Jesuits on BBC throughout Holy Week

The arrest of Christ by Giotto

Jesuits and their associates will be contributing to programmes on BBC Radio and Television over Holy Week. Among the highlights will be a talk on Radio 4 by a lecturer at Heythrop College, a Good Friday Liturgy led by a leading Jesuit theologian and parishioners from St Wilfrid's Church watching the live broadcast of the Preston Passion on the city's streets.

On Wednesday, 4 April, Dr Gemma Simmonds CJ will be presenting the Lent Talk on BBC Radio 4 at 8.45pm. Sister Gemma is a sister of the Congregation of Jesus, which was founded in 1609 by Mary Ward and was modelled on the Society of Jesus. She is the Director of the Religious Life Institute at Heythrop and a lecturer in Pastoral and Social Studies at the Jesuit college. Her Lent Talk on BBC Radio 4 will be the final programme in a series of six.

On Good Friday (6 April), Dr James Hanvey SJ, Jesuit Superior at Mount Street in London and lecturer in systematic Theology at Heythrop College - will be presenting a meditation on the Crucifixion with music and readings from Westminster Cathedral. In this Good Friday Liturgy, he will reflect on the final moments of Christ's earthly journey and how we continue to encounter the Crucified Christ in our daily lives. With readings from the Gospel accounts of Christ's Passion, poetry and traditional music from the world famous Westminster Cathedral Choir under their Master of Music, Martin Baker, Dr Hanvey will explore how it is from the margins of society as well as the margins of our comprehension that we stand at the foot of the Cross.

The programme will be broadcast on Good Friday at 3pm - the traditional hour at which Jesus died on Calvary.

Also on Good Friday, parishioners of St Wilfrid's Church in Preston, which has been served by the Jesuits since the late 18th century, will have ring-side seats at the Preston Passion which is being broadcast live on BBC One. Fr Bernard Walker SJ, the Jesuit Superior at St Wilfrid's, has welcomed the BBC's initiative and its collaboration with Preston Guild—a unique and historic celebration dating back to 1179.

Held only once every 20 years, the Guild plays an important role in the development of Preston as a thriving and important Lancashire city. "We are very pleased indeed to see this important event in the Christian calendar given such a prominent place in the BBC's Easter schedule," said Fr Bernard. "And we are delighted to be a part of it, as the Preston Guild holds its first celebration of the 21st century."