The Oratories of England wish to acknowledge the many pilgrims who have made great efforts to join us on the ‘Journey to Sainthood’ towards the canonisation of our founder in England, John Henry Newman. Most prominent among those whom we wish to express our gratitude are
Dr William Loschert, John Studzinski CBE, and Fr Juan Velez. Without their generosity the journey would have been more circuitous and painful.
We wish to record our special thanks to all the brilliant young, and not so young, enthusiasts who have been a source of great inspiration - unflagging in their commitment of time, and most generous in the gifts of their talents:
Nazar Alsamarai, Project Director, and the Peter’s House team: Isaac Withers, Alex Vaughan-Spruce, Megan James, Rebekah Curren, Georgia Clarke and Daisy Vanderputt. They have created and orchestrated the media campaign for the journey to Newman’s canonisation, delivered admirably professional content, managed the online presence, and undertaken the event management with patience and efficiency.
James Abbott and the production team from CBCEW, who have combined to bring Newman’s words to life in the ‘Journeying with Newman’ podcast series, including Dr Victoria Seed and Steve Gammans and our ‘Newman Voice’, the actor William Gaminara.
We have been greatly helped by Jack Valero, our media advisor, who has sedulously promoted Newman’s cause to the ‘outside world’ with great success and has been a reassuring presence.
Our thanks go to Fr Friedrich Bechina FSO, who has been a continuing source of wisdom, counsel and support in the management of affairs in Rome, along with the rest of the Community of Das Werk, who have been working and praying for Newman’s cause since the 1970s. Their work has borne fruit.
We join so many others in applauding the contribution that the Schola Cantorum of the London Oratory School have made to our celebrations, and our thanks go to their inspirational director Charles Cole.
We want to thank Valeria Manca and her son Giovanni for laboriously turning English into Italian over the last six months, to our ‘own’ photographer Paul Flanagan, and thanks to Emma Dean and the parents of the London Oratory Schola and the many other volunteers for their help over these days.
We thank the Fathers of the Roman Oratory for their generosity in time and talents, and for the hospitality of the Chiesa Nuova, our ‘mother’ church.
We thank all of those who have written and spoken so admirably on Newman and his influence in podcasts, articles, videos and interviews and conferences.
Mgr. Philip Whitmore, Rector of the Venerable English College, has generously made himself available to smooth ruffled feathers, act on our behalf in Rome and make the resources of the VEC available to us all.
We thank Fr Thomas Joseph White OP and the Thomistic Institute For generously organising and hosting and working to make the ‘Saint for our Times’ Conference such a success.
We thank the Mgr. Vincenzo Viva, Rector of the Pontificio Collegio Urbano, for generously offering the use of their splendid rooms and grounds to host a reception celebrating the canonisation of one of their alumni.
We especially thank Her Excellency Sally Axworthy, the British Ambassador to the Holy See, for her unflagging enthusiasm and her generous contribution of time and ingenuity over the long months of preparation, along with all her staff. Their contribution has made this occasion uniquely memorable for all of us and for our native country.
We thank the Cardinal Prefects of the Papal Basilicas of San Giovanni in Laterano and Santa Maria Maggiore for allowing us their use, and for their most helpful staff.
And lastly, our profound thanks from the beginning and to the end, goes to Melissa Villalobos for her moving testimony to the Divine Grace that miraculously flowed through the intercession of our new Saint into her life and the life of her daughter Gemma. It became the impetus on a ‘Journey to Sainthood’ which we pray will characterise the lives of us all, blessed with the prayers of Saint John Henry Newman.