Requiem Mass for the Repose of the Souls of Deceased Members of the Catholic Medical Association, organised by The CMA’s youth branch at the Rosary Shrine, St Dominic’s Catholic Church, London NW5 4LB.

Event Report by a young recently qualified doctor (and CMA youth branch member)

The Dominican Rosary Shrine in Haverstock Hill kindly hosted the Catholic Medical Association’s 2019 Annual Requiem Mass for its deceased members.

The day started with a team of about 10 helpers arriving to set up the church hall; putting up posters, preparing tables, arranging chairs, prepping audio-visual equipment and brewing plenty of tea.

The Requiem Mass began at 1130 as Fr Lawrence Lew OP processed in, whilst sublime chant filled the huge neo gothic Church. The Mass was celebrated in the side chapel dedicated to St Dominic. I found this celebration and memorial to be very reverent and beautiful. Despite not being able to follow the Latin (as it was my first time at a Dominican Rite Mass), the relatively long periods of silence and Latin chant throughout the liturgy created a reflective and prayerful atmosphere. The Homily was very thought-provoking: reminding us that a requiem Mass can be a very positive way to come together to pray for the dead and help us to heal the pains we can feel for their loss.

After Mass we went back into the church hall to have Domino’s Pizza (what a treat!) and plenty of hot tea and coffee on what was a rainy November day. Being a Catholic in healthcare can be very isolating so the social elements of these CMA events are always a highlight for many of us.

We then had a wonderful talk on ‘The Last Four Things’ by Fr George Roth, a Marian Franciscan Friar from Gosport. This was an excellent and enthusiastic talk by a very knowledgeable speaker. There was also ample opportunity for Q&As afterwards.

After the talk we went into the Rosary shrine to pray the Joyful Mysteries, with each mystery being prayed in its respectively themed side chapel. This was a very beautiful moment of prayerful pilgrimage together. Afterwards we went back to the church hall for further refreshments.

As a junior doctor I felt very refreshed and encouraged by this wonderful and nourishing event. The CMA’s youth branch are grateful to the Rosary Shrine and Latin Mass Society for their support and sponsorship of this event. We hope that this fruitful collaboration will continue such that the Requiem Mass in November at the Rosary Shrine can become an annual event.

 

The Way of Beauty – the story of St Dominic’s Priory and the Shrine to Our Lady of the Rosary