Chaplains commissioned for their 'vital ministry' among students

Last Sunday, on the feast of Blessed John Henry Newman, the annual Freshers' Mass was celebrated at Newman House, the Catholic Chaplaincy to the London Universities at Gower Street, Bloomsbury.  Fr Dave Stewart SJ co-presided in his capacity as Chaplain at Heythrop College, which is part of London University.  The Principal Celebrant - the Apostolic Nuncio to Great Britain, Archbishop Antonio Mennini - was sadly delayed in central London traffic, so the homily that he had prepared for the liturgy was quickly adapted into a post-Mass reflection.  The Mass, however, went ahead at the scheduled time.

His Excellency then blessed and commissioned those Chaplains who were present for their year of ministry to students in the Archdiocese of Westminster.  Then he blessed and formally opened the refurbished social space in the basement of the Chaplaincy, appropriately named the Littlemore Room.  He was able to spend some time mingling with the students, who included several Heythrop students and Jesuit scholastics.

The Heythrop Chaplaincy Team is committed to working closely with the other chaplaincies in London, both the Catholic chaplaincy based at Newman House and the various others who minister to a broad variety of students of almost every faith and from many countries around the world.  Fr Stewart is sometimes able to take a place among the Catholic chaplains as celebrant in the Sunday Mass rota.  This continues a tradition of British and Irish Jesuits participating in this vital ministry to the many thousands of students living and studying in London.

The photo above shows: (L to R) Fr John Dickson SDB, Chaplain to Law & Medical students; Sr Margarida, Newman House Team; Fr Peter Wilson (Westminster), Senior RC Chaplain; Sr Mary Kenefick, Newman House Team; His Grace Archbishop Mennini, Apostolic Nuncio; Fr David Stewart SJ, Chaplain to Heythrop College.