Issue 70 - The Pilgrim - April 2018 - The newspaper of the Archdiocese of Southwark

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Feature The Pilgrim April 2018 Why pilgrims go to a Canterbury church acquired in 1875 and the finger bone given in 1953 are currently housed in a brass reliquary which was given around the year 1880 by Miss Mary Hales at the time of her departure from Hales Place, Hackington to live in Sarre Court, Sturry. The reliquary is fixed to the wall of the Martyrs Chapel, over the chapel altar. On the feast of the Martyrdom of St Thomas of Canterbury (29th December), with the kind permission of the dean and chapter of Cathedral we sing evening prayer in the crypt. We then process via the original site of the tomb of St Thomas in the crypt area to his place of martyrdom where we sing the Salve Regina and people have the opportunity to show reverence to the relic. On 7th July, the feast of the Translation we have permission to celebrate Mass in the Cathedral and after the final blessing we process with the relic to the Trinity Chapel where the shrine of St Thomas stood for over 300 years until its destruction in by Henry VIII in 1538. St Thomas of Canterbury RC Church. In the Martyrs Chapel in the church there is a reliquary over the altar. It contains a piece of Becket’s vestment and a piece of a bone from his body. By Fr Tony Charlton Shortly after the opening of St Thomas’ Church in Canterbury on 13th April, 1875, relics of St Thomas Becket were obtained from Rome, apparently in time for the dedication of the church. These consisted of a fragment of vestment and two small pieces of bone, and are said to have come from Gubbio in Umbria, Italy. The certificate of authenticity bears the signatures of Cardinals Manning and Wiseman. From the beginning, St Thomas’ was conceived as a pilgrimage church, as well as a parish church. Its position only a few hundred yards from the seat of the Anglican Communion, Canterbury Cathedral, invested it with a symbolic significance at the time of the opening. It is possible that during those less ecumenical times there was a desire on the Catholic side to make a point about the value of traditional Catholic practices and devotion, such as pilgrimage and reverence for relics; and equally on the Anglican side to maintain distance. As early as 1889, The Guild of Our Lady of Ransom was organising pilgrimages to Canterbury from London, which began with early Mass at St Ethelreda’s, Ely Place and then a journey (with devotions on the way) by special train on the London, Chatham and Dover Railway. After a visit to the Blessed Sacrament in St Thomas’, pilgrims visited Canterbury Cathedral and in particular all the places associated with the martyrdom of St Thomas of Canterbury. Finally, they returned to St Thomas’ for a service comprising a sermon, litany and veneration of the relics, followed by Benediction. St Thomas’ parishioners were involved in hosting and welcoming the London pilgrims. The pilgrimage of 1953 was one of the most notable of all. The prior of Chevotogne Abbey in Belgium, Fr Thomas Becquet, a collateral descendant of Saint Thomas, presented another relic of the archbishop to the parish: a piece of finger bone. This relic is said to have originated in the Cistercian monastery of Pontigny, where St Thomas stayed during his years of exile, and reached Chevotogne via the Bishop of Tournai. As recently as 1967 there were two main pilgrimages to our church. The first, on a day in September, the Knights of St Columba organised a walk of the “Penitential Mile” from St Dunstan’s. They called at the church there to lay a wreath at the Roper Chapel, which houses the head of St Thomas More, and on to the Cathedral and finally St Thomas’ – all this time carrying the relics of St Thomas in a special reliquary. A procession of the Blessed Sacrament followed, ending in the Dane John Gardens for Benediction, the singing of hymns and a sermon from the Bishop of Southwark. Apparently thousands attended: the parish’s archive holds photographs testifying to the very large crowds. The second, on a day in July, The Guild of Ransom was still organising its pilgrimage, but now setting off from Ramsgate and taking the route followed by St Augustine after he embarked in England for his missionary work here. The bones and vestment fragment As St Jerome said: “We do not worship relics, we do not adore them, for fear that we should bow down to the creature rather than to the creator. But we venerate the relics of the martyrs in order the better to adore him whose martyrs they are.” One hundred and forty-three years after the opening of St Thomas’ church we continue to venerate relics purely for the sake of worshiping God. ADVERTISING TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF ACCEPTANCE Advertisements submitted must contain accurate, complete and true information, comply with requirements of all relevant legislation and the British Code of Advertising Practice and the Advertising Standards Authority. The publisher has the right, at its discretion, to refuse, omit, suspend, or change the position of advertisements, or require artwork or copy to be amended to comply with any moral or legal obligations. The publisher will not be liable for any loss incurred as a consequence of non publication or incorrect reproduction of an advertisement. Advertisements may be cancelled within two weeks of an order being received and a minimum of 24 hours before deadline for entry. Any cancellations outside this period will not affect the buyer’s liability for payment for the advertisement. Payment for advertisements must be received within 30 days. Loose inserts – If inserts are provided outside our standard specification we reserve the right to charge the customer. Booking Deadlines: ROP Display advertising – 8 working days prior to publication. The placing of an order verbal or written for the insertion of an advertisement amounts to an acceptance of these conditions. A full copy of “Terms of business for Advertisers” is available on request. To advertise in this newspaper contact Carol Malpass. Tel: 0161 908 5228 or email: carol.malpass@thecatholicuniverse.com Page 10
