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No 164 - 2001
7 St Mary’s Parish Studley
by Paul Gunter OSB
THE ENGLISH Benedictine Congregation since its restoration in the seventeenth century was involved in mission work, frequently centred on the homes of wealthy Catholic recusants. With the establishment of parishes in the nineteenth century, the Benedictines were given charge of the parishes in the areas where their missions had been. At first these were organised by the Congregation but with the establishment of Abbeys in 1899, the parishes were given to the care of the individual monasteries.
In December 2001 Fr Paul Gunter OSB, after consulting the Head Teacher of the parish school and a group of parishioners drew up a profile of the parish of Studley as preparation for the forthcoming episcopal visitation. The profile forms the basis of this article.
St Mary’s Parish is a Benedictine foundation begun in 1851. An unbroken line of Benedictines has served this mission. It was founded by the monk-missioner of Coughton Court. The Throckmorton family gave a considerable sum alongside their recusant faith to establish Catholic rites and worship at Studley. The parishioners paid the remaining debt. The Church and house are Grade II listed. The Church was opened on January 27, 1853, the presbytery was completed in three stages. The Parish celebrated the 150th anniversary of the foundation of the mission last June. The Abbot of Douai who had just completed his quadriennial visitation to the parish presided. The church underwent much work in preparation for the event. An anonymous benefactor and the parish paid equal amounts: both showed great faith in their giving, the more so, because Studley has a Mass attendance of only 200.
The Catholic parish of Studley consists of a number of villages in Warwickshire on the border with Worcestershire. Since the opening of the M42 motorway Studley has become easily accessible for people who work in the Birmingham area. There is no major employer in Studley so many of the people have to commute and are financially challenged.
It was on June 14, 1999 that I arrived as parish priest. What struck me forcibly at the time was that the manner of appointment of priests is extraordinary. I did not choose to come to Studley and the people were not consulted about who they were sent. When I arrived, forty-six years younger than my predecessor, I was conscious of my following a priest who had been greatly loved. Many were saddened by his inevitable retirement and felt low.
The once beautiful house was uninhabitable, I felt daunted by the the prospect of what needed to be done and with so little money. It took me until November 18 to move into the presbytery which by then had undergone much work to make it comfortable. The parishioners were very generous to me with their words of encouragement and they gave what they could to help furnish it. I immediately began to encourage parishioners to use part of the house so that they had somewhere to meet, knowing that if they did they would feel some kinship to the house. This was the beginning of drawing the people together. Different groups began to use the house. A sense of community has grown here.
Communion
On February 20, 2000, I presented my vision to the Parish about the direction we should go and in a paper called Vision 2003and asked for the involvement of the parishioners in each aspect of parish life (see Douai Abbey Newsletter no 11, Summer 2000). It formed the building blocks for what has followed and I have been grateful for the way it has been received.Benedictine traditions have established the character of this parish and inform the way we do things. St Benedict said "Nothing is to be preferred to the Work of God". The Liturgy blesses and motivates everything, its celebration is a sign of our love. Participation is high on the list of priorities at Studley, many take specific roles such as cantors, readers, ministers of the eucharist who offer the chalice and ministers of hospitality welcome people and serve coffee after Mass. Tthe stranger does not have to wait long to be spoken to. If people are missing from Mass for any length of time they are shown genuine concern.
There is a flourishing Children’s Liturgy which is presided over by mothers who are also catechists.
Days of Recollection are held in the presbytery and there have been talks about the faith and liturgy which have been well attended and given rise to animated discussion. Usually these evening meetings end with Compline.
Work needs to be done. The present parish boundaries do not represent a significant area of where many people live who form the parish. These need to be reviewed in consultation with the archdiocese. The beautiful church and presbytery on which much work has been done, represent a financial burden on the parish so that the generosity and expertise of the parishioners is paramount.
Mission
Participation is central to the organic life of a parish; we need to reach out to the lapsed and help them to participate in the life of the parish and not only liturgically. As a parish we are conscious that Ite Missa est dismisses us from the Liturgy to continue Christ’s saving work. Catholics are involved in all the local charities concerned with the aged, the terminally ill, the deaf and blind as well as with CAFOD. These works are specifically missionary in that they communicate the mercy of God to society. There is a local Catholic Registered Charity, the Helena Blundell Fund which assists people of the Studley parish who are in distress. It has paid for people to go to Lourdes, provided stairlifts, helped with university fees, paid for respite care, and provides for children who would not otherwise be able to afford to go for residential weekends or courses. We are conscious more needs to be done especially with Third World Concern. Youth work is also something we need to develop. We need to consider what we can offer that would interest youth and communicate Catholicity, reaching out especially to those on the margins.Parishioners are active members of the local community, over the years Catholics have served as Councillors in County, District and Parish, including the Chairmanships of each, and as Justices of the Peace. The Parish Council currently has three Catholics among its twelve members; last year a parishioner was Chairman of Stratford-upon-Avon District Council.
Ecumenical relationships are central to Christian witness. The churches of Studley work together in many ways, distributing cards to every house in the district inviting people to the Christmas and Easter services, having shared retreat days, as well shared events for Good Friday and Remembrance Sunday. There is an ecumenical choir Musica Sacra which provides meditative services. Ecumenical dialogue is necessary if we are to develop an understanding of our different theologies beyond the realm of courtesy.
The Coach House project would give us a much need Parish centre. Although it is small it has an upstairs and would be a useful asset. It would provide an area for gathering as well as a meeting room. At present we hold meetings in the presbytery, but often the rooms are not large enough. The Coach House is a permanent structure with considerable potential. It would bring people together for a variety of purposes amd improve our social facilities. This project would enhance our mission and extend what we would be able to do to reach out to people.
The 150th anniversary of the mission was a tremendous event, (Douai Abbey Newsletter no 13, Summer 2001). It was a great celebration of parish community; food which the parishioners had given was prepared by them for two hundred people to sit down for lunch. Now we prepare to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the opening of the church next year, and the target date of Vision 2003. ‡
Index
Douai Society Dinner, May 18 2001 Extracts from a speech by Abbot Geoffrey Scott OSB
Fr Adrian Hastings 1929 - 2001
Pre-Vatican II Catholic: The Case of Oliver Welch by Adrian Hastings
Indian Interfaith Encounters by Fr Peter Bowe OSB
Impressions of El Salvador January 2002 by Fr Alexander Austin OSB
Music at Douai March 2001 - February 2002 by Fr Oliver Holt OSB
New Mass Setting: Roxanna Panufik's Douai Missa Brevis by John Rowntree
Go to index of Douai Newsletter.