The Hermeneutic of Continuity

After a late lunch today, I took the opportunity for a walk up to Fort Hill and then down along the beach at low tide. Because I can.

As it is still very much holiday time, it is only right that we should focus on the more important things in life. Fr Hunwicke has helped us in this respect with a thoughtful and erudite post on Birettas . I must say that although the various birettas that I possess all have pom-poms, I entirely agree with my learned colleague that they are a superfluous piece of frenchification and that the biretta is better without one. Not only that, but Father makes a solid case for the unpompommed hat being the will of our Holy Father. And as he says We owe it to him  to get our headwear right, whatever the cost, come what may.  I bought a pack of craft knives from the pound shop recently ...

At one time, the portrayal of Catholic ceremonies in films was generally well researched and accurate. Nowadays, more or less anything goes: perhaps a reflection of the - let us say - creativity in the observance of ceremonial and indeed the latitude allowed in the rules themselves. Seeing film clips which include parts of the older form of the Roman Rite is fascinating because the ceremonies are exactly the same celebrated today after painstaking study of Fortescue and O'Connell, except that they were usually carried out with greater smoothness and less fuss. Thanks to Charles Cole at NLM for this beautiful clip of Christmas Midnight High Mass, and for the details supplied as follows: It is an extract from the 1944 film Christmas Holiday starring Deanna Durbin and shows part of a Christmas Mass. It was filmed at St Vibiana’s, the former Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, which was damaged in the Northridge earthquake of 1994 and sold to the city. St Vibiana’s...

Praise the Lord, my holy predecessor left midnight Mass at midnight. A superb young organist put our electronic instrument through its paces and the sung Mass (mostly English but with Mass VIII de angelis for the ordinary) was suitably moving with a full Church and plenty of enthusiastic carol singing. The above photo was taken on the Tuesday before Christmas, but is not an entirely honest portrait of our current weather. I am regretting a missed photo opportunity since today (a very busy day) I did not get a chance to snap Marine Drive covered in sand after high winds overnight. Perhaps another time before winter is out. One of my parishioners who comes over from the Westbrook side of the parish said that there seemed to be more sand on the road than on the beach. On St Stephen's day the altar servers turned out in good numbers for the investiture of a new member, and the renewal of their own promises. The Mass was celebrated as an English sung Mass with full ceremonies and...

When your car battery has gone flat and the man comes over with his starter pack, you need to be ready to drive the thing for 20 minutes or so to get the battery properly charged up. I breezily set off for Broadstairs and after five minutes realised that Thanet is quite small and I was almost there. So having been told what a lovely place Sandwich was, I diverted for a pleasant drive with views of Pegwell Bay to the charming Cinq Port. There is parking just by the Quay ( above ) and it is a short walk to the Guildhall at the centre of town. The name of the town and the proximity of Ham are obviously tempting for silly humour but those who make a living from visitors need to play it up a bit. So there is the Sandwich shop selling sandwiches: and a No Name Street with a No Name shop. So far, I have confined myself largely to Margate with occasional ventures around Thanet because I want to get to know my own parish first of all. The unexpectedly needed trip to travel a littl...

Another Margate sunset photo. Yesterday (24 Nov) at 4.30pm.

The Holy Father made clear his desire to hear opinion on the subject discussed in the recent Synod, and five cardinals, along with several other scholars, responded to that invitation by writing articles for a collection: "Remaining in the Truth of Christ: Marriage and Communion in the Catholic Church" edited by Robert Dodaro OSA. The other day I decided that it was high time I read this book. On downloading it to my Kindle, I realised that the article on the biblical data was written by Fr Paul Mankowski SJ, and having enjoyed several pieces by Mankowski before, I turned to his article first. I was not disappointed: he draws on his extensive knowledge of biblical languages and culture to offer a masterly guide to the teaching of Our Lord on divorce. In addition, I highlighted one passage for its concise and forceful statement of the significance of the "but I say to you" passages in the sermon on the mount: The sermon (Mt 5-7) presents Jesus as a new Moses ...

