A priest legend goes to his reward

Thanks to Fr Tim Finigan for posting on the death of Fr Hugh Thwaites SJ.

I never met Fr Thwaites but our paths crossed closely several times. From all accounts he was a giant of a priest in the spiritual sense and one who never ceased to fearlessly offer up the sacrifice of the Latin Mass and to spread the word of Christ's teachings wherever he found himself.


This is from a talk he gave on the demonic.....may Almighty God have mercy on his soul and may he rest in peace, Amen.

Traditionally black with a white collar - hard to beat!

Instantly recognisable and best consumed facing.........well any direction really.

"What will you do with my heart O Welsh Assembly?"

Anyone who has a fascination for dull, tedious and boring occupations (such as watching paint dry or waiting for a stone to move) may also be interested in observing the Welsh Assembly Government in action (if that is the right word) on their televised proceedings.

It is as though all those charged with the welfare and education of us poor sinners in Wales, are being drip fed on Mogadon and Prozac.

Proceedings are slow and cumbersome and they all address each other by Christian  first name and that just leads to an unchallenging and dull environment and outcomes.

But, someone must have given them a caffeine boost because they (the Assembly Members - AMs) are now
determined to lay claim to our fundamental organs, heart, liver, lungs, kidneys and are proposing to make it legitimate for the state to grab whichever bit of us they fancy after our death (hopefully, after our death, that is).

They have no right to do this and so, if you are a Welsh man or woman or, like me a poor Sais living in Wales, you might care to protest at such a Maoist policy.

If so, please read this and make your views felt by registering a protest - thank you SPUC and thank you Jeff P for bringing it to my notice.

Please click HERE

Where the FIUV went wrong

                           Would you eat this one hour before receiving
                                  the Body and Blood of Our Lord?

There has been a bit of a flurry in the past few days over mention of a possible return to the 3 hour fast before Holy Communion as documented by the FIUV.

Australia Incognita, Fr Ray, Mulier Fortis and Joseph Shaw all remarked on the matter and there was some discussion about those who showed outrage at this Draconian approach that will  return us to the Dark Ages.

Well, the normal politician's wheeze aimed at getting approval from whatever committee they might be attempting to bring round to their own point of view,  is to first suggest a drastic solution.

In this case it could have been a return to the Midnight Fast - aaargh!

Those outraged faithful in Tonbridge Wells, and Fitzroy would have gone apoplectic.

And then....in you come with the fall-back solution of a return to the 3 hour fast which all, greatly relieved that they are not going to be asked to go without their Sunday fry ups, accept as a good compromise.

There are, of course, many from the traditional part of HMC who already observe the 3 hour rule....is smugness a sin? I think so.

But....I well recall the days of the Midnight fast and how, as an altar server at the 10.30am Sung Mass, along with my fellow servers, we used to count the crashes throughout Mass as members of the congregation fainted.
There were normally at least two or three; sometimes more if there was a long sermon.

Ah......the good old days.

The OF Mass can be reverent....but it is different

This brief video clip sensibly sets out to highlight the differences between the Ordinary Form of Mass and the Extraordinary Form.

It could be accused of being simplisitic in its presentation of the two Masses but I was left with the view that, although much preferring the Latin Mass, I would attend Mass in the vernacular if it was celebrated in a reverent and holy fashion.

But, in the light of rumours concerning a new traditional rite being formulated and the EF Mass being celebrated versus populum I'm keeping my powder dry - see The Eponymous Flower's post on the subject.

Blessed Titus Brandsma and his life

This is a video made of a presentation given on Bl Titus Brandsma by the Prior Provincial of the British Province of Carmelites, Fr Wilfred McGreal, O. Carm.

As a presentation it is deeply flawed (in my view) but see what you make of it (my critical points are listed below) - I'm afraid I opted out after four minutes.

Here is my list of 'don't do' things when presenting:-

1. Wear a tie, it looks sloppy if you don't and, if you are a priest wear a collar - essential
2. Never sit, stand when you are introduced and stand to make your presentation
3. Look your audience in the eye - difficult if you are seated with them
4. If your presentation is being filmed avoid hand movements in front of the face
5. Don't make your audience uncomfortable by having to twist around to face you - stand in front of them

Oh, and for a number 6 - never wear socks with sandals

EF Mass? OF Mass? EF Mass? OF Mass?

