Local People To Pay Respects To Cardinal Cormac

Chiswick parishioners to attend vigil at Our Lady Of Grace & St Edward

Photo: Mazur/Catholicnews.org.uk

The remains of Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor will be received into Our Lady of Grace and St Edward's this weekend, prior to his funeral at Westminster Cathedral. The remains are expected to arrive at 8.00pm on Sunday 10 September.

The vigil is in accordance with his wishes and is indicative of the strong feelings he had for the Chiswick community where he spent eight happy years in retirement.

The Church will remain open until 10.00pm for parishioners and visitors to pay their respects. The reception is a very short service but there will also be a Rosary, and at 9.50pm, it will conclude with Compline, the Night Prayer of the Divine Office.

At 12.00 noon the next day, Monday 11 September, Bishop Mark O'Toole (Plymouth) will celebrate Mass for Cardinal Cormac, presiding and preaching. The remains of the Cardinal will be removed to Westminster Cathedral.

On Tuesday 12th Sept., from 10.00am, (following a short service), the Cardinal’s body will lie in state at Westminster Cathedral until 5.00pm when a service of Solemn Vespers Of the Dead will take place, with Cardinal Vincent Nichols presiding and Archbishop Bernard Longley (Birmingham) preaching. The Cathedral will remain open until 8.00pm.

On Wednesday 13th September at 12.00noon, the Cardinal’s funeral will take place. Cardinal Vincent Nichols will celebrate the Requiem Mass and Archbishop George Stack of Cardiff, who served as an auxiliary bishop under Cardinal Murphy-O’Connor, will preach. Access is by ticket only.

On Wednesday 4th October at 5.30pm there will be a memorial Mass for Cardinal Cormac at the Cathedral with unreserved seating, the Mass being intended for those who were unable to attend the funeral.

Full details are on the Our Lady's parish web site or in the Catholic Herald.

The former leader of the Catholic Church in England had retired to a house in Dukes Avenue, Chiswick and regularly said Mass at Our Lady and St Edwards.

He was a popular celebrant both for his easy manner and eloquent and erudite sermons and was well-known for being down to earth and approachable despite being a man who had been on speaking terms with five Popes.

The day before his death he wrote a note to Father Michael Dunne the parish priest in Chiswick which said, "please extend my special greetings to the people of the Parish of Our Lady of Grace and St Edward where I have lived very happily among them over the past eight years and thank them very much for their friendship and encouragement. Give them my special blessing and I ask for their prayers for me at this time."

September 6, 2017