My Lady Chapel is photogenic. Following the example of a tweeting visitor, I took the above photo which also features one of the fine votive candle stands. I was actually asked for some more seaside photos by a kind reader, so I am happy to oblige. At this time of year, the "big skies" can be full of interest, not only on account of the varied colours, but also because of their rapid changes. A completely overcast sky can change to bright blue and back again in an hour, something that seems to be happening most days at the moment. Here is the harbour at low tide under an uncertain sky in mid-change: And viewed here on a calm late afternoon while I was walking back from the station: I suppose there could be some Church-related metaphor there, but that really wasn't the point. In the past week, I have been formally inducted as parish priest by the Episcopal Vicar, and informally inducted by enjoying my first Christmas Fair. I hope I manage to get to grips with...

My friend is urging me to say the Rosary but I find it very difficult to concentrate. Aren’t these devotions optional? Should persevere with it? It is true that outside the sacred Liturgy, we are left free to pray in different ways. However the Rosary does have the recommendation of Our Lady herself at Lourdes, Fatima and on many other occasions, and has been encouraged by the saints and most of the Popes of the past 500 years. Therefore I would encourage you to persevere. The Rosary combines both vocal and mental prayer. At times, we might focus on the words of the Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be, repeated lovingly as to a dear friend. We are also invited to ponder the great events of Our Lord’s life, death and resurrection, raising our minds and hearts to God in praise and thanksgiving, and drawing new resolve for our Christian lives. Both the vocal prayers and the mysteries on which we meditate, draw us directly to Christ. Our Lady does not ask for attention for her own sake ...

Bishop Athanasius Schneider is well-known for his excellent books Dominus Est: It is the Lord , and Corpus Christi: Holy Communion and the Renewal of the Church  in which he argues for greater reverence for the Blessed Sacrament and particularly for a return to the practice of receiving Holy Communion in the traditional manner, kneeling and receiving on the tongue. I heard him speak and had the privilege of meeting him in 2009 in Estonia  and again earlier this year at a meeting of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy. Bishop Schneider is a holy man and has a great love for the Church, the priesthood and the Blessed Sacrament, so it was interesting to read his reaction to the recent Synod in an interview that he gave to  Polonia Christiana  (H/T  Rorate Caeli ) Bishop Schneider is a scholar of the Fathers and one can sense his lively shock at the similarity of our present situation with those that have gone before, notably the Arian crisis, in which the defend...

Neil Addison, the barrister who is Director of the St Thomas More Legal Centre , came to speak to the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy at St Patrick's, Soho Square on Tuesday. These meetings now involve a longer journey for me, but the Javelin train gets to St Pancras in just under an hour and a half so it is not too bad. Neil gave us good advice on various legal issues that are likely to arise now for clergy. One of the most important things he recommended was that any organisation or terms of hire should include a statement that we will not do anything that is contrary to Catholic doctrine. That is not a bad life lesson in general, of course. After lunch and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, we had an open discussion on the Synod at which it was good to learn from the wisdom of brother priests. As well as the formal business of these meetings, it is valuable to be able to spend time in the company of other priests. At lunch I was next to Fr Jeffrey Steel whose conversion ...

What a glorious day it was today in Margate! This week being half term, I have several visitors coming "Down to Margate ( you can keep the Costa Brava... )" Fortunately it is starting off as a week of beautiful sunshine in which the old town and the harbour are at their best. Visitors quite understandably like to experience the excellent Ambrette  with its well-deserved Michelin star so I am being spoilt. The above photo was taken from the Harbour Arm just after ten to four, so about half an hour before sunset now that we are back to proper organic, natural, eco-friendly, astronomically correct, Greenwich Mean Time. (What exactly is the point of British Summer Time?) No messing with this photo: the rich afternoon colour is just as the mobile phone camera picked it up.

