The novena in preparation for the Solemnity of our glorious Patriarch begins next Friday, 17th May – at 6.30pm on weekdays and 6pm at weekends.

There will be Solemn Vespers, with a commemoration of St Philip and veneration of the relic, on Sunday 26th May at 5.15pm.

On Monday 27th May there will be a Solemn Pontifical Mass at 6pm, at which the celebrant and preacher will be the Right Reverend Dom Cuthbert Brogan, Lord Abbot of Farnborough.

Fr Richard took the Deanery Year of Faith pilgrimage to Birmingham on Bank Holiday Monday – to venerate three great saints of our Archdiocese: St Chad, Blessed Dominic Barberi and Blessed John Henry Newman.

The first stop was the Birmingham Oratory:

The pilgrims then went to St Chad’s Cathedral, where the relics of the great Bishop of Lichfield are enshrined:

Finally they visited Handsworth Convent, designed by Pugin, which was a place where Blessed Dominic Barberi celebrated Mass and heard confessions. This great Apostle of England is our diocesan patron for the Year of Faith.

Pope Francis has invited every Catholic in the world to join him at 5pm Roman time – 4pm here – on 2nd June, the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, in adoring the Blessed Sacrament.

Here in Oxford we have the ideal way to do this with the Deanery Corpus Christi Procession, which takes place on this day. It begins at 2.30pm at the Oratory, stops at Blackfriars and concludes at the University Chaplaincy for Benediction at 4pm – the very time the Holy Father has asked us to adore our Lord’s Eucharistic presence.

As usual we will be accompanied by the Witney Town Band, and people are invited to wear uniforms, academic dress or First Holy Communion outfits.

Our very best wishes and prayers go to a great friend of our community: Fr Michael Barber, SJ, who is to be consecrated as Bishop of Oakland, California, on 25th May. Fr Barber is currently the Spiritual Director at St John’s Seminary, Boston, and has been a frequent visitor to our house.

You may have read in the news that the Bodleian Library has purchased a draft manuscript of Gerard Manley Hopkins’ poem ‘Binsey Poplars’ for £50,000.

Fr Hopkins SJ was of course a curate at St Aloysius’ from 1878-9 and it was in our house that he wrote this piece. He wrote to a friend: “I have been up to Godstow this afternoon. I am sorry to say that the aspens that lined the river are everyone felled.” ‘Binsey Poplars’ laments the felling of these trees across the Isis from Port Meadow:

“My aspens dear, whose airy cages quelled,

Quelled or quenched in leaves the leaping sun,

All felled, felled, all are felled;

Of a fresh and following folded rank

Not spared, not one

That dandled a sandalled

Shadow that swam or sank

On meadow and river and wind-wandering

weed-winding bank.

O if we knew but what we do

When we delve or hew–

Hack and rack the growing green!

Since country is so tender

To touch her, being so slender,

That, like this sleek and seeing ball

But a prick will make no eye at all,

Where we, even when we mean

to mend her we end her,

When we hew or delve:

After-comers cannot guess the beauty been.

Ten or twelve, only ten or twelve

Strokes of havoc unselve

The sweet especial scene,

Rural scene, a rural scene,

Sweet especial rural scene.”

As far as we know, none of the current residents of 25 Woodstock Road has yet produced a manuscript of comparable value.

Eamonn McDonald has now finished his sponsored walk from Ben Nevis to Loch Ness in aid of the Catholic Handicapped Children’s Fellowship, the Oxford Oratory’s Palestinian Lent Project and the Building Campaign. Very many thanks to Eamonn and to all who sponsored him. Some pictures may be seen below.

You can still sponsor him at the Porters’ Lodge or by text message: Just text ORAT13 followed by your amount: £2, £5, or £10 to 70070.

Your donation will be added to your bill (or taken out of your credit) and there are no additional charges.

An intrepid group of Oratory parishioners travelled up to Hull on 28th April to support our team of young people representing us in the Rotary Youth Speaks National Final held in the Middleton Hall at the University of Hull.

Speaking once again on the topic “The green-eyed monster” they competed against six other teams from all over the United Kingdom. Distinguished guests in the audience included the Right Worshipful Lord Mayor of Kingston upon Hull, Admiral of the Humber and the Lady Mayoress, whose enjoyment of our team’s performance was very visible. Sadly they didn’t win – but they acquitted themselves with great confidence and flair. The event was compered by Gervase Phinn, former school inspector, well-known public speaker, raconteur and author of such books as “A School Inspector Calls” and “Road to the Dales – the story of a Yorkshire Lad”. He particularly admired the Oratory team’s humour and delivery.

So congratulations to Michael Jacobs (main speaker), Natasha Seneviratne (Vote of Thanks) and Brian Clarke (Chairman) for performing so well and reaching the national final in a competition with over two thousand entries up and down the Kingdom.

Yesterday saw the last meeting of the Praesidium of Our Lady of Lourdes in our Parish. From next week it will begin meeting instead at Greyfriars. Most of the members live in that part of Oxford, and it is hoped that they may be able to gain more members there.

The Fathers are very grateful for all the work the Legion have done in our Parish over the years, especially when the Radcliffe Infirmary was still open. We wish them well in their new home, and still hope to see them here from time to time.

Twenty years ago tomorrow – on 27th April 1993, in the reign of Blessed Pope John Paul II- the Decree was signed at the Congregation for Consecrated Life and for Societies of Apostolic Life establishing the Oxford Oratory as an independent house of St Philip.

We keep the 27th April each year as the feast of the “Patronage of St Philip”. Please ask our Holy Father to intercede for the Fathers of the Oxford Oratory, and for all our people.