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| Corpus Christi | |
|---|---|
| Corpus Christi Catholic Church, Maiden Lane | |
| Corpus Christi Shrine Church | |
 High Altar of Corpus Christi during Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament | |
  Corpus Christi Shown within Central London | |
| 51°30′39″N0°07′21″W / 51.510923°N 0.122498°W /51.510923; -0.122498 | |
| Location | Maiden Lane,Covent Garden,Westminster London,WC2E |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Catholic Church |
| Tradition | Roman Rite |
| Website | corpuschristimaidenlane |
| History | |
| Status | Diocesan Shrine of the Blessed Sacrament |
| Founded | 20 October 1874 (1874-10-20) |
| Founder | Henry Edward Cardinal Manning |
| Dedication | Corpus Christi |
| Consecrated | 18 October 1956 (1956-10-18) |
| Associated people | Ronald Knox,Francis Stanfield |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Heritage designation | Grade II |
| Architect | F. H. Pownall |
| Architectural type | Shrine Church |
| Years built | 1873-1874 |
| Specifications | |
| Number of spires | 1 |
| Materials | Brick |
| Bells | 1 |
| Administration | |
| Province | Westminster |
| Archdiocese | Westminster |
| Deanery | Westminster |
| Parish | Covent Garden |
| Clergy | |
| Archbishop | Vincent Nichols |
| Rector | Fr Alan Robinson,KHS |
Corpus Christi Roman Catholic Church, Maiden Lane, is aRoman Catholic church inMaiden Lane, Covent Garden, in theWestminster City Council area of London, England. The church building, inEarly English Gothic style, is grade II listed and was designed byF. H. Pownall; it was “specifically devoted to the adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.”[1][2][3]
The site was leased to the parish by theDuke of Bedford with the condition that the church should cost no less than £6,000; it actually cost £8,000. The foundation stone was laid in 1873, with the internal floor level three feet below pavement level to avoid the building being too tall. It was opened in 1874 byCardinal Henry Manning, at that time the Archbishop of Westminster, and dedicated toCorpus Christi "as an act of reparation for the indignities offered to the Blessed Sacrament in this country in the sixteenth century and since". It was not consecrated until 1956 when the debt was finally cleared.
One of the early parish priests wasFr Francis Stanfield who wrote two famous hymns: 'Sweet Sacrament Divine' and 'O Sacred Heart'.
The church features inGraham Greene’s novel "The End of the Affair".Dominic Bruce, the British Royal Air Force officer known as the "Medium Sized Man", married Mary Brigid Lagan on 25 June 1938 at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, Maiden Lane.
The main altar and reredos is byThomas Earp, who may also have carved the altar in the Sacred Heart chapel. The statue of the Sacred Heart is a replacement in the recent restoration (2018).
The stained glass windows may be byClayton and Bell while the blocked window in the south aisle is byMayer.
The Lady Chapel, designed after the Holy House in Loreto, contains a statue ofOur Lady of Walsingham which was installed and blessed byBishop Alan Hopes of East Anglia in September 2015. The statue of Our Lady of Walsingham was carved specially for the chapel by studio Stuflesser in Italy. The stained glass in the Shrine Chapel shows the Coronation of the Virgin.
Near the sanctuary steps is a bronze statue ofSt Tarcisius, the Roman boy martyr, byKarin Jonzen.
There is a statue ofSt Genesius, a Roman martyr and patron saint of actors; the church has a long association with actors and is the spiritual home of theCatholic Stage Guild.[4] It is also home to theLatin Mass Society.
A shrine forBlessed Carlo Acutis, carved by Ferdinand Stuflesser in Italy and including a relic, was unveiled on his feast day on 12 October 2022.[5] A statue ofSt. Gianna Molla, carved by Ferdinand Stuflesser, was unveiled on 29 April 2023.
The church has undergone extensive renovation costing £1.5 million to remove the 1970s paint. It was re-opened byVincent Cardinal Nichols,Archbishop of Westminster, in 2018, who dedicated the new Diocesan Shrine to the Blessed Sacrament. The new Stations of the Cross were sculpted byArthur Fleischmann and donated in his memory by his widow.[6] TheSodality in honour of the Blessed Sacrament founded in 1923 by Cardinal Bourne was re-established in 2016. In 2025, the church will be a Jubilee church for theOrdinary Jubilee called byPope Francis, and as such a place of pilgrimage where pilgrims can obtain the Plenary Indulgence.
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