ESBVM

As excited pilgrims made their way to Hyde Park on the third day of the Pope’s visit some found their progress impeded by protests from various groups opposed to the visit who had organised a demonstration at Hyde Park Corner extending down Piccadilly. However, far from the 10,000 claimed the numbers appeared to be no more than 5,000.

As one of 10 members of ESBVM who were invited pilgrims, I made my way to the enclosure  and found a seat in the front row by the stage. Carol Vorderman presented entertainment from different parts of the Catholic Community in the hours leading up to the Pope’s arrival. There was also moving testimony from the parents of murdered teenager, Jimmy Mizen. I didn’t meet up with other members of the Society until later but we were all struck by the prayerfulness of the vigil, especially during Adoration.

Shortly before the Pontiff’s arrival, the Catholic Bishops of England & Wales walked on to the stage, waving enthusiastically at the waiting crowd. There was an air of informality about the whole event, which members of the hierarchy seemed to enjoy. A vast  procession of banners  were carried  onto the stage  by representatives from parishes throughout the country as well as various Catholic groups who were greeted by the bishops.

Huge crowds lined the Mall as the Popemobile made its progress  and the scenes were relayed to those waiting in in Hyde Park on vast screens. As The Priests sang Vivaldi’s  Laudamus Te, Mendelssohn’s Lift Thine Eyes and pieces from Handels’ Messiah. The  New English Orchestra , a freelance ecumenical orchestra of musicians from all over the country, provided musical accompaniment with their musical director, Nigel Swinford.

As the Pope arrived in the Park a huge roar was heard. The Popemobile moved amongst the waiting crowds and drew up by the stage with a beaming Archbishop Vincent Nichols beside him. The Pope made his way to the stage acknowledging the waves and  cheers of the crowd.

Archbishop Peter Smith of Southwark welcomed the Pope, referring to  the nearby site of Tyburn where both Catholic and Anglican martyrs died . He  gave thanks  that “in more recent times, the Christian Churches in our land work together in the light of the Gospel for the common good of all in this country,” and said that there was much that united us.

Following the Gospel reading of the Beatitudes, the Pope preached. Reflecting on  Newman’s message for all and influence in his own life and  stressed the importance of prayer,

“without the interior transformation which takes place through the grace of the sacraments, we cannot, in Newman’s words, “radiate Christ”; we become just another “clashing cymbal” (1 Cor 13:1) in a world filled with growing noise and confusion, filled with false paths leading only to heartbreak and illusion.”

The Pope then lit the Paschal candle from which parish representatives lit their candles and processed in front of the stage as Adoration of  the Blessed Sacrament began.  The Litany of the Sacred Heart  was  recited, followed by Cardinal Newman’s prayer that the light of Jesus “penetrate and possess my whole being so utterly that all my life may only be a radiance of Thine” and his hymn, Lead Kindly Light was sung.

At the end of the service X factor finalist, Liam McNally sang a moving rendition of the Nunc Dimittis which was  warmly received by Pope, bishops and people.

The whole event radiated warmth and prayer. Reflections of Blessed John Henry Newman embraced  his life as an Anglican throughout the whole Papal visit. There were a number of Anglican Bishops and other church representatives at the Beatification including Arhbishop Gregorious of Thyateiria and Bishop Christopher Hill, both ESBVM patrons.

An Anglican clergyman wrote to Newman when he was  made a Cardinal:

“I wonder if you know how much you are loved by England … by all religiously minded England … And I wonder whether this extraordinary and unparalleled love might not be … utilised,as one means to draw together into one fold all Englishmen who believe.”

Might not these words apply equally today to Newman and to Pope  Benedict who has spoken from the heart, Cor ad Cor Loquitor,  during this momentous and historic visit!

Amanda C Dickie,
Hon. Press Secretary, ESBVM

Representatives of the ESBVM were privileged to be present at  the ecumenical service in Westminster Abbey during the visit of Pope Benedict XVI. We were seated in the Nave  close to tomb of the Unknown Warrior, and had a wonderful vantage point for the Pope’s arrival and the first part of the service.