EF Mass?.....................

OF Mass?.....................

...............Oh, I think that it has to be EF Mass, don't you?

Is the magic circle starting to go pear shaped?

First we have Bishop Mark Davies putting an orthodox stamp on Shrewsbury Diocese, then his Lordship's right hand man, Monsignor Philip Egan, an orthodox man according to the pundits is appointed Bishop of poor old Portsmouth Diocese and now, the Bishop of Lancaster, the Rt Reverend Michael Campbell, successor to the acclaimed Archbishop O'Donoghue, has drawn a line in the sand as far as teachers in Catholic schools are concerned and asked them to make a public profession of faith.

This has resulted in shrieks from the left wing press and cries of "McCarthyism rules again".

I don't quite get that; wasn't McCarthy anti communist?

 Is it just the act of asking people to come clean about their beliefs that results in such emotive language?

What is wrong, precisely, with wishing to know where those who are in charge of educating and informing the young stand?

Isn't that where the Catholic Education Council and the Bishops of England and Wales have gone so very wrong over the past forty or so years?

They appear to prefer a sort of grey sludge and mediocrity delivery of religious education as opposed to orthodoxy and clarity.
The thing I was always brought up to believe is that theology is black and white, no room for dissembling or equivocation.

So now, out of circa 28 Bishops in England and Wales, for the first time since Vatican II we appear to have a growing number of good men who are not prepared to toe the party line.

That's getting on for 11% - maybe not a great statistic but a damn sight better than zero.

And, with more appointments looming, and the good offices of the Papal Nuncio, Archbishop Mennini, we may hope to see that number of good men increase dramatically.

Who knows, given time and the works of the Holy Spirit, the magic circle could disappear in a puff of smoke?

A sin sensor would be helpful

                                                         "Ribit - ribit"


Having something of a problem with vermin such as foxes, stoats, weasels, cats and squirrels who all seem hell bent on eating my bantams or destroying the birdlife of my garden I fell totally for a plastic frog on the shelves of my local poundstore.

Not just any old common or garden plastic frog but one that incorporates a motion sensor so that, if a warm blooded being passes in front of it....it croaks, loudly and scares the living daylights out of the potential  predator.

Sadly, not being a classicist, it makes a "Ribit-ribit" sound rather than a "Koax-koax" one but, as Deng  Xiaoping once said: "I don't care if it's a white cat or a black cat as long as it catches mice" - are you still with me on this trot through the animal kingdom?

So now, I have invested in a few of these frogs, guard frogs, really (ugh!) and dotted them around the orchard so that any unsuspecting carnivore will get the shock of its life and skedaddle for good.

Sadly, the signs are (don't ask) that the vermin are still around - but one of the frogs certainly gave Mrs Linen the fright of her life as she was strolling through the garden.
Note to self: 'Speak to wife more often'.

It did strike me, however, that it would be a wondrous thing if we had some sort of inbuilt sensor that would emit a loud "ribit" just as we were about to commit a sin.

 Just as you reach for that extra Krispy Kreme doughnut - "RIBIT" - just one more tot before bed? "RIBIT" - about to poke fun at one of those charismaticky Catholics and double "RIBIT".

In fact, it's such a sound idea that I'm surprised that the CDF hasn't commissioned some implant research so that we could all have one.
Imagine, the confessionals would be empty (except that they're already empty), purgatory would become a distant memory (it's already a distant memory as far as Catholic education is concerned) and sin would be a thing of the past.

Ooops! Sorry, forgot that sin is already a thing of the past!

Forget it. Who needs reminding about sin anyway? "RIBIT"

The Assumption Mass on film

The only Sung Mass in Wales on the great feast of The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary was held at the church of The Sacred Heart, Morriston.

Celebrant was Fr Jason Jones. Apologies for the sound on this clip, a few wows and flutters off stage.

Every home should have a crucifix....and every Catholic workplace too

As well as being a source of spiritual comfort and a reminder to pray, a crucifix lends  a home a certain ambience.
It makes a statement.

Among other things, it states that you are Catholic and unafraid to be so.

