Saint Mary's College, Staffordshire, England. Founded in 1793 by a committee of Catholic nobility and gentry of England; opened, 1794, with Dr John Bew as president. Offered to Bishop Milner, 1808, he accepted it and under his vigorous government it took on new life, the buildings were enlarged, and by 1840 its growth necessitated the building of a new college designed by Joseph Potter. Under the presidency of Bishop Wiseman, 1840-1847, the college gave hospitality to many English clergymen brought into the church by the Oxford Movement, among them, Newman. Its scholastic work was greatly developed by James Spencer Northcote (1860-1877), who brought it into line with the non-Catholic public schools, but its success gradually declined and in 1881 it closed, opening a few months later as a semjnary for the diocese of Birmingham. Converted into a central seminary for the midland and southern dioceses of England, 1897, it again became a diocesan seminary, 1909. Its library of 30,000 volumes contains the Harvington, Marini, Kirk, and Forbes collections, as well as valuable collections of early printed books and manuscripts.
This dictionary contains not only definitions and explanations of every subject in Religion, Scripture, tradition, doctrine, morals, sacraments, rites, customs, devotions and symbolism, but also accounts of the Church in every continent, country, diocese; missions, notable Catholic centers, cities, and places with religious names; religious orders, church societies, sects and false religions. It has brief articles also on historical events and personages, on the Old Testament and New, and on popes, prelates, priests, men and women of distinction, showing what the Church has done for civilization and correcting many errors which have hitherto passed for history.Wikipedia
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