It was an historic moment when Pope Benedict XVI went to Westminster Abbey,  the heart of our country’s establishment where  monarchs have been crowned and are buried.

The Pope stepped out of the Popemobile  to cheering crowds, who obscured the ‘No Popery’ banner on the opposite side of the road.  The Dean, the Very Reverend Dr John Hall, greeted him and pointed out the effigies of St Maximillian Kolbe and Oscar Romero , alongside more ancient saints, above the great West Door. The Pope looked impressed and gestured enthusiastically towards the figures.

The Abbey is dedicated to St Peter, and it was a poignant moment as today’s successor to the Apostle entered with the Archbishop of Canterbury, having come from an historic meeting at Lambeth Palace with Anglican and Catholic Bishops. They were accompanied by  Dr John Sentanu, Archbishop of York, and  the Archbishop of Westminster, the Most Rev’d Vincent Nichols.

The Dean invited the Pope to pray before the tomb of the Unknown Warrior, as is the custom for visiting heads of state. Following a brief prayer invoking peace,  leaders of the Orthodox and Oriental Churches, Methodist, Lutheran, Baptist, United Reformed, Free Churches of England and Wales,  Church of Scotland and the Irish  Catholic and Anglican Archbishops of Armagh were presented to the Pope,who greeted each warmly. The Pope and Archbishop of Canterbury retired to the Jericho chamber to vest for a service of Evening Prayer. When  they re-entered  the choir, conducted by Catholic, James O’Donnell, Organist and Master of Choristers, stood in a semi circle by the West Door, singing  the Invitatory, especially composed for the service. The Pope looked appreciatively towards them, seemingly impressed by the quality of music.

It was a moving moment as the Procession moved along the Nave towards the chancel with the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Pope walking side by side,  preceded by Cathedral clergy and the sixth century Book of  Gospels  given by Pope Gregory  to  St Augustine when he bought the message of Christianity to these shores.

As the Pope and Archbishop of Canterbury embraced  in the sign of Peace spontaneous  applause  burst out from the  entire congregation.  Applause had also rung through the Abbey before the Pontiff’s arrival, following his address at the Palace of Westminster which had been relayed on vast screens to the waiting guests.

Dame Mary Tanner, President of the World Council of Churches, read the Epistle and the Rt Reverend John Christie, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland read the Gospel. The Archbishop and Pope then venerated the St Augustine Gospels..

In his address the Pope spoke of  his commitment to Christian unity and of coming as a pilgrim to the magnificent abbey:

“whose  architecture and history speak so eloquently of our commonheritage of faith. Here we cannot help but be reminded of how greatly the Christian faith shaped theunity and culture of Europe and the heart and spirit of the English people. Here too, we are forciblyreminded that what we share, in Christ, is greater than what continues to divide us.”

He spoke of this years  centenary of the ecumenical movement which began at the Edinburgh conference of 1910 and “the remarkable progress” made ,whilst being aware of what still needed to be done;  and the challenges, the blessings, the disappointments and the signs of hope which have marked our ecumenical journey.”

He offered words of encouragement for all Christians to rise to the challenges “of the spirit of the age”, as the successor of St Peter “charged with a particular care” for church unity.

The Archbishop of Canterbury  referred to the Abbey’s Benedictine origins and the Benedictine Rule that  had laid  foundations for an entire culture. He spoke of the need to regain the dignity of human labour and leisure in our society and the “profound encyclicals “of Pope Benedict that had explored these themes.

Canon Jane Hedges and representatives from Catholic and Anglican youth organisations led the prayers.

The service culminated with the Pope and Archbishop of Canterbury being led by the Dean to kneel and  pray together at the tomb of St Edward the Confessor for  healing of the the divisions between Christians.

They  then gave a joint blessing to the assembled people from many traditions and all walks of life. As they processed down the Abbey the West Doors were flung open and waiting crowds cheered enthusiastically as the Abbey bells rang out. It was an amazing ecumenical occasion where the Pope exuded warmth and was given an equally warm reception.

