Fr Paul Johnson

Perfect for Corpus Christi

2011-06-26T14:34:00.001+01:00

Don't leave the baby on the bus!

2011-02-26T21:05:00.005Z

Homily for 8th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year A

Readings: Is 49:14-15; Ps 61; 1 Cor 4:1-5; Mt 6:24-34

Choosing a card for someone, perhaps for their birthday, is a revealing thing. Whether it is cheap or expensive, early or late, well meant but never sent or barely thought about and given without care – all teaches us about ourselves. A particular card I recall seeing in a shop one time, which made me laugh out loud, showed a picture along the lines of the late 1950s soap advertising range. You know the ones with women in period dress. Anyway, this card depicts a scene of a woman pushing an empty blue pram looking utterly panic-stricken and in the background you see a departing red double-decker London bus – the bubble caption reads: ‘I left the baby on the bus!’ Clearly it’s meant to be funny, but we might ask why?

Probably, because like our first reading from the prophet Isaiah, it is something we imagine just not happening. It’s almost unnatural that a mother would leave her baby on the bus, not least as she has a pram to get off with! Yet I’m sure it happens. I know it happens. So it’s not the best example of reminding us of God’s faithfulness. Like the loving mother with her baby at the breast he’s never going to leave us on the bus! Just to underline the point and show the shortcoming of our feeble state in regard to child-forgetting, Isaiah says God’s faithfulness is like a son in the womb – you cannot forget him surely? You cannot get off the bus without your son in the womb! Let’s not go down the route of discussing the horror of abortion, save to say that the prophet seeks simply to remind us that we, like those early Israelites, do forget God from time to time, but he will never abandon us. He will never forget us! That’s true love!

We can, and do, respond to that love through service: Service of God and of neighbour, which is ultimately the same thing. This is what Paul is trying to tell the Corinthians. People will judge us on whether we have been good Christians or not. Have we, honestly, presented what it means to be a Catholic in today’s world? By their fruits you shall know them – how many people would describe us as a good Catholic?

In the end it doesn’t matter, of course, what other people say. Even if we think we are a good Catholic, or even if we know we are because others say we are a good Catholic, or even if our own consciences is clear, St Paul reminds us, it is what God thinks that determines where you spend eternity. He is the final judge and I suspect that He will be a little less harsh than you are about yourself!

But Jesus, in continuing his Sermon on the Mount, reminds us today that you cannot serve both God and money. You cannot, in other words, have two masters. Either everything about you points to serving God or it does not. The example that Jesus uses is one about worry or anxiety – you either trust the Lord will provide or you do not. This is not an excuse to do nothing to provide for your own or your family’s needs, there is no merit in simply raising your eyes to heaven and saying ‘oh, the Lord will provide’ and waiting for him to do it via other people. Laziness is, above all, the sin of sloth and deadly at that! No, today Jesus wants us to be certain that our own efforts, commendable though they be, will be no match when compared to the plentiful nature of feeding the birds nor the beauty of flowers so let us not worry and become anxious, rather let us trust in the Lord who loves us above all things. After all, did he not want to be certain the world was perfect before he created us on the sixth day?

So this week, when you’re thinking about a card to send or some other token which shows the love you have for another, do it in a way that clearly demonstrates you are, indeed, a steward of our Lord and God and whatever you do – don’t leave the baby on the bus!

WYD 2011

2011-02-08T21:48:00.000Z

Smile whilst you're singing!

2010-11-04T20:20:00.002Z

Thanks to The Deacon's Bench blog for this excellent post. Deacon Greg writes:

...and suddenly everybody did THIS (see below)?

It happened at Macy's last weekend, when 600 members of the Opera Company of Philadelphia, mingling with the other shoppers, unexpectedly burst into the "Hallelujah!" chorus. Just watch and try not to smile.

And of course he's quite correct - watch and smile...

The lonely death of Jimmy Mubenga

2010-10-29T14:10:00.003+01:00

It may be that you have already seen the story of Jimmy Mubenga's untimely death. If you have not, then do take the time to read about it. For a few days I've been away on vacation so I haven't, to my shame, even been aware that it's been in the news. Reading about Jimmy's case, however, really brings home the need to bring the best of British to the quagmire that is immigration, and especially asylum seekers, to these shores. By the best of British I mean: compassion, hospitality, protecting the vulnerable and fairness. Such values which we find littered across our Christian roots!

You can read Jimmy's story here, from ICN, and the Guardian story here.

Jerome Phelps writes: Jimmy Mubenga died on the runway at Heathrow Airport last Tuesday night. He died a very public death, in the final row of seats of British Airways flight 77 to Luanda. Witnesses have claimed that he shouted that he could not breathe for over ten minutes, as three large security guards forced his head down into his lap. No-one helped him.

St Luke and Seminarians

2010-10-18T21:53:00.004+01:00

Wow, so much to do and such little time!

Happy Feast to Luke (you know who you are) and did you read the letter from the Holy Father to seminarians? You can follow this link here. My favourite passage is:

Anyone who wishes to become a priest must be first and foremost a “man of God”, to use the expression of Saint Paul (1 Tim 6:11). For us God is not some abstract hypothesis; he is not some stranger who left the scene after the “big bang”. God has revealed himself in Jesus Christ. In the face of Jesus Christ we see the face of God. In his words we hear God himself speaking to us. It follows that the most important thing in our path towards priesthood and during the whole of our priestly lives is our personal relationship with God in Jesus Christ.

I kind of wish I'd realised that myself when I was in seminary! Time flies so quickly and before you know it you're ordained. Still, at least the Pope reiterates that this personal relationship is the centre of all that a priest is.

St Luke
Pray for Us

The Sacred Heart

2010-10-16T14:19:00.003+01:00

On feast of St Margaret Mary Alocoque, which we celebrated at Mass this morning, we recall her passion in drawing us ever closer to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

The above photo is the statue of the Sacred Heart in the centre of the sanctuary at Fatima. Please pray for all those who make this pilgrimage, as the parish did earlier this year, that they may be drawn to a deeper appreciation of the love which Mary shows for her Son.

St Margaret Mary, pray for us.

Pope John Paul II and the Priesthood

2010-10-16T13:22:00.004+01:00

Today, 32 years ago, the Holy Spirit prompted the conclave of cardinals to elect a new Pope: John Paul II. This is the power of saying 'yes' to God, none more so than when a young man says 'yes' to serving Christ as His priest. Perhaps, in our midst, is a future pope who simply needs your encouragement to enable him to say 'yes' to Christ when He says "come" and become His priest...

St Teresa of Avila

2010-10-15T11:52:00.002+01:00

Fearsome old battle-axe or joy filled advocate?

St Teresa of Avila, Pray for us

Orthodoxy

2010-10-15T11:36:00.004+01:00

One of the blogs I catch up with from time to time is Illegitimi non carborundum written by Fr James Farfaglia. I'll leave you to work out the translation if you're not familiar with Latin, but a short cut is here.

I digress. Today, Fr James is defending himself against some critics of a recent article he has written in regard to the new translation of the Roman Missal, widely reported to be introduced to these shores on the first Sunday of Advent, 2011. You can read the response to the critics here, and the original article written here (beware there are annoying little pop ups). Again, I digress. What caught my attention was this quote from Chesterton in regard to Orthodoxy. I'm not sure the orthodox church comes out in the best light, but the style and force of Chesterton's statement is worth repeating in full...

“This is the thrilling romance of Orthodoxy. People have fallen into a foolish habit of speaking of  orthodoxy as something heavy, humdrum, and safe. There never was  anything so perilous or so exciting as orthodoxy. It was sanity: and to  be sane is more dramatic than to be mad. It was the equilibrium of a man  behind madly rushing horses, seeming to stoop this way and to sway  that, yet in every attitude having the grace of statuary and the  accuracy of arithmetic. The Church in its early days went fierce and  fast with any warhorse; yet it is utterly unhistoric to say that she  merely went mad along one idea, like a vulgar fanaticism. She swerved to  left and right, so exactly as to avoid enormous obstacles. She left on  one hand the huge bulk of Arianism, buttressed by all the worldly powers  to make Christianity too worldly. The next instant she was swerving to  avoid an orientalism, which would have made it too unworldly. The  orthodox Church never took the tame course or accepted the conventions;  the orthodox Church was never respectable. It would have been easier to  have accepted the earthly power of the Arians. It would have been easy,  in the Calvinistic seventeenth century, to fall into the bottomless pit  of predestination. It is easy to be a madman: it is easy to be a  heretic. It is always easy to let the age have its head; the difficult  thing is to keep one’s own. It is always easy to be a modernist; as it  is easy to be a snob. To have fallen into any of those open traps of  error and exaggeration which fashion after fashion and sect after sect  set along the historic path of Christendom—that would indeed have been  simple. It is always simple to fall; there are an infinity of angles at  which one falls, only one at which one stands. To have fallen into any  one of the fads from Gnosticism to Christian Science would indeed have  been obvious and tame. But to have avoided them all has been one  whirling adventure; and in my vision the heavenly chariot flies  thundering through the ages, the dull heresies sprawling and prostrate,  the wild truth reeling but erect.”

