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Choristers of Christ Church Cathedral and Worcester College Choir joined forces on Saturday 11th October with former choristers, choir parents, governors, teachers and other friends for a Choral Workshop and concert of Handel's music in the Cathedral. The programme was organised jointly by the Christ Church Cathedral School Parents’ Association and the Christ Church Cathedral School Old Boys’ Association to raise money for the school

Two ordination services took place in Christ Church Cathedral last weekend, when a total of eighteen men and women from the Diocese were ordained as Deacons by the Rt Revd John Pritchard, the Bishop of Oxford.  We wish them every fulfilment in their new ministries.

A Memorial Service was held for The Very Reverend Professor Henry Chadwick KBE (1920-2008), former Dean of Christ Church, in the Cathedral on Saturday September the 27th. The Dean of Christ Church welcomed the very large congregation and addresses were given by Professor Henry Matyr-Harting and  Dr Stephen Darlington. Prayers were led by the Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster, Archbishop Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, and the final belssing was given by Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu.

Members of the Cathedral congregation gathered after Evensong on Sunday the 28th of September to say goodbye to Nicholas and Edith Coulton, on Nicholas' retirement from the position of Sub-Dean. The Dean, the Very Revd Christopher Lewis, thanked Canon Coulton for his contributions to the life and ministry of the Cathedral and presented gifts on behalf of the congregation and Cathedral Friends. We wish them well in the next period of their lives.

On September the 23rd, Christ Church hosted an informal talk by Archbishop Malkhaz Songulashvili from the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia. The Archbishop spoke about the history of Georgia, the present situation and also about the growth of its Evangelical Baptist church. Archbishop Malkhaz was on research leave when the recent conflict with Russia escalated. He recently returned to Georgia and the day after his talk at Christ Church he left for further meetings with church leaders. In Oxford, Humanitarian aid for Georgia has been coordinated by the church of St Michael’s at the North Gate.

During Choral Evensong at Christ Church on Sunday the 14th of September, the the Dean of Christ Church, the Very Rev'd Christopher Lewis, admitted five boys as choristers to the world famous Cathedral Choir. They were presented by Dr Stephen Darlington, the Cathedral Organist and Director of Music. They will also be joined in a few weeks by new 'Academical Clerks,' who are undergraduates who sing alongside the Lay Clerks of the Choir.

A new Requiem by Howard Goodall, commissioned by London Musici (orchestra) for performance with the Rambert Dance Company, has its première at Sadler's Wells Theatre in November, as part of a 6 month UK tour with Rambert.  Howard Goodall read Music at Christ Church in the 1970s and is well known as a composer, TV and radio broadcaster and the newly-appointed Government Ambassador for Singing. He has worked closely with the Cathedral Choir at Christ Church and in particular with Christ Church's Organist and Musical Director Stephen Darlington, for whom he has written a number of works.

Twelve young poets were given the opportunity to develop their  writing and critical skills through the annual Tower Poetry Summer School at Christ Church between the 26th and 29th of August.  The residential course included exciting and challenging workshops run by experienced tutors and readings by guest poets as well as visits to places of literary interest in Oxford.

Classics tutor Elton Barker has been awarded £66,724 from the Arts & Humanities Research Council as Principal Investigator on a two-year project entitled ‘Network, relation, flow: imaginations of space in Herodotus’ History’.

Jamie Schroeder, a current DPhil student at Christ Church, took part in the Beijing Olympic Men's Quadruple Sculls Final race on Sunday, representing the USA. The team finished in 5th place. A graduate of Stanford, John Hopkins and Oxford Universities, Jamie helped row Oxford to victory in the 2006 Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race, and recently won gold in the quadruple sculls at the 2008 FISA World Cup stop in Lucerne.