OUR NEXT OPEN MEETING will be held on Saturday 4 October 2025 at St Mary’s College Oscott, Chester Road, Sutton Coldfield B73 5AA
All members, friends, and everyone interested, will be most welcome. The timetable for the day is planned as follows (subject to some possible alterations in the afternoon, details of which will appear here in due course):
11.00 onwards: welcome and coffee.
11.30 Rehearsal with Fr Guy Nicholls for those wishing to sing in the Schola at Mass. All welcome.
12.30 Sung Mass in the College Chapel.
2.00 Lunch. This had to be booked in advance.
The cut-off date for lunch bookings was the 25 September 2025. Anyone who has missed this deadline is welcome to attend but will need to bring their own lunch if required.
In the afternoon there will be a talk by Fr Mark Drew: The Sense of the Sacred and the Destiny of the Cosmos. This will be followed by the Association’s Annual General Meeting, to which all will be welcome, whether members or not, and Vespers and Benediction in the College Chapel.
Before the day ends there will be tea and an opportunity for discussion.
If you are able to display a poster please download it here, and obtain the parish priest’s agreement if displaying on a church noticeboard.
GETTING TO OSCOTT
BY TRAIN: From Birmingham (go to New Street or Moor Street), the 907 bus departs from Corporation Street near Bull Street every 20 minutes and the journey takes 25 minutes. Alight on College Road, New Oscott, at Chester Road. The main entrance to the college is on Chester Road, near College Road.
From Sutton Coldfield, go to Gracechurch Shopping Centre (5 minutes’ walk), and take a 5 or 77 to New Oscott, Beggars Bush, or a 907 to College Road, the stop after Beggars Bush. Between them, there are about 8 buses per hour, and the journey takes 11 minutes.
A Plusbus ticket added to a rail ticket to Birmingham covers all bus and tram travel for the day throughout the West Midlands.
BY CAR: St Mary’s College, Oscott, lies off Chester Road, near College Road. If using a Sat Nav use the postcode B73 5AA which will bring you to the main gate. The main entrance is to the north of the College, accessible from Chester Road itself.
OUR PREVIOUS OPEN MEETING was held onSaturday 10 May 2025 at the Cathedral of St John the Baptist, Norwich
Members and guests were welcomed with coffee in the Narthex Hall, an excellent venue for our meeting. Then Fr Guy Nicholls rehearsed those who were to form the Schola, while the servers also prepared for Mass. The Mass was unhurried and beautifully celebrated, Bishop Peter Collins being the chief concelebrant, with five other priests, many servers, and a substantial congregation. Chant was provided by a Schola of twelve, with fine organ music from the Director of Music, David Grealy. After the homily, in celebration of the papal election which had very recently taken place, all sang Oremus pro Pontifice nostro Leone.
Lunch followed, enjoyed convivially, with Bishop Peter joining us, after which the meeting was addressed, following an opening prayer in Latin, by Fr Peter Wygnanski. His talk – lively, profound, enlightening – was followed by twenty minutes of questions and discussion.
Vespers and Benediction followed the talk, the psalms in English, everything else in Latin, all enhanced by the remarkably beautiful singing of a cantor from the Cathedral choir. Finally, tea was taken in the Narthex Hall, before the participants in this excellent day dispersed.
The Association would like to thank the Very Revd Alan Hodgson, Dean of the Cathedral, for the welcome we were given.
OTHER PREVIOUS MEETINGS
Saturday 26 October 2024 at Blackfriars, Oxford
Mass for the Memorial of St Cedd was sung at the high altar of the Priory Church. The celebrant was Fr Lawrence Lew OP, whom members will remember from our day at St Mary’s University, Twickenham, in 2022. The servers were all members of the Community, the excellent Schola was directed by George Gillow OP, and the organist was Sarah Lister. The Roman Canon was sung throughout, with the solemn tone for the Prayer of Consecration. Both the beauty and the solemnity of the liturgy were much remarked on. The text of Fr Lawrence’s homily will appear in Latin Liturgy.
The Ordinary was the Roman Orbis Factor, while the Proper was sung by the Schola in Dominican chant: the Introit (which the Dominican books call the Officium) Stauit ei Dominus; the Gradual (called the Responsorium, as it is by the Carthusians also) Ecce sacerdos, with the Alleluia Inveni David; the Offertory Veritas mea and the Communion Fidelis servus. After the Offertory chant, the hymn Iste confessor Domini sacratus was sung, and after the Communion chant, Ave verum Corpus.
After a convivial lunch, we heard Fr Richard Conrad’s talk – learned, intricate, gentle, subtle, compelling – on The Trinitarian dynamic of the Eucharistic Sacrifice. The text, for which we are indebted to Fr Richard, will appear in Latin Liturgy. On the day, in addition, numerous illustrations, mostly from mediaeval sources, were projected on a screen.
Fr Richard began on a scientific path, with a degree in Natural Sciences followed by a Doctorate in Chemistry, both at Cambridge, by which time he was already involved with the Association, since our founder, Dick Richens, had asked him to be MC for the Association’s annual Latin Triduum in Cambridge, which some members will remember.
He subsequently gained a degree in Theology at Oxford and a Licentiate in Dogmatic Theology from the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas in Rome, the Angelicum. His investigations range over many spheres in theology and associated disciplines, with interests extending in addition to different liturgical traditions. He has held several positions within the Dominican Order in this country, including the Directorship of the Aquinas Institute, and was for a time a member of the Bishops’ Conference Liturgical Formation sub-committee, contributing two chapters to their SCM study guide on Catholic Liturgy. His other publications include a paper on What the Roman Catholic Liturgies of the Dead Can Offer Mourners, in a recent collection The Meaning of Mourning: this paper grew out of a talk given to the Association at the meeting he hosted as Prior of Leicester in 2002. He is in addition a member of the Faculty of Theology in the University of Oxford.
Rather contrary to what sometimes happens when questions are asked for after a learned paper, there was no awkward silence, but thoughtful and acute queries were put by Peter Driscoll, Mgr Andrew Burnham, Fr William Young, Tony Bevan, Bernard Marriott, Fr Anton Webb, Frank Leahy and Mgr Bruce Harbert. The text of Fr Richard’s talk will appear in Latin Liturgy.
The day concluded with Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, at which the Prior, Fr Dominic White OP, officiated. It concluded with the Salve Regina being sung at Our Lady’s altar.
Earlier, over lunch, those attending the day had been warmly greeted and welcomed by Fr Dominic. All factors combined to make this a day which everyone enjoyed; the discussions, often in depth, were always irenic rather than contentious, something which is necessary if we are to make progress liturgically.
Saturday 27 April 2024 at St Chad’s Cathedral, Birmingham
A lively, successful and enjoyable day at St Chad’s on Saturday 27 April 2024 opened with Solemn Mass at 11 am, before which an ad hoc schola of ALL members, together with four members of the St Chad’s Choir, had rehearsed under the Cathedral’s Director of Music, Professor David Saint. The Graduale Parvum Proper had been composed by Fr Guy Nicholls, who was unfortunately prevented by Covid from attending. The Ordinary, sung by all, was Mass IX Cum Iubilo. The chant was accompanied by Nigel Morris on the organ in the north transept, while John Pryer, whose concluding voluntary was a most tremendous tour de force, officiated at the magnificent Walker organ (built in 1991) in the west gallery. The Celebrant was Fr Andrew Robinson from Oscott, Mr Peter Ross, also from Oscott, was the Deacon, and Fr. Craig Szmidt gave the Homily, which is printed on page 14.
One great leap forward of the day was the single-handed achievement of Paul Henrikson, of the ALL’s Council, who brought quantities of all our publications to stock the St Paul’s Bookshop adjacent to the Cathedral, where the Manager, Lorenzo Torri, could not have been more helpful.
After Mass, a buffet lunch was enjoyed by all in the Grimshaw Room, and later, in the spacious crypt, Professor Saint gave a talk on the liturgical year in music, both at St Chad’s and also in general terms. A very beautiful service of Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament followed, and we were especially grateful to Fr Anton Webb, member of the ALL’s Council, for stepping in at the very last moment when it transpired that the priest who was to officiate was not in fact available. Finally, before leaving everyone was able to join together for tea in the Grimshaw Room. We’d like especially to thank Lorraine Henriksen and Carol Parkinson, without whom the smooth running of both lunch and tea would simply not have happened, and we’re most grateful to them both.