Taken from 'Orthodoxy' by GK Chesterton and available to buy here.

Blessed Pope John XXIII

2010-10-11T12:06:00.002+01:00

Blessed Pope John:
Pray for us

Ushaw College may close...

2010-10-08T22:44:00.003+01:00

The BBC write:

Historic Catholic college in County Durham to close
Ushaw College Ushaw College is close to the city of Durham

A Roman Catholic college that can trace its roots back to the 16th Century is to close, its trustees have announced.

Ushaw College in County Durham is home to St Cuthbert's Seminary, which trains young men to become priests.

Run as a charity, it also provides conference and event facilities and accommodation, but maintenance and running costs have increased.

The college is due to shut in June 2011, and its 26 students will transfer to another seminary.

Ushaw College can trace its roots back to Douai College, which was founded in 1568 in the Spanish Netherlands, now northern France, to provide priests when traditional Catholicism suffered persecution under Queen Elizabeth I.
Drastic step

Students and staff later relocated to County Durham and eventually settled at Ushaw in 1808.

Kay Wightman, director of finance and commercial development at Ushaw College, said the business had been facing tough times for many years.

She said: "We are a charitable organisation and as such unfortunately we've had to bear increasing costs of maintaining and running the facilities we provide, and this has led to the sad proposal that Ushaw is to close."

Monsignor John Marsland, president of the college, added: "Words cannot express how sad we are that we are considering such a drastic step.

"We have long tried to find a development partner and it would be nice to believe that a partner will still come forward with a viable business plan, but unfortunately time is running out and we have to face the reality of the situation we are in."

H/T to Forest Murmers for the story.

When we were in Valladolid the shock of the closure of the Scots college in Salamanca was quite devastating for all those concerned and tonight we think and pray for those who will be effected by the closure of the northern seminary, if it becomes necessary. Can't help but feeling, however, that the northern bishops are taking a strong and courageous lead on the issue...

Sad, really sad!

Papal Infallibility & The Assumption

2010-08-14T15:22:00.003+01:00

(Murillo, Assumption of the Virgin, 1670,
Oil on canvas. The Hermitage, St. Petersburg)

Readings for the Assumption

Do you believe the Pope to be infallible? Do you think, in matters of faith and morality, the Pope is able to speak with such authority that it must be held to be true by all Catholics? Well, that is our understanding. This is the teaching of the Church going back well over a century now and yet it has often been cited as one of the whacky things that Catholics believe. It will be raised in the media as we prepare for the Holy Father’s visit next month. Surely no man can be without error, people will say. Of course these people misunderstand the teaching of Papal Infallibility, yet today is a perfect example of what we mean by it. Let me explain.

In 1946 Pope Pius XII polled the Catholic bishops throughout the world and after their affirmative response; he officially promulgated the dogma of Mary’s assumption on 1^st November 1950. The Pope spoke, ex cathedra, infallibly. We, therefore, as dutiful Catholics hold this dogma of our faith to be absolute. Quite simply: Mary was assumed into heaven. No doubt whatsoever. Now, do we know this to be true because the Pope says so, or is it, as I suspect, because we simply know it as truth and, therefore, believe it. It’s a simple question to always ask yourself: is it true because we say it is, or do we believe because it is true!

Whilst there may be no explicit evidence within scripture for this truth; I don’t recall reading the Angel saying to Mary, “oh, and by the way, because you have said yes to be the Mother of God it means that you’re going to be assumed into heaven one day”, there is none the less clear signs within both Scripture and especially within our Tradition that bears witness to this special honour for Our Lady.

In the Gospel Elizabeth says two very interesting things during her greeting of Mary: she refers to Mary as “the mother of my Lord” and also “she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.” Thus, we have long held that the ravages of the tomb would never touch such a chosen one as Mary. Once Christ had died and then rose from the dead, it must surely be only natural that which was the way of the Son would be replicated in the mother. It is interesting to wonder if the dragon in the book of the Apocalypse somehow represents the decay of the tomb from which the child is snatched up to heaven and the woman is safely removed to the desert to await her turn and thus follow the son. To be assumed into heaven in due course. We will hear, in a moment, the priest say to God: you would not allow decay to touch her body, for she had given birth to your Son. In a sense, Mary’s assumption is pretty obvious really.

When Pope Pius declared this to be true, then, he wasn’t coming up with something new. Often, the harsh critics of Papal Infallibility will say: if the Pope loses the plot then, and says so and so, you have to believe it! As though Catholics were not born with reason and will believe anything and thus, subtly, those who would criticise us can declare all truth to be flawed: All truth to be simply a matter of choice and why is your choice any more important than mine?

We are not talking about who is right and who is wrong. We are taking about the truth revealed to us in the person of Jesus Christ. Always, this is our starting point. Everything points to this. Mary’s assumption has its basis in being the Mother of God: thus is makes clear sense that she should be born immaculate and that she is, for us, the model of all humanity. Not only our personal model but also she shows the Church the way; not only in destiny but via the right route. We prayed at the beginning of Mass: May we see heaven as our final Goal and come to share her glory. We will conclude by praying: may we “be led to the glory of heaven by the prayers of the Virgin Mary.” Amen!

Thanks to Mary, and her assumption, we are able, therefore, to make very clear to people exactly what we mean by Papal Infallibility. This has been our understanding for well over a century now; can anyone actually name a time when it seemed like a daft idea. We love the Pope and we will give him due reverence and we are proud to listen to him speak!

St Margaret of Scotland

2010-08-13T23:13:00.005+01:00

I know we're a little early (16 Nov) but it's always good to seek the intercession of those whom you feel close to, spiritually. So, with this in mind:

St Margaret of Scotland

Pray for us

First Blessings

2010-08-13T09:32:00.003+01:00

H/T to Vincenzo over at SANCTE PATER for this video of an FSSP priest giving first blessings. It's lovely to see the crowds who, clearly, seek the spiritual blessings. At the risk, however, of sounding Palagian, I thought he might have put a little more effort into his work!

Quote of the day...

2010-08-12T20:16:00.002+01:00

Recently a parishioner gave me the following quote from Marcus Aurelius, one time Roman Emperor and Stoic Philosopher...

Press on steadily. Keep to the straight road in your thinking & doing and your days will ever flow on smoothly. The soul of man, like the souls of all rational creatures, has two things in common with the soul of God: It can never be thwarted from without, and it's good consists in righteousness of character and action and in confining every wish thereto.

Wonder what Russell Crowe thinks of that, then!

Lead Kindly Light

2010-08-11T22:10:00.004+01:00

(Newman, centre right, 3rd cleric from the right with cotta)

Jackie Parkes, I see, has a new blog: Lead Kindly Light, which you can link to here. Delighted to see she has a copy of the unfinished portrait of the meeting of the hierarchy at Oscott College in 1852 (if memory serves me correctly). It is a delight to see the painting again, which I passed many a time on my way up to see the Rector, over the years!

Newman RIP

2010-08-11T00:01:00.000+01:00

Deacons

2010-08-10T12:39:00.002+01:00

Remember, today, in prayer all those who are ordained Deacon, both transitional and permanent. Especially, we pray for Deacons Gerry and Pat, here in the parish, and for Craig and Padraig at Oscott, who are preparing for ordination to the presbyterate next summer.

Fides et Ratio

2010-08-08T10:14:00.002+01:00

Readings for 19th Sunday, Year C

“To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible.” These are the words of the great Doctor of the Church, St Thomas Aquinas. On the face of it we may conclude that if you don’t have faith, then you will never understand what it is that Catholics believe. Or you might conclude that it is only to those whom the Lord has given the gift of faith that salvation is possible suggesting that Catholics are the lucky ones and everyone else is condemned. This is simply not true.

Faith is a gift, a wonderful gift, which comes from the Creator of all humanity. I can think of no reason why God would not give a person this enlightening gift. Rather it is a little like we are given a birthday gift which relies upon batteries. How often have we found ourselves searching through draws and boxes on Christmas morning looking for batteries for the children? Perhaps in an age which relies so heavily upon battery operated items this is now less a problem, but I digress. The gift of faith, which we have all been given, relies upon the batteries of reason to get it going.

Pope John Paul II, in his mind-blowing encyclical letter, Fides et Ratio says: Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth. This brings to mind an image of the human spirit like some graceful butterfly, full of colour and wonder and beauty soaring toward heaven and coming ever closer to being with Jesus. As though heaven were some distant plane upon which we know we shall find the most treasured and striking of flowers upon which to land, toward a light that gives warmth, love and comfort. Surely this is something we all seek in an age of ugliness amid the harsh reality of our lives. It’s not a daydream, however, but rather it is our destiny.

