A large group of people arrived at St John Kemble's church of burial last Sunday and placed flowers on the grave. Most people waited in the Church for prayers before going down to the gate to begin the Rosary, led by a young deacon from Newport. The Rosary was beautifully done, being accompanied by the Sisters of ST Joseph of Annecy, Daughters of the Holy Spirit, Benedictine Monks from Belmont and clergy from the churches, including Anglicans.
At the grave, we were told , once again the terrible sad story of the great saint, and old man of 80+ years, forced to ride backwards into London and then forced to walk back from London to Hereford,all because of the wicked liar Titus Oates and his imaginary Catholic Plot. To do the King credit, when he found Oates to be a liar he was executed himself , but not before the death of 120 innocent priests.
The botched nature of the saints death(the 84 year old took half and hour to achieve and then he had his hand cut off as a symbolic hang drawing and quartering, since I suspect there was no taste for such a fate for such a saintly elderly man, who died when he was hung. It did not take so much to kill a very old man.
Shock waves went through the country, and his nephew living at nearby Pembridge Castle had him buried in the Churchyard of the ittle Church near Monmouth.
When the hymn, at the pilgrimage, praising the Life of St John was sung, many people came forward to venerate his grave by kissingit After that , folks returned to St Mary's Monmouth for Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament by the Deacon following which there was viewing the relics and then the magnificent High Tea provided with the ladies of the parish which was fantastic!!!
It was a great and joyful gathering.