The ALL would like to thank for his welcome and help with planning Mgr Timothy Menezes, at the time of our visit Dean of the Cathedral, now an Auxiliary Bishop of Birmingham.
Saturday 7 October 2023 at Our Lady & The English Martyrs, Cambridge
The Association for Latin Liturgy was founded in 1969 during the liturgical turmoil which followed the Second Vatican Council (1962 to 1965). We work to promote the regular celebration in Latin of the post-Conciliar Mass, which is still sometimes called the New Rite (though it’s no longer new!) or the Ordinary Form – as opposed to the Extraordinary Form or Tridentine Rite. These two kinds of Mass are often confused, but they shouldn’t be! All the Association’s work is for the modern, contemporary Mass in Latin, the Mass of today.
It’s often said that young people don’t want and don’t like the Mass in Latin, but that is quite untrue. In 2022 we visited Saint Mary’s University, Twickenham and the many young people in the congregation, including a large group who had come from the parish of St Thomas More, Bexleyheath, showed how Mass in Latin in the contemporary rite is popular with many young people and priests (this can also be seen among the students in many university chaplaincies) and that the idea that it puts the young off is completely false. At the Mass at Our Lady and the English Martyrs (OLEM), the congregation was of all ages, and the magnificent and predominately young phalanx of altar servers (the Parish has a very large and fine establishment of servers) was an inspiration.
Members of the Association’s Council were warmly welcomed by Mgr Canon Harkness, the Rector and Parish Priest and by Nigel Kerry, Director of Music, both of whom afforded us generous assistance throughout our time at OLEM. The church’s acoustic proved ideal for Gregorian Chant, and for the polyphony also.
There was a very good congregation at 11 am for the Mass, which was celebrated by Fr Anton Webb, a member of the Association’s Council. In choir were Bishop Emeritus Alan Hopes, Mgr Harkness, Fr Peter Wygnanski, Canon William Young and Fr Paul Keane, Chaplain to Cambridge University, who was also the preacher for the day.
The Proper from the Graduale Parvum for the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary was sung by a schola of ALL members directed by Fr Guy Nicholls, whose own work the Graduale is, and the OLEM Choir sang William Byrd’s Mass for Five Voices, while the readings were chanted in English, with Latin responses, the first by Paul Henriksen and the Gospel by the Celebrant. All the music was beautifully sung, and the whole celebration was a perfect example of what the post-Conciliar rite of Mass in Latin can be when it is worthily celebrated, and it was a privilege for us to be invited to celebrate the Mass at the very beautiful High Altar.
After Mass there was a convivial lunch in the parish centre for members and guests. Later Bishop Emeritus Alan Hopes gave a talk entitled Fully conscious and active participation in the Liturgy. This was a thoughtful and solidly theological address, with quotations from principal points in Sacrosanctum Concilium (1963) and a welcome emphasis on the important place of silence in the liturgy.
At 4 pm Vespers was sung in the Church, superbly accompanied (as the chant at Mass had been) by Nigel Kerry on the church’s excellent chamber organ. It was succeeded by Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, which concluded with the Salve Regina sung before the statue in the nave. We were delighted that Fr Peter Wygnanski was able to officiate at both Vespers and Benediction, which were both very beautifully celebrated, and again entirely in Latin.
All that remained was tea, for which we were again in the parish centre, and by 5.30 all was concluded. It had been an intense, very full and most successful day. We would like to offer our thanks to Mgr Harkness, to Nigel Kerry and to everyone at OLEM.
There is a report of the meeting on the East Anglia Diocese website.
