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Notes from the Head – 29 November
In the old pre-Vatican II days, the season of Advent was more obviously penitential in character. The Gloria was not said at Mass and the use of flowers and the organ were much reduced; the liturgical colour of purple is reminiscent of Lent and even Christmas Eve was a day of fasting and abstinence. Such privations gave…
Word from the Head – 22 November
What is the purpose of a Catholic school? The most direct answer to this question is that a Catholic school seeks to cultivate faith and conscience in each pupil so that they can live a life of heroic virtue – in the service of Almighty God and man in this world in preparation for eternal…
Historical Walking Tour
On Thursday 21st November, Years 7 and 8 took part on a Historical Walking Tour, arranged by one of our parents: Lauren Heithaus. It was an excellent opportunity to embed and further enrich our understanding of the Protestant Reformation, starting in the early Tudor era. As historians, we examined first hand, primary sources to truly…
UK Parliament Week
Parliament Week (UKPW) is an annual event, spreading the word about what Parliament is, what it does and how we can all get involved. At St Anthony’s this week, we have marked UKPW for the first time. Boys from Years 1 – 8 have each been learning about the House of Commons, the House of…
Remembrance Day – Requiem Mass
Following Remembrance Day, a sung Requiem Mass was celebrated by Msgr Phelim Rowland, St Anthony’s Chaplain, at St Mary’s Hampstead. The liturgy was enriched by the school choir under the direction of music teacher Elliot Thompson. The Introit and Gradual were taken from the Graduale Romanum together with the Kyrie, Sanctus and Agnus Dei. The…
Talk by Dr Stefen Goebel on the commemoration of conflict
On Friday morning, Dr Stefan Goebel from the University of Kent gave a talk to pupils at Senior House Assembly on the subject of war graves. Stefan has published extensively on the commemoration of conflict so no-one was better placed to talk on this subject ahead of the weekend’s Remembrance Day events. Pupils learnt that…
Word from the Head
The Importance of Memory David Starkey, in a recent podcast, bemoaned the trend in modern education whereby children are not asked to commit much information to memory. I must admit to having some sympathy for this point of view and it is true that in recent years the rise of coursework as a form of assessment…
Dr Gabriele Finaldi, Director of the National Gallery, on ‘What’s in a Painting?’
On the final day of the first half of term, we welcomed as our speaker at Senior House Assembly Dr Gabriele Finaldi, Director of the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square for the past ten years. Dr Finaldi’s talk focussed on three paintings on view in the National Gallery: Luiz Meléndez’ Still Life with Oranges and…
Notes from the Head – 11 October
Mighty oaks from little acorns grow I often say to the boys that schools, if truly rooted in education, are places where everyone learns; this includes teachers and, perhaps especially, the Headmaster! Looking back at my time as a history teacher, my interaction with pupils in lessons enabled perspectives and an understanding of the past that was fresh and invigorating. I became a…
Professor Biggar on the British Empire
On Friday, the school welcomed Professor Nigel Biggar, Regius Professor Emeritus of Moral Theology at the University of Oxford. Professor Biggar has published extensively during the course of a long and distinguished career. Most recently, he has written on the moral questions posed by the British Empire and it was on this subject that he…
