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December 2019
On Saturday 14th December, the Feast of St John of the Cross, we celebrated the Silver Jubilee of Profession of our Sr Margaret Anne in the Comper Chapel, thanks to the hospitality of the Friars.
Margaret Anne chose to celebrate the Eucharist supported by our Visitor, Bishop Richard Atkinson and our Chaplain, Canon David Lawson.
The very recently retired Dean of Westminster, Dr John Hall, kindly came to preach and friends from school and university days came to join the celebration.
After the Eucharist, we enjoyed a buffet lunch in the Richard Benson Hall, next to the parish church and had a chance to catch up with friends and Companions.
Here is a photo taken by Margaret’s friend Angie of the beautiful Profession cake!
November 2019
Sisters Jane, Margaret Anne and Frances Dominica attended the Festival Sunday High Mass at All Saints Margaret St on Sunday 3rd November. Fr Alan Moses was retiring after that weekend having reached a milestone birthday and it was very good for us to be there to celebrate the Festival and also his many years of service there. The church was looking beautiful and this owes much to Fr Alan who has overseen restoration work during his tenure as Vicar.
All Saints Margaret St is where our Founder began the community and so it is a very special place for us. The Vicar in 1851 was William Upton Richards who was very supportive of Harriet Brownlow Byron, our Founder. We have named the Chapel that we use now the Upton Chapel in memory of him.
After the service, many of us went to a nearby venue where we enjoyed a buffet lunch, a special choir tribute to Fr Alan and not least, the amazing cake complete with huge sparklers – talk about going out with a bang!!
Thanks to Andrew Prior for his photos in the church.
October 2019
The Sisters of the Precious Blood at Burnham share the same Foundation Day as us, namely the 18th October, so it was lovely to go over to the Abbey for their Festival Eucharist, followed by lunch.
The Abbey is an ancient foundation and it was fascinating to be given a tour around the site, to see the walls that date back to 1266 and to share stories with the Sisters who live an enclosed life there.
September 2019
"I attended the ARC conference (Anglican Religious) in September at the attractive conference centre at High Lea in Hertfordshire. I travelled there through the kindness of the Sisters of the Love of God, our ‘religious’ neighbours up the road.
We were blessed by having 2 excellent speakers, Dr Peta Dunstan, who is the great authority on the history of Anglican religious life and also Dr Gemma Simmonds CJ , a Catholic Sister who is soon to publish the findings of a project on Religious Life including both Anglican and Catholic sisters. They were both very informative and entertaining and we were only sorry that their sessions were time limited.
I hadn’t been to High Lea before and really enjoyed the lovely grounds early in the morning before the sessions started.
This was the third conference at which members of recognised and acknowledged communities gathered and was the best yet!"
Sr Jane
Also in September, sisters were delighted to join the Frideswide community here in Oxford at their 2nd commissioning service at St Frideswide church. It was a joyful evening with the community having doubled in numbers since last year!
Annual summer conference - August 2019
As usual , Sisters gathered together at Stanton House a retreat house, just outside Oxford in Stanton St John, for their annual summer conference days with our Chaplain, Canon David Lawson.
We were blessed with good weather so were able to enjoy walking in the lovely grounds in between meetings.
July 2019
We sisters were delighted to attend the Ordination to the Priesthood of Fr Colin Mary OFM at Blackfriars on the 6th July. It was such a joyous occasion and so glad that Colin Mary’s family were able to stay in Brownlow, our guest house.
Frances was invited to arrange the flowers as she has such a talent for it, so I had to take a photo! And here we are with the new priest after the Mass.
June 2019
The Interfaith walk took place again in June and Jean and Jane took part in it, walking from the Synagogue in Jericho to the Mosque in Cowley Road. Each year, more and more people come on the Walk and it is good to have the opportunity to talk to each other about our faiths as we wander along. Beautiful day evening again for it too!
May 2019
Some sisters celebrated the Ascension this year at a Eucharist at Exeter College, here in Oxford, at the invitation of the chaplain, the Reverend Dr Andrew Allen. The Chapel is very beautiful as you will see from the photo. All who attended the service were invited to supper in the college garden afterwards – and the weather was very kind to us!
We came home with uplifted spirits and in joyful thanksgiving.
April 30th 2019
On 30th April we celebrated the Golden Jubilee of Sr Frances Dominica. Friends, former colleagues and Companions of the Society of All Saints came to join us to give thanks in a celebration of the Eucharist in our parish church, Cowley St John, and afterwards to enjoy a buffet lunch in the Richard Benson Hall, adjoining the church.
Bishop Laurie Green , who is an old friend of Frances came to preach while our parish priest, Fr Phil Ritchie was the celebrant with our Chaplain, Canon David Lawson assisting.
It was lovely to welcome Frances’s family and particularly her brother David and sister-in-law, Lis and there is a photo of David proposing a toast to Frances after the cutting of the Jubilee cake.
Thanks be to God for His gifts to us!
March 19th 2019
We celebrated St Joseph's Day today with our Bishop Visitor, Bishop Richard Atkinson of Bedford, coming to celebrate for us.
Sr Margaret Anne, who works as a priest in the Diocese of Southwark, was able to join us here in Oxford for the Festival. Here we are in the garden just outside the All Saints house before going into to a lovely lunch!
February 2019
Chaplains from the various university colleges invited ‘monks ‘ from the Community of the Resurrection , Yorkshire with local ‘nuns’ from our Society of All Saints, The Sisters of the Love of God, and the Community of St Mary the Virgin , Wantage.
We began our day with Morning Prayer at the University Church of St Mary the Virgin, and then enjoyed coffee and conversation in the café adjacent to the church.
We said Midday prayer in a different college each day , followed by a talk including ones on Worship, Justice and Reconciliation and Vocation. Thanks to the Chaplains for arranging the sandwich lunches for all!
There was a ‘ tea party ‘ in the afternoon in different colleges for students to meet a monk or nun and ask questions and then after Evening prayer and an evening meal , joined the students for Compline, an Office( ie a service) that is very popular here in this university.
Thanks to Fr George CR and to Julia and Mel, the Brasenose and Lincoln College chaplains respectively for their great organisation and hospitality!
All Saints Sisters of the Poor
15A Magdalen Road
Oxford
OX4 1RW UK
T: +44 (0)1865 249127
E: Vocational enquiries: leaderassp@socallss.co.uk
E: Hospitality enquiries: guestsister@socallss.co.uk
W: www.allsaintssistersofthepoor.org.uk