Saturday 22 October 2022 at St Mary’s University, Twickenham
This Conference held at St Mary’s University at the kind invitation of the Vice-Chancellor, was our most successful event for several years. We were welcomed, in a warm and friendly atmosphere, with coffee in the University’s Dolce Vita café. Canon Peter Newby, the University’s Chaplain, had facilitated everything for us. In addition to ALL members, we also met our guests, of whom there were many, who as well as swelling our numbers, considerably lowered the average age. The Choir from the parish of St Thomas More, Bexleyheath, with its intense, vibrant singing, had a transformative effect on the music, notably their young solo cantor in the communion chant. The singing was directed with aplomb by Fr Guy Nicholls, who had also composed the chants of the proper. And on the sanctuary, two servers from Bexleyheath harmoniously joined two from the University. Mass was celebrated by Fr Lawrence Lew OP, assisted by Fr Anton Webb and by Fr Peter Newby, who also gave the sermon, on St John-Paul II, whose memoria was the feast of the day.
Fr Guy Nicholls had not only composed the Proper for the feast but also directed it, and the ordinary Cum Iubilo. In an unforeseen moment of hiatus before the Gospel, he also adroitly improvised an Alleluia Tu es Petrus which seamlessly got us over an awkward moment! The organist was Peter Adams, who skilfully made the best of an instrument which is currently in a very difficult state of disrepair. Members will be glad to hear that the ALL has sent a donation towards the fund for the complete rebuilding of the instrument.
After Mass, members moved to the Chaplaincy, where sherry was served before lunch, which was taken in the students’ refectory, amid much animated discussion.
The Association would like especially to thank Anthony McClaran, Vice-Chancellor of the University, and Canon Peter Newby, its Chaplain, without both of whom the day would not have been possible, let alone the great success it was.
After lunch we held the Annual General Meeting in the splendid surroundings of Waldegrave Drawing Room, which the Vice-Chancellor had kindly put at our disposal.
Our speakers were Professor Peter Tyler and the Revd Ian Coleman, a Deacon of the diocese of Westminster. Professor Tyler gave an illuminating history of the Carthusians in England, including the erstwhile nearby Sheen Friary, and an exposition of their spirituality. He was followed by Ian Coleman who gave a moving account of other aspects of Carthusian life, particularly their music. Many illustrations were shown, striking among them being the graphic image (1903) of the monks being expelled from the Grande Chartreuse by soldiers carrying out the dictates of the extreme anti-clerical French government.
The day concluded with Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, at which Canon Newby officiated.
Later in the day, and not connected with the meeting, there was a piano recital in the Waldegrave Drawing Room given by Ian Coleman. It consisted of Janáček’s ‘Three Moravian Dances’, and then a series of ten piano pieces ‘On an overgrown path’. He had composed poems to go after each piece, which were read by his son. Altogether a remarkable experience.
PREVIOUS MEETINGS
The ALL at Bexleyheath: Saturday 2 July 2022 at St Thomas More’s, Long Lane, Bexleyheath, DA7 5JW.
On Saturday 2nd July some members of the Association’s Council led a Chant Workshop at the Church of St Thomas More, Bexleyheath, at the invitation of the parish priest, Fr Jonathon Routh. He is in the process of introducing Latin and chant into the regular parish liturgy, and has a small but growing and enthusiastic band of singers and servers.
The day was given over to practising the introits and communions for the following Sunday, as well as the Mass Cum Jubilo and some Marian hymns and antiphons. The singing and interpretation were directed by Fr Guy Nicholls, who had prepared the Mass settings, which are in the course of being published by the Association in our Graduale Parvum. Mgr Bruce Harbert spoke about the many reasons for having the chant and the Latin language itself, and why they have such an important place in the liturgy.
The participants (some thirty people, both young and old) joined in the singing with a will, and listened with great interest to the speakers. There was nowhere any feeling that this was ‘over their heads’ or ‘dull’ or ‘out of date’: rather, it was something new and exciting. The day ended with Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, also sung in Latin.
This is a lively London parish with a fine church and a well-equipped hall. We were made very welcome and treated to an excellent lunch, all of which helped the day to run smoothly and successfully. All credit is due to Fr Routh and his parishioners, who have shown what can be done in a parish if the will is there. We hope to be able to arrange more such events in other parishes, and would welcome invitations to do so.
