians 3:1)

On Mothering Sunday we had a special collection for our Lent Project – the Oxford LIFE House, and volunteers were outside with further information.

There was a game to estimate which features develop at which stage of the life of the foetus in the womb:

Br Shawn had a go at holding a replica of an unborn baby:

It costs just £11 to house a mother and her child for a day and to provide them with this dedicated support. This is our chance to do something practical to save the lives of the unborn.

It being Mothering Sunday, there were daffodils available to give to mothers:

The second collection brought in over £3,000. Collection boxes are still available at the back of church, and donations can be made (and gift-aided) until the end of Eastertide.

Find out more: www.lifecharity.org.uk

 

Of your charity please pray for the repose of the soul of Deacon Philip Prince, who died fortified by the rites of Holy Church on Friday 9th March 2018.

May he rest in peace.

In the Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle, Texas, Fr Mario Aviles of the Pharr Oratory, who had been Procurator General of the Oratorian Confederation since 2012, was ordained bishop on 22nd February. He is the auxiliary bishop of the diocese of Brownsville, Texas, which has 1.3 million inhabitants, of whom 87% are Catholic.

Here is the new bishop together with our own Bishop Robert Byrne, and Bishop Edoardo Cerrato, Bishop of Ivrea:

Readers of today’s Oxford Times may have noticed the photograph of a glamourous, young archaeologist taken in 1974. It is in fact none other than our own Father Jerome, shown having uncovered the skeleton of a Dominican. As he helpfully annotates the article, Fr Jerome is the one on the  left:

Full details of Masses, Confessions, the Parish Lent Project, Saturday Talks for Lent, Musical Oratories and more can be found in the Lent, Holy Week and Easter 2018 booklet. Copies of the booklet are also available from the back of church.

Lent Project: The Oxford Life House

Life exists to make abortion a thing of the past. The charity has saved thousands of lives across the UK since 1970 through prolife advocacy and practical help. The Life house in Oxford has already given hope and a future to almost 200 pregnant young women who had been homeless, escaping abuse, vulnerable or at risk, and who had previously seen no option but abortion. Life gives these woman the freedom to choose life for their children. In the Life house, they are given supported accommodation, practical aid and emotional support along with guidance and life skills aimed at equipping tenants for independent living. It costs just £11 to house a mother and her child for a day and to provide them with this dedicated support. This is our chance to do something practical to save the lives of the unborn. There will be collection boxes at the back of church to take away and a second collection on Sunday 11th March, after which there will be the opportunity to meet some of those in Life to find out more about their life-saving work in Oxford and beyond. Find out more: www.lifecharity.org.uk

Musical Oratory: The Seven Last Words
Wednesday 21 February 6:30pm

The seven last words of Christ from the Cross have been a focus of Catholic devotion for many centuries. This Musical Oratory provides an opportunity to meditate on them with the aid of congregational hymns and sacred choral music from a wide variety of the Church’s musical traditions, sung by the Parish Choir and the Oratory Young Adults’ Choir.

Musical Oratory: The Crucifixion
Wednesday 21 March 8pm

Sir John Stainer’s The Crucifixion: A Meditation on the Sacred Passion of the Holy Redeemer is a choral presentation of Christ’s Passion and Death. Written in 1887, it is one of the high points in the evolution of the musical oratorio, with parts for choir, organ and congregation. Many will be familiar with the congregational hymns Stainer composed for the work, including Cross of Jesus, Cross of sorrow, Jesus the Crucified pleads for me, and All for Jesus. But most famous of all (possibly the best known of all Stainer’s compositions) is the stunning chorus, God so loved the world. Come and hear them sung in their proper context, and let the music take you back to Calvary. There meditate on the love God has shown us by sending his Son to suffer and to die for us.

Parish Day of Chant
With Fr Guy Nicholls, Cong. Orat.
Saturday 10 March

Gregorian chant is the Church’s own music, the voice with which Christ’s Bride sings his praises. The chant developed in the earliest years of Christianity and has been sung continuously to the present day. If you want to know more about the chant itself, or want to learn how to sing it, or just want to spend time singing it, this day is for you. Fr Guy Nicholls will lead a Parish Day of Chant. The day will include practical training sessions in singing, a talk on the sung propers of the Mass (as part of our Lenten series), and periods of sung prayer, finishing with a sung Mass in the afternoon. The day will start at 9:30 and finish at approximately 17:00.

Source & Summit: 
Saturday Talks for Lent
Saturdays at 11am

The Eucharist is the source and summit of the Christian life. Our Lenten series explores the history of the liturgy, music and art used to serve the Mass, the language, ceremonies and scriptural roots of the Mass. Cafe Neri will be open before each talk from 10:30.