Oscar Wilde, I think it was, said that scepticism is the beginning of faith. He talks, one suspects, of the need for reason in matters of faith. Faith may well be blind, but we need the clear sight of reason to bring that faith into its full light and beauty. If faith is gift, then we might say reason is natural to us. We all, regardless of our faith, have an innate desire to know the truth. Those, however, who have found the batteries can get the toy going and see creation in all its wonder. Pity those who have batteries, but no toy to play with!

Perhaps the greatest of all scientist, a man of outstanding reason you might say, Albert Einstein, said once: There are only two ways to live . . . one is as though nothing is a miracle . . . the other is as if everything is. So today we have that choice of how we are to live our lives. Do we believe, or do we not.

Transfiguration

2010-08-06T10:38:00.003+01:00

In thanksgiving, on this wonderful feast, for our friends at St George's, Worcester and for a God-given opportunity to gaze upon the original earlier this year! It never ceases to amaze me that though once I had the opportunity and money to see all that I wanted, it just never happened. Giving it all up, seemingly, has opened horizons I could only ever dream about. Thanks, Jesus.

Newman by Fr Michael Rear

2010-08-04T11:20:00.004+01:00

There is little time within an Assistant Priests schedule for reading, it seems to me. Perhaps, one wonders, if I spent a little more time in prayer then I would have the time for uplifting spiritual reading as contained within Blessed John Henry Newman by Fr Michael Rear. Fr Michael presents a short but excellent biography of Newman. Clearly, in this fervent time of Newman-appreciation in which we are all gripped, it's good to take time and learn about the man who will be declared Blessed by the Pope in a few weeks time.

If you have time for only a brief introduction to the man, then Fr Michael's account comes very highly recommended. The blurb on the back of the book states:

Newman’s life spanned nearly the whole of the 19th century, spent almost equally in the Church of England and the Roman Catholic Church. Michael Rear begins by exploring Newman’s immense influence on the Anglican Church, and the events that led to him being denounced as a traitor’ and virtually expelled from that Church.

Only after four years of prayer and of his study of the development of doctrine, did Newman find his way clear to enter the Catholic Church. Founder of the Oratories, of a school, and a university in Ireland, his views on the laity, papal infallibility, education, and conscience led to misunderstanding, until, at the age of 78, he was made a Cardinal. A century later he was called an ‘unseen presence’ at the Second Vatican Council, and revered for his holiness.

His prediction of the secular society, in which Religion, ‘is a private luxury, which a man may have if he will; but which… he must not obtrude upon others, or indulge in to their annoyance’, has a very contemporary feel.

Treat yourself: though at £4.95 it's not great value for such a brief book. Mind you, better value than other's I've read! Buy it here.

A great pleasure to spend time with one holy priest on the feast of another. St John Marie Vianney: Pray for us. Soon-to-be Blessed John Henry Newman: Pray for us.

It's getting very exciting now...

2010-08-02T22:53:00.003+01:00

H/T to Love Undefiled by Robert Colquhoun for pointing out this great video. I'm so excited I could crush a grape!

Need not Greed

2010-07-31T19:31:00.002+01:00

Today's readings

O that today you would listen to his voice! This response to our psalm is more urgent now than it has ever been. It recalls a time at Meribah when the Israelites were travelling through the desert and they doubted God speaking through the prophet Moses. How many of us listen to today’s Gospel and think that Jesus is talking about someone else? How many of us assume that it is good to make ourselves secure in this life with material possessions? Perhaps we convince ourselves that we’re saving to ensure our children have a secure life – it is surely good to save for a rainy day, is it not?

Only a fool would deny that we are gripped by economic hardship. Massive cuts in public spending are afoot; we know we are in for a rough ride; hard times are upon us. So perhaps we are saving, or at least being a little more economic. We don’t know what the future holds, so we are playing it safe. Now I don’t want to get into the politics of economic policy but we do need to refocus on our priorities. There is a lovely short story written by Leo Tolstoy called ‘How much land does a man need?’

A peasant, named Pahom, is fearful of the devil and is heard to exclaim ‘if I had enough land then I would not fear the devil’. A laudable cry! A local landowner decides to sell some land and many in the village buy a small piece each, including Pahom. He works the land and soon repays his debts but becomes very possessive and seeks to buy more land so he moves to a larger town buying more land and earning more and more money. He has become quite secure but seeks yet more security, more land.

Pahom hears of a nearby people who have plenty of land and are willing to sell so he sets off to negotiate as much land for as little money as he can get. He seeks a bargain. The Bashkirs, however, have an unusual policy of disposing of the land. They offer him as much land as he likes for only 1,000 rubles on one condition: he may steak out as much land as he likes but must return to the exact spot from where he starts within the same day. If he fails to return to the spot, then the Bashkirs will keep the money and all is lost. Pahom is excited as he is a fit man and can cover quite a distance in one day, so he goes to bed to get a good night’s rest.

That night Pahom has a terrible dream. He sees himself lying dead at the feet of the devil who is laughing! The very next morning Pahom sets off at the break of day. He covers a vast swathe of land and notices that the land is getting better and better the further he travels. Soon the sun begins to set and Pahom makes to return to the spot from where he began. It is some way and he has to move quickly to reach the point. Eventually, just as the sun sets he finally makes it and falls face down on the spot from where he started, now totally exhausted. The Bashkirs rejoice at his great triumph but are surprised when Pahom fails to respond. As they roll him over, they see he has died with exhaustion. Pahom is then buried in a grave exactly six feet long – the amount of land perhaps a man needs!

Today’s Gospel is not about need. It is about greed. The man was already rich and had no need of more. Perhaps a telling tale of our times is that we simply don’t know how rich we are. We may worry about the level of debt we now have in our country and yet we were in far harsher economic times just after the war in the 1940s. Everything, it may seem, is relative. What is never relative, however, is that we do well to listen to St Paul’s advice to the Colossians: you must look for the things that are in heaven, where Christ is. Now, how wealthy do we seem in these terms? Suddenly we see that all we possess is as nothing! It is but vanity of vanities, the Preacher says. Vanity of vanities. All is vanity!

O that today you would listen to his voice!

The guilty pleasure of Caravaggio

2010-07-29T23:15:00.008+01:00

Thanks to Rorate Caeli for today's post with a film all about The Taking of Christ by Caravaggio. It was a pleasure to watch, perhaps even a little self indulgent, and wonderful to learn more about both the artist and his work. The film got me to thinking about why I'm such a fan of this sixteenth century Italian painter and, more specifically, his art. Caravaggio's life was, at best, far from the Christian ideal but it was real and it was of it's time and it was what it was. From this God brought forth great pictures that help us to enter into the mystery of his passion. As the film notes, The Taking of Christ is a reflection of the first act of violence which began the passion of our Lord. The film was, as I say, a pleasure to watch and I encourage you to spend some time thinking about the passion of the Lord, perhaps even through the medium of art.

Slow posting - but think about this...

2010-07-28T12:19:00.004+01:00

H/T to Love Undefiled by Robert Colquhoun for this post.

Apologies to our readers for the slow posting of late. Sadly, well not really sadly, I've been rather busy about the Lord's work. This video gives some idea of why I'm busy. It's a great joy to be a priest. Look out for one of the finest statues ever 'released' at 2:46 on the video!

To Be the Balm

2010-07-20T23:11:00.002+01:00

By Fr. Robert Barron

All priests are shaped by the times in which they come of age. Our newly ordained, young-in-service clerics belong to a generation of priests ordained to follow the greatest crisis in the history of American Catholicism, the Long Lent of the clerical sex abuse scandal. They are not responsible for this mess, but, fairly or not, they will carry a good portion of its burden. These men will experience a scrutiny and suspicion that previous generations of priests never did.

My advice to them is this: seize this chance to heal; you are up to the task. In the immediate wake of the scandals in 2002, there was great concern among seminary faculty and administrators that numbers would plunge. Who, after all, would want to sign up for a form of life that was regularly subjected to bitter critique and that seemed, in the eyes of many, to be dysfunctional? And yet you came, and you stayed.

No one could possibly accuse you of seeking an easy life or hiding from your problems. Your very presence and perseverance in the seminary constituted, therefore, a vivid sign that God stubbornly, in season and out, calls people to the priesthood. Don't lose the love that brought you to the seminary, or the grace that saw you through it during a remarkably dark time; instead, deepen the love, broaden it, strengthen it through that grace.

Be strong and holy priests. Remain focused on prayer, both private and public; live your lives with integrity, realizing that you are a priest whether before human eyes, or God's alone; preach with energy and panache; love your people the way parents love their children. The many institutional changes that the church has made in regard to the protection of children are, obviously, indispensible, but they alone will never constitute an adequate response to the scandal. What is crucial is the decency of your generation of priests.

Don't think of this as an unfair expectation, but rather as a thrilling opportunity.

