Restoring our Church’s Heritage
The Rosary Altar is the main focus of this Rosary Shrine church, and it was beautifully restored in the 1990s. However, that restoration work has yet to be completed.
Historical photos (below) reveal that the altar was surmounted by four angels playing musical instruments, and moreover, two angels hung on either side of the altar carrying two sanctuary lamps that are a sign of our prayers in the presence of Our Lady. Sadly over the course of time, these angels were removed or went missing.
Four years ago we placed two candles in blue glass lamps on the Rosary Altar as the initial step to replacing the missing sanctuary lamps. These two candles burn perpetually before the image of Our Lady of the Rosary for the intentions of the members of the ‘Friends of the Rosary Shrine’, and for all the Benefactors of the Rosary Shrine.
A Birthday Present?
2021 is a significant year of great jubilees:
- 800th anniversary of the death of St Dominic;
- 800th anniversary of the arrival of the Dominican friars in England;
- 450th anniversary of the Battle of Lepanto and the establishment of the feast of the Holy Rosary.
Consequently, we would like to commemorate these historic milestones by replacing the six missing angels and the two sanctuary lamps.
The angels will be hand-carved from oak, and we have found suitable sanctuary lamps to buy from Italy. The total cost of this project will be £25,000.
Could you help?
We would like to invite you to make a donation towards this project:
- UPDATE: all angels and lamps have now been sponsored, but we welcome your contributions towards the restoration of this altar
Donation Form
You can give online using your payment card: see the form below.
For other ways to donate, click here.
If you’d like to discuss how you can contribute towards this project, please contact Fr Lawrence Lew OP.