The Synod of 1980, that is. At the end of the Synod on the  family. St John Paul had this to say: “So the Synod—when speaking of the pastoral care of those who after divorce have entered on a new union—rightly praised those couples who in spite of great difficulties witness in their life to the indissolubility of marriage. In their life the Synod recognizes that good news of faithfulness to love which has its power and its foundation in Christ. Furthermore, the fathers of the Synod, again affirming the indissolubility of marriage and the Church’s practice of not admitting to Eucharistic communion those who have been divorced and—against her rule—again attempted marriage, urge pastors and the whole Christian community to help such brothers and sisters. They do not regard them as separated from the Church, since by virtue of their baptism they can and must share in the life of the Church by praying, hearing the word, being present at the community’s celebration of the Eucharist, ...

With the Turner Contemporary at the harbour, and Tracey Emin as a home-grown celebrity, Margate is establishing a reputation as a mecca for enthusiasts of modern art. This is combined in a quirky mixture with a focus on retro-chic that makes the old town fun. I wondered how I might get into the arty culture, with the trauma of my third form art teacher's report etched on my psyche "Tries hard - but results not good." So I thought that in the absence of artistic ability, I might use some of the effects filters in Paint Shop Pro. (I use that in preference to paying lots of money for Photoshop, but intend to get to know Gimp better.) Above you can see the harbour on an overcast day, and below is a part of Lombard Street in the old town with the Olde Sweet Shoppe, Beaux Interieurs , and the Lifeboat , one of the many micro-pubs in the area. A couple of weeks ago, the owner of Kiss me Quick , the seaside gift emporium on the parade, dropped in a sample of some special ...

Well that wasn't a very edifying spectacle was it, the Synod? An outrageously dishonest attempt at procedural manipulation at the highest level, publicly shoved into the turf nose-first by decent men who just couldn't stomach any more of it. Thanks be to God for Cardinal Pell and Cardinal Burke: at least we have heroes to sing of after the debacle. Which reminds me to revive the "Backbone Award" that used to feature on blogs. I suppose in advance of the follow-up Synod, we now have to face another year of false hopes and unnecessary confusion over Christ's teaching on marriage and the family while the wrong targets are routinely chosen for praise and blame, promotion and demotion. Sorry - I have been very busy with pastoral work, haven't much time to post, wanted to say something, and find it hard to be patient with what has gone on. I was glad to be able to quote Belloc recently to a concerned young man who had not heard his famous words: “The Catholi...

A day for families, celebrating Pope Saint John Paul’s teaching on family life: Saturday 25 October, St Ethelbert’s Church, 72 Hereson Road, Ramsgate. CT11 7DS. There will be talks for adults, teenagers and children, and games and activities. An opportunity to pray, meet and grow in fellowship with other Catholic families. Confession will be available. Please bring some food for the shared lunch. Starts at 10.15am with the Rosary; ends at 5pm with closing prayers, followed by the parish 5.30pm Mass. I have two Masses, six baptisms and a convalidation that day, but I hope to get over for a brief visit in the afternoon.

The family of Richard Collins have posted an obituary notice on his blog Linen on the Hedgerow .  Anima eius et animae omnium defunctorum per misericordiam Dei requiescant in pace. Amen. Last Thursday, Holy Mass was said in Richard's room. He died fortified by all the rites of Holy Mother Church, and his final moments were accompanied by his family praying the holy Rosary. Richard was a fine Catholic man and I particularly appreciated his solid, sober and sensible contributions to various meetings of bloggers which he attended at some considerable cost and inconvenience. His funeral will be celebrated according to the usus antiquior . As soon as I have details, I will post them here. In the meantime, please pray for the repose of his soul, pray for his family in their loss, and give thanks to God for the great good that he did for others in his life, especially through the apostolate of his blog.

The past few weeks have gone by in a whirl with so much to familiarise myself with, various bits of paperwork to keep on top of, and more importantly, key people to get to know. Every now and again, the parish priest of Margate takes a turn at leading a Christian service at Yoakley Care Home , founded over 300 years ago in the Quaker tradition. I took a photo of the grounds: The parish has a one-and-a-half form entry primary school so I made my third visit last week, to celebrate the Harvest Mass, and am beginning to find my way around. Likewise, the geography of the Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother Hospital (known locally as QEQM) is now becoming clearer after I have done a few rounds to see the Catholic patients and have responded to some sick calls to anoint people. The Benedictine Sisters at Minster Abbey have Vespers each evening (sung in Latin) and last Sunday, after October devotions at St Austin's, I went along and was pleased to meet up with others from the Deaner...

My latest "stock photo" for the Church: the stained glass window on the (liturgical) North of the sanctuary, showing our two principal patrons at Margate, St Austin and St Gregory. Since Robert Dalby Reeve is recorded as dedicating the window in memory of his wife Iesse who died in 1905, I should ask you to say a prayer for her. Moving to more mundane matters, I have discovered Aldi. I did visit a Lidl at Foots Cray once, but it was a bit rubbish. The massive Aldi on Northdown Road, however, it another thing all together. On getting home, I looked up the website and saw the funny adverts that they have been running. I was particularly pleased because I had been looking for a cheap laminator and had got fed up with one of the large stationery stores who ran the old con of having a cheap one on display but then not having it in stock. Aldi supplied me with an A3 machine for £18.99. I also managed to find a good office stationery store which, like another one I saw a few day...

Minster is highly significant for English Catholicism since St Augustine landed in the parish, and monastic life began there in the late seventh century. The first Abbess of the associated nunnery was St Mildred, and the remains of the Saxon Abbey are still part of what is now the Benedictine Abbey of Minster, making it the oldest inhabited house in England. I was taken to Minster for Sunday lunch today (" The Corner House " if you are interested - excellent family-run restaurant) and had a chance to see the Norman Church ( above ), and the Abbey, and to walk around the village. The Abbey is a place that I shall be visiting often: as well as their lovely chapel, the nuns have a conference centre called "Parkminster" which is a venue for many things organised in the Deanery. I understand that Vespers is at 6pm each day and that my brother clergy are often to be found there, so I am glad to have learnt the route. Speaking of routes, I decided that it would save ...

The beautiful Lady Chapel at St Austin and St Gregory Margate is certainly one of the highlights of our Church. I posted the above picture after my first visit to see the parish back in June. You can see something of the altar, but not much detail of the stained glass windows above it. One of the parishioners took some photos a while back and let me have copies of them. I put together the two windows so that you can see them side by side ( click to enlarge ): I think these are absolutely gorgeous examples of Victorian glass. There is a rich devotional life in the parish as part of the normal weekly schedule, with Lauds before Mass on Tuesday, Rosary on Wednesday, and adoration on Thursday. On Saturday after Mass, there is the Novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Succour. It is great to come to a parish and find all these things already in place. The Novena is said at the Lady Chapel, and I have started saying the Monday evening Mass there. Notice also the fine votive candle stand...

Each parish has its own local acronyms. Here in Margate, everyone knows "QEQM": Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Hospital ("part of the East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust") One of my standing-start tasks is to get to grips with all the procedures for visiting, being on call, managing other visitors and managing incoming information about who needs to be visited. I think I'm getting there and managed a full pastoral visit today (I hope) seeing everyone on the list that  we have. There is also a hospice next to the hospital and I visited there today as well. First impressions are of a very friendly place. Before I came to Margate, several people said to me in a slightly mystical way that Kent people are different from South London people. One thing does seem to be that everyone is a bit more peaceful. When I was looking at the hospital maps to try to learn by heart where the various wards are, several staff members of different ranks asked m...

Last night I was as physically tired as I have been for some time. Although I had some generous help moving my stuff down to Margate, I had just finished several days of increasingly urgent packing, taking boxes of books downstairs, and taking other boxes of things to the skip behind the Club in Blackfen. My first day in Margate was wonderful in respect of the lovely people here, the beautiful Church and getting to know the presbytery, the warren of rooms next to the Church, and taking a long walk all around the town centre, the Harbour Arm, the Turner Contemporary and round the old town a couple of times. After checking through various papers kindly left by my predecessor and getting to know where everything is, I finally set up my own computer temporarily in the parish office, hence the opportunity to post something this evening with just a few photos from my mobile. I now have a new Big Camera, so there should be more Margate sunsets and photos of the Church from different ang...