Your priesthood has a great assist in the accessibility of communications technology that men like Billy Graham or Fulton Sheen would have embraced and quickly mastered, to powerful effect. Take advantage of all of this; seize it for the sake of the Gospel. Jesus told us to preach to "all the nations," and Vatican II specified that that the primum officium (first duty) of the priest is to proclaim the Word. Today the average parish priest has the capacity to get the message out 24/7, all around the world. Use new media pro-actively; let the Holy Spirit guide you to the allurement of God's people -- as in Hosea 2:14 -- in bold and sanctifying contrast to the vast wasteland that clutters the mind and warps the soul. Mount a website, get something on YouTube, pod-cast your sermons, post advice on FaceBook and tweet daily. Yes there is always the danger of superficiality, but Fulton Sheen faced that same danger fifty years ago and met it with enormous intelligence and creativity.

I really believe that now is a great time to be a priest. Some of the holiest saints have emerged during periods much like our own, fraught with difficulties and rich in opportunities. Don't shrink from any of it, brothers. Ad multos annos!

Fr. Robert Barron is an award winning author and prominent theologian. His Word on Fire ministry evangelizes using a broad range of new media. George Weigel has said Barron's Catholicism Project "could well become one of the most significant efforts ever to advance what John Paul II called "The New Evangelization." This piece was part of an address delivered to new priests at Rome's Pontifical North American College.

H/t to The Deacon's Bench for leading me to this article on patheos.

St Henry

2010-07-13T17:24:00.002+01:00

Happy Feast, Dad!

What does God ask of me this day

2010-07-11T14:54:00.004+01:00

Readings for the 15th Sunday, Year C

Each Sunday we come to Church and we listen to the Word of God. Perhaps we come to Mass every day and we listen to the Word of God. Maybe we have a bible at home and we read the Word of God. The Word of God is all around us and yet how often do we stop to think about why we have the Word of God. Why is it given such prominence in the liturgy, in our homes , in our schools and in our lives?

The obvious first thought is not so much what is the Word of God but who is the Word of God and that is, as St John’s Gospel teaches us: The Word became flesh; so Jesus is the Word of God. Here, however, I’m talking about Scripture itself. The written words of the Bible which we read and hear proclaimed before us.

The Council Fathers teach us, in a document called Dei Verbum, which is Latin for the Word of God, three clear principles to guide us. Firstly we needed to consider the context in which scripture is written. In other words, whilst God is the author of the bible he speaks to us through the words and writings of humanity. This is portrayed beautifully in Caravaggio’s painting of St Matthew writing the Gospel. An angel whispers into his ear clearly revealing to him what is to be written. It is, however, Matthew's hand which writes the words. In today’s Gospel, Jesus invites us to listen afresh to the parable of the Good Samaritan. A typically Ignatian approach to scripture might be to immerse yourself into the situation which is described. Within the context of this parable we might put ourselves in the place of the Lawyer: are we familiar with our faith, do we seek to test Jesus in some way, perhaps we are deeply searching for something within that will justify why we are the person whom we have become.

Or perhaps we might think what was it like to be the first listener to Jesus as he spoke this parable. What would we have thought of this story? We certainly, within the context of being a first century Jew, would hear the shock of a seemingly impossible hero emerging. The Samaritans were not, as they are today, good people who listen to the woes of others. They were the enemies; they were those who were likely as not to be the attackers, they were certainly not someone upon whom you modelled yourself. Perhaps there are people in our own lives whom we know to be good people yet our culture dictates they are not to be trusted and we, therefore, struggle to accept their heroic virtue.

The second principle to guide us is to consider scripture as a whole. We are, at all costs, to avoid becoming fundamentalists. In other words we are not to take scripture out of context to fit our own agenda. Typically this might be to take the passage an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth to mean that we can take revenge upon someone who has harmed us. People use this kind of fundamentalism to justify their stance of favouring the death penalty. It was Ghandi who is said to have noted the policy of an eye for an eye simply leads to a blind world! When we hear today’s reading from Deuteronomy we could be mistaken for thinking that ‘keeping those commandments and laws of his that are written in the Book of this Law’ meant only the Jewish scripture handed down through Moses, yet that very quote begins ‘obey the voice of the Lord’; a voice we hear proclaimed at every Mass in the Word of God.

Finally, and most importantly, we ask ourselves, what is God teaching us for our salvation? The Word of God, like the totality of our Christian lives, is for the sole benefit of leading us to Heaven. Each and every thought, action and deed is to bring about our salvation, nothing less. This is what God asks of us and teaches us in the Word of God. When we hear scripture today, and every day and in every reading, we ask: Lord what are you teaching me today? St Paul teaches us ‘God wanted... all things to be reconciled through him and for him’.

So ask yourself – what does God ask of me this day?

Fidelity over Success

2010-07-11T14:38:00.004+01:00

H/T to Jeffrey Steel for highlighting the Archbishop of Westminster's recent interview on the BBC Hardtalk programme. You can follow the link here. The iplayer says the programme will be available until 02.07.11 so no rush to watch, but do take the 25 minutes necessary to view. I'm sure it's just in the way the programme is edited but Archbishop Vincent responds well to just about every modern concern about Catholicism which can and is thrown at him. It rather reminded me of dinner parties I have been to when you have to 'defend' the Church. It's a hard struggle, but in the end you're smiling as you are given the great opportunity to express our faith and, in so doing, you bring the light of Christ into the arena.

Jeffrey writes:

This morning I listened to the Hardtalk interview of Archbishop Vincent Nichols. It was so refreshing to see how well he handled himself under the scrutiny of a silly journalism that has occurred since Lent this year concerning the Holy Father. The last statement that he would follow the Pope rather than Tony Blair was fantastic. I am so thankful for Archbishop Nichols and it reminds me of how much we need to pray for him and all our bishops who face the pressures of a society that seeks to pull out the foundation of truth from underneath the Catholic Faith. This whole question and answer session reminded me of a Chesterton quotation where he said, 'Art, like morality has to draw a line somewhere.' This is why the reference to the Church of England was so telling as to why they are not attacked and taken seriously. Conforming to the spirit of the age only shows a lack of substance to the message one claims to deliver as truth but is only counterfeit. That is something that this secularist society is not able to get its head around because it no longer can think logically about truth and its absoluteness. The truth is being attacked at all sides and this is why the Catholic Church is persecuted in the press. The secular media and its bankrupt philosophy can't handle the truth.

Prayer Request

2010-07-10T19:54:00.004+01:00

Whilst I often get asked to remember someone in my prayers, it's not often from a reader of this blog. Therefore, it seems appropriate to ask all the readers of this blog to pray for Courtney. Ask the Lord to be with her, show his presence in her life and bring her comfort during her illness. Perhaps even, through the intercessions of the great saints, Courtney may come to trust in him alone. May Mary be with you in your hour of need and seek the intercession of her mighty Son.

Pallium and Diaconate

2010-07-06T21:48:00.003+01:00

This post is, with permission Your Grace, an opportunity for all within our parish who have been praying for Padraig on his route to priesthood. Padraig is a good friend and, when visiting the parish, has been prayed for fervently within our community. Just recently he came to visit and cooked a wonderful lunch. A great gift to share with needy priests busy about the Lord's work. When I looked, today, at the diocesan website it was great to see Padraig on the front page. So for the many readers within the parish we have the satisfaction of knowing our prayers have been answered and Padraig is, indeed, now a deacon.

We pray, also, for our Archbishop and this photograph is further evidence of an answer to prayer in seeing His Grace with the pallium; bestowed by the Pope last Tuesday.

Yet more anniversaries

2010-07-05T15:34:00.002+01:00

This is the season of ordinations and thus my 'happy anniversary' wishes continue. Today we give thanks for the priesthood of Paul Smith, ordained two years ago, and for David Oakley, ordained thirty years ago! Well done, to both men, and especially to Fr David for his longevity.

To celebrate Fr David's anniversary a few of us enjoyed a rather splendid lunch at The Boathouse in Sutton Coldfield Park. A magnificent setting, but there doesn't seem to be a website to direct you to. Rather an exciting venue to happen upon whilst out meandering the billowing meadows and glens of one of the best parks in the country. It struck me as a nice day out, all told, though I'm bound to say there was no meandering for me. Rather a fast drive up from Coventry right to the door. A repeat visit is a must, not least to have more of that delicious Eynsham Asparagus Mousse and let us not even think about the Chocolate Brandy Cake. Mmm, humm.

Happy Anniversary, Father

2010-07-04T14:04:00.005+01:00

(This is Fr Paul looking over Jerusalem
whilst on pilgrimage to the Holy Land)

Today is the first anniversary of ordination to the priesthood of my one time class mate, Fr Paul Leonard. So let us publicly say, Happy Anniversary, Father.

Rejoice in your gifts

2010-07-03T09:24:00.003+01:00

This remarkable video of Stephen Wiltshire's ability to draw a panorama of Rome from memory of a 45 minutes helicopter ride rejoices in the many gifts which we have from God. I wonder, what special gifts does the Lord present you with?

