Sacred Heart, Wimbledon
The formal handover of Sacred Heart parish in Wimbledon, south west London from the Society of Jesus to the Archdiocese of Southwark and the Induction of the new parish priest, Monsignor Nick Hudson, will take place at 7.30pm this Friday 10 January 2014. Archbishop Peter Smith and Fr Dermot Preston SJ, the Jesuit Provincial of the British Province, will concelebrate Mass along with the outgoing parish priest, Fr Keith McMillan SJ, and Mgr Hudson.
The Jesuits have served the parish for more than 130 years, when they were invited by Edith Arendrup to start a Mass-centre for local people. Prior to this, Catholics in the district had been served by the Jesuit community at Roehampton. This led in turn to the construction of Sacred Heart Church on the slopes of Edge Hill and the establishing of a parish. This had been a period of expansion for the Catholic Church in Britain and globally, when parishes were created, churches were built and missions were established.
Since then, Sacred Heart parish in Wimbledon has become one of the largest parishes in England, with a dynamic and active Christian community. In addition to being a place of worship for over a century, the parish also provides a valuable service to - among others - the elderly and housebound, the disadvantaged, sick and homeless, children and young adults, the bereaved and overseas missions. At the heart of the parish are the many people of all ages who work, study, pray and share their lives together. The Grade II* listed building in the late Decorated Gothic style was designed by Frederick Walters. The nave of the church was opened on the feast of the Sacred Heart (17 June) in 1887, with further parts of the building being added and developed over subsequent years. In recent years, its historic organ has been restored, the nave floor has been re-laid and the parish halls have been refurbished.
When Fr Preston announced in November 2012 that the Jesuits would be withdrawing from Sacred Heart, he said it was a parish 'which we can hand over to others with pride, as it has shown that our ministry can and has succeeded. In many ways, Sacred Heart is our strongest and most mature parish - well-resourced and stable with a talented and capable community of parishioners who have proved themselves willing and able to take on apostolic tasks with both an enthusiasm and a giftedness which has been the envy of many other parishes in Britain.'
The Jesuits will still have a presence in Wimbledon and will continue to act as a resource both for the parishioners and the incoming diocesan priests: some will be connected with Jesuit Missions or Wimbledon College and Donhead (its preparatory school), while others will continue to be resident in Jesuit houses and be engaged in study and teaching at Heythrop College and in other ministries in London.
Friday 10 January 2014 is the 80th anniversary of the death of Edith Arendrup.
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