The ALL at Aldershot, Saturday 28 August 2021: PRACTISE SINGING CHANTS FROM THE GRADUALE PARVUM
It is with a sense of great relief, after so many months overshadowed by Covid, that we announce our first meeting since the highly successful 50th Annual meeting in September 2019. It will take place at St Joseph’s Church, Queens Road, Aldershot GU11 3JB. Details are still being worked out, but initial plans suggest this shape to the day:
10.30 – 10.45 Arrival, welcome, coffee.
11.00 – 11.45 Rehearsal led by Fr Guy Nicholls on the GP chants for the Proper and Ordinary.
12.00 Solemn Latin Mass, with chants from the Graduale Parvum.
1.00 – 2.00 Lunch. Members can be reassured that whatever Covid precautions are in force at the time will be carefully observed when food and drinks are served.
2.15 The afternoon’s programme is still being planned, but it will conclude with Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, sung to traditional chants. There will also be a general discussion, giving an opportunity for an exchange of views on current issues in the liturgy.
4.30 approx. Tea and departure.
The ALL at Walsingham:
live-streamed Mass and Vespers for the feast of Corpus Christi 6th June 2021
Mass began with the Introit Cibavit eos while the sanctuary party entered – crucifer, thurifer and celebrant – Mgr Philip Moger, Rector of the Shrine. It was heartening that in the opening rites, from In nomine Patris onwards and in many other parts of the liturgy, Mgr Moger had all the Latin from memory. The Kyrie and Gloria were sung, as was the rest of the ordinary, to the setting Lux et Origo, followed by the collect Deus qui nobis sub sacramento. The first two readings were given by a young layman, in English, but they concluded with Verbum Domini, as did the Gospel, which was also preceded by the prefatory dialogue in Latin. Interspersed were the Gradual and Alleluia created by Fr Guy Nicholls according to the Graduale Parvum model, with the sequence Lauda Sion between them.
Mgr Moger prefaced his homily on the essence and meaning of the feast of Corpus Christi, by welcoming the ALL and explaining the purpose of our mission. Credo III followed, and here almost more than anywhere the persistent ban on congregational singing was keenly felt. The bidding prayers each ended with the petition Dominum deprecemur: te rogamus audi nos.
During the Offertory the choir sang Byrd’s four-part Ave Verum Corpus, which was followed by the oratio super oblata and the Preface dialogue, all in Latin, as was Eucharistic Prayer III. Inevitably, Covid restrictions prevented the congregation from joining in the sung Pater noster, and there was of course no Offerte vobis pacem. After the Communion antiphon the choir sang César Franck’s Panis Angelicus, succeeded by the Postcommunion, blessing and dismissal.
The choir was that of Our Lady of Refuge, Cromer, directed by Paul Henriksen, and augmented by ALL members Bernard Marriott and Frank Leahy.
All that remained was for the A.L.L. members present to convene for the brief AGM, an account of which will appear in the next edition of Latin Liturgy. All those assembled warmly applauded a vote of thanks to Fr Guy for his inspiring leadership and musicianship. Finally, everyone had tea, and compared notes on their experiences in their own choirs and parishes, before dispersing at the end of what had been a most successful and enjoyable day.
After a break of about 45 minutes, Vespers were sung and Benediction celebrated. As there had been at Mass, there were problems with the sound quality as heard over the live-stream, with some acoustic interruptions, fading and distortion. The singing itself, though, was excellent. The hymn Pange lingua was followed by the psalms Dixit Dominus domino meo and Credidi, propter quod locutus sum and the NT canticle Salus et glória et virtus Deo nostro. Vespers were entirely in Latin, including the reading – on the Institution of the Eucharist – and the orations.
Likewise Benediction, except that the Divine Praises were said in English. Tantum ergo, Panem de caelo and Adoremus were all sung to familiar chants which, in better times, will be ideal for participation by all. After the Blessed Sacrament had been returned to the tabernacle in the lateral wall of the sanctuary, priest and servers processed to the nearby statue of Our Lady of Walsingham, when they and the choir sang the simple Salve Regina.
The Association wishes to thank Paul Henriksen for all his work in making this event possible, and we are most grateful to Mgr Moger for his warm welcome and hospitality, fine Latin and excellent singing!