H/T The Deacon's Bench blog.

Abp Bernard receives the pallium

2010-06-29T19:22:00.009+01:00

How exciting. Our Archbishop, Bernard Longley, has received the Pallium from HH Benedict XVI. You can see him in this video at 1:36, but watch it all - there are other faces to spot!

Fr Andrew Berry OSB

2010-06-29T10:57:00.003+01:00

Fr Andrew Berry OSB, Bishop Tom Burns, Students of Oscott College

Do please pray for a dear friend, Andrew Berry, who was ordained at Belmont Abbey on the feast of the Nativity of John the Baptist. Things are busy at the parish at the moment, hence the lack of posting, so please do remember all here, too, in your prayers.

Insecurity and it's roots.

2010-06-27T13:40:00.002+01:00

FROM THE PASTOR
June 27, 2010
by Fr. George W. Rutler

Insecurity is characteristic of adolescence. Those formative years are a time of figuring out how the self relates to others, moving from self-absorption to self-awareness. There are those who live a lifelong adolescence, whose narcissism, like an orchid living off air, lives off the approval of others. Their desire for self-esteem smothers a mature desire for eternal salvation. Instead of "Have mercy on me a sinner," the perpetual adolescent says, "I want to feel good about myself." Inevitably, that "feel good" approach enslaves the self to the opinions of others. It is the opposite of the glorious maturity of St. Paul, who spoke "not as trying to please men, but rather God, who judges our hearts" (1 Thess. 4).

There is a proper human respect, which is a reverence for others. The immature kind of human respect is a dependency on approval by others. "For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ" (Gal. 1:10).

Some of the most popular cultural figures are those who exploit people's insecurities and make them "feel good" about themselves. Demagogues know how to flatter the spiritually immature into submission, but their intoxicating charisma is a deadly illusion: "Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for that is how their fathers treated the false prophets" (Luke 6:26).

The simmering danger in our political culture is not the deeply flawed people who often get elected, but the immaturity of the people who elect them. "They pursued emptiness, and themselves became empty through copying the nations round them" (2 Kings 17:15).

Pope Benedict XVI recently told ordinands: "He who wants above all to realize an ambition of his own, to achieve a personal success, will always be a slave to himself and public opinion. To be considered, he will have to flatter; he must say what the people want to hear, he must adapt himself to changing fashions and opinions and, thus, he will deprive himself of the vital relationship with the truth, reducing himself to condemning tomorrow what he praises today. A man who plans his life like this, a priest who sees his ministry in these terms, does not truly love God and others, but only himself and, paradoxically, ends up losing himself."

As the Pope practices what he preaches, he is so secure in his service to God, that he does not rely on newspaper editorials or talk-show pundits to craft the Gospel he preaches. What he said to those new priests applies to everyone who seeks spiritual maturity. Self-absorption eventually leads to self-annihilation, but eternal life begins with feeling good about God instead of ourselves. "To know (God's) power is the root of immortality" (Wisdom 15:3).

H/T Fr Tim Finigan at The Hermeneutic of Continuity

Couldn't say it better, so I wont!

Pastoral Letter from Archbishop Bernard Longley

2010-06-26T17:29:00.002+01:00

PASTORAL LETTER

OF THE

ARCHBISHOP OF BIRMINGHAM

THE MOST REVEREND BERNARD LONGLEY

FOR 13^th SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME

27 JUNE 2010

Dear Brother and Sisters in Christ

Earlier this month, on the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Year for Priests drew to a close. Pope Benedict had asked the Church to dedicate a year, beginning in June 2009, to prayer and reflection on the gift of the priesthood. It has given us an opportunity to look again towards Jesus himself, the great High Priest, who has offered the perfect sacrifice to his Father so that we might become holy.

In the course of this year we have given thanks for the way that our Lord shares his priesthood within the Church. Through our baptism we are a priestly people, making an offering of our service day by day. As I begin to know the diocese better I see many examples of this, especially in the worship and liturgical life of parish communities, in the mission of our schools, and in the many and varied pastoral initiatives that reach out to those most in need of help.

All of this is enabled, encouraged and enhanced by the witness and work of the priests of our diocese. This year has helped us especially to thank our Lord for the particular expression of his priesthood in the life and service of each individual priest. He has chosen quite a variety of personalities and characters in whom we can see different and complementary reflections of the one priesthood of our Lord.

During this year we have prayed every day for one of the priests living and working in the diocese, and I know how much our priests have valued these prayers. Many have spoken with gratitude of the letters and phone calls they received reminding them of your prayers and appreciation for their vocation. I too thank you for your prayers in support of our priests.

As the Year for Priests closes I thank all our priests for their love of Christ as the foundation of their lives, their dedication in serving all God’s people and their friendship and support for one another which bears such fruit within the diocese, not least in encouraging vocations.

In this Sunday’s readings we can hear echoes in the ministry of Elijah of the call to priestly service. At the Lord’s prompting Elijah goes to find a “prophet to succeed” him. Elijah’s ministry as prophet is to continue for the benefit of the people and so “Elijah passed near to [Elisha] and threw his cloak over him.” In the same way the priesthood of our Lord has to touch every generation and he has thrown his mantle over those ordained as priests.

Elisha’s first response is both enthusiastic and hesitant – he wants to follow Elijah but finds it hard to cut the ties with his old way of life. Those who are thinking about the priesthood may experience a similar dilemma as our Lord calls them to a new way of life. We pray that they may be generous and wholehearted in their response to Christ’s invitation – they need never feel hesitant about the happiness it brings. I hope that they will feel encouraged to attend the Invocation event at St Mary’s College, Oscott next weekend.

St Luke’s Gospel shows us an important turning point in our Lord’s own life and ministry: “As the time drew near for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely took the road to Jerusalem.” As the great moment of his priestly sacrifice approached the direction of our Lord’s life was set. In a similar way the Lord sets the direction of a man’s life at its deepest level when he is ordained as priest. The rest of his life and ministry is a resolute following along the path marked out by Christ.

As the Year for Priests has shown this is not a solitary journey, for just as on the road to Jerusalem there are companions on the way, those with whom we share all or part of the road. The communities served by our priests are also the communities who encourage and sustain them. Priests lead others to follow the Lord by resolutely following him themselves.

This Tuesday, the feast of St Peter and St Paul, I shall be a pilgrim in Rome and I shall pray at the tomb of the Apostles for all the priests and deacons, religious men and women and lay-faithful of our diocese. I shall pray especially, and with gratitude, for our life and mission together as that part of the Lord’s flock now entrusted to my care.

As a symbol of that care the Holy Father will place the pallium on my shoulders. This little woollen vestment is a reminder of the bonds of love and obedience that unite us with the Successor of Peter and of the responsibility entrusted to me to serve the priests and people of our diocese. As the Year for Priest closes, I hope that I may always serve God’s people faithfully especially through giving time and support to our priests.

Please pray for me this Tuesday as I receive the pallium. Pray also for our priests who wear the mantle of Christ, the Good Shepherd. May we resolutely follow Christ together, and as the summer approaches may you find opportunities to be refreshed and renewed, priests and people of God alike.

+Bernard Longley

Archbishop of Birmingham

Given at Birmingham on the 22 June 2010 and appointed to be read in all Churches and Chapels of the Diocese on the weekend of 26/27 June 2010.

Archbishop to receive the Pallium from Pope Benedict

2010-06-23T09:09:00.002+01:00

This from zenit noting Archbishop Bernard will receive the Pallium from HH Pope Benedict on the feast of Peter and Paul. As will, of course, Archbishop Peter Smith. Do pray for them as they journey to the Eternal City.

VATICAN CITY, JUNE 22, 2010 (Zenit.org).- This feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, Benedict XVI will bestow the pallium on 38 metropolitan archbishops, including 14 from Europe and six from North America.

The Vatican announced today that the Mass in which the prelates will receive the honor will take place at 9:30 a.m. on June 29.

The pallium is a white band embroidered with six black crosses and worn over the shoulders. Worn by the Pope and by metropolitan archbishops, the pallium symbolizes authority and expresses the special bond between the bishops and the Roman Pontiff.

