+++ The Holy Celtic Church International+++
  • Home
  • Our Charism
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Clergy and Locations
  • Statement of Faith and Sacramental Policies
  • Vocations
  • Apostolic Succession
  • Holy Cross Benedictines
  • Congregation of St Romuald
  • Confraternity of the Life of Mary
  • Guild of Our Lady of Llanthony
  • Celtic & Benedictine
  • Monthly Ordo
  • Sanctoral Calendar
  • Journal - In Hoc Signo Vinces
  • St Gall's Seminary
  • Vocation Stories
  • Deaconess Society
  • Roman Catholic Succession
  • Mariavite Succession
  • Hebraic-Celtic Succession
  • Irish Lines of Succession
  • Liberal Catholic Succession
  • Malankara Syriac Succession
  • Green Chapel
  • Liberal Celtic Rite
  • Liberal Catholic Rite
  • Scottish Liturgy
  • Holy Qurbana - MTLCC
  • Litany of the Celtic Saints
  • Mar Thoma LCC
  • HCCI, Norway
  • HCCI - Southampton
  • HCCI Canada
  • The Celtic Hermit
  • HCCI - Ireland
  • HCCI Serbia & Hungary
  • HCCI North America
  • Santa Chiesa Celtica in Italia
  • Chiesa Cattolica Liberale Mar Thoma
  • St Dunstan's Anglo-Catholic Fellowship, & OCR
  • Holy Celtic Order of the Temple
  • Guild of the Holy Apostles
  • Rito Celtico Liberale
  • Der keltische Ritus
  • Forme brève de la Liturgie Celtique
  • Solemn Benediction
  • Healing Service
  • Compline
  • Sunday Collects
  • Collects and Readings for Feasts
  • Contact

Observations on CSMV, Wantage

5/30/2017

 

Some Observations on the recent history of the Community of St Mary the Virgin , Wantage, Oxon.
by Dom Alistair Bate OSBA


The Community of St Mary the Virgin (CSMV), founded in 1848, was one of the first sisterhoods founded in the Church of England in response to the Tractarian movement of the mid-nineteenth century. Now a shadow of its former self, it was once the biggest of the Anglican orders with over 400 Sisters throughout the world and was deservedly renowned for its musical and artistic work, principally in the area of plainchant and church embroidery, as well as parochial and retreat ministry, education and works of mercy particularly with young women and girls. The community has had a long and venerable history, but as with so many religious communities both inside the Church of England and elsewhere, the last thirty years have not been kind.
Picture
Picture
St Mary's Convent, Wantage
In the case of CSMV, which even today describes itself as a “traditional Church of England Religious Community” the response to modernity has principally been of two kinds; to resist the dismantling of Anglo-Catholicism or to go with the theological flow of contemporary Anglicanism. I have only met Wantage Sisters on one occasion, more than 30 years ago, so my observations are  based purely on what I have gleaned from research, but it would seem that the 21st century saw CSMV divide - amicably, it may be noted - into two opposing theological camps.

According to Peter Anson, writing in the mid 20th century, the Wantage Sisters were never renowned for being at the vanguard of the Anglo-Catholic movement, in fact although they celebrated the Little Hours according to the Sarum Breviary (in English), along with Mattins and Evesong, they didn’t actually have a daily Eucharist until 1887. Perhaps the fact that their first member, Sr Elizabeth Lockhart, became a Roman Catholic very early in her religious life, increased the remaining members’ loyalty to the Church of England. The founder, the Revd William John Butler, noted shortly before his death in 1894 that his Sisterhood had been based on the principle of “simple, honest loyalty to the Church to which it belongs, that is the Church of England, the Church of our native land. We believe that the Church of England is a true branch of Christ’s Catholic Church, and that she has a right to lay down for her children what they are to believe and do. We believe that in her Prayer Book her teaching and will are found. We are not desirous to follow our own fancies, or to set forth doctrines and ritual which belong to the Church of Rome. We are satisfied with giving dignity and beauty to that which we have of our own.”  (“The Call of the Cloister” by Peter Anson, p.248)
Picture
The Revd William Butler, Founder
Picture
Some of the earliest Sisters with Revd Mother Harriet Day CSMV, front centre
Given this tradition of loyalty and service to the Church of England, the issue of the ordination of women, presented an extreme challenge to several religious communities, which were already reeling from secularism and the resulting vocations crisis. Over the last 37 years I believe I am correct in saying that the number of religious communities of women in the Church of England has been reduced from 49 to round about a dozen. Incredibly sadly, the majority are literally now well on their way to extinction and this beautiful chapter in Church history will most likely draw to a close eventually.  Most of those communities that remain, it would appear, have been easily persuaded by the feminist modernist spirit that has swept through the church, though a small number of brave souls have gone down the “Forward in Faith” route, whilst others, since Pope Benedict established the Anglican Ordinariates have chosen to “swim the Tiber”.

