It was the warmest day of the year so far for the May Procession in honour of Our Lady at St Aloysius’ School. We began in the school hall, singing “Bring flowers of the rarest”, while a girl who will make her First Holy Communion this year crowned the statue.

Our Lady’s statue had been made by some of the children. We then processed along the Woodstock Road, scattering petals; then back into the playground and past the Lourdes Grotto, singing the Lourdes hymn. We finished outside with a decade of the Rosary.

This Sunday there will be a May procession at the 9.30 Mass.

The novena in preparation for St Philip’s Day begins today: at 6.30pm on Monday-Friday, and at 6pm on Saturday & Sunday.

Our congratulations and prayers for Bishop Robert Byrne of the Oratory, consecrated bishop yesterday to serve as an auxiliary bishop in Birmingham. Here he can be seen blessing the congregation following the Mass yesterday, wearing the chasuble Pope Benedict wore at the Beatification Mass in 2010 when he beatified John Henry Cardinal Newman.

Fr Robert lies prostrate during the Litany of the Saints:

The laying on of hands:

The Book of the Gospels is held over Fr Robert’s head during the prayer of consecration:

Archbishop Longley anoints the new bishop with chrism:

He is given the episcopal ring:

The giving of the mitre:

The new Bishop is enthroned:

Bishop Byrne at Oscott with Fr Felix Selden, Delegate of the Holy See, and Fr Mario Aviles, Procurator General:

Last night a vigil service on the eve of Fr Robert’s episcopal ordination was held at the Birmingham Oratory.

Oratorians were present from Birmingham, Oxford, Manchester, York, Philadelphia, Pharr (Texas), Washington D.C., Vienna, Genoa, Mondovi, and Barcelona-Gracia, including the Delegate of the Holy See and the Procurator General.

After the Archbishop’s homily, Fr Robert took the oath of fidelity and made the Profession of Faith.

His Grace the Archbishop then blessed the rings, crosier, pectoral crosses and mitre that the new bishop will use.

The Blessed Sacrament was then exposed and Eucharistic Benediction was given.

Here is a photograph of all the Oratorians present:

After parishioners generously contributed to buying a crosier for Fr Robert, ahead of his episcopal consecration this Tuesday, he was presented with it in the Parish Centre after the High Mass on Sunday.

23 couples came to our marriage preparation day on Saturday. Fr Daniel spoke about the Church’s understanding of the sacrament of marriage, Rupert & Gwen Sheppard gave a beautiful presentation about their 37 years of marriage, Fr Dominic took the participants through the wedding ceremony and they also heard about the advantages and scientific case for Natural Family Planning.

NOVENA & BENEDICTION: 16th-24th May
Weekdays 6.30pm; Sat/Sun 6pm

SOLEMN FIRST VESPERS, BENEDICTION & VENERATION OF THE RELIC:
Sunday 25th May 5.15pm

SOLEMN PONTIFICAL MASS
Monday 26th May 6pm
Celebrated by
the Right Reverend Robert Byrne, Cong. Orat.,
Bishop of Cuncacestre

Much fun was had by our younger parishioners at last Saturday’s Easter fair, which included an Easter egg hunt and a bonnet competition. The fair raised money for this summer’s pilgrimage to Austria and Bavaria and for Mary’s Meals.

With the whole Church we rejoice at the canonisations today in Rome of St John XXIII and St John Paul II; we ask their prayers for our Oratory and Parish.

 

St John XXIII had a strong personal devotion to St Philip. On his Feast Day in 1903, calling to mind the Mass of St Philip he had just attended at the Chiesa Nuova, he wrote in his journal, “St Philip is one of the saints most familiar to me and his name is linked with so many dear and personal memories. I feel I have a special love for him and I commend myself to him most trustfully … O my good Father Philip, you understand me even if I do not put my thoughts into words. Time is drawing on; where is that faithful copy of you I was to have made of myself? … Blessed Philip, help me to prepare my soul as a dwelling for the Holy Spirit. I lean my frozen heart closer to yours which burns with love and with the Holy Spirit. Make my heart burn too.”

On his first St Philip’s Day as Pope in 1979, St John Paul II went to the Chiesa Nuova to pray for the people of Rome. On that occasion he said, “I could not fail to visit this holy place, loved by the Romans, to venerate the one who was designated ‘The Apostle of Rome’, St Philip Neri, the Joint Patron Saint of this noble city. My coming was a duty, it was a need of the soul and it was also an anxious expectation! … St Philip continues to be our ‘Father’. Let us invoke him! Let us listen to him … convinced that he who loved Rome so much when he was alive, continues to protect and help his sons.”

St John XXIII, St John Paul II, and, of course, St Philip, pray for us!

 

 

 

Divine Mercy Sunday will be even more special this year with the canonisations of Bd John Paul II, who instituted the Feast of Divine Mercy, and Bd John XXIII.

We will be having the usual Divine Mercy Devotions on Sunday afternoon. They will start with the chaplet and blessing of images at 2:40pm. After the three o’clock prayer, there will be Mass, followed by Adoration and Benediction at 4:30pm. Confessions will be heard during that time.