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Oxford Oratory
Oxford Oratory Church of St Aloysius Gonzaga
Oxford Oratory
51°45′34″N 1°15′42″W / 51.759343°N 1.261763°W / 51.759343; -1.261763
OS grid reference	SP 51049 07002
Location	Oxford
Country	England
Denomination	Catholic Church
Religious order	Oratorians (formerly Jesuits)
Website	oxfordoratory.org.uk
Architecture
Heritage designation	Grade II listed
Architect(s)	Joseph Hansom
Completed	1875
Administration
Archdiocese	Birmingham
Clergy
Provost	Very Rev Fr Nicholas Edmonds-Smith

The Oxford Oratory Church of St Aloysius Gonzaga (or Oxford Oratory for short) is the Catholic parish church for the centre of Oxford, England. It is located at 25 Woodstock Road, next to Somerville College. The church is served by the Congregation of the Oratory.

History

St Aloysius' was founded as the Jesuit (Society of Jesus) parish of central Oxford. The building was funded by £7,000 donated by the Catholic convert Baroness Weld. Completed in 1875, the building of St Aloysius' was an important step in the ongoing refoundation of a Roman Catholic presence in Oxford. The parish was served by notable members of the society for many years, including Gerard Manley Hopkins (December 1878 – September 1879). The church also housed a notable collection of relics bequeathed by Hartwell de la Garde Grissell, many of which were destroyed in the 1970s.

In the 1980s, the Jesuits left the church and the parish was taken over by the Archdiocese of Birmingham. In 1990, the Archbishop of Birmingham invited members of the Birmingham Oratory to take over the running of the parish and found a new Oratorian community in Oxford. Two priests from Birmingham arrived in September 1990 and, in 1993, the Oxford Oratory was established as an independent Congregation. Fr Robert Byrne then served as provost from 1993 to 2011. From 2011 to 2019, Fr Daniel Seward served as provost. The incumbent is the Very Rev. Fr Nicholas Edmonds-Smith.

Liturgy

It is part of the tradition of the Oratory in England to ensure that the liturgy is celebrated in a dignified and worthy manner. In the Oxford Oratory most Masses are celebrated in English, but on Sundays and Holydays a non-Tridentine Solemn Mass is sung in Latin. Latin is also used in the Tridentine Low Mass also celebrated on Sundays and Holydays, while the Parish Mass is sung in English.

Organ

The organ was enlarged between 1998 and 2004 by Matthew Copley. A specification of the organ can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register.

Building

The church was designed by Joseph Hansom in a Gothic Revival style. Much of the original interior decoration was painted over in the 1970s, and the altar moved forward. The building is being gradually restored as part of the Oratory's "Reaffirmation and Renewal" campaign, which commenced fundraising in 2007. Two 'lost' murals by Gabriel Pippet were restored in 2024 by Cliveden Conservation.

The church consists of a single nave and five side chapels. To the left of the sanctuary is the Sacred Heart chapel, and the Lady Chapel is to the right. There are also chapels dedicated to St Philip Neri (formerly St Joseph's chapel) and Our Lady of Oxford (also known as the relic chapel). A shrine dedicated to St John Henry Newman after his beatification was established in 2010, and there are plans to build a new baptistery.

Gallery

• Church altar
• Church sanctuary
• View of the altar

See also

• List of Jesuit sites

References

1. Cooksey, Pamela (4 October 2007), "Weld, Jane Charlotte [known as Baroness Weld] (1806–1871), convert to Roman Catholicism and benefactor", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/95696, ISBN 978-0-19-861412-8, retrieved 14 May 2023
2. "Pope appoints Fr Robert Byrne as new Auxiliary Bishop of Birmingham". Catholic News. Catholic Trust for England and Wales. 15 March 2014. Retrieved 27 January 2017.
3. "New Provost Elected". The Oxford Oratory. The Oxford Oratory Trust. 2 February 2011. Retrieved 27 January 2017.
4. The Oxford Oratory: Mass Times (retrieved in August 2019)]
5. "The National Pipe Organ Register – NPOR". www.npor.org.uk.
6. Harris, Penelope, "The Architectural Achievement of Joseph Aloysius Hansom (1803–82), Designer of the Hansom Cab, Birmingham Town Hall and Churches of the Catholic Revival", The Edwin Mellen Press, 2010, ISBN 0-7734-3851-3
7. ^ Oxford Oratory Trust, "Oxford Oratory – Reaffirmation & Renewal" campaign, accessed 25 February 2023
8. "Restoring the lost murals of Gabriel Pippet, The Oxford Oratory". Cliveden Conservation. 2024. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
9. Oxford Oratory Trust, New Baptistery, accessed 25 February 2023

