In the video on the themes of the Jubilee Year, Br John Church, a Dominican friar based at Blackfriars in Oxford, reflects on the Jubilee theme of Rest and Worship, drawing from his own experience training for the priesthood.

In a restless, self-inventing culture, Br John reminds us that humanity was made to share in God's rest, a rest that liberates us from anxiety and affirms our God-given dignity. It is a calling that finds its fulfilment in worship, especially in the celebration of the Mass, where Christ’s loving sacrifice renews and re-creates us.

Br John Church OP is a deacon in his final year of studies at Blackfriars, Oxford and is preparing for priestly ordination in early July. He runs the Dominican Young Adults programme, a network of events aimed at the theological formation of young adults.

His attraction to religious life grew out of time spent working with the Missionaries of Charity, which then crystallised into a Dominican vocation through a desire to integrate the contemplative life with preaching and study.

Blackfriars Website

Young Adults Programme

Photos: Blackfriars Oxford