1843 The Missions – First in England
This year is remarkable as being that on which the Passionists gave the first mission in England and laid the foundation stone of the first church in which they ministered. Our spirit, as a religious body, is to have our retreats in retired places, far enough from the bustle of cities yet near enough for
citizens to avail themselves of our ministrations. Parish work is outside our line altogether, except under peculiar circumstances. In consequence of the fewness of priests in great Britain, we have been obliged to undertake parochial duties from the very beginning. Our work consists in giving Missions and retreats to all classes of people, clergy, laity, regulars and seculars, rich and poor. We are to go at the request of the bishop, or of the resident priest with sanction, at the bidding of our Provincial to any town, country, island, city or place where there are sinners to convert or souls in need of our services. The vocation to our Congregation always takes in the idea of missionary work. It is when listening to the voice of the preacher at the mission or the retreat that the young man feels his first impulse towards going to do likewise. When he sees the throngs with bated breath, and penitential sobs listening to the missioner, he is filled with a holy awe. During his noviciate he longs to hear of the works of the missioners and his studies are all pointed towards qualifying him for this excellent work. To be a Passionist is to be a missioner and whatever success we may have in bringing sinners to repentance or stray sheep into the fold it is by preaching Christ and Him crucified according to the directions of our Rules and traditional customs.
The outline of a mission may be helpfully described. There are four different discourses delivered every day - one on the Passion of Our Lord - one on the commandments - one on the Sacraments and one on the eternal Truths. Confessions are heard in the interim. The exercises begin at 6 am (in the
manufacturing towns at 5) and close about 10 p.m. A mission is intended primarily for stirring up sinners and indifferent people and putting them into the way of salvation. Conversions to catholicity are intended to be wrought more through the good conduct of catholics than the direct appeals of
a missioner. Yet many converts owe the grace of the catholic faith to impressions made upon them during the time of a mission.
The first time a Passionist was seen upon a platform in this country was when Father Dominic began a mission at Lane End, Staffordshire on Passion Sunday, 24th March 1843. He concluded it on the Sunday following. There is no record of any mission having been given during this year.
On a piece of land presented to the church by Mr. James Beech of Stone, Fr. Dominic was ordered by Fr. Wiseman to erect a school which should serve on Sundays for a chapel. It was very difficult for the poor Fathers, who could scarcely manage to live, to find money for any such undertaking. They were aided however and the first stone was laid on 19th July of this year. It progressed slowly.
The Protestants built a church within a stone's throw of our house at Aston by way of arresting the incipient growth of popery in the vicinity. These and a few incidents which arose from the overzeal of ministers or the insults of the populace fill the few pages of chronicles from which these few events are collected.