External links

• Map sources for Oxford Oratory
• Official website
• The Latin Mass Society of England & Wales
• Latin Masses in Oxford
• Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1369461)". National Heritage List for England.

v t e Oratories of St Philip Neri in the United Kingdom
Birmingham Oratory Bournemouth Oratory (in formation) Brompton Oratory Cardiff Oratory (in formation) Manchester Oratory Oxford Oratory York Oratory
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v t e Archdiocese of Birmingham
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham
Archbishops and bishops of Birmingham I: William Bernard Ullathorne II: Edward Ilsley III: John McIntyre IV: Thomas Leighton Williams V: Joseph Masterson VI: Francis Grimshaw VII: George Dwyer VIII: Maurice Couve de Murville IX: Vincent Nichols X: Bernard Longley
Churches St Chad's Cathedral – Metropolitan Cathedral Church and Basilica of St Chad St John the Evangelist, Banbury St Francis of Assisi, Bedworth Birmingham Oratory Erdington Abbey, Birmingham Our Lady Help of Christians, Tile Cross, Birmingham Our Lady and St Brigid, Northfield, Birmingham Our Lady and St Rose of Lima, Weoley Castle, Birmingham St Anne, Birmingham St Catherine of Siena, Birmingham St Edward, Selly Park, Birmingham St Francis of Assisi, Handsworth, Birmingham St Mary, Harborne, Birmingham St Michael, Birmingham St Mary and St Modwen, Burton-on-Trent St Giles, Cheadle Holy Trinity, Chipping Norton St Osburg, Coventry St Peter and St Paul and St Elizabeth, Coughton Sacred Heart and St Catherine, Droitwich Spa Our Lady and St Alphonsus, Hanley Swan St Peter, Leamington Spa St Wulstan, Little Malvern Holy Trinity, Newcastle-under-Lyme Our Lady of the Angels, Nuneaton St Anne, Nuneaton Oxford Oratory St Edmund and St Frideswide, Oxford‎ Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Redditch St Marie, Rugby St Chad and All Saints, Sedgley St Augustine of England, Solihull St Austin, Stafford Our Lady of the Angels and St Peter in Chains, Stoke-on-Trent St Mary, Uttoxeter St Mary, Walsall Our Lady and St Hubert, Warley St Mary Immaculate, Warwick St Mary and St John, Wolverhampton St Peter and St Paul, Wolverhampton St George, Worcester
Patronal Feasts of the Diocese Saint Chad (2 March) Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception (8 December)
Schools Archbishop Ilsley Catholic School Bishop Challoner Catholic College Bishop Milner Catholic College Bishop Ullathorne Roman Catholic School Bishop Walsh Catholic School Blessed Edward Oldcorne Catholic College Blessed George Napier Roman Catholic School Blessed William Howard Catholic School Cardinal Griffin Catholic College Cardinal Newman Catholic School and Community College Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School, Coventry Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School, Birmingham Greyfriars Catholic School Hagley Roman Catholic High School Holy Trinity Catholic Academy of Stafford and Stone Holy Trinity Catholic School, Birmingham John Henry Newman Catholic College The Oratory Preparatory School The Oratory School Our Lady and St Chad Catholic Academy Painsley Catholic College Princethorpe College Rye St Antony School St Augustine's High School, Redditch St Benedict's Catholic High School, Alcester St Dominic's Grammar School St Dominic's Priory School, Stone St Edmund Campion Catholic School St Edmund's Catholic Academy St Francis of Assisi Catholic College St John Fisher Catholic College St John Wall Catholic School St Joseph's College, Stoke-on-Trent St Margaret Ward Catholic Academy St Mary Immaculate Catholic Primary School St Paul's School for Girls, Birmingham St Peter's Catholic School, Solihull St Thomas Aquinas Catholic School, Birmingham St Thomas More Catholic Academy St Thomas More Catholic School, Nuneaton St Thomas More Catholic School, Willenhall Stuart Bathurst Catholic High School Trinity Catholic School
See also Birmingham Newman University St Mary's College, Oscott Maryvale Institute Cotton College Harvington Hall Philip Pargeter St Mary's Abbey, Colwich St Mary's Convent, Handsworth Carmelite Monastery, Wolverhampton Oxford University Catholic Chaplaincy The Friary, Oxford Apostolic Vicariate of the Midland District
Catholicism portal England portal Staffordshire portal Oxfordshire portal

