2nd May 2023
Dear Friends
It has been a busy and productive few months
for the community of All Saints Chapel at Wardour.
We have been fortunate and blessed to have the support and guidance of
our three priests from St Osmond’s, Salisbury, to celebrate Mass at Wardour on
an alternate basis. Fr Anthony Paris (our Parish Priest), Fr Joseph Meigh and Fr Jonathan Creer are
now very much part of the parish, ably supported by Deacon Michael Hughes. We
are thus able to continue to celebrate Mass at Wardour each Sunday at 11am and
each Tuesday at 9.30am. During the term time, the children
and parents of Wardour School come to this Tuesday Mass.
The Bishop of Clifton, Bishop Declan Lang, visited Wardour Chapel on the
fourth Sunday of Lent and joined the wider parish for lunch at the Hinton Hall.
It was a special occasion and a joyous opportunity to welcome the Bishop to such a well-attended event.
The Sacred Paschal Triduum began with the Mass of the Lord’s Supper at
Sacred Heart Church, Tisbury. The Blessed Sacrament was then brought in
procession to the Altar of Repose at Wardour, erected in the north transept,
and the Chapel remained open until midnight for parishioners to watch at the
Altar of Repose. The Passion of Our Lord was celebrated at 3pm on Good
Friday. On Holy Saturday, the Easter Vigil began at 8pm outside the
Chapel with the blessing of the Easter Fire and lighting of the Paschal
candle. All then processed into the Chapel for the singing of the Exultet
and the seven readings from the Old Testament, all by candle
light, until the Gloria was intoned – when the lights came on, the bells
rang and a great fanfare from the organ signified the drama of the
resurrection. Easter Sunday saw one of the largest congregations at the
11am Mass for many years.
The trustees are enormously grateful to the clergy and all who worked so
hard to enable such a fitting celebration of Easter. A particular thanks
to the altar staff and the choir who contributed so much at this time.
The altar was adorned with wonderful flowers at Easter Sunday Mass.
1 Maundy Thursday Altar of Repose
2 Good Friday
3 Easter Sunday
In further news, it has been decided that we will alternate between a
Solemn Mass and Sung Mass at Wardour each Sunday. Details will be in the Parish
Newsletter (see Home ) and on the notice board in the
vestibule at Wardour.
Events at Wardour
We invite as many Friends as possible to join us
for drinks after 11am Mass on 4th June.
Tickets and more information can be found at www.cherubimtrust.org.
Please note, the guidance sheets for Weddings and Funerals at Wardour
Chapel have been recently updated and are available here
Progress of the Planned works for the Dome
The trustees commissioned and received a formal Quinquennial Inspection
(QI) surveyors report on the state of the whole building which was found to be
structurally sound although there are some aspects of the building which need
attention. Of most importance is the repair of the dome above the altar
which is showing cracks in the plaster work. We
have been researching what is required to effect these
repairs and they are as follows:
We anticipate that the above works will take approximately three months
with the scaffolding erected over the winter months of early 2024. Mass will
continue to be celebrated at Wardour throughout the planned works.
Clearly we will need a major fund raising programme
to raise what will be a large amount of money. We will keep you informed
as this project unfolds.
Other works
Some Friends may have noticed the hole in the ceiling in the vestibule
which partially collapsed in January. Further investigation has revealed a
series of slow leaks in the pipeworks above. Repairs
are underway to make good the affected area.
Please pass on this newsletter to anyone you think may be interested and also encourage them to join up as a Friend of Wardour
Chapel Trust.
We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible for Mass and drinks
on Sunday 4th June.
Best wishes
Richard Arundell, Lord Talbot
and the Trustees of Wardour Chapel