London, England, Apr 25, 2011 / 23:36 pm
The England and Ireland-based St. Barnabas Society gave over $160,000 to help Anglican priests make the transition into the Catholic Church.
“It is a very generous gesture and one that will be widely appreciated,” Archbishop of Westminster Vincent Nichols said on April 15. “It is a concrete expression of the generosity which the Holy Father asked us to show towards those who are seeking full communion in the Catholic Church.”
About 20 priests and 600 lay people from around England were expected to enter the Church this past weekend. Five former Anglican bishops and their wives were among the first to join the Our Lady of Walsingham Ordinariate, this past Jan. 15.
Many of the priests left behind their former Anglican parishes and salaries in the move and are having to rely on the ordinariate for financial support. On April 15, Our Lady of Walsingham announced that that it had received $160,000 (100,000 pounds) from the St. Barnabas Society.