Afterwards we viewed the gifts exchanged between the Pope and Archbishop of Canterbury and met  Canon Sagovsky, Canon Theologian of the Abbey, ESBVM member and patron. Lord Hurd, former Foreign Secretary, robed  as a Canon  of the Abbey, smiled amiably as he exited. Also spotted was a  frail but beaming Lord St. John Fawsley wearing his trademark red scarf. We also saw our esteemed member and patron, Metropolitan Kallistos Ware,who declared his delight at the service  and was also present at the Papal Mass at the Westminster Cathedral the next morning.

Amanda C Dickie,
Hon. Press Secretary, ESBVM

We are sorry to record the deaths of the following faithful members.

Sister M. Joseph of the Carmelite monastery, Stillorgan, Republic of Ireland
Miss K.M. Pfister of Bloomesbury
Br. Francis Barker

May they rest in peace and rise in glory.

Br Francis Barker
Br Francis Barker was a member of the North West branch of the Society. Until ill health intervened, he attended our meetings. He was born in Ipswich in 1923 and was brought up as an Anglican. Educated at Stowe and Trinity College, Cambridge, he became a Roman Catholic at the age of 32 and, twenty years later joined the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament. He remained very ecumenically minded and never forgot the debt he owed to his Anglican roots.

Francis was a deeply cultured person and well-informed. He shared his gifts generously and befriended many. He will not be forgotten for the contribution that he made to the local society and the wider community. He died in Liverpool, aged 85.

The South Yorkshire branch was very active throughout 2007. In May, it joined in an Orthodox celebration of the divine liturgy and a pilgrimage to Harpham in East Yorkshire, birthplace of St John of Beverley, who became Bishop of Hexham in 687, being later translated to York as Archbishop in 705, from which he retired in 714, dying in 721. He founded a minster at Beverly, the present building being constructed around his tomb. After the Orthodox eucharist at Harpham, the party travelled to Beverley where they heard the Minster choir rehearsing for evensong in this beautiful setting.

After this, five new members joined the Society.

In the Autumn, there were no less than four events.

In September we joined the Orthodox pilgrimage to Lastingham in North Yorkshire, to celebrate ‘The Nativity of Our Lady’. A monastery was founded there on the edge of the Moors, in 654, by St Cedd. A leaflet was kindly provided by our Chairman outlining the Divine Liturgy, which proved to be very useful to the members of our group of 16. In addition, the Vicar, Fr Ferguson, welcomed us and spoke briefly about the history of the Crypt and the Church of St Mary. We later travelled to nearby Pickering in superb weather, where members relaxed in various ways. Some visited an interesting ‘open day’ exhibition in the Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul, and to see the famous wall paintings of the 15th century, now fully restored. The return journey was enlivened by enthusiastic singing of hymns of Our Lady, and the reciting of the Rosary.

In October, a group of 14 made a pilgrimage to the Anglican Shrine of Our Lady of Egmanton near Tuxford, and just off the A1. This was led by Fr Kevin Smith, and attended by almost 100 pilgrims.

The Liturgy included The Angelus, Solemn Mass and Sermon. After lunch provided by the ladies of the village, we followed on with a solemn Magnificat, a procession into the village, and Benediction in the parish church and Shrine of our Lady, to conclude a most enjoyable ecumenical pilgrimage.

Also in October, we were invited to a talk in Sheffield entitled ‘Mary Grace and Hope in Christ’. This was given by Bishop Malcolm MacMahon of the RC Diocese of Nottingham, and he gave a stimulating insight into progress and the problems of ARCIC, of which he is a member. After the talk, group discussions followed by a Plenary Session, completed an excellent, informative and lively event. Bishop John Rawsthorne of the Diocese of Hallam, who chaired the meeting, had previously welcomed us and made mention of ESBVM before the talk. We made a number of ecumenical contacts, at this gathering.

Our AGM was held in November at the Orthodox Church of Saints Columba and Kentigern, in Edlington, Doncaster. Fr Dennis, our Chairman, led us as we prayed the Society’s Office. Our officers presented reviews on previous events, on our Finances (healthy), and on the input of a small ‘steering group’ which had been set up to recommend future Branch Strategy with particular regard for membership and activities. One early recommendation was to print a ‘Membership Leaflet’ more suited to Branch needs and local requirements. This has now been implemented, and has proved useful in publicising the Society, and in recruiting new members.

Our Officers were re-elected for another year, after which there was a short break for refreshments.

Our Chairman then gave an interesting talk on ‘The Mystical unity of the Church’, with emphasis on what we should be doing, and how we might work towards the unity for which Christ prayed. This was followed by a discussion on the current problems, with the view expressed that unity would only really move forward when it to become stronger at local church level. The meeting closed after over two hours of enthusiastic participation by those who attended what was in effect, a comprehensive and positive review of our Branch and its activities.

In the second week of Advent, we joined with the Mothers’ Union at St Oswald’s for an Advent devotion Beyond the Corridors of Grace, produced by our Treasurer, Merelina. This was a delightful service of readings, prayers and hymns, supported by organ, cello and piano music. Over fifty people attended, the Society being well represented. Over £100 was raised for a mother and baby home in Ghana.

Our plans for events in 2008 are as follows

Monday January 21st – Dunscroft St Edwin’s Church. Near Doncaster

To celebrate the ‘Week of Prayer for Christian Unity’. We have an invitation from Father Alan Watson and our members at St Edwin’s to join them for Mass at 7.00pm. Refreshments afterwards and an opportunity to meet members and other interested parishioners. Rev. Fr. Richard Power, Vicar of Moorends, will preach.

February – Sheffield. 26 years under Mary’s mantle. Talk by Sister Ruth Bleakley OCV. Details later.

Tuesday March 11th – Mass at 12.45 including the Liturgy of Anointing, at St Marie’s Roman Catholic Cathedral, Sheffield. This will be followed by refreshments, then a talk and short tour of the cathedral. This should be of historical interest, both marian and ecumenical.

Saturday May 10th – Pilgrimage to Mount Grace Priory and The Lady Chapel at Osmotherley in North Yorks. The Society Office in the restored Monks’ Cell at Mount Grace. At 12 Noon. Vigil Mass at the Lady Chapel 3.30pm. Refreshments afterwards. Tea in Thirsk on return. A special Invitation will be sent to individual members residing in North Yorkshire. We thank Fr Hilary Alflatt for setting up this event.

Saturday July 19th – Pilgrimage to Crowland Abbey near Peterborough.

August – Pilgrimage to Egmanton near Tuxford. Shrine of Our Lady.

September – Pilgrimage to Lastingham in North Yorks. Orthodox Eucharist. Visit to Pickering afterwards.

October – Sheffield. Talk, ‘The Methodist approach to Mary’. Provisional.
November – Branch AGM. To be arranged.

Tuesday December 16th – 2.00pm. Advent Service, St Oswald’s. Abbeydale Road, Sheffield. Invitation from the Mothers Union and our members at St. Oswald’s Anglican Church.

On Tuesday 23 January, several members accepted the kind invitation to attend a mass with the intention of praying for the unity of all Christians. This invitation came from Fr. Alan Watson , vicar of St Edwin’s, Dunscroft, near Doncaster.

The beautifully celebrated Mass was attended by about forty people. In addition to Fr. Alan’s congregation, representatives were present from the Roman Catholic, Orthodox and Methodist churches. After Mass, there was a time for fellowship and an excellent buffet supper.

Monday, 18 September at 7.30. pm, Mrs Patty Baxter will talk about ‘hope for people in need’, in the Upper Room of St Thomas’ Church.
Monday, 25 September at 7.30pm, Miss Barbara Markham will talk about the hidden life of Mary, the mother of Jesus, in the Upper Room.
On Monday, 4 December in the Upper Room, at 1pm. Mrs Tina Hamilton will talk about ‘devotion to Mary, the Mother of Jesus.
On Monday 26 March, 2007 in the Upper Room, at 1. pm, a celebration of the feast of the Annunciation will take place. A speaker has been approached, but has not yet responded.
On Monday, 2 July, 2007 at 2. pm, the Rev Mark Griffin will conduct a tour of St Mary the Virgin Church, Wingham. He will trace its story from the timber Anglo-Saxon original church to its Cathedral like structure today.

Each meeting will be followed by tea.

On Saturday the 13th May, Feast of Our Lady of Fatima, the Canterbury members were again invited to St Andrew’s Anglican Church in Deal. Here we met up with other local members including our chairman. Fr Stanley Evans and his charming wife Marie. It was lovely to meet them again, especially the vicar, Fr Christopher Landler and his wife, not to mention the many parishioners who turned up for the celebratory Mass at ll am. The reason for this invitation was the Blessing of the Sea. Fr Chris had introduced this custom only last year but it had already been accepted in Deal as a tradition and like all English traditions, once established it had come to stay. As described in a previous report, St Andrew’s Church is very beautiful and its congregation have a great devotion to Our Lady. I reported that on our last visit in July 2005, several of us witnessed a miraculous image of Our Lady on the wall of the sanctuary, so St Andrew’s is very blessed. Assisting at the Mass was Fr Michael Boag, a priest from the Royal Chapel at Windsor Castle and after we had filed into the hall for lunch, he and the vicar sat at our table and chatted to us. I have no idea of his status at Windsor but he looked very important, dressed in a red cassock which 1 suppose is the standard colour for royal chapels. After a magnificent lunch (I couldn’t possibly go into details:), we filed back into the church where Fr Michael gave us a talk about Windsor and past English kings and then it was time to prepare for the procession through the town at 2pm. People were delegated to carry the banners. incense and the ceremonial model boat bearing a statue of Our Lady and decked with beautiful flowers. To my surprise, two of us from Canterbury were chosen to carry the wreath of flowers which was destined to be cast into the sea at the actual blessing. I found it rather heavy as it had to be carried in a special basket with handles. However, we took our place in the procession and wound our way through the streets of Deal with their charming little old cottages and eventually we emerged onto the promenade and the beach. During the procession we sang hymns to Our Lady and recited the Litany of Our Lady. Arriving at the beach there was a small crowd awaiting us, mostly made up from the local yacht club who held their oars aloft in tribute to Our Lady. Here the model boat was placed on trestles, facing the sea and Fr Chris conducted a short service and blessing. As we approached the sea we shivered with cold as a fresh sea breeze was blowing, but we manfully stuck it out until right in the middle of the service there was a sudden downpour and I am ashamed to say that I dashed for cover, although the braver ones amongst us accepted this shower as a blessing from heaven. And that’s what it really was in fact as suddenly the sky cleared and the sun shone with such intensity that whereas we had been shivering only minutes beforehand, we now began to feel uncomfortably warm. but that’s typical English weather. As it was the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima, I could not help recalling that a similar event had taken place at Fatima back in 1917 when there was another downpour followed by a very hot sun which dried up all the soaking wet pilgrims and, on that occasion. actually danced in the sky. Well, we didn’t witness any dancing but we were grateful for a bit of warmth to dry us out. The time had now arrived to actually bless the sea and drop the wreath of flowers into the waves? Some of us therefore scrambled over the sea wall and crossed the shingled beach. Fr Chris intoned the blessing and a young man threw the wreath as far out as he could. To round off the ceremony we were all startled when two petards were exploded into the sea as a royal salute to Our Lady Queen of Heaven. It was the end of a perfect day at Deal.

