Becket Week
The Christian Heritage Centre at Stonyhurst was pleased to support the Embassy of Hungary in the United Kingdom in the creation of Becket Week. Becket Week was centered around the return of a relic of St Thomas Becket which had been in Hungary since soon after Thomas was killed. The Hungarian President accompanied the relic to the UK, togethe with the deputy Prime Minister of Hungary and Speaker of the Hungarian House of Representatives, amongst others. In the United Kingdom the delegation was welcomed by the Speaker of the House of Commons, and Lord Speaker and many religious leaders.
“It reminds all Christians that there comes a point where their loyalty to Christ becomes the overriding loyalty of their lives and they might have to pay a final price” – Cardinal Nicholas, Archbishop of Westminster
In Hungary St Thomas continues to be a symbol of freedom from oppression, and particularly religious liberty.
Becket Week was made up of three aspects: devotional, historical and political. The week began with Mass at Westminster Cathedral, followed by a service at Westminster Abbey where the relic was reverenced at St Margaret’s altar. Later in the week, the relics visited the Houses of Parliament and were placed on the altar in St Mary’s Undercroft. The relics then moved to Rochester Cathedral and finally to Canterbury Cathedral. Prayer and a discussion on St Thomas’s relevance to the modern world were the central elements to all these visits.
The Archbishop of Canterbury graciously hosted an academic symposium at Lambeth Palace, sponsored by The Christian Heritage Centre. Following a welcome from the Hungarian Foreign Minister and Hungarian Ambassador the following addressed the distinguished gathering: Archbishop of Canterbury, Archbishop of Westminster, Bishop of Szeged-Csanad, Prof. Eamon Duffy, Prof. Peter Marshall, Prof. Alexandra Walsham, Prof. Peter Davidson and Jan Graffius (Stonyhurst College).
Read more about Beckett Week at the following links:
