Archbishop of Westminster and President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, Cardinal Vincent Nichols has officially announced a new diocesan shrine dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary at St Dominic’s Priory, Haverstock Hill.
The Shrine will officially be declared open with a Holy Mass on October 22
The Rosary is one of the most cherished prayers of the Catholic Church. Tradition does hold that St. Dominic (d. 1221) devised the Rosary. The church designed and built is surrounded by fifteen smaller side chapels, one for each of the traditional Mysteries of the Rosary. On the left of the nave are found the Joyful Mysteries; in the center behind the sanctuary are the Sorrowful Mysteries, and to the right are the Glorious Mysteries.
Moved by a vision of our Blessed Mother, St Dominic` preached the use of the rosary in his missionary work among the Albigensians, who had denied the mystery of Christ. The Lady Chapel has a semicircular white marble entry facade, depicting Mary handing the Rosary to St. Dominic.
Cardinal Nichols said: “I am pleased that we now have a shrine dedicated specifically to the Rosary. It is a fitting complement to the shrine of Our Lady of Willesden.”
Fr Thomas Skeats OP, prior and parish priest, said: “This is a particularly Dominican contribution to the life of the diocese and especially felicitous during this year when we are celebrating the 800th anniversary of the foundation of the Order.”
Begun in 1928, the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary was designed by Dutch architect Gerard Van Kriechen and built by Portuguese architect João Antunes. It was Consecrated on 7th October 1953. The Basilica was dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary by Pope Pius XII through the brief pontifical document, “Luce Superna” on 11th November 1954.