VISIT TO THE SHRINE OF ST JUDE, FAVERSHAM
On 26th June 2006, the Canterbury members gathered at the church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Faversham to visit the National Shrine of St Jude. We were warmly welcomed by Fr Brendan Grady who gave us a long talk about the history of the shrine. Last year saw the Golden Jubilee of the dedication of the shrine of St Jude, The Carmelite Friars came to the small market town of Faversham in 1926. In 1937 they took over the present building that had originally been built as a school for girls and until 1936 had been the Empire Cinema. The shrine to St Jude was dedicated on 28th October 1955. The church is dedicated to Our Lady of Mount Carmel and contains two murals by Edward Ardizzone. They depict the Presentation of Our Lady in the Temple and The Visitation. There are shrines to the Infant of Prague and St Therese of Jesus. The shrine of St Jude adjoins the church. There are some striking windows by Richard Joseph King. In the gardens there is a Rosary Way by Adam Kossowski. Jude, son of James, is only mentioned in St Luke’s gospel and in the Acts of the Apostles, as being one of the twelve apostles. Though universally honoured as a martyr, the facts are shrouded in mystery. His body was ultimately conveyed to Rome and the major relies are kept in St Peter’s basilica. From this account it will be seen that we possess little information about the apostle himself in his own time. In order to distinguish him from the other apostle who had the name of Judas, he is often called by his nickname, Jude Thaddeus. Nevertheless. the similarity of his name to that of Judas Iscariot led to devotion to the apostle being virtually non-existent until the last two hundred years. Thousands daily invoke his aid and many have seen their prayers answered in a seemingly miraculous way, even when to all human calculation the petition bordered on the hopeless. Be it in sickness. poverty, misery# distress of heart and soul, even in despair. people go to this great saint that he might find the solution to their difficulties. In the 1930s Fr Elias Lynch O. Carm began writing the newsletter that now goes out to all over the world. He received hundreds of requests for holy pictures of St Jude. He eventually printed thousands of them and that began the association of St Jude with Faversham. Today, pilgrims come from far and wide to the Shrine of St Jude in Faversham. Many write of the peace and prayerfulness of the shrine. After Father Brendan’s talk we filed into the Friars’ refectory where we enjoyed a welcome cup of tea with chocolate biscuits. There was much lively discussion around the table and we all agreed that it had been a lovely informative afternoon. Fr. Stanley Evans then thanked Fr. Brendan for his talk.

VISIT TO WHITSTABLE
On Saturday, 15th July, the Canterbury Branch members were invited to the launch of an exhibition of Our Lady of Lourdes at the Horsebridge Arts Centre in Whitstable, presented by Susan Shaw. The Horsebridge is the very heart of Whitstable, close to the sea and the famous oyster Fisheries. As we arrived, we could not help notice that all the big showroom windows of the centre were filled with large pictures and statues of Our Lady so that visitors and holidaymakers to the town could not fail to see her even if they had no intention of visiting the exhibition which, in any case, was quite free. As one of our members commented, Susan has brought Our Lady to more people than all the rest of us put together. Whitstable in July is packed with people especially on such a glorious summer day. The total number of people who therefore saw an image of Our Lady in Whitstable this summer must have numbered thousands. Although the exhibition had already been an show for nearly a week and had another week to go, Susan opted to have the official launch on a Saturday to enable everyone who contributed to it to be able to attend. So while we all stood around with glasses of wine in our hands, she gave us a talk and showed us a DVD about Our Lady. Around the walls there were photographs of individual statues which people had sent in. But I must go back to the beginning:- Six years ago Susan was studying for her Masters degree in Fine Arts and after a short visit to Lourdes that summer she chose to give her thesis a religious slant based on Lourdes as she absolutely fell in love with the place. This was surprising as Susan is not a Catholic. She then obtained a plaster statue from Hayes & Finch and approached a concrete factory on the Isle of Sheppey to make a mould for her so that she could reproduce the statue as a multiple. The result was an exhibition of over 100 concrete statues at the Kent Institute of Art & Design in Canterbury. After the exhibition. Susan advertised the statues to the general public and 100 people snapped them up. Two of them were bought by ESBVM members for their gardens. Susan then had the brilliant idea of asking each purchaser to send in photographs of their particular statue in situ. Not all of them were garden ornaments and some of them have settled down in sitting rooms# orchards, graves and forests. Some of them have left these isles and can be found in France, Germany, Australia and Western Samoa. Those in the UK are located in Essex, Whitstable, Brighton, Canterbury, the New Forest, Rochester and Scunthorpe (Lincolnshire). I end with a comment by one lady from Rochester:- ‘I say the rosary outside with her when the weather is nice. I never forget coming back to collect the statue from Rochester Cathedral. The children from Thomas Aveling School had kindly placed her on the corner of the pavement outside Rochester Cathedral with a cardboard sign balancing on her hands saying LOURDES. It was as though she was waiting for a lift back to Lourdes!’ After visiting the exhibition we had tea at the centre and made our way home to Canterbury.

