From left to right:
Fr Adrian Sharp, Archbishop Coleridge, Fr Andrew Wise, Fr Paul Chandler
Ash Wednesday is always a sombre day on which the Season of Lent begins. But for the members of the Brisbane Oratory in Formation it was a day of quiet celebration.
Firstly, Archbishop Coleridge visited and had dinner with the community after blessing Casa San Girolamo, the house in Annerley-Ekibin Parish where Fr Sharp and Fr Chandler live. The house, or casa in Italian, is named after the Church of San Girolamo (St Jerome) where St Philip Neri, the founder of the Oratory, first lived when he came to Rome from his native Tuscany in the north of Italy. Being the first home of the community while awaiting its formal beginning, it is appropriate that it carry this name. The Archbishop also blessed the image of Our Lady and St Philip, which now adorns the dining room.
Further cause for celebration was that present also were the other two priests of the community. It is another step forward that now one of those can be named. He is Fr Andrew Wise, currently Dean of St Mary’s Cathedral, Sale, Victoria. Fr Wise will be joining Fr Sharp and Fr Chandler in Brisbane when the Oratory formally begins. The name of the fourth priest cannot yet be disclosed.
The Brisbane Oratory in Formation will be having a fundraising dinner on May 24th this year to raise money for the education and formation of its students for the priesthood. One young man is already in formation in Toronto, Canada, and three others are discerning their vocation to the Brisbane Oratory.
For more information and for updates visit www.brisbane-oratory.org
The Brisbane Oratory in Formation can also be found on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/brisbaneoratory and Twitter #BrisbaneOratory