Every October, Oxford is born anew. Fresh young faces grace our streets. So it was, on a mild evening on Friday, 8th October 2021.
A Scottish bishop, His Grace Leo Cushley, Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh, shared the Newman trail.
As we learned at Trinity, Newman himself didn’t enter Oxford in October, but June; however he felt that he belonged,
and his acceptance at Oriel seemed to confirm this.
Walking along, we began to understand that during his time here, he also came closer to his Creator,
and that initially took him to St. Mary’s, and thence to Littlemore.
Fr. Dominic (Barberi), however, we learnt, did come on an October night,
and a wet one as well, and was persuaded to continue to Littlemore, in the rain.
In better weather, some sixty of us, students and locals, followed our own Fr. Dominic (Jacob CO), up to Rose Hill,
where “kindly lights” awaited us, and we carried them aloft to the school and the church.
We collected our thoughts in Blessed Dominic’s church.
And in the library, scene of that fateful meeting, long years ago, we closed our prayerful pilgrimage.
(Written by Amanda Hill)