REPORT ON VISIT TO ROCHESTER
By Barbara Markham – Treasurer. On Friday, 21st July 2006, and as a representative of the ESBVM, I was invited to a Garden Party given by the Bishop of Rochester. the Rt. Rev Michael Nazir-Ali and his wife Valerie. It was a scorching hot day but ideal weather for those arranging the garden party as their particular dread was the threat of rain. Personally, I felt a bit of a fraud as I was not the first choice for this event and was actually the third in line of succession so to speak. However. in my best bib and tucker, I turned up promptly at the appointed time at the gate of Bishopscourt and was greeted by the Bishop himself and also his secretary. As I was quite alone, I gravitated to one of the tables on the lawn where a nice middle-aged couple were sitting. (No fools these as it was one of the few tables in the shade!). We were soon chatting away and I discovered that they came from Tunbridge Wells and Mike was a retired Anglican priest. His wife Christine was a charming lady and a retired primary school teacher. Soon, other ladies joined us from the Tunbridge Wells area and they asked me what I did in the Church (obviously meaning Church of England). I had to explain that I was Catholic and probably my most important job was to visit the sick and housebound and take them Holy Communion each week. They were surprised to find a Catholic in their midst and I got the impression that the gathering was solidly C of E. It was also knee-deep in civil dignitories and I was dazzled by the number of mayoral chains of office. I dared to ask Mike what it was really all about and his opinion was that it was an annual get-together of the great and the good. And even he didn’t expect to be invited next year as most of his friends had already disappeared from the scene! I had to smile at this but by this time we were pressed to partake of an excellent tea and we all did justice to it. During the Proceedings W were treated to live music and one lady played and sang a few solos on the harp. There was more entertainment in the form of a dance group which displayed their skills in three dances. The last dance impressed me very much as it was similar to my own amateurish efforts at our local charismatic days of renewal. (I draw a veil over this!) The afternoon ended soon after 6pm but we had a last-minute visit to the stalls on site selling items to help the foreign missions. I took some snapshots of the Bishop, also Christine and Mike and the ladies from Tunbridge Wells and then, sadly, we had to leave for home. I think everyone enjoyed the garden party. I know I did!

The UK launch in the Jerusalem Chamber of Westminster Abbey on 19th May 2005 of the 60 page ARCIC document entitled ‘Mary, Grace & Hope in Christ’ is seen by many as a a considerable achievement in advancing the understanding of the positions on the Blessed Virgin Mary by Anglicans and Catholics worldwide. It is not at this stage an authoritative statement but is meant for wider discussion by both communions. With nearly a third of the text devoted to Mary’s place in the Bible, the document concludes that “It is impossible to be faithful to Scripture without giving due attention to the person of Mary”. The document is a recognition of the importance of her place in life and Liturgy. It also addresses the issue of the Marian dogmas of the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption in such a way that makes a clear distinction between the content of the dogmas versus the authority by which they were defined, thereby opening up the possibility between the communions of agreement on the issue.

Members of ARCIC, Bishop Malcolm McMahon OP, and The Rev’d Dr Nicholas Sagovsky both spoke at the launch, which was attended by invited guests including the Hon. General Secretary of the Ecumenical Society of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Fr.Bill McLoughlin OSM, seen with them in the Jersualem Chamber in the photograph above.

Professor Sagovsky had given a paper at the Chester International ESBVM Congress in 2002 while working on ARCIC and acknowledged the contribution of the ESBVM to this important area of ecumenism in which it has been working over the past 37 years.