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DOUAI ABBEY NEWSLETTER
No 13 Summer 2001
New Entrance Signs for Douai
TOWARDS the end of June workmen erected two new entrance signs by our main gate. They are made of black slate with Douai Abbey in gold lettering and our coat of arms in relief. They look most elegant and grace the entrance to the abbey.
Development of the Buildings
MANY of our readers are anxious to know what will become of the former school buildings, and we are now in a position to speak. They are to be sold on long lease to a property developer, Bewley Homes plc based locally in Baughurst. Bewley intends to convert the listed buildings skirting the road into apartments, whilst the life-expired non-listed buildings will be demolished to make way for groups of houses. The sale will be completed once planning permission is granted.As the kitchen, monastic refectory and guest refectory form an inseparable part of the school buildings, the community will have to replace these. At the same time we shall take the opportunity to increase the number of guest rooms, since hospitality is a growing part of our work and will become increasingly essential for our livelihood.
We are hoping too to be able to build a proper library, something we have not had before. For this we are hopeful of obtaining a grant. A proper library is becoming necessary for the adaquate conservation of the collection of books that we have. Also, as we intend to develop our academic work, a library, available to students and scholars is becoming essential not only for our own use, but for the use of those who would need to study here.
Presently, we are awaiting the outcome of the application for planning permission.
St Mary's Studley celebrates 150 years
ON
the Solemnity of St John the Baptist our parish of St Mary at Studley in
Warwickshire celebrated its 150th anniversary.
At the Vigil Mass Fr Abbot
confirmed 24 parishioners. The main celebration was the morning Mass on the
feast itself, when another ten were confirmed. The parish choir was augmented
for the occasion, and the music included the Introit Sacerdos et pontifex by
Croce, the Gloria from Missa Papae Marcelli, the Offertory Dum complerentur dies
Pentecostes, Agnus Dei from Missa Aeterna Christi Munera and Communion Ego sum
panis vivus all by Palestrina.
After Mass the whole parish held a celebration
lunch in the grounds of the Parish School.
In the forward to the Order of
Service the Parish Priest, Fr Paul Gunter OSB wrote: "It was in the month of
June 1851, that a monk missioner began to labour at Studley. He worked from
Coughton, a local focus of Catholic recusancy. Quietly and effectively he built
up the number of Catholics until the church could be opened in January 1853.
The
Studley Mission was an act of faith for all concerned.The resolution to build a
church here was made as early as 1847 by a small group of local Catholics
encouraged by monk missioners from Coughton and Redditch. Lady Mary Throckmorton
of Coughton gave a large sum and the congregation, such as it was, had to find
the rest. The abilities of that early committee was only matched by the faith of
the people, who collected avidly and prayed no less. These were pioneering days
for Catholics in this country. The restoration of the hierarchy had taken place
in 1850, only the year before the Studley Mission was erected.
The Coughton
Missioner has been followed by an unbroken succession of Benedictines who have
come from the great houses of Downside, Ampleforth and Douai. In the twenty five
years that followed the opening of the church, four came from Downside, two from
Ampleforth and one from Douai. Since 1878, fifteen have come from Douai, with
unbroken continuity. In 1899 the monasteries became autonomous abbeys. As a
consequence, the central administration of the English Benedictines was
diminished in favour of the individual abbeys. Furthermore, the missions were
divided between the three abbeys. Studley became part of Douai Abbey. As an
incorporated parish it enjoys the jurisdiction of the Abbot of Douai."
In
preparation for the celebrations the church and the parish house were thoroughly
overhauled and redecorated and are now looking resplendent.
Our Enlarged Hospitality Team
ST Benedict
reminds us that guests are never lacking in a monastery and that all guests are
to be welcomed as Christ himself. Hospitality is becoming an increasingly
important part of our apostolate and also of our livelihood.
Therefore we have
enlarged our hospitality team. Fr Oliver Holt OSB has been appointed guestmaster
and team leader, with special responsibility for groups. Fr Nicholas Broadbridge
OSB will be assistant guestmaster, while Fr Gervase Holdaway OSB, who continues
as Director of the Pastoral Programme, and Br Benjamin Standish OSB who remains
Cottage Manager, will both be part of the team. We hope this arrangement will
improve our welcome for guests.
Sprituality-in-the-Workplace
THE
Spirituality-in-the-Workplace retreat-workshop series given by Fr Dermot Tredget
OSB as part of the Pastoral Programme has been eminently successful. The second
series of the six weekend workshops has just been completed, and as a result of
considerable publicity received in the press, Fr Dermot has been invited to
speak or lead workshops at such diverse venues as Westminster Cathedral, Durham
University and Campbells Soups, Kings Lynn, Norfolk.In addition several
professional groups have come to Douai for their own sessions with him.
There is also a Spirituality-in-the-Workplace study group which meets regularly
at Douai.
For information about the series and other programmes at Douai write
to the Pastoral Programme Director, Douai Abbey, Upper Woolhampton, Reading,
Berks, RG7 5TQ, or email
Monastic Interfaith Work THE European Commission of
DIM-MID, the monastic interfaith body for Europe, met for three days in June in
the Cistercian monastery of Orval, Belgium. Fr Peter Bowe OSB attended as the
English representative.
The group worked on a document to be issued by the
Pontifical Council for Interfaith Dialogue in Rome on the Spirituality of
Dialogue, aimed at a wide public in the wake of some negative moves recently
taken against those who wrote on the relationship between Christianity and other
religions.
