The Oratory serves as a Parish Church in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Westminster. Rooted in the tradition of St Philip Neri, it is dedicated to the celebration of the sacraments, the preaching of the Gospel, and pastoral care.
The Oratory Exercises, to which rich indulgences attach, are given every Sunday throughout the year in the Little Oratory at 4.30pm after Vespers in Church. These Exercises, which last about forty minutes, are but little changed from those given in the Roman Oratory by Saint Philip himself.
All Catholic men over the age of eighteen who wish to deepen their spiritual lives using the Philippine model are welcome to attend. Further information is available at the back of the Oratory Church.
The Oratory’s group for young adults (aged 18-35) meets monthly, usually on Thursday evenings. Meetings take place in St Wilfrid's Hall, the entrance to which is in the forecourt of Oratory House. The hall opens at 7.30pm, with a talk at 7.45pm, and a social afterwards (with hot snacks and drinks) until 10pm.
Please note the age range for this group (18-35); if you are outside this bracket, there are many other parish groups and opportunities available, which are listed here.
To receive e-mail notifications of upcoming events, please sign up for the mailing list via this link.
Talk summary: In this talk, Tomislav will demystify artificial intelligence by introducing what it is and how it works, with particular attention to large language models (LLMs) and their deployment in conversational chatbots. He will situate these technologies within the broader historical relationship between the Catholic Church and major technological developments, showing how current debates about AI continue a long tradition of discernment about human creativity, moral responsibility, and the nature of progress.
Building on this foundation, Tomislav will examine AI through key principles of Catholic social teaching, such as the Imago Dei, preferential treatment of the poor, and subsidiarity, to show both the opportunities and challenges posed by advanced AI systems. He will explore how LLMs may support human flourishing while also posing significant risks to human dignity, relational integrity, and the common good.
Drawing on his ongoing research, Tomislav will present findings from a study of MagisteriumAI, a Catholic LLM tool, focusing on how individuals use chatbot-based systems for spiritual direction and pastoral questions. This case study highlights the emerging theme of “compassionate AI” and raises important theological and ethical questions about what happens when people bring their deepest struggles, uncertainties, and desires for guidance to a machine.
The talk will also survey current initiatives and conversations within the Church that aim to discern faithful paths for engaging AI. Tomislav will conclude by identifying concrete areas where Catholics can actively shape the development and use of AI technologies, emphasizing that we are not passive spectators but essential participants in ensuring that AI serves authentic human and spiritual good.
Speaker Bio: Tomislav is an Assistant Professor of Information Systems at the LSE. Tomislav’s journey began with a simple question: How do we come to know things through tools? This question took him from studying philosophy and communication sciences in Zagreb, to mathematical logic in Amsterdam, and finally to a PhD in information systems where he left his armchair thinking to study how real organizations use AI. After conducting research at a plant breeding company and moving to the London School of Economics as a researcher, he discovered his true calling when he realized how much he was using AI in his personal life to study theology and do Bible studies. Today, as an Assistant Professor at LSE, Catholic AI is his sole research focus as he explores how Catholic social teaching can inform the development of AI systems that lead to human flourishing.
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Teenagers (ages 13-17) are given the chance to meet up, deepen and discuss their Faith with those of their age. The meetings are led by one of the Fathers of the Oratory and sometimes an outside speaker is invited. Free pizza provided!
The Group meets in the Oratory House at on Fridays once or twice a month, at 7pm. We aim to end by 8pm. For more information, email youthgroup@bromptonoratory.co.uk.
All aged 13-17 are welcome (and it doesn't matter whether or not you're confirmed). To sign up for the group please fill in this form and send it to Fr Rupert McHardy at the Oratory House.
Older teenagers and young adults (aged 18-35) are welcome to attend meetings of the Young Adults’ Group.
There is a priest on duty at the Oratory House from Monday to Saturday 9.30am - 12pm & 3pm -5.30pm. He should be contacted in person for all enquiries regarding Baptisms, Marriages, Mass intentions, house blessings etc.
General Enquiries
BROTHERS OF THE LITTLE ORATORY
4.30pm Sundays. Little Oratory. Fr Tabarelli
CONFRATERNITY OF THE PRECIOUS BLOOD
3.00pm Sundays. Our Lady of Dolours Chapel. Fr Doyle
CATHOLIC ENQUIRY COURSE (For non-Catholics)
8.00pm Tuesdays. St Joseph’s Hall. Fr Tabarelli
CATECHISM FOR CATHOLICS
7.45pm Wednesdays. St Wilfrid’s Hall. Fr Doyle
SCRIPTURE CLASS
8.00pm Tuesdays. St Wilfrid’s Hall. Fr Lang
CHILDREN’S CATECHISM CLASSES (term-time only)
Before First Communion 11.15am Sundays, Oratory House. Click here for the Application Form.
CHILDREN’S MASS IN THE LITTLE ORATORY
11.15am on the 2nd Sunday of the month in term-time
Little Oratory
FIRST HOLY COMMUNION CLASS
11.30am Saturdays or 5.00pm Wednesdays in term-time.
