Chapel
Unique among the modern Cambridge Colleges, St Edmund’s College Chapel is a Catholic foundation. The Blessed Sacrament is reserved and the liturgy is celebrated according to the Roman Catholic rite. The Dean is, by Statute, a Catholic priest. The present Dean, Fr Ed Hone CSsR, is available at all times to all members of the College; the Dean’s office is in Norfolk building, next to the Sacristy, accessible via the side door between Chapel and College, or internally. Fr Ed can be contacted by e-mail: dean@st-edmunds.cam.ac.uk or by mobile (preferred): +44 (0) 7727 669 669 or +44 (0)1223 336123
For full details of Mass times, other liturgical events, and guest preachers, please see this term’s Chapel Card. The Chapel FaceBook page shows current activities. The current music list is here.
The Chapel, known for the prayerful simplicity of its architecture and its tranquil atmosphere, is open throughout the year for private prayer. Mass is celebrated for members of the College and guests from other Colleges and the city on Sundays at 10.30am, during the week in Full Term on weekdays and Holydays of obligation at times announced. The Sacrament of Reconciliation is available at all times.
The College chapel is a grade II listed building, designed by Father Benedict Williamson, CSSP and opened and blessed by Cardinal Francis Bourne, the Archbishop of Westminster, on 16 October 1916. It was dedicated by the Right Reverend Peter Smith, Bishop of East Anglia and an Honorary Fellow of the College, on 25 October 2000. The side chapels reflect the early history of the College and its benefactors.
To mark the chapel’s centenary, the entrance has been completely reconfigured and an imposing sculpture of the College’s patron, St Edmund of Abingdon by Rodney Munday, has been installed. The project was funded partly by contributions from the chapel congregation and from a generous donor. The centenary year was initiated on the Feast of St Edmund, by His Eminence Vincent Cardinal Nichols, the Archbishop of Westminster and the College’s Visitor. The year was concluded at the Norfolk Commemoration in the presence of the Apostolic Nuncio, the Duke of Norfolk and the Vice Chancellor.
A new window depicting the ministry of St Boniface of Crediton (c.675-754), the apostle to Germany, was blessed by Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, Archbishop of Westminster and then Visitor of the College, on 21 January 2003. The window, designed and executed by Erica Bauer Bamberg, was donated by Professor Stephen Frowen, a Fellow Commoner of the College, as an expression of Anglo-German friendship.
An Anglican Eucharist is celebrated twice each term by the Revd. Dr Rodney Holder and by the Rev. Shirley Holder. Details of these celebrations are listed in the chapel card. Arrangements can be made in consultation with the Dean for other Christian groups to use the Chapel.
The College Chapel is licensed for marriages and many alumni return to College to be married or have their children baptised. Catholics need only the permission of their current parish priest. Anglicans require the Archbishop of Canterbury’s licence, arrangements for which can be made through the Rector of the nearby Parish of the Ascension.
The Chapel Choir and Schola provide music for Masses and other liturgical events. For details, please see the chapel card or the follow the links on the left. You can also follow Eddie’s Chapel Music on Facebook and Twitter.