The Hermeneutic of Continuity

Every year I emphasise in the newsletter and the notices that the Christmas season continues until the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, and that we are invited to enter into the spirit of the Liturgy which presents us with a rich tapestry to deepen our understanding and, more importantly, our spiritual life as we reflect on the great mystery of that light which the darkness could not overpower. There is a  Flickr set  of photos from our Midnight Mass at Blackfen, thanks to  Mulier Fortis . I liked the above photo of the Gospel because of the panoramic view from celebrant to the Deacon chanting the Gospel towards the North. The Venerable Prosper Guéranger explains this with a quotation from the prophet Jeremias (1.14) "From the North, shall an evil break forth upon all the inhabitants of the Land." One of my earliest memories of the Mass, when I was about four years old, was my father explaining to me that the Gospel was sung facing North from earliest times to preach...

The Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate have replied in a robust and dignified manner to the allegation that they have contributed to a "distorted mentality" among the Friars. Rorate Caeli has published the text of the Sisters' Official Notice of Clarification . Rorate Caeli is providing frequent updates on the progress of the official intervention into the Franciscans of the Immaculate, a sad episode which is damaging the work of a fine Institute, and the work of the Church. Please continue to keep both the Friars and the Sisters in your prayers.

By the kind offices of Fr John Corrigan, Editor of The Priest , the journal of the Australian Confraternity of Catholic Clergy , the papers that I gave to the Confraternity earlier this year have been published on the website, and two of them in the current print issue of The Priest . Here are links to the papers: Vatican II and its context. Trent and Vatican II: compared (not contrasted). The hermeneutic of continuity. Church, Sacrament, and the People of God. Here are links to pdf versions if you want to print them off: Vatican II and its context Trent and Vatican II: compared (not contrasted) The hermeneutic of continuity Church, Sacrament, and the People of God The ACCC website has a rich collection of articles by a wide variety of authors and is well worth browsing. It brings back happy memories of my visit to Australia where I was made so welcome, especially by the kind hospitality of the ACCC Chairman, Fr John Walshe, but also by the generosity of many of t...

Many thanks to a reader who sent me this timely photo of St John Baptist and the Agnus Dei , painting c.1520 from the church of Wiggenhall St Mary the Virgin, Norfolk (photo summer 2013)

Given his previous remarks about vipers, it was with some trepidation that I began to read the address that Pope Francis gave to the Roman Curia today . Many news services have picked up on the part where he warns of the danger of constantly inspecting and questioning. They have gone along with the narrative of the Holy Father constantly criticising the Curia. However most of the address is positive in tone, illustrating a hallmark of this papacy where statements that are perceived as harsh are later moderated in other addresses. I was a little saddened by the "vipers" comment because I know priests who work at the Holy See with great integrity in an environment which can be difficult especially for those of a non-mediterranean background. As in any "Staff HQ" or civil service environment, there are careerists and dysfunctional superiors but there are also good hard-working men who have the Church's best interest at heart. So I found this passage very welcom...

My good friend Fr Francis Coveney, parish priest of St Anne Line in South Woodford, tells me of an interesting event which some readers might like to know about. Here are the details. Anne Line: Shakespeare's Tragic Muse Sunday 2 February 2014, 3.30pm A new biography has just been written by Martin Dodwell entitled “Anne Line: Shakespeare's Tragic Muse”. It will be of interest to admirers of St Anne Line, historians and Shakespeare scholars alike. Martin Dodwell will be giving a talk on his new book in the Parish Hall (behind the Church) on Sunday 2 February at 3.30pm. Copies of the book will be available for sale. Benediction will follow in the Church at 4.30pm.  St Anne Line Parish, Grove Crescent, South Woodford, London, E18 2JR The Church is a short walk from South Woodford Station (Central Line). The photos is from Mulier Fortis who wrote about a pilgrimage she made to South Woodford in honour of St Anne Line.

This appeared in my Facebook feed today. I thought it was a good way of making an important point to children. You might like to re-blog it.

The Franciscans of the Immaculate have been going through a trying time recently. This seems to be getting worse. Rorate Caeli posted yesterday several documents relating the Franciscans of the Immaculate, including correspondence from Fr Volpi, the appointed Commissioner for the Institute. We could all think of Orders, Congregations and Institutes where members have written against magisterial teaching. Occasionally there has been some intervention from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and in rare cases an individual has been suspended from teaching in the name of the Church. We all remember the furore over the polite and carefully worded report on the Leadership Conference of Women Religious. The negotiations with the SSPX broke down over the nuance of an expression concerning the level of acceptance of Vatican II. In the case of the Franciscans of the Immaculate (who have not contradicted magisterial teaching on faith or morals) their superior has been removed,...

Alison Davis was a great witness for the sanctity of human life and helped promote human life in response to calls for the legalisation of assisted suicide. Alison was born with spina bifida and suffered greatly during her life. Alison was at one time in favour of abortion and later wished to end her own life. She changed her mind on both these issues and became a great advocate of the right to life. You can read further details at these links: SPUC: Alison's Story SPUC: Tribute by Colin Harte Sister of the Gospel of Life: Alison Davis 1955- 2013 Catholic Herald obituary by Francis Phillips Alison's carer, Colin Harte wrote the seminal book "Changing Unjust Laws Justly; Pro-Life Solidarity with the Last and the Least" (2005) in which he, with the support of Alison, championed the right to life of the smallest and weakest in contrast to the conventional wisdom of lowering the abortion time limit which would allow abortion for only such young lives. Please...

Sorry, 'Oly Father, the electromatic Ordo generator will not work properly now because you 'ave abolished most of the commemorations and the octaves. On 4 December 1963, the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy Sacrosanctum Concilium was promulgated. Everybody is remembering that, so I decided in a contrarian moment to home in on the other document that was promulgated on the same day by Pope Paul VI, the Decree on the Media of Social Communications Inter Mirifica which I have mentioned in talks over the last couple of years. N.15 of this document said: All the children of the Church should join, without delay and with the greatest effort in a common work to make effective use of the media of social communication in various apostolic endeavours, as circumstances and conditions demand. They should anticipate harmful developments, especially in regions where more urgent efforts to advance morality and religion are needed. The first disk storage drive was produced in 1962...

Congratulations to my good friend James Bogle who has been elected president of the Foederatio Internationalis Una Voce which exists "to to ensure that the Missale Romanum of Pope John XXIII (1962 edition) is maintained in the Church as one of the forms of liturgical celebration, and to safeguard and promote the use of Latin, Gregorian chant and sacred polyphony." Among other worthy predecessors, Jamie (barrister - trial attorney) follows in the footsteps of Dr Eric de Saventhem and Michael Davies. He said that he intends to carry out his new role by employing benefits bestowed by Pope Benedict XVI, not least in the motu proprio of 2007, Summorum Pontificum , that restored the traditional Latin Mass as one of the two approved forms of the Roman rite of Mass. He also would like to see its fruits integrated into the New Evangelisation. May God bless the work of Una Voce and assist Jamie in his new post.