The metropolitan archbishops who will receive the pallium are the following:

South and Central America (6)

-- Luis Cabrera Herrera of Cuenca, Ecuador
-- Fernando Saburido of Olinda e Recife, Brazil
-- Alberto Taveira Corrêa of Belem do Para, Brazil

-- Ricardo Tobón Restrepo of Medellin, Colombia
-- José Domingo Ulloa Mendieta of Panama, Panama
-- Luis Madrid Merlano of Nueva Pamplona, Colombia

Africa (8)

-- Alex Kaliyanil of Bulawayo, Zimbabwe
-- Gerard Tlali Lerotholi of Maseru, Lesotho
-- Gabriel Mbilingi of Lubango, Angola

-- Samuel Kleda of Douala, Cameroon
-- Joseph Atanga of Bertoua, Cameroon
-- Stephen Brislin of Cape Town, South Africa

-- Désiré Tsarahazana of Toamasina, Madagascar
-- Matthias Kobena Nketsiah of Cape Coast, Ghana

North America (6)

-- Albert Legatt of Saint-Boniface, Canada
-- Constancio Miranda Wechmann of Chihuahua, Mexico
-- Carlos Garfias Merlos of Acapulco, Mexico

-- Jerome Listecki of Milwaukee, Wisconsin
-- Dennis Schnurr of Cincinnati, Ohio
-- Thomas Wenski of Miami, Florida

Europe (14)

-- Gualtiero Bassetti of Perugia-Citta della Pieve, Italy
-- Andrea Bruno Mazzocato of Udine, Italy
-- Antonio Lanfranchi of Modena-Nonantola, Italy
-- Luigi Moretti of Salerno-Campagna-Acerno, Italy

-- Juan José Asenjo Pelegrina of Seville, Spain
-- Jesús Sanz Montes of Oviedo, Spain
-- Ricardo Blázquez Pérez of Valladolid, Spain

-- Bernard Longley of Birmingham, England -- Peter David Smith of Southwark, England
-- Anton Stres of Ljubljana, Slovenia

-- Andre-Joseph (Mutien) Leonard of Mechelen-Brussels, Belgium
-- Dominik Duka of Prague, Czech Republic
-- Jozef Kowalczyk of Gniezno, Poland
-- Bernard Bober of Kosice, Slovakia

Asia (4)

-- Socrates Villegas of Lingayen-Dagupan, Philippines
-- Francis Kallarakal of Verapoly, India
-- Hyginus Kim Hee-jong of Kwangju, Korea
-- Pierre Nguyen Van Nhon of Hanoi, Vietnam.

From Basel to Rome

2010-06-22T19:08:00.002+01:00

Some of our readers may be interested to hear from Fr Ray Blake that Bishop Kurt Koch of Basel, Switzerland is on the move to head up the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity, replacing Cardinal Kasper. One wonders if his staff go with him?

St Thomas More

2010-06-22T18:56:00.003+01:00

H/T to Fr. James Farfaglia for pointing us in the direction of Deacon Keith Fournier's excellent article on Catholic Online, which you can read in full here. Deacon Keith writes:

Thomas More showed heroic courage in the face of a State which had lost its soul. He never wavered in his fidelity to the Truth. He would not betray the truth or compromise it on the altar of public opinion for political opportunism. He knew that to do so would not only have dishonored God and led his family and so many others astray, but that it would have given tacit assent to the emerging despotism of his age. Thomas More was brought to trial for his fidelity to the Truth. As is often the case with persecution against Christians, it was framed as a charge against the "positive law". This outstanding lawyer defended the Truth - for which he would later give his life.

One of the many highlights of the Papal Visit, for me, will be when Pope Benedict addresses our Society in Westminster Hall; the same hall in which St Thomas More was found guilty of treason and sentenced to death. How we have moved on since those terrible times.

St Thomas More and St John Fisher, pray for us.

The 'potestas sacra'

2010-06-21T08:19:00.006+01:00

Pope Benedict presided over the ordination of 14 men to the priesthood yesterday in Rome. His full homily is here. This particular point I thought very encouraging for those about to be ordained.

You are granted today, with the sacrament of Holy Orders, to preside at the Eucharist! You are entrusted with the redemptive sacrifice of Christ, you are entrusted with his body that is given and his blood that is shed. Of course, Jesus offers his sacrifice, his humble and total gift of love, to the Church his Bride, on the cross. It was on that wood, that the Father dropped a grain of wheat in the field of the world so that dying it would become mature fruit, the giver of life. But, in God's plan, this gift of Christ is made present in the Eucharist thanks to that "potestas sacra" that the sacrament of Orders confers on you presbyters. When we celebrate Holy Mass we hold in our hands the Bread of Heaven, the Bread of God, which is Christ, the grain broken to multiply and become the true food of life for the world. It is something that cannot but fill you with intimate wonder, lively joy and immense gratitude: Now the love and gift of Christ crucified and glorious, pass through your hands, your voice, your heart! It is an ever new experience of wonder to see that in my hands, in my voice the Lord accomplishes this mystery of his presence!

Please pray for Br Andrew Berry OSB, Michael Collis, Luke Goymour & Michael Puljic who are to be ordained over the next three weeks, and Fr Gary Buckby who was ordained last weekend. Finally, please also pray for Pascal Ravi Bhaskar, Wilfred Joseph & Vincent Aruluandhu, all Sacred Hearth brothers who were ordained deacon yesterday.

God be with you all.

Update Oops, that should be Sacred Heart, not Sacred Hearth. I'm not sure if God would have a fireplace in Heaven, but it raises an interesting theological debate!

Who do you say I am?

2010-06-20T15:58:00.003+01:00

Zech 12:10-11; 13:1, Ps 62, Gal 3:26-29, Lk 9:18-24

“But you: who do you say I am?” How would you personally answer this question? It is interesting that Jesus asks first “who do the crowds say I am?” It is as though he wanted his disciples to know him within the context of those around him. He tells us that we are to take up our cross; if we are to be followers of his. Yes, we have to suffer in this life. It’s a mystery but first, however, we have to ask ourselves: who do you say I am? Leave your cross, your troubles, your anxieties, your fears to one side and ask yourself, who is Jesus?

This is a fundamental question in our lives and there is, of course, no right or wrong answer. Now, I always find when someone says there is no right or wrong answer they mean, well there is a better answer, one which I would prefer you to answer, but its okay if you get it wrong. This cannot be the case with who Jesus is, simply because Jesus is who he is and he is not subject to who we think he is. In the same way as your brother, or your friend is who he is and will not be anything other than who he is. He will never be who you want him to be, rather he is who is and what can and does change is your relationship with him. In other words, Jesus is not dependent upon what we think of him.

Because of this uniqueness of Jesus, who you say he is will be your relationship to him. Yes, Jesus reveals himself, through Peter as “the Christ of God” and we know much about him through the Tradition of the Church and through Holy Scripture. But Jesus has already established that there is a wider understanding of who he is revealed for us around us, most notably in the Church; all baptised in Christ, no distinction between Jew and Greek, all the promised heirs of Abraham. This question is not for the Church to answer, per se, but for you to answer. So again, at the risk of boring myself, never mind you, “who do you say I am?”

So let me share just one thought of who Jesus is for me. He is God, the Almighty, He is the only way to the Father, He is the one pierced upon the cross, the one who died for my sins. He is the one who loves me beyond all loving. Loves me far in excess of anything I could hope to return. Yet he is the one to whom I turn in my hour of need, the one who I long to be with, the one who all my life I yearn for. He is my God.

Later today I will have the indescribable honour of carrying my God in Procession, and whilst we await his coming presence reflect awhile upon some of the most beautiful words in the whole of scripture:

O God, you are my God, for you I long;

for you my soul is thirsting.

My body pines for you

like a dry, weary land without water.

So I gaze on you in the sanctuary

to see your strength and your glory.

For your love is better than life;

my lips will speak your praise.

So I will bless you all my life,

in your name I will lift up my hands.

My soul shall be filled as with a banquet;

my mouth shall praise you with joy.

For you have been my help:

in the shadow of your wings I rejoice.

My soul clings to you;

your right hand holds me fast.

“But you: who do you say I am?”

Confirmation

2010-06-19T18:17:00.003+01:00

Please pray for all the children of our parish who have, today, received the Sacrament of Confirmation. It is, of course, a once in a life time experience for them. It was a wonderful celebration and we thank Bishop Kenney for being with us.

World Youth Day Stations for Madrid 2011

2010-06-17T16:30:00.005+01:00

Right now there is a not a lot of time to be posting on this blog, but you're all being kept in my prayers.

Meanwhile, here's the stations of the cross planned for Madrid 2011. I'm not going to be in Madrid for WYD (just think Spain in August; heat; and me!) but nonetheless these stations will be awe inspiring, I'm sure. They are so typically Spanish and remind me much of Holy Week in Valladolid. Ah, to return.

Enjoy, if that's the right word. Alternatively, just pray. Pray and enjoy!

Inspiring call to the priesthood

2010-06-16T17:26:00.002+01:00

H/T to The Deacon's Bench for this inspiring tale of a priest called in the midst of the misery of his uncle's murder.

From suburban Maryland comes this story of how the murder of a priest inspired his nephew to pursue his own vocation.

The chalice Thomas Wells used in mass for 29 years will go with his nephew on Sunday when David Wells takes over as priest of his own parish. The chalice was passed down to David by his family who thought his uncle would want him to have it.

In a Father's Day Mass on Sunday, David Wells said, he will speak of the lessons he learned from his uncle, who was a father figure to many people.

"My uncle was definitely a spiritual father and he led many people to a spiritual maturity through his words and scripture," he said. "My own dad, who has the same passion for the Catholic faith, raised me and prepared me for the day when I would become a priest."