It is anyone’s guess what the Revd William Butler might have done had he been an influential figure in the contemporary Anglican Church. I suspect he would be in the women-ordaining camp, as he was always first and foremost an Anglican rather than a Catholic. However, those members of CSMV and other similar communities who could not agree with the decisions of General Synod regarding the ordination of women would surely say that they didn’t leave the Church of England, but rather the Church of England left them, and I would certainly agree with them. The claim of the Church of England to be a legitimate branch of the Catholic tree was a foundational idea for these communities and if one can accept the “branch theory” then surely one must also accept that in forsaking the consistent sacramental practice of Catholicism  and Orthodoxy the General Synod has firmly and irrevocably sawn off that branch. The mark of Catholic sacramental orthodoxy according to St Vincent of Lerins is “to do as the church has always done” and clearly the ordination of women does not conform to that general rule.
Picture
CSMV Sisters, Wantage, 2015 with the Rt Revd Alison White and the Ven. Caroline Baston
In the case of CSMV, with one or two notable exceptions, it has been the younger sisters who have jumped ship, under the capable leadership of Revd Mother Winsome. They would have liked to stay at Wantage and care for the older sisters, but the Church of England authorities didn’t think this would be such a manageable idea. Certainly if more recent photos are any indication those who have chosen to remain have fully embraced the feminist theological position, even if unlike most of the other Anglican communities of women, they have still retained their veils …  for the moment.

The eleven Sisters who stepped out in faith and joined the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham, have been installed in a vacant convent in Birmingham since 2014 and have adopted a traditional Benedictine way of life, as the “Sisters of the Blessed Virgin Mary”. They are at pains to point out that the ordination of women was not the only reason they joined the Ordinariate, however, I am quite sure that it must have been a deciding factor for many.

I pray God that both communities will be blessed with vocations and that the specifically Anglican traditions of the “mixed life” (Active/Contemplative) that Wantage has exemplified so well, may be preserved for future generations.

Picture
The Sisters of thre Blessed Virgin Mary (formerly CSMV) with Mgr Keith Newton and Ordinariate clergy.

The Holy Cross Benedictines of Adoration .... our story

5/17/2017

 

The Holy Cross Benedictines of Adoration ..... our story so far .... by Dom Alistair Bate OSBA (csr)

Picture
As with many new communities the charism of the Holy Cross Benedictines of Adoration has gradually unfolded over a number of years. It’s origins lie with our first community, the “Companions of the Cross and Passion” (founded in 2007), in which a few of us formed a new-monastic type of community based on Passionist spirituality. Four of our present members were also members of this original group: Dom Alistair, Dom Michael, Bishop David and Fr James.

This worked quite well for us and we gained members steadily until the year 2012 when out of the blue the  Roman Catholic Passionist Congregation threatened legal action against us for describing ourselves as “Passionists” and using the Passionist Sign, which unknown to us, they had registered as trademarks two months previously. Rather than rejoice that their charism had found a new expression amongst those marginalised by the Roman Church they chose to suppress us as best they could, and indeed we had to go back to the drawing board and discern where the Lord was calling us.

Although this was a painful time of loss it turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as despite our appreciation of the spirituality of St Paul of the Cross, we were all much more temperamentally suited to a more contemplative approach and besides, our appreciation of the Passionist tradition was now soured irrevocably by its present day custodians.


Picture
OHF St Benedict
The new Benedictine framework that we chose has suited us perfectly for several reasons. Firstly, I myself had been trained as a novice in an Anglican Benedictine community so was very familiar with the customs and ambiance of Benedictinism lived in a communal context and was able to confidently communicate this tradition to others. Secondly, the Church of Rome cannot claim sole ownership of the Benedictine tradition as there are already Orthodox, Anglican and Lutheran Benedictines as well as several communities in the independent movement. Thirdly, as an idiorrhythmic and non-residential community, the Benedictine tradition which allows for a semi-eremitic expression suited our individual circumstances.

When choosing a name for our new Benedictine community we chose "Holy Cross Benedictines of Adoration" in grateful acknowledgement of the orientation towards the Passion of Our Lord which had inspired us for the five previous years.

In our view, devotion to the Cross and Passion of Our Lord is inseparable from devotion to the His Risen Presence in the Holy Eucharist, so it was a natural development of our charism to commit ourselves to frequent, if not daily, Adoration of the Most Holy Sacrament. As the "Rule for a New Brother" says, “The celebration of the Eucharist would be nothing but a romantic or aesthetic sensation should you forget that the heart of it is the self-giving of Jesus. …. The Eucharist sets you on the way of Christ. It takes you into his  redeeming death and gives you a share in the most radical deliverance possible. …”.

The Cross is also central to Benedictine devotion, as is clearly illustrated by that most popular of Benedictine sacramentals, the Benedictine Medal, with its Crux Sancti Patris Benedicti inscription: “The Cross of our Holy Father Benedict, May the Holy Cross be my Light”.

