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St Mary's College, Oscott

Coordinates: 52°32′38″N 1°51′20″W / 52.543766°N 1.855451°W / 52.543766; -1.855451
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Oscott College
St Mary's College, New Oscott
View of the college from the south
Oscott College is located in West Midlands county
Oscott College
Oscott College
Location of college
52°32′38″N 1°51′20″W / 52.543766°N 1.855451°W / 52.543766; -1.855451
OS grid referenceSP0988894038
LocationNew Oscott, Birmingham
CountryEngland
DenominationRoman Catholic
Websiteoscott.net
History
StatusSeminary
FoundedMay 1794 (1794-05)[1]
Founder(s)Thomas Walsh
DedicationSt Mary
Consecrated29 May 1838
Associated peopleCardinal Wiseman

Bernard Griffin
Cardinal Newman

Thomas Williams
Architecture
Functional statusActive
Heritage designationGrade II* Listed[2]
Designated25 April 1952
Architect(s)Joseph Potter
A.W. Pugin
StyleGothic Revival
Groundbreaking25 April 1836
Completed31 May 1838
Construction cost£40,000
Administration
ProvinceBirmingham
ArchdioceseBirmingham
DeaneryBirmingham (North)
ParishOur Lady of the Assumption Maryvale
Clergy
ArchbishopBernard Longley
RectorCanon Michael Dolman

St Mary's College in New Oscott, Birmingham, sometimes called Oscott College, is the Roman Catholic seminary of the Archdiocese of Birmingham in England and one of two seminaries of the Catholic Church in England and Wales in England, with Allen Hall Seminary in London.[3] (Another two are in Rome: the Venerable English College[4], and the Pontifical Beda College for men over 30.[5])

Purpose

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College chapel, designed by A. W. N. Pugin

Oscott College admits students for the priesthood from various dioceses of England and Wales, as well as some students from overseas. The first three years of the academic programme are validated by the University of Birmingham as a BA in Fundamental Catholic Theology. Those who complete the six-year programme, also obtain a Bachelor of Sacred Theology (STB) through affiliation with the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven.[6]

Additionally, Oscott College is a centre for formation of candidates regarding the permanent diaconate.

History

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Old Oscott

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The college was founded in Oscott (present-day, Great Barr), in 1794, after the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1791, for both the training of priests and the education of lay pupils. It developed out of a small mission founded by Fr Andrew Bromwich, around 1687.

New Oscott

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St Mary's College, 1839

In 1838, the college moved to a new site, which came to be known as New Oscott (and the original site as "Old Oscott"). The Maryvale Institute remains on the original site. The new building was designed by Augustus Pugin and Joseph Potter at a cost of £40,000. It is grade II* listed. The college quickly became a symbol of the rebirth of the Catholic faith in England and played a prominent part in the life of the Church in the 19th century. In 1889, the college was closed, but reopened the following year as a seminary only.

21st Century

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After the closure of St Cuthbert's College, Ushaw, Durham, in 2011, many of the dioceses in the province of Liverpool sent their students to Oscott to complete their training. This gave a boost in numbers at the college at a time when vocations seemed to be scarce.[7]

Pope Benedict XVI visited on 19 September, 2010, following the beatification, earlier that day in Birmingham's Cofton Park, of Cardinal Newman who stayed at the college, in the late 1840s. During his visit to Oscott, Benedict had lunch with the Roman Catholic bishops of England, Scotland, and Wales. The Oscott visit was the last scheduled event during the four-day 2010 State Visit of Benedict to the UK. The Pope would later depart the UK from Birmingham Airport.

In 2023, the college hosted a seminar called "Rethink Abortion Day," which was led by prominent US-based activist anti-abortion groups. The seminar was based on building on the successes experienced by the Pro-Life movement in the United States and expanding their successes into the United Kingdom.[8]

A national Eucharistic Congress for England and Wales is scheduled to take place at the college in September 2024.[9]

Choral music

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A CD of choral music, Sedes Sapientiae, performed by The Schola and recorded live in the college's chapel on 7 June 2008, was released by the college (cat. no. OSCOTTCD01).[10]

Notable alumni

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Clergy

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Bishops

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Priests

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Laity

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Former presidents and rectors

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Presidents

Rectors

  • 1885–90 Joseph Henry Souter
  • 1890–96 Edward Ilsley
  • 1896–1924 Henry Parkinson
  • 1924–29 Charles Cronin
  • 1929–35 James Dey
  • 1935–61 Leonard Emery
  • 1961–68 Richard Foster
  • 1968–79 Francis Thomas
  • 1979–84 Patrick Kelly
  • 1984–89 Michael Kirkham
  • 1989–98 Patrick McKinney
  • 1998–2001 Kevin McDonald
  • 2001–13 Mark Crisp
  • 2013–20 David Oakley[13]
  • 2020–21 Giles Goward
  • 2021-Present: Fr Michael Dolman

See also

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Further reading

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  • The Oscottian - Literary Gazette of St Mary's College, Oscott. Jubilee edition, 1888
  • Oscott College in the Twentieth Century, Michael E. Williams, 2001, Gracewing Publishing (ISBN 0-85244-534-2)

References

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  1. ^ Oscott History Archived 2016-03-05 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ British Listed Buildings
  3. ^ "Become a Priest". Portsmouth Catholic Diocese. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
  4. ^ "About the VEC – Venerable English College". Venerable English College. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
  5. ^ "Pontifical Beda College – Rome (homepage)". Retrieved 28 October 2024.
  6. ^ "The Seminary - Oscott College". Archived from the original on 18 October 2014. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  7. ^ UK Vocations Statistics Archived 2013-12-14 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ Stewart, Katherine. "'If we can do it, you can do it': US anti-abortion groups ramp up activities in UK". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  9. ^ Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, Plenary Resolutions: Environment, St Winefride, Eucharistic Congress and Conflict in Gaza, published 17 November 2023, accessed 30 November 2023
  10. ^ Sedes Sapientiae CD insert
  11. ^ The Oscotian : a literary gazette of St. Mary's College, Oscott, vol. 22, St. Mary's College, 1888, p. 110
  12. ^ List of Superiors, Masters and Students
  13. ^ Williams Oscott College p. 183
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