23rd Sunday of the Year (C)
13th Sunday after Pentecost
RAFFLE TICKES ON SALE FOR TYBURN CONVENT
Raffle tickets will be on sale in the church porch after all Sunday Masses to support the Tyburn nuns.
SCRIPTURE GROUP
The Scripture Group will not meet in September. The next meeting will be on Tuesday 7th October at 8pm.
BBC BROADCAST VESPERS FROM THE ORATORY
On Wednesday 10th September at 3pm the BBC will broadcast Vespers live from the Oratory Church on Radio 3. The transmission will also be available on BBC iPlayer for a month after the broadcast. The service will include music by Domenico Scarlatti, Sebastian Aguilera de Heredia and Victoria. Those wishing to attend must be seated by 2.55pm, when the church doors will be closed during the transmission.
DIVINE ENCOUNTERS: INDIGENOUS MEETS BAROQUE
On Saturday 13th September, the ensemble El Parnaso Hyspano will make its third appearance at the Oratory and perform the baroque opera San Francisco (composed by an anonymous Indigenous musician in the Jesuit missions and sung in the Chiquitano language). The concert will also include vocal and instrumental items from the 18th-century Peruvian Codex Martinez Companon, which collected both sacred and secular music from Peru at that time. The concert will be in the Little Oratory at 8pm, followed by a wine reception. Tickets and further information at https://shorturl.at/8aysu. See also here.
THE ORATORY PILGRIMAGE TO TURKEY – AN ILLUSTRATED REVIEW
In May, Fr Michael Lang led a pilgrimage to the sites of the first seven Ecumenical Councils and of the Seven Churches of the Book of Revelation in Turkey. On Friday 19th September at 8.00pm in St Wilfrid’s Hall, Fr Michael will share his impressions of the pilgrimage and talk about the historical and religious significance of the sites the group visited. The presentation will be illustrated with photographs from the trip. All are welcome.
ST THOMAS AQUINAS STUDY GROUP
The St Thomas Aquinas Study Group with Mr Dominic Sullivan will start again on Wednesday 17th September at 7.30pm in St Joseph’s Hall and once a fortnight after that. The topic will be Friendship in Aristotle and St Thomas. For further information, please email generalenquiries@bromptonoratory.co.uk.
ORATORY LATIN CLASSES
The Oratory Latin classes with Mr Dominic Sullivan will start again on Wednesday 24th September in St Joseph’s Hall. The Intermediate Class will run from 6.45 to 7.30pm and the Advanced Class from 7.30 to 8.30pm. For further information, please email generalenquiries@bromptonoratory.co.uk.
JUBILEE YEAR INDULGENCES
The Diocese of Westminster has produced a guide how to obtain the plenary indulgence for the Jubilee Year, without the need to travel to Rome or other pilgrimage centres around the world. The guide is available as https://rcdow.org.uk/jubilee-2025/the-jubilee-indulgence-step-by-step/
CONFRATERNITY OF THE HOLY FACE
Devotion to the Holy Face of Christ, which flourished in the late medieval and early modern period was revived in the nineteenth century by the saintly Sr. Marie de St. Pierre (1816-1848), Carmelite nun from Tours, France. Subsequently, the Archconfraternity of the Holy Face was founded, which has among its principal objects the rendering of a special homage of respect and love to the Holy Face of Christ, which was disfigured in His Passion. For more information and how to be enrolled in the Confraternity of the Holy Face, please click here.
HELPING THE HOMELESS AND NEEDY IN OUR AREA
HTB (Holy Trinity Brompton) run a morning shelter to assist those who are homeless or in vulnerable at St Augustine's Church, 117 Queen's Gate, SW7 5LP, every Wednesday 8am–1.30pm and Thursday 9.30am–1.30pm. They need all sort of help (serving, hosting, washing up, sewing, cleaning). If you are willing to spare some time for this service (you do not need to stay the whole time) or would like to know more on how you can help, please email HTB (mentioning that you heard about this from the Oratory) at shelter@htb.org.
ORATORY SCOUT GROUP
Our Scouts Group has moved under the umbrella of the Catholic Scouts of Europe and is now ready to accept new applications for boys from School Years 3 to 6 (Cubs), Y7 to Y11 (Scouts) and girls between Y3 to Y6 (Guides Cubs), Y7 to Y11 (Guides). Email oratoryscoutgroup@bromptonoratory.co.uk.
