THE P RTAL
January 2015
UK Pages - page 18
News from the UK Groups
New altar for Wales (South East) Group
The Wales
(South East) Ordinariate Group
has been given a new altar by the congregation
of the Metropolitan Cathedral of St David, Cardiff,
where, thanks to the generosity of Archbishop George
Stack, the group was provided earlier this year with its
own special chapel.
The Cathedral congregation raised the full £1,000
needed to pay for the altar, made in oak, by a local
craftsman. The altar has now been blessed for use by
the Ordinariate group by Canon Peter Collins, the
Cathedral Dean, who also initiated the gift.
Fr Bernard Sixtus, the Group’s leader, said of the new
altar: “We are obviously delighted with this beatutiful
work of craftsmanship and we are hugely grateful to
the Cathedral for their generosity. These are tangible
signs to us of the wonderful welcome we have had into
the life of the Archdiocese of Cardiff and the Catholic
Church”. The picture shows the altar with Canon Peter
Collins and Fr Sixtus.
The side alcoves of the reredos contain icons of the
Archangels Gabriel and Raphael, which were bought
by the Ordinariate group last month. The currently
empty central alcove of the reredos is to contain a
statue of Our Lady of Walsingham once the group has
obtained sufficient funds to order something suitable.
The Wales (South East) Group now celebrates its
monthly Mass according to the Ordinariate Use at 1 pm
on the fourth Sunday of each month in its Cathedral
chapel and this is followed by a social get together.
Rector of Walsingham Shrine announced
Mgr Keith Newton, Ordinary of the
Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of
Walsingham, has expressed his delight
at the appointment of Monsignor John
Armitage as the new Rector of the Shrine of
Our Lady of Walsingham Norfolk.
Mgr Armitage, who is currently Vicar
General of the Diocese of Brentwood,
succeeds Marist Father Alan Williams, who
left earlier this year to become the Bishop of
Brentwood. The Marist Fathers had run the
shrine for almost 50 years.
to Our Blessed Lady, his remarkable
pastoral drive and enthusiasm, make
his appointment a moment of great
promise not only for the shrine but also
for the Church in this country and for
our mission”.
Bishop Alan Hopes of East Anglia
said: “Mgr John Armitage... has been
coming to Walsingham since 1976 and
has a deep devotion to and love for Our
Lady and her shrine. He will bring to
this responsibility a huge amount of
pastoral and practical experience with a love for people
Mgr Newton said: “Mgr Armitage’s appointment and especially for the most deprived and vulnerable of
is excellent news. He is a wonderful priest with a our society. Building on his predecessors’ work, I know
vast amount of experience of pastoral outreach.