In the course of each year our little community welcomes a number of seminarians who are in the last preparations for their ordination to the diaconate or the priesthood. Amongst them this year were five deacons from the Pontifical North American College in Rome, who spent Holy Week with us, and who were all ordained priest in the course of the Summer.

At the beginning of the year Deacon Marek Jamerich was the deacon of the Mass of Solemn Profession of our Dom Michael Vician. He was one of seven new priests ordained this summer in the Cathedral at Spisska Kapitula in Slovakia. Fr Abbot and Brother Michael were present at the ordination and at the First Mass in his home village. Fr Marek’s brother is also a priest.

Craig Davies made his retreat for diaconate ordination with us, as did Fr Charles Miller. They were ordained together at the Cathedral in Birmingham. Fr Abbot and Brother Michael attended. Craig has been a friend of the Abbey since before his seminary days, and Charles is a married former Anglican.

Another old friend of the community was ordained a priest. Kenneth Macnab is a formner Anglican priest who was received into the Catholic Church at Farnborough some years ago. He was ordained in the chapel of the school at which he is now a master – the Oratory School, Reading.

 In June, another friend of ours, Frère Elie Abou Assaf  of the Antonine Maronite Order, made his Solemn Profession in the Antonine House at Chaponost in France. He has since returned to Lebanon and will, please God, be ordained in the next years.

In August Brother Stephen Morrison of the Chelmsford Norbertines pronounced final vows in his canonry. Brother Stephen was an assistant at our solemn profession earlier in the year. Not long after that, Brother Paul Vianney Harris SDS made his final vows and will, please God, be ordained a deacon soon.

 

Our prayers and congratulations to all these new priests and holy religious. We give thanks to God for this good work He has wrought in them.