Aid to the Church in Need are welcoming His Beatitude, Patriarch Fouad Twal of Jerusalem next Tuesday 8th September 1009. After celebrating and preaching at the 5.30pm Mass at Westminster Cathedral, the Patriarch will be giving a speech in Westminster Cathedral Hall. Drinks, canapés and other light refreshments will be available and entry is free of charge.His Beatitude has recently been encouraged by the visit of Pope Benedict to the Holy Land; nevertheless, the declining Christian population in Jerusalem and Bethlehem, caused principally by emigration, has posed considerable problems for the Church's work in the region.
4 comments:
Dear Father Finigan
Emigration from the Old Jerusalem to Our Lady of the Rosary's New Jerusalem?.... :-)
The Hymn: "Jerusalem"
And did those feet in ancient time
Walk upon England's mountains green?
And was the holy Lamb of God
On England's pleasant pastures seen?
And did the Countenance Divine
Shine forth upon our clouded hills?
And was Jerusalem builded here
Among those dark Satanic mills?
Bring me my bow of burning gold:
Bring me my arrows of desire:
Bring me my spear: O clouds, unfold!
Bring me my chariot of fire!
I will not cease from mental fight,
Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand
Till we have built Jerusalem
In England's green and pleasant land.
PAPA RATZI ORA PRO NOBIS!
Our Lady of the Rosary pray for us!
What a wonderful man, he gave such a heart rendering homile and talk. There was no anger or bitterness in his message, just love and prayer. It is sad to hear how much the Christians are suffering in the Holy Land but as Patriarch Twal reminded us we all have our roots in Jerusalem and it is the responsibility of all the Catholics in the world to pray and support the few persecuted Christians remaining there.
He encouraged us to visit the Holy Land, they need tourists and we need to be reconnected with our roots.
So Father Tim, any chance of organising a pilgrimage from Our Parish to Jerusalem. I have always wanted to go there, my parents were married there in 1943 and my sister was born there. I just need to find out what Church they were married in and whether it still exists??
Also can I ask, why is Pariarch Twal called His Beatitude, Pariarch Twal?. In my ignorance I have not come across these titles before.
Attended the 5.30 pm Mass at our beautiful Cathedral. The Westminster Cathedral Boy's Choir was awesome!!!
Latin like you've never heard before - 'Angelic Choirs' is all that comes to mind - gave you goosebumps and brought tears to the eyes. Especially when they sang Ave Maria.
Patriarch Twal used lots of Latin throughout Mass, which was technically High Mass in the Novus Ordo. If I heard him correctly he happens to run the only Latin Seminary in Jerusalem - and is extremely proud of that, as well as being extremely proud of the fact that all the seminaries in the Holy Land are full!
His Beatitude's homily was in very good and clear English and the plight of Palestinian Catholics was described in passionate terms. As Elizabeth says 'the Mother Church of ALL Catholics is in Jerusalem and the living stones of OUR Mother Church are the Catholic Palestinians', who are suffering dreadfully because of the conflict in the Middle East.
In any which way we can we should look to support them - prayer, charitable donations and travelling to the Holy Land not just to see the Holy places but also to make contact with it's people, talk with them, laugh and cry with them, support them with our prayer and yes - spend money in the Holy Land so that fathers and mothers can support their families and build hope for the future of their children.
This is OUR responsibility - so yes I echo Elizabeth's words, Pilgrimage to the Holy Land Fr Tim?
The ACN laid on a great welcome for all at the Church Hall after Mass, canapes and drinks just before Patriarch Twal gave us a more in-depth talk on the issues in the Holy Land.
He spoke so clearly about the multitude of problems facing Catholic Palestinians in the Holy Land, but echoed the Holy Father's words during his Holiness's visit earlier in May where he called upon the handful of Catholics left in the Holy Land to engage their persecutors in dialogue with a spirit of love, 'only with God can the conflict and hate be brought to an end, the fighting doesn't work and the politicians prefer to manage the armed conflict rather than do anything to end it'.
Please God may the Prophet's (Isaiah 2:2-4) words come to pass very soon:
"And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more".
Please Lord, may Jerusalem indeed become the City of Peace.
Imagine walking in the footsteps of Our Blessed Lord Jesus, actually in that same soil.... the dream of a lifetime... 'next year in Jerusalem!'
Dear Father Finigan
Great comment by George on the post "Patriarch Twal visiting London", but I truly believe there are other ways to follow in Christ's footsteps than to journey to modern Israel and to visit the ancient sites as a tourist.
In 1991 I made a conscious decision to protest against NF/BNP neo-Nazi entry-ism into London's Sporting/Planning Arena at the Old Addeyans FC/Densitron International plc development here in South East London. That decision to challenge acceptance of fascist "blood money" led to my imprisonment in HMP Belmarsh where I sang 'Gaudete' solo in my best Latin for all the inmates one Sunday morning after taking Holy Communion at the Catholic Mass.
I also remember that a framed copy of the following 'Arts Lift' poem was hung on the wall of the prison chapel before the Regina v Hobson 1991 ILCC trial.
Footprints in the Sand
One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord. Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.
In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand. Sometimes there were two sets of footprints, other times there was one only.
This bothered me because I noticed that during the low periods of my life, when I was suffering from anguish, sorrow or defeat, I could see only one set of footprints, so I said to the Lord,
“You promised me Lord,
that if I followed you, you would walk with me always. But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life there has only been one set of footprints in the sand. Why, when I needed you most, have you not been there for me?”
The Lord replied, “The years when you have seen only one set of footprints, my child, is when I carried you.”
Mary Stevenson, 1936
This morning I took Holy Communion at Our Lady of the Angels here in the London Borough of Bexley where you are the RC Dean. I intend later today to visit the MILESTONE exhibition at the London Civil Rights and Arts Centre to present them with my individual FOOTBALL AGAINST RACISM IN EUROPE 1991-2009 Arts lift update.
PAPA RATZI ORA PRO NOBIS!
Our Lady of the Rosary pray for us.
ps. Brother James Boner informed us this morning that Dan Brown's new book The Last Symbol, (666?) is out tomorrow, and he also said that he thought George Burley should get the sack as Scotland's football manager after their poor attempts to qualify for the World Cup in SA.
Our Lady of the Rosary 999 pray for us.
In Xto Vesper aka ROY HOBSON FCES1990, FRICS1984, Grad Dipl QS
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