The Hermeneutic of Continuity

Westminster Cathedral has one of the finest choirs in England and it was a fitting reward for their dedication that this morning they were seen and heard throughout the world providing the music for the Votive Mass of the Precious Blood celebrated by Pope Benedict. The backbone of the music was Byrd's Mass for five voices which was sung impeccably with great depth and character. Credo III was sung antiphonally, providing a stirring contrast between the purity of the voices in the choir and the enthusiastic participation of the congregation. The offertory motet was Bruckner's Christus Factus est, and Hassler's O sacrum convivium was sung at Holy Communion, in addition to the proper communion chant and the hymn O bread of heaven . As with other posts, the pictures are screen grabs from the webcast on the UK Papal Visit website. You might recognise one or two of the priests among this shot of the concelebrants: The Mass was celebrated versus populum at the High Alta...

See Damian Thompson: Westminster diocese attacks Tablet for stoking up 'culture wars' over Latin Mass Several of us on the blogosphere drew attention to the attempt on the part of the Tablet to enlist Archbishop Nichols into its campaign against the usus antiquior and those priests who make it available for their people. Bishop Hopes points out that, In his message welcoming priests to the training conference provided by the Diocese of Westminster in conjunction with the Latin Mass Society, Archbishop Nichols expresses his gratitude to those priests who have given up their time to respond to a need in the Church today. Bishop Hopes also refutes the claim that the Archbishop was concerned with "potential schism" or that he was suggesting that the place of the usus antiquior is "necessarily marginal". He quite rightly points the finger at the Tablet for stoking up the "culture wars" from which they sanctimoniously profess to distance themselves.

I have been rather busy with the Faith Conference, the Evangelium Conference and a parish Sunday, and I am taking a few days' holiday next week in Lourdes but there is just time to have a quick look at the Tablet's desperate attempt to claw back some ground, after its internet drubbing over the Blackfen affair, with its editorial article: The old rite put in its place . Essentially, the Tablet is attempting to use Archbishop Nichols in support of its opposition to the usus antiquior which it persists in calling the "Tridentine Rite" - a dated and inaccurate expression now quite properly abandoned by other commentators on the subject, whatever side of the debate they take. The editorial rightly notes that the Archdiocese of Westminster has sponsored the training course offered by the Latin Mass Society but instead of drawing the obvious conclusion that the usus antiquior is therefore entering the mainstream of ecclesiastical life in England, it presents this as a ...

This afternoon, after travelling down from Birmingham New Street, (reading up on the Monophysites and Chalcedon on which I am lecturing tomorrow) I had some time to spare in central London since it wasn't worth going out to Blackfen and into town again. It was a sweltering day, so the cool of Westminster Cathedral was most welcome. After saying some office, I was able to check my email and do a couple of blog posts from an internet café and then return for Vespers - sung superbly as ever by the Cathedral Choir. As the Cathedral is dedicated to the Precious Blood, the team there had been hard at work for the feast day today. They moved St John Southworth to the middle of the nave for veneration, and put up a very fine frontal on the High Altar. I would have liked to get some closer photos but that was not appropriate during Vespers. The Westminster Diocesan website has some fine photo galleries so perhaps they may be able to put some up from today. There was a good antique frontal ...

Last Saturday the Latin Mass Society held its AGM, followed by Pontifical High Mass at Westminster Cathedral. The celebrant was Bishop John Arnold, auxiliary bishop in Westminster, Assistant Priest was Fr Andrew Wadsworth, Deacon was Rev Alan MacDole of the North American College in Rome, and Subdeacon was Fr Martin Edwards. Here are some more photos from the Mass: For some time, now, the Cathedral authorities have kindly allowed the LMS to remove the demountable forward-facing altar for their Masses. It seems that this altar has now gone for good and the staging has also been removed so that there is an unimpeded view of the sanctuary as Bentley designed it, with the High Altar visible in all its splendour without distractions. Below you can see the incensation at the beginning of the Gospel. You may notice that some of the servers are quite young. I'm proud to say that several of the lads from Blackfen parish were allowed to serve at the Mass. Here is a picture of the Blackfen ...

The Catholic Herald has live update coverage of the Installation of Archbishop Nichols which is starting in a few minutes. [ UPDATE ] Here are a few screen grabs from near the beginning of the ceremony as televised live on BBC2 .