The Pilgrim April 2018 Feature/Diary Stella just about to board the red Routmaster bus. Diary - April On board the bus for the homeless By Stella Hamilton On a cold night at the end of February I was on board a red Routmaster bus as it travelled around central London delivering clothes, blankets, and other items to people living on the streets, donated by three south-west London parishes. Hot food, sandwiches, drinks and snacks were provided by Tiger Blue PR, who organised the event, called “Homeless but Human”. Sponsors included Costa Coffee and BritishRedBus.com, a Croydon company run by my brother Kingsley, who supplied the red London bus free of charge. The idea for the initiative came from PR entrepreneur Nuraya Kokos and Dj Ramjack following a conversation they had about the difficulties of homelessness. The bus began its journey at Liverpool Street at 8pm and ran until 3.20am, stopping at various points, including Westminster Cathedral, Marble Arch, and Oxford Circus. With the permission and encouragement of Archbishop Peter, I asked the parish priests of St Elphege’s Wallington, Holy Cross Carshalton, and St Dominic’s, Waddon, if I could put an advert in their newsletter asking for donations of items of warm clothing and blankets. Once the adverts had appeared, I drove round to each of the churches several times over the course of ten days to pick up the donations that had been left. There were at least eight car runs in all. In the two weeks leading up to the event we were inundated with multiple boxes of blankets, hats, scarves, gloves and coats, including a large box containing approximately twelve thermos flasks, twelve brand-new sleeping bags and about another fifteen fleece blankets. There were also bags of new T-shirts, jumpers, jeans, and coats and gloves for both men and women. A new parishioner contacted St Elphege’s to ask if a box full of blankets and duvets would be useful. This was truly the Holy Spirit in action and confirmation of the providence of God. Another box of blankets was donated by a lady from another local church, thanks to Sutton’s Freecycle website. We had a packing and sorting team from the parishes to load the bus. All the donated items were sorted into boxes of clothing items for men and separate boxes of items for the women, so that they could be easily passed out to the relevant beneficiaries quickly. As the bus was a vintage Routemaster bus with an open rear platform we were able to call out to the team onboard to pass down to the opening the required items of clothing and meal bags as needed. The system was quite efficient. We also had spotters on the bus looking out for people sleeping in doorways. A number of us would run out to them whilst the bus was still moving to give them a sleeping bag, a meal bag and a warm hat, or scarf or a pair of gloves if they didn’t have them. One item that was frequently requested was spare rucksacks, which we didn’t have, and also pairs of shoes. Fortunately, we did have one pair of donated shoes, which was gratefully received. I can’t imagine what it must have felt like to be in need of a pair of shoes in this freezing cold weather. In lieu of a rucksack we handed out spare hard wearing supermarket bags, so that people could store their belongings. During the course of the evening we had a number of encounters with some very special people, one of Catholic journalism at its best ... The Universe : world news, current affairs, lifestyle supplements and a quarterly U Education magazine all available each week digitally Universe Media T: 0161 908 5301 whom wished to be known as “A friend” and another as Simon Adams. “A friend” told us of his mission to clean up London’s streets and how he spent his time picking up other people’s rubbish. He also gave his own recital of a poem/monologue that he had written about life and the cosmos, and said that he was not homeless as planet earth is his home. And he added that if we don’t look after our planet given by God, the director, we will all be homeless. If you have an event, please e-mail details to us at pilgrim@rcsouthwark.co.uk 12: “Scripture and Eucharist – Get a Life!”, a talk by Fr Nick King, 7.30pm, the parish centre, Sacred Heart Church, Edge Hill, Wimbledon SW19. 19: “Eucharist and the Mission of the Church”, a talk by Dr Mark Nash, 7am – 9pm, Centre for Catholic Formation, Tooting Bec, SW17. 21: “Homelessness, peace, environment: what has it got to do with the Church? What does it mean for me?” A joint Catholic/Anglican event, organised by the Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation departments of the Anglican and Catholic dioceses of Southwark, 11am -3 pm, St Hugh's Bermondsey, Crosby Road, SE1. Email: marlene.collins@ southwark.anglican.org for further details or to book a place. 26: “The Eucharist in Art”, a talk by Pierpaolo Finaldi, 7pm – 9pm, Amigo Hall (Next to St George’s Cathedral). 28: A new evangelisation summit, 10 am – 9 pm, Centre for Catholic Formation, Tooting Bec, SW17. For further details email office@ccftootingbec.org.uk. Subscribe today Digital Edition ONLY £12 a year FIRST 4 WEEKS FREE Join us on the journey ... www.thecatholicuniverse.com/shop/subscribe-digital.html Page 11
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Issue 70 - The Pilgrim - April 2018 - The newspaper of the Archdiocese of Southwark

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