| Description | This series contains the personal papers of Clifford Howell, including correspondence, diaries and journals, notebooks, papers relating to his work on liturgy, sheet music and other related material for various religious services and events which he organised, alongside other items including war medals, tape recordings, his passport, master's thesis, and index cards used for his own body of papers.
Content warning: SJ/196/1/8 and SJ/196/3/6 contain historic racial language which some users may find distressing. If you are upset by any of the material, please speak to a member of archive staff who can direct you to further support. |
| Admin_History | Clifford Howell was born on 2 June 1902 in Handsworth, Birmingham, and grew up at Stourbridge. He went to school at Cotton College, but a desire to become a Jesuit meant he spent his last two years at Stonyhurst, precipitating his entry into the novitiate at Roehampton on 11 September 1919. After completing his Noviceship, he finished his Juniorate and then got his MSc and Diploma in Chemistry from Imperial College London. Following this he taught at Stonyhurst – not only science but also music, for which he had a considerable talent, playing many instruments and conducting various orchestras throughout his life. He was ordained as a Roman Catholic priest on 6 September 1934, and completed his Tertianship the year after. During the Second World War he volunteered as an army chaplain and was stationed in France, Egypt, Cyprus, Lebanon, India, and Burma. On his return to civilian life in 1947 he was assigned to the “Mission-Band”, a group of 9 priests giving parish missions. Howell was influential in Liturgical practice, and in 1954 a group petitioned on his behalf for him to be relieved of his mission-band duties to work instructing priests and parishes on the Liturgy full time. He spent considerable time travelling the world performing such work and published numerous widely read articles and books on the subject. By the late 1970s his health was declining, and he died 15 March 1981 in Liverpool, with his funeral mass held at Oscott. |