Simon Caldwell recently published an inspiring account of elderly Iraqi Christians in the village of Karamless. (See: Elderly Iraqi Christians defy terrorists, flee to camp H/T Transalpine Redemptorists ) When the IS terrorists overran Karamless, on the night of 6-7 August, everyone fled except the elderly who were too weak to run. The masked terrorists demanded that they convert or be killed by the sword. All of the elderly people said "we prefer to be killed rather than convert." In the event they were ordered to leave the village with only the clothes they were wearing. This moving and inspiring story of courageous witness to Christ is redolent of the days of ancient Rome. Those who refused to deny their faith yet were not actually martyred yet were called "confessors" because of their stout confession of the faith. Penitents could go to them and ask for a note to say that the confessors had prayed for them; this note or " libellus pacis " could...

Fr Hunwicke's Mutual Enrichment is not a blog that can be usefully skim-read. His articles are not long, but they repay more close attention than those of the "5 reasons why Pope Francis didn't really say what everyone thinks he said" genre. When I find time, as I have just now, I read a number of his posts in sequence. It is always a rewarding experience for me, especially since quite often he tackles something that I have wanted to say but not found the time, and writes on it with erudition and wit. During the past week, we have had, among other things, a discussion on whether Muslims and Christians worship the same God , a gently provocative piece on the lack of Latin among the clergy , and an important post arguing for baptism sub conditione for Anglican converts whose only evidence of Baptism is a certificate. A baptism certificate was formerly regarded as sufficient, since baptism "according to the rites of the Church of England" is certainly val...

The Basilique du Sacré Coeur should be on the must-see list for any Catholic tourist in Paris: it is certainly on mine. Sacré Coeur was built after the National Vow of reparation for the atrocities committed on both sides during the Communard uprising, and for the spiritual welfare of France. The most moving thing for me is the basilica's record of uninterrupted eucharistic adoration day and night since 1 August 1885. (See this link to a  previous post with more photos .) The discreet monitions by lay wardens regarding silence and proper deportment ensure that even though it is crowded visitors, Sacré Coeur is an ideal place to catch up on the Office - something that is easy to leave to late in the day when one is on holiday. Saint Germain l'Auxerrois, opposite the Louvre, is of interest to British visitors because of the mission St Germanus of Auxerre (not to be confused with St Germanus of Paris) undertook to counter the heresy of Pelagianism. And here ...

The Faith Movement organises Evenings of Faith in London, a series of talks by orthodox Catholic speakers, addressing questions of faith and morals. As you can see from the above poster, this season promises some fine lectures. These evenings are not age-restricted and are open to all. They are held in the basement of the church of Our Lady of the Assumption in Soho by kind permission of the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham. Don't forget to have a look at the current issue of Faith Magazine  which you can read online or download free. Annual subscription to the hard copy magazine is £25.

Holy Communion is often treated as a prize, nowadays, or even a "right." The July-August issue of Faith Magazine carries an article of mine, looking at the dispositions required for Holy Communion: living in accord with the teaching of the Church, being in a state of grace and free of unconfessed mortal sin, and making a proper spiritual preparation for Holy Communion. In this connection I also discuss the danger of routine communions. Bishop Mark Davies kindly recommended the article when he visited the Faith Summer Session earlier this month. Here is a link to the article itself: What I Want is Mercy, Not Sacrilege: The Dangers of “Routine Communions”  , and here is a link to the whole current issue of Faith Magazine  with several excellent articles which you can read online or download as a pdf. If you like the magazine and prefer reading things on real paper, a subscription is £25 for the year (six issues.) Image credit: Justus van Gent (fl. 1460-1480) "The C...

Is it correct that when we are Baptised into the Catholic Church we become members of the Christian Faith, and even though we may make our First Holy Communion we don’t actually become full members of the Catholic Church until we receive the Sacrament of Confirmation? By Baptism we are incorporated into the Church and become members of the body of Christ. There is only one Church, founded by Our Lord on the rock which is Peter. In a case of genuine necessity, anyone, even a pagan, can baptise validly, as long as they use water, say “I baptise you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”, and intend to do what the Church does. Any person who is thus baptised becomes a member of the Catholic Church. Someone who is baptised validly by a non-Catholic minister becomes a member of the Catholic Church and does not become separated from full communion with the Church until they have begun consciously to adhere to a separated ecclesial community. Hence there is no ri...

