22 years of faithful and selfless service

The brothers and fathers of the Vicariate of England, the dean, the permanent deacon of the parish, many parishioners and friends, participated in the solemn concelebration presided over by Fr Dominic himself.

In his homily, Fr. Enrico Frigerio SCJ, Regional Superior, briefly recalled Fr. Dominic's various appointments from Caerdeon to Droitwich, from Worcester to Great Barr, from Leigh tp Balsall Heath where Fr Dominic spent 22 years as a parish priest. He also recalled  Dominic’s translation into English of the letters of St. Michael Garicoits and the texts published on our spirituality and on the history of the early fathers who brought and spread Betharram in the land of Shakespeare.  Taking as a starting point the liturgy which proposed the reading of the Mass in honor of the Sacred Heart, Fr. Enrico highlighted some features of the good shepherd according to the Heart of Jesus: the relentless care for the marginalised, the search for unity and joy , recalling the tireless activity of Father Dominic in ecumenism and in the inter-religious dialogue.

Speaking of the first English Betharramites, Fr Dominic wrote: "They were not perfect ... but they won the affection and sometimes the admiration of those they served by bringing a ray of love and even hope in their lives ... Two outstanding features seemed consistent in their lives: qualities reflected in St Michael’s life. Service and joy ". And these are precisely the attitudes that the parishioners recalled in some speeches in honor of Father Dominic during the social  evening that followed the Eucharist.

For his part, Father Dominic expressed his gratitude to all those who in various ways supported him in his pastoral service and he congratulated the parishioners for the new parish hall completely renovated and inaugurated on this occasion.

We offer Fr Dominic our congratulations and we ask him to continue his valuable service by praying for our religious family.