Simplicity, Honesty & Joy - the core values of the Priesthood

2010-06-14T20:53:00.002+01:00

Close of the Year for Priests - An interview with Archbishop Vincent Nichols from Catholic Westminster on Vimeo.

The Archbishop of Westminster speaks on the core values of the priesthood and other matters, including the forthcoming grace of the beatification of Cardinal Newman - an English Parish Priest.

H/T Da Cura Animarum

Coventry Blessed Sacrament Procession

2010-06-13T20:05:00.003+01:00

The Dean, Canon Garry Byrne, blesses the City of Coventry

Perhaps not of interest to all, but the photograph's of the Coventry Deanery Blessed Sacrament Procession are now available on the Deanery Website. You can view the photographs here and the deanery website here.

God's love for us

2010-06-13T19:09:00.002+01:00

Click here for the Readings

11th Sunday, Year C

It is tempting when we first hear our readings today to focus on sin and forgiveness. Perhaps I might labour the need for us to be ever mindful of the Sacrament of Confession; but I suspect you have heard this often enough over the years. Rather, I think there is mileage in reflecting upon love.

In our first reading we hear God, speaking through Nathan, who tells David exactly what he has done for him. We hear of the many wonderful gifts which the Almighty has lavished upon David, and then, astonishingly, God says “and if this were not enough, I would add as much again for you.” God speaks these words to you now. There is simply no length which God will not go to demonstrate his love for you.

We can easily identify that Jesus loves us to the point of his death, quite literally upon the cross, but there is another aspect to this. God, the Father, gave his Son that we might be saved. God gave his Son. The Father allowed his Son to suffer in terrible pain and humiliation because he loved you so much! And if this were not enough, I would add as much again for you.

Put the love of God into this context and you can begin to realise the haunting words of God come down to you now through the centuries: Why have you shown contempt for the Lord? For this is what sin is, it is utter contempt for one who loves you beyond all measure.

It reminds me of a friend of mine, who is a priest, who took advantage of the opportunity to go to Confession whilst on pilgrimage to Rome. He went into the box which was headed up English and began by saying the usual: forgive me, Father, for I have sinned. It has been x weeks since my last Confession. I am a priest and these are my sins. He promptly rattled off his sins, which to be fair were not excessive and awaited the counsel of the Confessor. The response was prompt and cut straight to the point: Why do you spit on the face of Christ?

Harsh though this is; it is the truth. Sometimes I can be so focussed on MY sin, on what I have done, or not done, what I have said or not said, what I have thought or failed to consider that I forget the effect upon Jesus. It is as though I have focussed on the shock of spitting on the face of Christ and missed the hurt in his eyes. Of course as soon as I see the eyes, the tears welling and the harsh reality of the effect I have caused I’m torn with guilt.

The psalmist understands all too well the frailty of human beings. He begs: forgive, Lord, the guilt of my sins. Admitting we have done something is, relatively speaking, easy compared to admitting our guilt in the situation. The language of love, on the other hand, is simple. I love you. We don’t say: when you look at me in such a way as to make me feel great and leave me feeling like I want to laugh out loud, to hug you and to kiss you and within me this evokes a feeling of wishing to reciprocate because to not do so may mean that I am not being entirely honest with myself, nor you for that matter and so I feel compelled to look at you in the same way. No. We simply say I love you and this is everything.

Now ask yourself this simple question. Does God love you? Does God love you? The answer should be short and sweet. If you answered no: go and speak to a priest, or someone who can offer you assurance. If you answered well probably, but I’m not certain and anyway how can any of us be certain but on balance then he probably does: God puts no conditions on his love for you so why do you put conditions on your acceptance of the love of God? If you answered yes: your faith has saved you; go in peace.

Priesthood and The Eucharist

2010-06-06T14:22:00.003+01:00

Without the priesthood there can be no Eucharist. It’s worth a moment or two to pause and to reflect upon this statement. Without the priesthood there can be no Eucharist. It is a bold assertion and not so popular in a world which seeks to be all things to all men. To hold to the clear and unequivocal teaching of the Church that only a priest can celebrate the Eucharist is, indeed, both a challenge and a comfort. Let’s hear what the Council fathers taught us:

"In the mystery of the Eucharistic sacrifice…the priests exercise their principal function…because the priests alone have received from Christ Himself the formidable power to render present, sacramentally, His Body and His Blood, to perpetuate through the centuries the sacrifice of the Cross."

As we approach, now, the close of the Year for Priests it is fitting that our reflection upon the Body and Blood of Christ should be within the context of today’s readings. Seemingly from nowhere comes the king and priest Melchizedek. Just as surely he disappears from our view and yet much ink has been spilt in trying to learn what God reveals to us in this mysterious person. He is a foretaste of the Christ to come. He is, in so many ways, like Jesus himself. His prominence is beyond doubt. Even our great Father in Faith, Abraham, recognises in Melchizedek the priest of God Most High and gives him one tenth of everything. Such is the love for the priest that we happily give 10% of all we have. It is a wonderful tradition of our Church that priests remain entirely dependent upon the people of God; it helps to keep us grounded and humbled.

All this hype of the value of the priest, however, can easily make us anything but humble. Recent scandals merely reveal the all too oft realisation that priests are only human and prone to err. Let us not, however, allow ourselves to be detracted from just how wonderful is the gift of the priesthood. Why is this so? Why is the priest held in such high regard? Why do you love your priests?

This is what I received from the Lord, and in turn passed on to you. These words of St Paul to the Corinthians should be at the forethought of every action of every priest in every age. Why so: simply because it is what Jesus told us. Do this in memory of me. In these words he not only instituted the Eucharist as the memorial of his Body and Blood, he also instituted the Priesthood to enable his beloved children to receive regularly this nourishment in their life: this strength which is beyond compare.

Thomas a Kempis wrote: "What a wonderful mystery is this great dignity of priests, to whom is given that which is not given even to the angels! Priests alone, being rightfully ordained in the Church, receive the power to celebrate and to consecrate the Body of Christ." This is why we love our priests. This and this alone is why the priesthood is. You would be mistaken if you think I mean by this that the priest’s existence is merely to celebrate Mass. Rather it is what the Mass is and it is nothing less than God himself coming amongst us in the real presence of his body and blood.

So the priest, then, brings to us the presence of God. This is the way we can judge our priests. Do they bring to us God? The celebration of the Mass, however, is also the means by which the priesthood is nourished. Jesus not only teaches us about our salvation through the celebration of the Mass, but he himself comes to us as the means of our salvation. This is why we need to regularly come to Mass. To share in his saving work; for the priest this has long been recommended a daily sacrifice and for the faithful we are ordered to weekly feed at the table of the Lord, at least. If we do not eat and drink, then it is but a matter of time before we will show the effects of malnutrition, we become ill, and we will eventually die. The Eucharist is no different. It is not only the real presence of Jesus; it is real food and drink to sustain our spirit.

Today of all days thank God for the great gift of the priesthood. Thank God for the most Holy Eucharist. Thank God for our daily bread.

Priesthood

2010-06-02T10:43:00.003+01:00

Over the past few days we have been praying using the words of Cardinal Newman. Now I would like us to think about the priesthood in these last few days of the Year for Priests.

Kicking us off is Archbishop Dolan who was talking at Maynooth seminary in Ireland. There is an interview available on the Irish Bishops' website, here, but I'm unable to embed the video onto this blog. You have to click and watch.

Also available is the full text of his speech, again available here. This is an extract:

As a priest we are called to be configured to Christ as priest, head, and shepherd of His Church. Never was Jesus more priest, head, and shepherd of the Church than when He was on the cross. We priests don’t whine with the thief on the left, “Get down off your cross and get me down off mine.” Nope. We’re like Dismas who tells the Lord, “I’m happy to be next to you on Calvary.”

...

The late, great John Paul II went hoarse teaching us that the priesthood is a dramatic, radical reordering of a man’s very life, his soul, his heart, his identity, and that we’re much better off looking at fathers and husbands for metaphors of priesthood than we are at professions.

Thus, the priesthood is a call, not a career; a redefinition of self, not just a ministry; a
way of life, not a job; a state of being, not a function; a permanent, lifelong commitment, not a temporary style of service; an identity, not a role. (By the way, the loss of this, what we call “ontological” appreciation of priesthood applies as well to marriage, religious life, and, for that matter, to Christian, ecclesial identity conferred in baptism, but you didn’t ask me to speak on that.)

If the very value of my priestly vocation depends on what I do, where I’m assigned, how the people affirm me, how my bishop treats me, what the newspapers report about us, what horrible sins brother priests may have committed, what negligence was shown by their bishops, how much I get out of it, or how high or low morale may be at a given time -- if the very value of our priesthood depends upon those external forces, however dominant they may be; if, in a word, my value depends on what I do, sooner or later we’ll get frustrated, cynical, exhausted, crabby, bored, and tempted. Our value must come from who we are.

