Saturday, October 9, 2010

Brother's October Mass for Bl. John Henry Newman, Confessor

The October Mass for the Brothers of the Little Oratory in San Diego was held on Saturday 9 October at St. Augustine's Monastery Chapel, in honor of Bl. John Henry Cardinal Newman. The mass was celebrated in the Extradordinary Form of the Roman Rite, the form solely familiar to Bl. Newman, and to which he dedicated so much love and care. Music provided by the assembled Brothers included the hymn "Lead Kindly Light," harmonized for four male voices; the propers of the mass were Os justi" taken from the Common of a Confessor not a Bishop; and the ordinary was Mass VI from the Gregorian kyriale. Following the Last Gospel, Fr. Harry Neely O.S.A. intoned the Salve Regina, as is customary at masses in England, and pronounced the collect. Lastly, Bl. Cardinal Newman's great hymn "Praise to the Holiest" comprised the recessional, sung to the tune by Sir Richard Runciman Terry, first director of the Westminster Cathedral Choir in London.

This was the Brothers' first "Newman Mass" celebrated following the venerabile's Beatification, held at Birmingham during the recent visit of the Holy Father to Britain. Recently shrines to Bl. Newman have been formally erected at the Birmingham, London, and Oxford Oratories. The Brothers hope to make some contribution to the cost of the shrine at London, through fundraising to be undertaken during the coming year.

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