Picture
The next significant development in our community happened in the year 2014 when Dom Michael Skelly transferred all jurisdiction of the Benedictine Congregation of St Romuald (founded 1993) to myself, whereby the CSR was united with OSBA and we became OSBA (csr). CSR  was transformed into an umbrella organisation of small groups who share a semi-eremitc charism, whilst we in OSBA began to identify ourselves with aspects of Camaldolese Benedictine spirituality, principally expressed of course in the Little Rule of St Romuald:

"Sit in your cell as in paradise. Put the whole world behind you and forget it. Watch your thoughts like a good fisherman watching for fish. The path you must follow is in the Psalms—never leave it.

If you have just come to the monastery, and in spite of your good will you cannot accomplish what you want, take every opportunity you can to sing the Psalms in your heart and to understand them with your mind.

And if your mind wanders as you read, do not give up; hurry back and apply your mind to the words once more.

Realize above all that you are in God’s presence, and stand there with the attitude of one who stands before the emperor.

Empty yourself completely and sit waiting, content with the grace of God, like the chick who tastes nothing and eats nothing but what his mother brings him.”

Today, the Holy Cross Benedictines of Adoration (csr) have twenty four members in ten different countries on six continents and we look forward with confidence to further growth in grace and number. We are probably one of the most outwardly traditional, and certainly the most clerical, of the the new-monastic communities and so occupy a niche which may have wider appeal as time goes on.

For further information please consult our website!

Picture
Cost of Arms of the Holy Cross Benedictines of Adoration

Sharing in the Anglican Patrimony

5/7/2017

 
"Sharing in the Anglican Patrimony",

by the Most Revd Dom Alistair Bate OSBA, M.A.Div.


Like most other Old/Independent Catholic jurisdictions founded in English speaking countries the Holy Celtic Church draws membership from both Anglican and Roman Catholic communions. The “Anglican Patrimony” (heritage) is, therefore, in our blood. My own ancestors and family were devout  Anglicans and brought me up as one, for which I thank God. Additionally, the Liberal Catholic tradition which, along with Celtic Christianity, is one of the foundations of our church, draws much inspiration as well as it’s distinctive style from the Anglo-Catholic liturgical tradition. Bishops Wedgwood and Leadbeater were both former Anglicans and might indeed have remained Anglo-Catholics were it not for the fact that they sought a church at once more Catholic (having valid Old Catholic Apostolic succession) and more mystical.

A visitor to St Gall’s Retreat, or any of our missions and hermitages throughout the world, will not fail to be impressed by the beauty of our liturgy, even within the simplicity of a home oratory, and Anglican visitors in particular will find a great resonance with their own tradition. In English speaking countries we zealously celebrate the original Liberal Catholic liturgy, or its variant the “Liberal Celtic Liturgy”, with their beautiful Cranmerian English, so familiar to Anglicans before the liturgical reforms of the 1970s and 80’s.

Picture
Among the authorised liturgies of our church we also celebrate a distinctively Anglican rite which we have called the “Liturgy of St George”. It is a slightly edited version of “The Divine Liturgy” of the Evangelical Catholic Communion, published in 1946. Please send us a message if you would like a copy!

As well as lines of Apostolic succession from Roman Catholic, Eastern and Oriental Orthodox sources we also hold several lines of Anglican succession, some of which may be viewed on our website here.

Hopefully, therefore, we have now established the claim of the Holy Celtic Church to a share in the “Anglican Patrimony”, however, to be clear, we do not identify with the Anglican continuum, for three reasons. Firstly, our own Liberal Catholic tradition is now 100 years old and has an established tradition of its own. Secondly, a majority of our members come from a Roman Catholic background and so do not  particularly identify with Anglo-Catholicism. Thirdly, unlike the Anglican continuum, we do not hold with outdated views of human sexuality and whilst we are liturgically traditionalist, like our Liberal Catholic forebears, we are also liberal, at least when it comes to certain issues of “social teaching”. This means of course that we fall between two chairs; we don’t appeal to 21st century liberals because we are two traditional and we don’t appeal to many of the traditionalists because we are two liberal. Actually we occupy a niche which would suit quite well the average Anglo-Catholic priest of the mid twentieth century.

That which Bishop Wedgwood himself wrote almost a hundred years ago is still true of many of us who share his succession, “That our Church should be made a storm-centre is not surprising. We stand between, not two, but four, fires. The Church people find us too theosophical. Theosophists find us too “Churchy.” Catholics and ritualists consider us too free in our beliefs; Protestants too Catholic in our worship. We, however, believe firmly in our principles; and the hope and courage that people derive from the teaching of our Church, the inspiration they gain from our worship and the phenomenal growth of our membership, are the true test of the work we do.”

Of course, due to the regrettable tendency towards secularisation in our times, particularly in Europe, we do not expect to grow significantly and certainly have no intention of trying to compete with the mainstream, but for those who wish to join with us in maintaining and handing on this beautiful tradition we offer a spiritual home.


Picture
"Procession before the Holy Eucharist" by Simon Vedder (1906).

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    August 2022
    June 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    September 2021
    May 2021
    December 2020
    April 2020
    February 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    June 2019
    April 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    August 2018
    March 2018
    December 2017
    October 2017
    July 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    December 2016

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.