A Prayer to the Eternal God

2010-06-01T08:36:00.000+01:00

To possess you, Lover of Souls, is happiness, and the only happiness of the immortal soul. To enjoy the sight of you is the only happiness of eternity. What can give me happiness but you? To see you, to contemplate you, this alone is inexhaustible. You indeed are unchangeable, yet in you there are always more glorious depths and more varied attributes to search into; we shall ever be beginning as if we had never gazed upon you. How far am I from acting according to what I know so well! Rouse me from sloth and coldness, and make me desire you with my whole heart.

John Henry Newman

All generations shall call be blessed.

2010-05-31T09:57:00.003+01:00

Happy Anniversary
Father Harries

A Hymn of Praise

2010-05-31T07:45:00.001+01:00

Praise to the Holiest in the height,
And in the depth be praise,
In all his words more wonderful,
Most sure in all his ways.

John Henry Newman, Dream of Gerontius

A Prayer for a Happy Death

2010-05-30T07:40:00.000+01:00

May He support us all the day long, till the shades lengthen, and the evening comes, and the busy world is hushed, and the fever of life is over, and our work is done. Then in His mercy may He give us a safe lodging, and a holy rest, and peace at the last.

John Henry Newman

A Prayer for Consolation

2010-05-29T07:34:00.001+01:00

My God, let me never forget that seasons of consolations are refreshments here, and nothing more. Here they are only intended to prepare us for doing and suffering. I pray you, my God, to give them to me from time to time, lest I go about my daily work in a dry spirit; but let me not rest in them. Let me use them for the purpose for which you give them. Let them carry me forward to the thought and the desire of heaven.

John Henry Newman

A Prayer of Surrender

2010-05-28T08:27:00.002+01:00

My Lord and Saviour, in your arms I am safe; keep me and I have nothing to fear; give me up and I have nothing to hope for. I pray you not to make me rich, I pray you not to make me very poor; but I leave it all to you, because you know and I do not. If you bring pain or sorrow on me, give me grace to bear it well. If you give me health and strength and success in this world, keep me ever on my guard lest these great gifts carry me away from you. Give me ever to aim at setting forth your glory; to live to and for you; to set a good example to all around me; give me to die just at that time and in that way which is most for your glory, and best for my salvation.

John Henry Newman

A Prayer to the Holy Spirit, the Fount of Love

2010-05-27T08:22:00.002+01:00

My God, I adore you, as the Third Person of the Ever-Blessed Trinity. You are that Living Love, wherewith the Father and the Son love each other. And you are the Author of supernatural love in our hearts. Increase in me this grace of love, in spite of all my unworthiness. It is more precious than anything else in the world. I accept it in place of all the world can give me. It is my life.

John Henry Newman

Augustine of Canterbury

2010-05-27T00:04:00.005+01:00

One of our patronal solemnities in the parish. Please pray for one of our primary schools, under his holy protection, for our staff and students and all those who contribute to the welfare of our children. St Augustine of Canterbury, Pray for Us.

Also known as St. Augustine the Less to distinguish him from his illustrious namesake from Hippo. Augustine was chosen by Pope Gregory the Great as leader of the mission sent from Rome for the evangelisation of the English. He landed in the Isle of Thanet in the Spring of AD 597 and, within a year, Aethelbert, King of Kent, was baptised with several thousand of his subjects.

The foundation of Canterbury Cathedral was laid five years later, supposedly, on the site of an old Roman Church. Augustine was consecrated by Vergilius, Archbishop of Arles and became the first Archbishop of Canterbury.

The alienation between the British Church and the Italian missionaries might have been averted had Augustine recognised the consideration that was due to the Church which had existed in Britain for three centuries, and had been more tolerant of the diversity between British and Roman usage.

He had laid the foundation stone of the Monastery of St. Peter & St. Paul outside Canterbury, later known as St. Augustine's, in the year of his arrival and here he was buried. He died on 26th May, traditionally in AD 604, but possibly as late as 609.

Edited from G.M. Bevan's "Portraits of the Archbishops of Canterbury" (1908).

H/T Early British Kingdoms

St Philip Neri

2010-05-26T13:50:00.003+01:00

Today, of course, we recall the great life of St Philip Neri and ask him to intercede for us. ICN are carrying some details on the founder of the Oratorians here. This paragraph struck me:

Often described as the 'Second Apostle of Rome' Philip however did not escape criticism. Some were shocked by his friendliness and informality. He said that the path of perfection was for laypeople as much as for the clergy and religious. He preached more about love and spiritual integrity than physical austerity. He was very fond of cats.

A wonderful thought - this kindly and funny bastion of orthodoxy, bringer of love and stroker of cats!

Benedict XVI's UK Visit: 114 Days to Go

2010-05-26T13:37:00.004+01:00

This update from zenit, here and below, got me to thinking about countdowns. Does anyone know of a blogspot countdown available to upload? It's a technical issue which some may know about. When this blog started there was a countdown until ordination - it would be nice to have a countdown until HH Benedict comes to town.

Benedict XVI's UK Visit: 114 Days to Go

Pope Will Address Entire British Society

LONDON, MAY 25, 2010 (Zenit.org).- The United Kingdom is counting down the days until Benedict XVI's September 16-19 visit.

Monsignor Andrew Summersgill, a Papal visit coordinator, noted some of the most recent preparations in a press release publicized today by the bishops' conference of England and Wales.

"This week," he said, "my thoughts centered on what the Pope's going to do in Westminster Hall."

The Pontiff's address will be "quite a splendid occasion [...] as it will be a gathering of people from across Britain representing all the different strands of British society who will be brought together in order to listen to what Pope Benedict has to say to contemporary society," the priest stated.

He continued, "So although it's in Westminster Hall, it's not addressed solely and exclusively to parliamentarians -- in fact, properly, it's not -- it's the whole of British society coming together."

Monsignor Summersgill noted that although the exact itinerary of the Holy Father's visit has not been released, it is expected sometime "between six to eight weeks" of his arrival.

He explained, "The Holy See's normal way of doing these things is to publish, on its own Web site, the line-by-line itinerary."

The priest encouraged people to go to the Vatican's Web site and look at previous apostolic journey schedules that show "where the Pope has been and the itineraries he has followed."

"They talk about his arrival times at places, how he moves around, the time he spends at places and they're quite interesting," Monsignor Summersgill said. "We would expect to have that detail available somewhere between six and eight weeks before Pope Benedict gets here."

--- --- ---

On the Net:

Apostolic journeys: http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/travels/index_outside-italy_en.htm

Papal U.K. visit: http://thepapalvisit.org.uk/

A Holy Communion Prayer

2010-05-26T08:18:00.003+01:00

My God, teach me so to live, as one who does believe the great dignity, the great sanctity of that material frame in which you have lodged me. And therefore, O my dear Saviour! do I come so often and so earnestly to be partaker of your Body and Blood, that by means of your own ineffable holiness I may be made holy. Crucify my soul and body in all that is sinful in them, and make me pure as you are pure.

John Henry Newman

25,000

2010-05-25T20:21:00.003+01:00

There you have it. 25,000 Visitors in a little over a year. Who would have thought it? Thanks to one and all for your support, prayers, kindness and encouragement.

STB, ah, them were the days....

2010-05-25T14:32:00.003+01:00

I am uniting myself in pain with all those who are undertaking the STB, especially my brothers at Oscott. It is but a distant memory now, but how we laughed afterwards!

Fascinated to read on wiki the following:

STB is an acronym that can mean:

Sacrae Theologiae Baccalaureus – Bachelor of Sacred Theology
Set-top box – a television device that converts signals to viewable images
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP -- a law firm
Singapore Tourism Board
IATA Simplifying the Business
Sonia Tetlow Band – an Atlanta based Rock band
Spin the bottle – a party game
Státní bezpečnost or StB – the secret police in Communist Czechoslovakia
STB (Channel) – (Ukrainian: СТБ) television channel in Ukraine
STB Technologies – a defunct manufacturer of PC graphics cards
Strut Tower Brace - a structural bar designed to increase chassis rigidity in vehicles.
Stubaitalbahn - narrow-gauge tram line between Innsbruck and Fulpmes
Sumitomo Trust and Banking – a trust bank in Japan
Surface Transportation Board – the successor to the U.S. Interstate Commerce Commission

There you go, guys, there must be at least half an hour to be wasted checking out all these sites!

Prayers for you!

A Prayer to the Unchangeable God

2010-05-25T08:06:00.000+01:00

I know, my God, I must change; if I am to see your face. I must undergo the change of death. Body and soul must die to this world. My real self, my soul, must change by a true regeneration.

Support me, as I proceed in this great, happy change, with the grace of your unchangeableness. Whatever fortune I have, be I rich or poor, healthy or sick, with friends or without, all will turn to evil if I am not sustained by the Unchangeable; all will turn to good if I have Jesus with me, yesterday and today the same, and for ever.

John Henry Newman