v t e Society of Jesus in Great Britain
Schools	Primary schools St Mary's Hall St Joseph's Primary School Barlborough Hall School St Aloysius' College Junior School St John's Beaumont School Donhead Preparatory School Secondary schools Stonyhurst College Mount St Mary's College St Aloysius' College Wimbledon College St Ignatius College, Enfield Former St Peter's Catholic School, Bournemouth The Campion School St Michael's College, Leeds St Francis Xavier's College, Liverpool Beaumont College, Old Windsor Preston Catholic College Hodder Place, Stonyhurst St Aidan's Catholic School, Sunderland
Institutes	Campion Hall, Oxford Laudato Si' Research Institute London Jesuit Centre Former Campion House College, Osterley Harlaxton Manor Heythrop Park Heythrop College, University of London Parkstead House Woodhall House, Juniper Green
Churches	Parishes Church of the Immaculate Conception, Farm Street St Ignatius Church, Stamford Hill St Anselm's Church, Southall St Dominic's Church, Newcastle St Wilfrid's Church, Preston St Aloysius Church, Glasgow Sacred Heart Church, Edinburgh St Peter's Church, Stonyhurst Chaplaincies Church of the Holy Name of Jesus, Manchester Oxford University Catholic Chaplaincy Former Sacred Heart Church, Accrington Sacred Heart Church, Blackpool Corpus Christi Church, Boscombe Sacred Heart Church, Bournemouth St Mary on the Quay, Bristol Corpus Christi Church, Brixton St Edmund's Church, Bury St Edmunds Annunciation Church, Chesterfield Holy Trinity Church, Chipping Norton St Mary Church, Clayton-le-Moors St Michael and St John Church, Clitheroe St David's Church, Dalkeith St Mary's Church, Great Yarmouth St Francis Xavier Church, Hereford St Winefride's Church, Holywell Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Leeds Sacred Heart Church, Leeds St Joseph's Church, Leigh Our Lady of Ransom and the Holy Souls Church, Llandrindod Wells Our Lady Star of the Sea Church, Lowestoft St Aloysius Gonzaga Church, Oxford Our Lady Help of Christians Church, Portico Our Lady Immaculate and St Joseph Church, Prescot St Ignatius Church, Preston St Walburge's Church, Preston St Joseph and St Francis Xavier Church, Richmond Our Lady of the Assumption Church, Rhyl St Joseph Church, Roehampton Holy Cross Church, St Helens Church of St Mary, Lowe House, St Helens St Stephen's Church, Skipton St Ignatius Church, South Ossett Church of the Immaculate Conception, Spinkhill St Austin's Church, Wakefield St John's Church, Wigan Sacred Heart Church, Wimbledon Christ the King Church, Wimbledon Park St Winefride Church, South Wimbledon St George's Church, Worcester
Spirituality	Residential St Beuno's Jesuit Spirituality Centre Non-residential London Jesuit Centre Edinburgh Jesuit Centre Ignatian Spirituality Centre, Glasgow Former Corby Hall Loyola Hall
See also	Pray As You Go Thinking Faith The Way Jesuit Missions UK Jesuit Refugee Service List of Jesuit sites in Britain
Catholicism portal Great Britain portal

• 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United Kingdom
• Buildings by Joseph Hansom
• Christian organizations established in 1993
• Churches in Oxford
• Grade II listed Roman Catholic churches in England
• Grade II listed buildings in Oxford
• Grade II listed churches in Oxfordshire
• Oratorian communities in the United Kingdom
• Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham
• Roman Catholic churches completed in 1875
• Roman Catholic churches in Oxfordshire