An Anglican cathedral that hosts a weekly Catholic Mass (pictured) has enrolled a Catholic seminary in Spain into its Fraternity of Friends following a recent visit there by the dean.
The Royal English College of St Alban in Valladolid, which prepares candidates for the priesthood in England and Wales, will now be remembered regularly in prayer at St Albans Cathedral, in Hertfordshire.
The dean, Jeffrey John, told The Tablet that his main reason for going to the college was to see a relic held there – despite admitting being previously “relatively sceptical” of relics. “With all the mental reservations that one inevitably has about a relic that claims to be over 1,700 years old, I have to say that seeing the heart of Alban was an extraordinarily moving experience,” he said.
Dr John said that when the college rector, Fr Paul Farrer, pays a reciprocal visit next year, he is looking forward to showing him the place where the first English martyr lived and died. “Praying with [him] in the college chapel, I felt, more powerfully than ever before, the enormous tragedy of the Church’s division, and the long legacy of horror and grief that ensued. The warmth of their welcome, and the ecumenical friendship we enjoy in St Albans Cathedral, have to be seen with greater gratitude against the background of such a dreadful history.” Catholic Mass has been taking place weekly in the Lady Chapel at St Albans Abbey for over 30 years. At the end the congregation always turns to face the shrine of St Alban. The canon chancellor, Revd Kevin Walton, said it is now an established part of life at the abbey: “The Friday Mass is a persistent, stubborn light flickering through the ups and downs of ecumenical fortunes.”
St Albans is not unique. Mass takes place in Winchester Cathedral quarterly; three times a year in Canterbury Cathedral; annually in Peterborough Cathedral during the Katharine of Aragon Festival; and in Chichester Cathedral on St Richard’s Day and at Easter. Hereford Cathedral partners with a Catholic parish, holding a Mass every other year.
Loading ...