The idea that clerical celibacy was established in the Church as a medieval development was strongly contested by a number of scholars in the late 20th century. Some characteristic works in English are: Cholij, R. Clerical Celibacy in East and West. Gracewing. Herefordshire. 1989; Cochini, C. The apostolic origins of priestly celibacy. Ignatius. San Francisco. 1990; Heid, S. Celibacy in the Early Church. Ignatius. San Francisco. 2000; Stickler, A. The case for clerical celibacy. Ignatius. San Francisco. 1995. Cardinal Stickler’s brief account is a most useful summary of the case for clerical celibacy. He noted that there had been a number of important recent studies devoted to the history of celibacy in both the East and the West, and that, "These studies have either not yet penetrated the general consciousness or they have been hushed up if they were capable of influencing that consciousness in undesirable ways." This unfortunately remains the case as articles co...

Tomorrow, 2 August, you can gain a plenary indulgence under the usual conditions ( see below ) by visiting a parish Church and there reciting the Our Father and the Creed . This is called the Portiuncula indulgence and goes back to St Francis of Assisi. Fr Z has the details . Don't forget that you can also gain a plenary indulgence by visiting a Church on the day of the titular feast, and there reciting the Our Father and the Creed . I made a list of other indulgences: please see the post Plenary indulgences for particular days which has a link to the list. The post has some background information which you may find helpful since indulgences are not well understood today - which is not surprising since indulgences are not included in most Catholic education curricula, and most priests never preach about them. Therefore many Catholics are left with whatever silly, half-baked, ill-informed nonsense about indulgences happens to be current. If you want to understand the theology...

The screensavers on Kindle, which appear when the device is switched off, are clever in their own way, but in these days of personalising everything, it does seem natural to want to replace them with other pictures. I usually do this with mobile phones, changing the background to a devotional picture. Unfortunately, Kindle does not offer an easy way to personalise the screensavers, but ages ago I saw a note somewhere saying that it is possible. Today I decided to do it. Essentially you have to "jailbreak" the device and then use a screensaver hack. It's not all that difficult, though there are one or two pitfalls. Please don't ask me for advice on how to do this - if you are confident enough to hack your Kindle, then you will be able to find the right instructions for your model and version on google. If you are doing it, however, I have uploaded some picture files that are the right size (600x800 - black borders where necessary) and format (png). They are in an ...

Nova et Vetera has published an outstanding article by a team of American Dominicans: " Recent Proposals for the Pastoral Care of the Divorced and Remarried: A Theological Assessment " looks at General Principles, proposals for Holy Communion for the divorced and remarried (drawing particularly from Cardinal Kasper's Consistory address), and proposals for changing the nullity process. The article is clear, concise, and theologically robust. Although it refers frequently to recent Popes, Vatican II and the Catechism to reinforce the points made, I recognise the common corpus of the perennial Catholic theological approach, with a solid understanding of the teaching of Trent - and its all-important context. With commendable clarity, the authors analyse the pastoral problem of the current despair over chastity, as well as the historical-doctrinal question of the teaching of the Council of Nicea on the subject of second marriages. On the subject of the canonical process f...

Saturday 2 August is the feast of St Alphonsus Liguori in the old calendar, and in God's loving providence, this year it is the first Saturday of August, so we will have Missa Cantata at Blackfen at 10.30am. I'll be preaching on St Alphonsus (one of my favourite saints); I haven't composed the sermon yet, but following the great Doctor's example, I expect it will include some reflection on the four last things. As this will be my last Saturday Missa Cantata at Blackfen (I am moving to Margate on 2 September) I would like to take this opportunity to invite any Hermeneutic of Continuity readers, Twitter followers, and Facebook friends to join us. After Mass, we will order pizza according to need, and the bar will be open. At 2.30pm there will be sung Vespers and Benediction. No need to reply, just turn up if you can.