The Society of Saint Gregory is the national society for liturgy and music in the Roman Catholic Church in the UK.
Founded in 1929, the Society of St Gregory has played an influential role in the liturgical reform of the Second Vatican Council and continues to do so by promoting the study and understanding of the liturgy and resourcing and encouraging good pastoral practice in the public worship of the Catholic Church.
The Society’s interests and activities encompass music and composition, the ministry of readers, presiding at liturgy, liturgy with children and young people in schools and parishes, and Christian art and architecture.
Taking Liturgy Seriously 3
An online course from the Society of St Gregory
In January 2025, the Society of St Gregory begins the third Taking Liturgy Seriously online course.
This year, the focus will be on liturgical spirituality, taking its inspiration from Pope Francis’ letter on liturgical formation, Desiderio Desideravi: “‘I would like this letter to help us to rekindle our wonder for the beauty of the truth of the Christian celebration.” (n.62)
The aim of the course is to enable personal reflection on what it means to be a member of the worshipping community, how others are worshipping with you, and how ministering in all its forms is a part of our own worship and prayer. It will develop a clear understanding of how the Church’s liturgy expresses her theology and spirituality.
The course will run online (Zoom) and comprise six modules of three consecutive Thursday evenings from January to November 2025 at 7.30 to 8.45pm.
News, views and reviews from the liturgical world . . .
Study day: eucharistic prayer
This study day will consider, briefly, the origins of the eucharistic prayer and its development in different geographical areas in the early centuries of the church. The principal focus of the day will be the content and meaning …
Macmillan on chant
To attract an audience of 300-plus on a cold and rainy midweek night for a lecture on the somewhat niche topic of the origins of western music in plainsong is an astonishing feat. But the draw this past week was Sir …
Easter reflections
As I read through the Triduum feedback forms, one sentence made me pause and caused my spirits to rise. Ever since the end of lockdown, when I was asked to lead the music and aspects of the liturgy...
Music for Easter night
This anthology, which is the first commercial recording the choir has made since Simon Johnson became Master of Music at Westminster Cathedral in September 2021, continues a practice inaugurated by his
Lay preaching
A symposium of preachers and theologians hosted by the Aquinas Institute of Theology in St Louis USA in March 2024, has made a formal submission to the Synod seeking a change in canon law to allow...
Believing not belonging
This research paper from the Margaret Beaufort Institute of Theology, Cambridge was commissioned by the Diocese of Brentwood and explores the reasons Catholics have become alienated from the...
Gestis verbisque
This Note from the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (3 February 2024) comes in response to several situations where the words and gestures used in celebrating the sacraments have been...
Responding to the psalms
Responding to the Psalms is a project of the Spirituality Committee of the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales. The Responsorial Psalm is an integral part of the Liturgy of the Word. You could...