The blog for the Installation of Archbishop Nichols has some interesting updates. The music promises to be superb: James MacMillan has been commissioned to write two pieces: one for choir, organ, brass and timps, the other for choir a cappella . Both are settings of texts from the pre-reformation rite of reception and installation of an Archbishop of Canterbury. Other music will include 2 specially composed fanfares by Colin Mawby, a former Master of Music, and his setting of Ave verum corpus . The mass setting is Palestrina's Missa Tu es Petrus, and the offertory motet is an 8-part Venetian setting of Iubilate Deo by Giovanni Gabrieli. The Te Deum is sung to gregorian chant alternating with a fauxbourdon by Victoria. The rite itself is to be the ancient Catholic rite used in similar circumstances for the Reception and Installation of the Archbishops of Canterbury prior to the Reformation. See also Christina White's excellent article in the Catholic Herald on the new vestme...

Archbishop Vincent Nichols - Installation Blog has added some more information, including some photos of the new vestments being made. The tickets for the Mass have now all been allocated. The blog has also focussed on the sung Vespers to be celebrated on 20 May at 7pm. (I would quite like to have attended Vespers but unfortunately have a meeting that evening.) The sidebar has a link to Fr Selvester's blog Shouts in the Piazza . Fr Selvester has a particular interest (and expertise) in heraldry and has posted on Archbishop Nichols' Coat of Arms It is very good to see the Archdiocese of Westminster using a blog in this way. It is an efficient way to get out good news and make it for others to publicise. (Unfortunately there is no "permalink" to the individual posts so you just have to go to the blog and scroll. Maybe the techies at rcdow could look at that?)

The Westminster diocese website's Archbishop Vincent Nichols - Installation Blog has some interesting news. New vestments have been commissioned by the friends of Westminster Cathedral for the Installation Mass. They will be made by the respected firm Watts & Co . Here is the description: The vestments are inspired by the Neo-Byzantine architecture of the Cathedral and in accordance with Francis Bentley's ideas.The main fabric is Cloth of Gold, woven in the UK, with a design of Griffins, emblems of the dual nature of Our Lord, enriched with plain gold fabric. All the vestments will be entirely hand made in the great tradition of sacred vestment making. Some photos of the new vestments being made should be up on the blog early next week. They are to be used for Christmas, Easter and other major feasts. To pre-empt the usual stuff, shall we run through some salient points? The Catholic Church is the largest healthcare provider in the world, the largest education provider etc...

At the Westminster Archdiocesan website, there is a new Archbishop Vincent Nichols - Installation Blog which has some details of the preparations for the ceremony. The raised wooden platform on the sanctuary has been removed and the forward-facing altar has been moved back, allowing for a much larger area on the sanctuary in front of the altar. Some raised flooring has been added around the High Altar to make room for Archbishop Nichols and the Westminster Auxiliary Bishops to stand during the Mass. Of course, many of us would love it if the Mass were actually celebrated at the High Altar ad orientem but it is very encouraging to see that there is a willingness to question the liturgical status quo and to make better use of the sanctuary for such a celebration. The Mass of Installation will be on Thursday 21 May at 12noon and will be televised.

The website of the Archdiocese of Westminster has posted the arrangements for the installation of Archbishop Nichols as Archbishop of Westminster on Thursday 21 May at Westminster Cathedral. There will be solemn Vespers at 7pm on Wednesday 20 May. At 12noon on Thursday 21 May, the main West Door of the Cathedral will open and the Archbishop will make his first solemn entry into his Cathedral, before processing to the sanctuary. The Chancellor of the Diocese of Westminster, Bishop John Arnold, will then read out the Apostolic Letter of Authority from Pope Benedict XVI, which denotes the official appointment of Archbishop Vincent Nichols as the 11th Archbishop of Westminster. The website predicts that about 4,000 people are expected to attend the Mass of Installation and the Service of Solemn Vespers. It notes that a number of high profile guests are also expected to attend, including all of the Bishops of England and Wales, Catholic Peers and MPs. I was rather surprised to see that th...

Archbishop Vincent Nichols has been appointed as the next Archbishop of Westminster, the eleventh since the Restoration of the Hierarchy in 1850. He will be installed on Thursday, 21 May 2009. Archbishop Nichols is 63 (he was born on 8 November 1945); he was ordained priest for the Archdiocese of Liverpool on 21 November 1969, ordained bishop (Auxiliary in Westminster) on 24 January 1992, and appointed Archbishop of Birmingham on 15 February 2000. The usual custom would be for Archbishop Nichols to be created a cardinal once Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor reaches the age of 80 (in 2012) and no longer has the right to vote in a conclave. Here is a YouTube video posted at the Birmingham Archdiocesan website where the Archbishop speaks about vocations: Please join me in praying for Archbishop Nichols and for the Church in England and Wales in which he will hold such an important office. Further information: Announcement in the Vatican Bollettino (Italian) Press release from the Catholic Co...