St Philip's Books
Before leaving Oxford yesterday, I took a short walk down St Aldate's to visit my good friend Christopher Zealley at St Philip's Books. Above you can see the entrance to the gallery in which the shop is located.
Inside, the shop is graced with a splendid Jacobean fireplace and plaster work ceiling
Among other things, I picked up a good copy of the Vesperale Romanum published by Desclée. I will have to wait for it: my suitcase was already so heavy with the various things I had to bring to demonstrate the celebration of the usus antiquior that I asked Christopher to send the books on.
There is an enquiry form at the bookshop's website if you want to get a printed catalogue. You can, of course, browse the titles on the website itself.
7 comments:
Oooo, looks like I've found my favourite English bookshop before even arriving.
Though I don't know how often I'm going to be able to get down to Oxford.
Well, all I need now is a hairdresser and a place to live and I'm set.
Say, Fr. Tim. I just tried to send you an email to your freeuk email address and it bounced back. Could you please send me something so I have your new address?
Interesting stuff by John Allen about the "neo-Cath" phenomenon and some stuff about the Tablet on the future of Catholic education in UK.
Hilary - the email address is still the same one. Try sending me a message selling pharmaceuticals at cut prices or some get rich quick scheme - they all seem to get through :-( (Let me know if any more bounce, though.)
Thanks for the tip-off about John Allen. I have about a million posts unread on bloglines after being away a bit and it is good to know where there is some interesting stuff.
Always wondered where this bookshop was. Thanks for explaining..sounds wonderful..
Wow - I've lost count of the times I've visited St Philip's (my oldest son't just finished his second year, so I'm up and down to & from Oxford pretty frequently), and I never noticed the ceiling or the fireplace...only the books!
Well, Fr. Here's the link to the thing about Catholic education.
It's written by a Canadian, John Borst, about Ontario's Catholic schools and includes a link to the John Allen piece. It also refers to a thing in the Tablet talking about the future of Catholic education in Britain under the SOR's.
http://tomorrowstrust.ca/?p=824
I also noted in my bounced email that you might like to know that the Msgr. Murphy to whom Mr. Borst refers, is hardly a wide eyed innocent in the Canuckistani Cathowars. Msg Dennis Murphy, is one of the Canadian Church's most notorious dissenters. the article of his that first caught my attention, appearing without editorial comment in the Catholic Register, the diocesan paper of the AD of Toronto that gets distributed across the country, was all about how women really ought to continue agitating for ordination. Just to give you an idea.
Mr. Borst's article makes some interesting comparisons with Britain's dilemma regarding the new restrictions on Christian education with regards to the SOR's. He refers to an article in the Tablet August 14, 2007 page 2:
"Or will, as is happening in Great Britain,(see The Tablet August 14, 2007 page 2)the Bishops recognize that to challenge the States anti-discrimination laws and anti-harassment legislation regarding teachers, principals and supervisory officers living in same-sex domestic relationships bring about the demise of publicly funded Catholic schools in Canada. Hopefully, that is a Canonical cost too great to even contemplate."
Interesting admission here. If I read it correctly, he is saying that any attempt to get the active homosexuals out of the Catholic schools would result in active suppression by the state of the Catholic system in Britain and that it is incumbent on the Ontario bishops to water down the content of the religious education or face the same treatment from the state.
Of course, what everyone involved knows and the point he is making, I suppose, is that this has already happened, that the Catholic schools in Ontario teach some kind of warmed over Marxist/Buddhist drivel so divorced from Catholic teaching that there is only something to worry about if the Bishops suddenly miraculously take it into their heads to start insisting on Catholicism in the Catholic schools.
Knowing the Ontario bishops as I do, I'm sure he hasn't got anything to worry about on that score.
Some years back there was a young man called Richard who worked there, and seemed to be some kind of Pugin expert. I have never met a more polite shop assistant. Anyway, a highly recommended bookshop, and the student discount was good for those of us addicted to Mr Zealley's offerings.
Many thanks for that, Hilary.
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