Masses until Epiphany

Hope you are enjoying the festive period. Please note the following alterations to the Mass schedules for the next couple of weeks:

1) There will be no evening Mass at the Oratory tomorrow (27th December) but it should return on the 3rd January. The regular 6.30pm Friday evening Masses at St John Fisher in West Heath and Our Lady of Perpetual Succour continue as usual. The regular Saturday 9.30am Mass at the Birmingham Oratory will continue as normal

2) There will be a High Mass at 12 noon on 1st January for the Octave of the Nativity of Our Lord at the Birmingham Oratory and as far as I am aware, there will be a Low Mass at Halesowen but please check (telephone 0121 602 1972) if you are planning on attending.

3) There will not be a High Mass at 7pm on the 6th January for Epiphany at the Birmingham Oratory as previously advertised in Mass of Ages. Instead, there will be a Low Mass at 6pm, and the Sunday High Mass at 10.30am will be celebrated as an external solemnity. There will also be a Low Mass at 6.30pm on 6th January in neighbouring Redditch at Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

Christmas 2013 Masses

Altar prepared for an Advent Rorate Mass at the Birmingham Oratory

Christmas Day EF Masses 25th December 2013

Low Mass of Dawn
8.00 am Our Lady of Perpetual Succour,
Cannock Road WOLVERHAMPTON WV10 8PG

Low Mass of Dawn
8.30 am St John Fisher,
1 Cofton Road, West Heath, BIRMINGHAM B31 3QT

High Mass of the Day
Birmingham Oratory, 141 Hagley Road, Edgbaston, BIRMINGHAM 10.30am

See sidebar for directions.

May I take this opportunity to wish all those who follow and read this blog a happy and Holy Christmas.

Record number of candidates at Traditional Rite Confirmations in London

A record number of candidates received the Sacrament of Confirmation in the Traditional Rite last Saturday, at a ceremony in central London organised by the Latin Mass Society.

Nearly fifty children and adults received Confirmation in the Extraordinary Form from Bishop John Arnold, auxiliary in Westminster, at St James’s Church, Spanish Place on Saturday, 14th December. He was assisted by Fr Christopher Colven, the rector of St James’s, Fr Tim Finigan of Our Lady of the Rosary, Blackfen, and Fr Rupert McHardy of the London Oratory. Following the Confirmations, the bishop celebrated Pontifical Benediction.

Bishop John Arnold conferring the Sacrament of Confirmation on one of the candidates

After the ceremonies, Bishop Arnold joined the candidates, their sponsors and families in the parish social centre for a celebration buffet lunch.

The Latin Mass Society has been organising annual Confirmations in the Extraordinary Form for several years now. This past year there were also Traditional Confirmations at Reading and New Brighton, organised respectively by the Fraternity of St Peter and the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest.

Bishop John Arnold cuts a celebratory cake, surrounded by some of the Confirmation candidates

LMS General Manager, Mike Lord, said: ‘We are very grateful to Bishop Arnold for agreeing to confer the Sacrament on what has been a very successful and happy day. We always attract a good number of candidates to receive Confirmation in the Traditional Rite, but this year’s turnout has been exceptional. It demonstrates that the attraction of the Extraordinary Form as part of Catholic life for many families is continuing to grow.’
 
There are more photos of the event here.

Mass Changes for December 2013

There are several Mass changes for December 2013.

Firstly, the Halesowen Mass will not be taking place on the 11th and 25th of December (and was at 8am this morning). However, there will be a Mass in the area every Wednesday in December. The 11th will see our first 2nd Wednesday Maryvale Mass and the Oratory will be holding High Mass at 10.30am on the 25th, Christmas day.

Secondly, the 9.30am Saturday morning Mass at the Oratory will be temporarily replaced with a 7.30am Rorate Mass at the Lady Altar for the Saturdays in Advent.

Rorate Mass at the Oratory's Lady Altar

Finally, if the 7.30am Saturday Mass is too early for you, this Saturday there will be a 10am Mass at St John Fisher in West Heath as part of our Advent morning of prayer and recollection.

I hope you will be able to make some of these events.

Update 08/12/2013: I understand there will now be a Mass at Halesowen on this Wednesday (11/12/2013) - please phone to check. There will also be two Christmas Day Low Masses in addition to the High Mass at the Oratory: 8.00am at Our Lady of Perpetual Succour in Wolverhampton, Cannock Road, Wolverhampton WV10 8PG and 8.30am at St John Fisher, 1 Cofton Rd, West Heath, Birmingham B31 3QT