Oratory House - Fr McHardy
CONFIRMATION CLASS
Click here for further information.
YOUTH GROUP (AGE 13-17)
Usually Fridays once or twice a month in term-time. Oratory House - Fr McHardy
YOUNG ADULTS GROUP (AGE 18-35)
Usually Thursdays 7.45pm, once a month. St Wilfrid's Hall
ST PHILIP NERI CIRCLE (MEN)
Usually once a month. Oratory House. For dates contact - Fr Lang
MOTHERS AND INFANTS GROUP
10.00am Fridays. Oratory House. Mothers wishing to attend should contact Fr Doyle first.
CHURCH TOURS
By appointment - Oratory House.
SOCIETY OF ST VINCENT DE PAUL
Oratory House - Fr McHardy
ST PHILIP’S SERVERS’ GUILD
Oratory House - Fr Tabarelli
ORATORY BOOK SHOP (CHURCH PORCH)
For opening hours and further information, click here.
ST GREGORY’S LIBRARY (CHURCH PORCH)
Open Daily: 11.00am - 12.30pm & 4.30 - 6.00pm
ORATORY CUBS AND SCOUTS
Friday evenings at the Oratory House.Email for further information. See also here.
DIRECTOR OF MUSIC
Prof Patrick Russill
ORGANIST
Mr Ben Bloor
ORATORY JUNIOR CHOIR
Director: Mr Charles Cole Tel: 07876 250 172
Chaplain: Fr Tabarelli
ORATORY PARISH MAGAZINE
Published monthly. Contact the Oratory House.
ORATORY PRIMARY SCHOOL
Bury Walk, Cale Street, Chelsea, SW3 6QH
Tel: 020 7589 5900
Chaplain: Fr Tabarelli
LONDON ORATORY SCHOOL
Seagrave Road, London SW6 1RX. Tel: 020 7385 0102.
Chaplains: Fr van den Bergh & Fr Rodrigues
In the 1930s the Fathers of the Oratory founded the Scouts Group and since then they never stopped, having the honour to be one of the oldest Scouts Group in the UK. We are now part of the Catholic Guide and Scouts of Europe F.S.E.
We have two Groups: one for Boys - 1st Knightsbridge F.S.E. St. Philip Neri, and one for Girls - 2nd Knightsbridge F.S.E. St. Philip Neri.
Each Group is divided in two Branches,: Yellow Branch - Year 3 to Year 6, and the Green Branch - Year 7 to Year 11. We are also looking to open a Beavers Branch (Boys and girls together) - Year 1 and Year 2
Join the adventure - We have availability in all branches, if you are interested for you child/children please email our Group Scout Leader Mattia Barbarossa: oratoryscoutgroup@bromptonoratory.co.uk
We meet on weekends, once or twice a month, at the Brompton Oratory.
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Guides and Scouts of Europe, UK is an observer member of UIGSE (Union of International Guides and Scouts of Europe). We apply the pedagogy of UIGSE-FSE and contribute to the religious, moral, civic and physical education of youth by using the scout method, according to Lord Baden Powell’s spirit, with a Christian dimension.
The five goals of European scouting are:
The first four points aim at building a physically solid man or woman, with a strong character, devoted to serve his or her brothers and technically able. The supreme aim of scout education is the fifth point: to meet Christ personally and, through Him, to reach the Father.
European scouting began in the year 1956. After the devastation of World War 2, when Europe was divided again between east and west, thirty young people, Catholics, protestants and orthodox, gathered in Cologne. They were aware that Europe’s contemporary nations were refusing God, idolising race and nationality, and tending to subject faith to the country’s interests, and to the general will or to the reason of State led to the worst follies and to the division of Europe. The sense of the common good had been lost. To them, it was urgent to place God back in the centre of a European project. Therefore, they founded the Union Internationale des Guides et Scouts d’Europe-Federation of European Scouting (UIGSE-FSE), an international brotherhood the primary purpose of which is to educate youth by practising scouting.
The European Scouting method is based on the original Baden Powell scouting, as implemented in French catholic parishes by the Venerable Fr Sevin in the 1920s. Today, the UIGSE-FSE is an ecumenical movement, recognised by the Holy See as an association of Catholic lay faithful. Its 65,000 members throughout the world, in 22 countries, are mostly organised as Catholic groups (98%), with a small minority of Protestant and Orthodox groups.
Vera Barclay was the first Akela. She founded the first Wolf Cub pack in 1915 in London. Together with Baden Powell, she developed the whole pedagogy of Wolf Cub and Wolvets. She wrote several training books on the Yellow Branch which are still used today by the Akela.
GSE U.K. (Guides and Scouts of Europe, UK) was established in 2021 and is now an observer member of the UIGSE-FSE (Federation of European scouting). The organisation began its activities with Wolf Cub groups in Bedford and Gateshead and now also has Scout groups in both locations.
In 2024 The Brompton Oratory Scouts Group joined the organisation.
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