Friday 24 September 2010

"Brothers! Onward to Bognor Regis!"

This was the resounding cry of St Augustine of Canterbury to his Benedictine monks, having received yet another letter, egging him on, from Pope St Gregory I the Great to evangelise the English. "There's a lovely little town on the coast called Bognor Regis, not to be confused with Lyme Regis or Cyril Regis," wrote St Gregory I the Great, "go there and preach the Gospel, but, avoid Butlins at all costs for this is arid ground!"

It is only fit, then, that Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church Parish Centre will be hosting a Gregorian Chant Workshop on October 23rd 2010, between 11am - 4.30pm.

The workshop will be followed by Mass in the Ordinary Latin Rite. The Workshop will be led by Nick Gale, Director of Music at St George's Cathedral, Southwark. The cost is £10 a head and those interested are asked to bring a packed lunch, though drinks will be provided (Lambrini, anyone?).

The address is Our Lady of Sorrows Parish Centre, Hislop Walk, Bognor Regis, West Sussex PO21 1LP. Please contact Liz Lucas on 01243 863833 or email her at lizlucas@bognorrc.co.uk

Forging a Catholic Identity

The Holy Father seemed to spend a great deal of time trying to forge a Catholic identity while he was here in the United Kingdom. The Catholic identity is really grounded in Holy Tradition and the 'Faith of our Fathers'. Also, when those not of the Faith think of Catholicism, they think of veiled women kneeling for Communion and hardened Mafia gangsters going to Confession just before leaving a horses head in an enemies bed. We have to return to this and lose the tambourines!

The recent, incredible scenes in London, Birmingham and Scotland showed just what an impact Catholics can make by proclaiming our Faith in numbers, so what better way to forge a Catholic identity in this country than to participate in the 26th Annual National Rosary Crusade of Reparation, which will take place on Saturday 16th October.

It takes place during the 40 Days for Life which began a couple of days ago, to bear witness to the Gospel of Life and to pray for an end to abortion. The Rosary Crusade of Reparation will assemble outside Westminster Cathedral at 1.45pm (Ambroseden Avenue). Nearest tube station is London Victoria. The Procession will go to Brompton Oratory, Brompton Road, London SW7. The nearest tube to there is South Kensington.

The Procession with the statue of Our Lady of Fatima will be led by Rt Rev Dom Cuthbert Brogan OSB, Abbot of St Michael's Abbey, Farnborough, to Brompton Oratory, praying the Rosary en-route. There will be a Consecration to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary and interestingly, the Patron is His Grace Archbishop Vincent Nichols, so let's hope he attends. There will also be Solemn Pontifical Benediction, presumably at the Oratory. Sounds splendid, doesn't it?

The day will end at about 5pm and Mass is the anticipated Mass of Sunday will start at 6pm. For more information contact Francis Carey on 01494 729 223 or Mathias Menezes on 020 8764 0262 or on his mobile on 07950 384515. You can contact him by post at 27 First Avenue, Amersham, Bucks HP7 9BL.

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