NORWICH DAY A GREAT SUCCESS
‘Sing with the Angels’ at the Cathedral of St John the Baptist, Norwich 29th September 2018
The Narthex of the Cathedral proved to be a space exceptionally well suited to events of this kind, with a large room for rehearsing the chant, and plenty of space for socialising over coffee, lunch and tea, both indoors in the bar and outside at tables in the sunshine. There is also an excellent café and a shop. The Association is most grateful to Paul Henriksen, whose idea the day was and who made all the arrangements for it, to Daniel Justin, Master of Music of the Cathedral, to Canon Peter Rollings and Fr Tim Bugby. Our thanks also go to the hospitality team, ably led by Karen Neale, who looked after everyone so well and served an excellent lunch. There was a very good attendance, with numbers in the mid to high thirties.
The sales table displayed the Graduale Parvum in both its formats and as a set of CDs, as well as copies of all the Association’s other publications. In addition, the last remaining copies of our Latin-English Missal, with the old (“And also with you”) translation were given away free with each purchase.
The Chairman briefly announced the theme of the day by explaining that the Graduale Parvum is currently the Association’s major project, launched in April 2018 at Oscott College with the publication of the first book, the Introits. He then introduced Fr Guy Nicholls, architect of the Graduale Parvum and indeed the inspiration behind it, who explained the rationale of the GP, how the project began, and why there is such a great need for it. He showed how the metrical hymn fails in its liturgical function, something that only Gregorian chant can truly fulfil. He also reiterated the pre-eminence of the Latin language in the Latin Rite, despite the post-Conciliar – and indeed contra-Conciliar – use of the vernacular in the Western Church almost everywhere today.
Fr Guy then turned to the Proper chants for the Mass of the day, that of the feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, Archangels – hence the title of our event, ‘Sing with the Angels’. These were the Introit Benedicite Dominum omnes angeli eius, the Gradual with the same text, the Alleluia Sancte Michael archangele, Offertory Stetit angelus iuxta aram templi and Communion Benedicite…hymnum dicite. Starting with the Introit, he pointed out the close resemblance of the opening of this 3rd Tone chant to the opening line of Tantum ergo Sacramentum, and that the words ‘mode’ and ‘mood’ belong together etymologically. We continued with the Communion chant and then on to the remainder of the Proper. The standard of sight-singing among the participants in this unaccompanied first rehearsal was generally good.
Lunch was taken at 12.30, with many taking the opportunity to eat outside in the very pleasant garden, the weather being particularly fine and warm. Then at 1.30 we went into the Cathedral itself for the second chant session, led by Fr Guy, and accompanied by Daniel Justin. Here, the rich, warm and spacious acoustic of the Cathedral combined with Daniel’s very sympathetic organ accompaniment added a new and greatly enhanced dimension to our singing. As well as the Proper, we rehearsed the Ordinary, Cum Iubilo, and the Ave Regina Caelorum with which Mass was to conclude.
We were especially fortunate in that the Mass, sung by Canon Peter Rollings assisted as Deacon by Fr Tim Bugby, was celebrated ad orientem. That this mode of celebration is associated in the popular mind solely with the old Rite is quite wrong, as the A.L.L. frequently points out. Nowhere do the Council Fathers mandate celebration versus populum, but unfortunately, like the use of the vernacular, it has become the norm.
The Mass was an inspiring one, and Graeme Jolly, the MC, led an able team of servers in the spacious sanctuary. In his sermon, Canon Peter spoke of the angels as part of God’s creation – created, indeed before we were. They exist purely to see and praise God, and are always here; they particularly gather around the altar in attendance upon God, and as we sing the Sanctus, they join with us as they sing perpetually: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.” [Isaiah VI, 3]
After Mass we returned to the Narthex, where Paul Henriksen spoke of his work with children in primary schools, telling them about the psalms, Latin and plainchant, and involving them in active and practical ways. He teaches them very simple melodies to start with, using round notes without stems on four-line staves, eventually progressing to neumes, and ending up with the children able to sing a full Kyrie or a Sanctus. And as for the question ‘why Latin?’ the children think it entirely logical that there should be a universal language! Paul’s enthusiasm was captivating, and it made for a lively, entertaining and instructive talk.
Christopher Francis