What lies at the heart of interfaith dialogue? Dialogue is in the end
only the process of our own ongoing search for God. Leaving home, fuga mundi or
relinquishing all certainties on our monastic journey, is exactly what we do in
interfaith dialogue, for truth is essentially not a collection of doctrines but
the living person of God in Christ.
A measure of epoch, suspension of
judgement, is required in dialogue, particularly in the "seeing-judging-acting"
process. We glimpse something of the others faith and our judgement is
temporarily suspended. Then we act, as it were, out of this suspension.
Moreover, rather than being on the look out for what might be of spiritual gain
in other faiths, it is better to be open in a spirit of humility and poverty
just as Christ emptied himself, ready to listen unconditionally to and welcome
the other person. Men and women formed in a school of silence will be more open
to the presence of the Divine Mystery and the simplicity of the Gospel, more
ready for dialogue than someone equipped only with all the explanations and
defences of Christian belief.
Later, the Abbot Primate, Notker Wolf OSB was present
when matters of more general interest were raised, eg proposals for courses on
interfaith relations at SantAnselmo, in collaboration with courses elsewhere in
Rome.
The Primate warmly encouraged interfaith dialogue in the monastic world,
in particular the work of DIM-MID. He said monastic experience of dialogue
provided the Church of the future with a model for meeting those of other
faiths, offering dialogue arising from the Benedictine emphasis on humility and
hospitality, rather than one stemming from a sense of mission. Such humility we
have indeed met in monks and nuns of other faiths. The Rule of Benedict shows
how best to contact their otherness. Dialogue is fundamentally a human activity,
and a humble one.
Ecumenical Dialogue
It is fitting then that Fr Gervase Holdaway OSB is chairman of the
diocesan committee for Christian Unity and Catholic Ecumenical Officer for
Berkshire.
In this capacity he attended the bi-annual Forum of
Churches-Together-in-England at Swanwick in Derbyshire in July.
The two keynote
addresses were given by the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Cardinal Archbishop
of Westminster. The formers address was pragmatic, that we should develop
further the unity we already have in virtue of Baptism, whilst the latters was
more visionary, asking us to take risks, and suggesting a pan-Christian
celebration a few years hence. The most useful work was in the 28 discussion
groups. Fr Gervase found himself in the same group as the Archbishop of
Canterbury.
Community News
Choral Vespers
ON Sunday July 8 we celebrated the
Anniversary of the Dedication of the Abbey Church with Choral First Vespers. The
first psalm, Dixit Dominus and the Magnificat were the first settings that
Mozart composed for Sunday Vespers in Salzburg Cathedral in 1774 when he was
composer to Archbishop Colloredo. For Sunday Vespers there only the first psalm
and the Magnificat had full choral settings with orchestra. The other psalms
were sung to plainchant.
We too sang the other psalms to chant and the last,
Lauda Jerusalem with fauxbourdon by Bernabei. The responsory was Locus Iste by
Bruckner, and the Magnificat antiphon O quam admirabile was by Vittoria.
Poulencs Salve Regina concluded the office.
This was the first time we had
celebrated Vespers chorally and the congregation numbered about a hundred,
coming from many local churches, certainly the largest congregation we can
remember for Vespers since the days when the whole school had to attend.
It is
good that music composed by people of faith should be used for the purpose for
which they wrote it, the praise of God, and not relegated to concert
performance.
New Novice for Douai
ON the Monday of Holy Week, Postulant Scott
Somerville-Knapman was clothed as a novice, taking the name, Br Hugh.
Br Hugh
was born in Sydney, Australia on October 13, 1968. Both of his parents are now
retired, living in northern Sydney, and one of his brothers is still alive,
happily married with four children. After ten years of schooling by the Jesuits
at St Aloysius College he completed the first year of his B.A. course at the
University of Sydney before entering the Jesuit noviciate where he remained for
two years. After this he returned to university to complete his degree, residing
at St Johns College (an English Benedictine foundation) where he was appointed
Assistant Senior Tutor in 1993. He then worked with the Refugee Section of the
Australian Council of Churches, while also Assistant Housemaster of a boarding
house at the Sydney Church of England Grammar School.
In September 1994 he
arrived at Douai and spent a year working in the School. In 1995 he entered the
Douai noviciate but left in 1996 and returned to Australia. After two years
teaching at a provincial Catholic boys school then working as Registrar for an
international English language school, he spent three years with the
Communications Branch of the NSW Police Service, helping to run the radio
network for operational police, a job which reached its climax with the Sydney
Olympics last year.
Our Sick
IN recent months several of the brethren have been
hospitalised. Fr Timothy Kelly OSB, parish priest at Kemerton, had a triple by
pass operation in March, which led to stomach complications. He is still in
convalescence, so members of the resident community have had weekend assignments
serving Kemerton. Fr Leo Arkwright OSB received two new knees in Royal Berkshire
Hospital, and is now making good progress in walking. Fr Nicholas Broadbridge
OSB received a new hip in the same hospital, but picked up an infection whilst
there, which prolonged his recovery. He, too is making good progress now.
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Douai Abbey Newsletter is published at Douai Abbey, Upper Woolhampton, Reading, Berks, RG7 5TQ. Phone: 0118 971 5300 Fax: 0118 971 5303 E-maildouaiabby@aol.com
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