Annual Requiem

Yesterday was the LMS' Annual Requiem for our deceased members, a Pontifical Mass in Westminster Cathedral celebrated by Bishop Alan Hopes. Fr Andrew Southwell, the LMS Chaplain, was assistant priest; Fr Tim Finigan was Deacon, Fr David Irwin Subdeacon.

Before Mass, we had our customary prayers for Cardinal Heenan. I laid a wreath on his tomb in the Cathedral; the prayers were led by Fr Patrick Haywood. The current issue of the Mass of Ages has a feature on the 'Heenan Indult', which the Cardinal personally requested (at the request of the Latin Mass Society) from Pope Paul VI, in 1971, forty years ago this year. The importance of this, the first official permission for the Traditional Mass for the good of the faithful, is difficult to overstate. The permission was extended to the whole world only in 1984.





Bishop Hopes on the faldstool.




Bishop Hopes wore a dalmatic and tunicle under his chasuble, as bishops do. He took them all off, a put on a cope, to preach (at the end of Mass, not after the Gospel, again a custom of Requiems) and to bless the catafalque.


As is now customary, there was a catafalque, which Bishop Hopes blessed.

These photos aren't as good as usual since I don't have access to my usual processing software. It is very noticable how dependant I am on the magic of Photoshop when taking long-distance photos in dim lighting - and without a flash. Normal service, I hope, will be resumed shortly. The rest of my photo set is here.