It would be good if more Catholic shops, warehouses and factories displayed a crucifix.

The above picture is of my son's studio in Australia.

Behold, O Kind and most sweet Jesus, before Thee I humbly kneel, and with the most fervent desire of my soul, I pray and beseech Thee to impress upon my heart lively sentiments of faith, hope and charity, true contrition for my sins and a firm   purpose of amendment. 

With deep affection and grief of soul, I ponder within myself, mentally contemplating Thy five wounds, having before my eyes the words which David the Prophet spoke concerning Thee: 

 "They have pierced my hands and my feet, they have numbered all my bones."

A plenary indulgence is granted on each Friday of Lent and Passiontide to the faithful who, after Communion, piously recite the above prayer before an image of Christ crucified; on other days of the year the indulgence is partial."

The Bride washed clean

Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

You and the ark of your strength

by Fr Leon Pereira O.P.

When you receive a gift, are you the sort of person who keeps the box? A child's instinct seems correct: to tear off the coverings and get at the gift, for it is the gift that matters. But if you had a truly special gift, from someone special, you might be tempted to keep the box as well for sentimental reasons.

But what if the gift and the giver were God himself? What would you do with the box?

In his Gospel, Luke presents Mary as a box. To be precise, he portrays Mary as the ark of the covenant, as that box-like container which held the Ten Commandments inscribed in stone.

The ark held three things which are all symbols of Jesus. First, the Ten Commandments, the foundation of God's covenant with his people. But Jesus is the mediator of the new and eternal covenant (Heb 9:15). Second, manna, the bread from heaven with which God fed his people in the desert. But Jesus is the true and living bread from heaven (John 6:48-50). Third, Aaron's staff which budded and flowered, a symbol of Aaron being chosen as priest. But Jesus is the great High Priest, the Shoot sprouting from the stump of Jesse (Isa 11:1).

Just as the contents of the ark prefigure Jesus, so the ark itself prefigures Mary. The ark contained the old covenant, but in her womb Mary carried the New Covenant.

As the ark was overshadowed by the divine glory (Ex 40:34), so Mary is overshadowed by the 'power of the Most High' (Lk 1:35). King David leapt and danced before the ark (2 Sam 6:12-6), and likewise John the Baptist leaps in his mother's womb at Mary's greeting. The ark stayed for three months at the house of Obed-Edom, causing an increased fecundity in that family (2 Sam 6:11). Mary stays with Elizabeth for three months, and Mary's pregnancy is the reason for Elizabeth herself having conceived.

Faced with the ark, David said,

Who am I that the ark of the Lord should come to me? (2 Sam 6:9)

Likewise Elizabeth tells Mary,

Who am I that the mother of my Lord should come to me? (Lk 1:43)

In the first reading, the ark is seen in heaven, juxtaposed with the woman clothed with the sun, the woman who gives birth to the Word of God. Mary is truly seen as a new ark, the ark of the new and eternal covenant.

The loss of the original ark was a great blow to the people of Israel, for the ark was the guarantee of the special presence of God with his people. Where the ark was, God was present there in a special way.

In Jesus, God is present in a truly special way. For in Jesus, the fullness of the divinity dwells bodily. Jesus is God-made-man, and so in Mary, the ark of the new covenant, God is fully present in space and time. Mary is the guarantee of the reality that God has become a human being, that God is present to his people -- and this time forever.

Since the covenant of our salvation is eternal, it is fitting that the ark of this new covenant should not be lost as the old one was. Mary, as the new ark, is removed from the caprices and changeability of the earth, and placed as a celestial witness of the fulfilment of God's faithfulness to his covenant.

But Our Lady is more than a box. She is a human being, and a thoroughly redeemed one. In her God has achieved perfectly what he desires for us all.

Mary represents the people of God through the ages. She is the Virgin Daughter of Sion, longing for the coming of the Lord. She is the Church, the bride washed clean without spot or wrinkle.

In her, God has triumphed utterly over sin and death, as a foretaste of that same victory which he will achieve in us all who hope in his mercy. In her at least one part of the Church already shares completely in the triumph of Christ. In Christ, God's gift of himself to us is so special, that even the box it comes in is worth keeping and glorifying.

Published with the kind permission of www.torch.op.org