CHILDREN’S AREA
On Sunday mornings, St Gregory’s Library at the back of the Church is made available to parents whose children become restless during Mass. There are books and some toys. Entrance is through the Sacred Heart Chapel at the back of the church. Children must be supervised by their parents at all times.
MASS INTENTIONS
CONTACTLESS GIVING AVAILABLE
Click here for more information.
You can also donate by bank transfer or via Stripe (see here). For a larger donation, please consider a bank transfer, because we have to pay a percentage fee for any card payment. Our account details are:
Account Name: London Oratory Charity
Sort Code: 60 04 04
Account Number: 18192947
Please add your surname and first name as a reference, to help our bursar.
The Oratory very much depends on your contributions, and we thank you in advance for your generosity.
GIFT AID – HELPING THE ORATORY
If you are a UK taxpayer, the Oratory can claim back from the Inland Revenue 25p of every £1 you give, at no cost or inconvenience to you. Setting up a Gift Aid arrangement helps the Oratory to increase its income (click here for the forms).
PRIEST REFERENCE FOR SCHOOL APPLICATIONS
Parents who wish one of the Oratory Fathers to give their child a school reference must register with the “Mass Attendance” scheme. Registration forms are available from the Oratory House.
UNABLE TO GET TO MASS ON SUNDAYS?
The Oratory runs a bus service staffed by volunteers to help the elderly and/or incapacitated attending the 11am Mass each Sunday. The minibus has a lift for wheelchairs and volunteers help passengers go to Holy Communion if required. The service is available to parishioners and those who live in the Fulham and Earl’s Court areas. Please email generalenquiries@bromptonoratory.co.uk or telephone 020 7808 0900 if you are interested in making use of this service, or if you would like to volunteer as a driver or helper.
PSYCHOTHERAPY AND LIFE COACHING
Wilfrid’s House is a BACP-accredited, registered charity based at the Oratory and committed to helping people cope with life’s challenges`. Through low-cost counselling and psychotherapy, they support individuals who are going through challenges such as anxiety, depression, inability to cope with daily life, relationship issues, and bereavement. Through low-cost life coaching, they support individuals who are feeling overwhelmed and unable to move forward with purpose. Whether you are struggling with change, big decisions or simply day-to-day life, coaching offers emotional and practical support, enabling clarity and structure and helping you achieve your goals. Further information at www.wilfridshouse.org.
For job vacancies in the Diocese of Westminster, see https://jobs.rcdow.org.uk/.
INFORMATION FOR MARRIAGE
If you would like to be married at the Oratory, we will need at least 6 months notice. For the initial enquiry please come to the Oratory House in person and ask to speak to the priest on duty (see Hours of Duty below). All subsequent meetings, bookings and arrangements will be done through him, so please make a note of his name! No wedding bookings will be taken over the telephone or by email.
If you do not normally worship at the Oratory, please state the name of the church where you usually attend Mass and give the reasons you wish to marry here (for instance, personal connection to the Oratory or one of our schools). It is important to approach the church first before making your plans for a reception venue. We do not have weddings on a Sunday.
There are various arrangements and legalities, both civil and ecclesiastical which need to be attended to. You will also need to undergo a course of preparatory instruction about the sacrament of marriage. Speak to the priest for more details.
Hours of Duty:
Monday-Saturday: 9.30am-12.00pm; 3.00pm-5.30pm.
INFORMATION FOR BAPTISM
According to canon law, “Parents are obliged to see that their infants are baptised within the first few weeks. As soon as possible after the birth, indeed even before it, they are to approach the parish priest to ask for the sacrament for their child, and to be themselves duly prepared for it” (Code of Canon Law, can. 867 §1).
Those wishing to have their child baptised should contact the Oratory House and ask to speak to the priest on duty. All subsequent meeting, bookings and arrangements will be done through him. It will be necessary to meet with the priest for a class on the sacrament of baptism.
Normally baptisms take place in the parish where a family is resident. If you do not live within the territorial boundaries of the Oratory parish but have a good reason for wanting to have your child baptised here, please explain that to the priest on duty. In such cases your own parish priest will need to give permission for the baptism to take place at the Oratory.
The choice of godparents (sponsors), who are to help the baptised to live a good Christian life and faithfully to fulfil the duties inherent in baptism, is an important one. “There is to be only one male sponsor or one female sponsor or one of each” (Code of Canon Law, can. 873). A godparent must be a Catholic of not less than sixteen years of age, who has been confirmed and who lives a life of faith that befits the role to be undertaken. A baptised person who belongs to a non-Catholic ecclesial community may be admitted in company with a Catholic sponsor as a Christian witness.