Some 400 Catholic pilgrims who prefer to worship according to the traditional liturgy of the Church travelled to the small Welsh border town of Holywell on Sunday 16th July to pray at the Tridentine Mass. The event organised by The Latin Mass Society was held with the permission of the Rt. Rev. Edwin Regan, Bishop of Wrexham, and the Rev. Fr. Terence Carr, the parish priest who co-operated fully with the Society and allowed it the use of St. Winefride's Church for the whole day following the celebration of the parish Mass.The pilgrimage was in honour of St. Winefride, patron of Wales who was born in Holywell in the seventh century. She was beheaded by Prince Caradoc in defence of her chastity. A fountain sprang up where her head fell and she was restored to life by the prayers of St. Beuno.
The celebration started on Saturday 15th July when a party of pilgrims travelled from the south east with their own priest to stay overnight. The traditional Mass was celebrated in the chapel at St. Winefride's Rest on arrival with permission of the sister in charge. Early on Sunday morning the traditional Mass was celebrated in the crypt of St. Winefride's Well with the permission of Fr. Carr.
The main event of the weekend was Solemn High Mass in St. Winefride's Church celebrated according to the Roman Missal of 1962 by the Very Rev. Fr. Michael Gallagher O. Praem of Manchester, assisted by the Rev. Dom Andrew Southwell OSB, deacon, and the Rev. Fr. Bernard Lordan, former parish priest of Holywell and the Rev. Dr. Cadoc Leighton O.Praem. in the robes and white biretta of his order. Among the many servers were The Latin Mass Society's representatives from the archdiocese of Cardiff and the dioceses of Menevia and Shrewsbury. The schola sang the proper of the Mass of a Virgin Martyr from the Liber Usualis and the congregation joined in the with whole choir to sing the processional hymn, Deus Tuorum Militum, Missa de Angelis, Lauda Jerusalem Dominum and the recessional hymn Faith of Our Fathers.
In his sermon, Fr. Gallagher welcomed everyone to Holywell, a place of unbroken pilgrimage to the shrine of St. Winefride - a young maiden who chose to lose her life rather than her chastity. He compared her to people of today who preferred to brush aside morals as being of no importance. He continued by speaking of so many who embarrass their priests in church with their lack of modesty. It was obvious, he said, that due to the packed congregation, the old rite of Mass was very important to very many people and that they should do everything in their power to keep the faith. He asked that they were not too rigid about the rubrics but to pray for the right way forward. The priests who say the old rite of Mass are now getting older but the future is bright; forty percent of the young men now studying for the priesthood in modern seminaries are favourable to the old traditions of the Catholic Church and that we must all remain strong and true to the faith. He concluded by asking for everyone's prayers and support for 'people in high places' that they may do all in their power to keep alive the ancient traditions of the Catholic Church.
The celebrations continued after Mass with a procession to St. Winefride's shrine. En route Fr. Lordan, who carried the relic of the Saint, led the congregation in the recitation of the Apostles Creed and the Glorious Mysteries of the Holy Rosary. On arrival at the Well Crypt, the Salve Regina was sung. Fr. Lordan spoke briefly on the history of Holywell and mentioned that although there were other places of pilgrimage in England and Wales, Holywell was the only place where the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass has been celebrated from as early as the twelfth century in unbroken succession, even during the Reformation and it continues to this day. In witness to this he pointed out the many inscriptions engraved into the fabric of the ancient building, some of them dating back to the seventeenth century. The litany and prayers to St. Winefride, in use from time immemorial, were then recited followed by all present venerating the Saint's relic. The custodian of the shrine commented that The Latin Mass Society is now the third largest contingent coming to worship and only marginally smaller in numbers than the major pilgrimage organised to celebrate the feast of the martyrdom of the Saint and the annual Polish pilgrimage. In his nine years as custodian there has only been one previous Mass celebrated in the crypt.
The liturgy of the day concluded with Solemn Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament being given in the Church during which the Te Deum was sung in thanksgiving.
The few pilgrims who extended their stay in Holywell were able to attend a traditional Mass celebrated by Dom Andrew Southwell OSB, again at the chapel in the Pilgrims Rest on Monday morning.
Commenting on the success of the Pilgrimage, Mr. David Lloyd, Chairman of The Latin Mass Society of England and Wales, stated that it is the right of every Catholic to worship at the rite of Mass of their choice in order that they may fulfil their obligations to Holy Mother Church in a way that is right, prayerful and a holy and uplifting experience for them. World-wide the traditional movement in the Catholic Church is growing rapidly. Access to the traditional liturgy is now relatively easy in the Americas and Australia where the bishops are more amenable and are making provisions for its use. It is being accepted by the more liberal clergy and laity. Lapsed Catholics are returning, disenchanted Catholics are beginning to feel in communion with the church again; the faith is returning and the church is stronger for it. The situation in Europe is the exact reverse, the bishops are not heeding the express wishes of the Holy Father, who, in his apostolic letter 'Ecclesia Dei' given in 1988 and to which he referred again very positively at an audience he gave to thousands of Catholics present in St. Peter's Square, Rome in 1998. The whole content of the Holy Father's clear instruction is too long to reprint in full but paragraph 6c states: "moreover, respect must everywhere be shown for the feelings of all those who are attached to the Latin liturgical tradition by a wide and generous application of the directives already issued some time ago by the Apostolic See, for the use of the Roman Missal according to the typical edition of 1962". Unity in the Catholic Church must come from within, the time has now come for the bishops in England and Wales to examine their own consciences and accept that certain mistakes have been made which, in part, are now responsible for the dwindling congregations in our churches. They must now show the lead in a forceful and positive way by integrating the aims and objectives of The Latin Mass Society into the worship of the Catholic Church. They will then have done much to restore unity from within and the faith now lacking in the main will be restored to its rightful place in the Church.
18th July 2000
The Latin Mass Society of England and Wales