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Showing posts with the label witness

A moving pro-life testimony

Fr John Boyle at St Simon's Parish blog has posted a letter that he received after the SPUC White Flower appeal.

Sometimes priests are worried about preaching on a pro-life theme because "there might be women in the congregation who have had an abortion". The truth is, there very likely will be women in the congregation who have had an abortion and that is one important reason why we need to preach the Gospel of Life. Women who regret this decision need to hear a compassionate voice on the subject. Otherwise all that will be heard is the media-driven prejudice that the Church's pro-life teaching is about condemning women.

We also need to reach the men too. By encouragement, by silence, or by using the get-out clause "I'll support you whatever you do", many men have co-operated in abortion and need to understand that this also needs repentance and forgiveness.
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"Be proud of your faith" - Family and Youth Day at Blackfen

There will be a Family and Youth Day at Our Lady of the Rosary Church, Blackfen, on Saturday 21st March.

In the morning, we have our usual programme: Low Mass, (usus antiquior) at 10.30am, followed by Confession, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and Benediction at midday.

After Benediction, there will be an address by Margaret Mizen, mother of Jimmy Mizen who was killed in May 2008. Barry and Margaret, Jimmy's parents, showed a tremendous example of faith and peace-filled courage when speaking to the media after the tragic death of their son and it is a great privilege to have Margaret come to speak to us.

(See this video on Hopeinfo.co.uk - "At the funeral I urged all the young people 'Be proud of your faith'"; "The only thing that's going to come out of this is a peaceful response.")

A light lunch will be provided in the Hall and in the afternoon, there will be various talks and activities for children and young people as well as a talk on parentin…
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News of SPES

Last November, I wrote about my visit to the School of Evangelisation at St Patrick's, Soho Square. Jeanine, the SPES Programme Director has written to me with news of the School of Evangelisation.They came to Soho from as far a-field as Brazil and China, expecting to deepen their understanding of Catholic teaching, but the seven confident young people who are finishing St Patrick’s Evangelisation School (SPES) in June will leave with much more.

After a year for God, for discernment and for serving the poor the students at SPES have grown in faith and confidence in witnessing to the Truth.

Before arriving in London, Jenny Janeczko, a student from America, had reservations about approaching people in the street. Today she is the one who prays with the homeless, and invites them into the church during her lunch breaks.

Another student, Anthony Errington from Lancashire, said that through his experience at SPES he has learned a lot about himself, who he really is and has found the confi…
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Padre Pio Bookshop

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Up in London this afternoon, I took the opportunity to visit the Padre Pio bookshop in Vauxhall Bridge Road. These are good people who love the Catholic faith. Downstairs, there is an amazing chapel with a wide variety of devotional statues and pictures. Mass is regularly celebrated and there are public prayers every day.

The shop has all sorts of books, especially relating to Catholic devotions that you can't always find elsewhere. I picked up half a dozen things there including the TAN collection of prayers to St Joseph. Another book that caught my eye (and my credit card) was Fr Jack Spaulding's "Holy Boldness" which is a book written specifically about the spiritual life of the secular priest. A video about the message of Fatima and a leaflet with St Pio's advice on how to behave in Church have also found their way to the presbytery.

A thing I really love doing is to go to these places where people give their lives for the faith and try to convey the message th…
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Hope in the Heart of Soho

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Yesterday, I visited the St Patrick's School of Evangelisation (SPES) at Soho Square to speak about the evangelisation of those who are rich in material things. We were not thinking particularly of the super wealthy but of the average person in Britain who is comfortably off in terms of essentials and has surplus money to spend on such things as leisure, entertainment and holidays.

The students spend a year at the school. During this time, they go through the Catechism of the Catholic Church systematically as well as receiving practical training in street evangelisation and in the kind of skills that would be useful in helping in various ways in their own parish.

In their work on the streets, they are often joined by one or two of the Missionaries of Charity. I found the whole thing most encouraging - I am sure these good people will make a difference wherever they go after their year at SPES.
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"Know Popery"

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Fr Ray Blake reports on an initiative by the resourceful Fr Richard Biggerstaff, Parish Priest of Lewes. Each year at Lewes, the fifth of November is marked by "No Popery" signs and the burning of an effigy of the Pope. This year, in response, Fr Biggerstaff has put catechetical leaflets around the town headed "Know Popery". I like it!
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Cardinal Pell earning his red hat

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Not, of course that he hasn't richly earnt it already. But his fearless witness to the faith is drawing some increasingly nasty opposition. In Australia, the Greens Party has won approval to have Cardinal Pell interrogated by the parliamentary committee for contempt of Parliament. This offence is punishable by up to 25 years in jail.

This is in response to the Cardinal's warning that Catholic legislators could face religious consequences if they supported a bill allowing therapeutic cloning.

For details, see the article Cardinal Pell to be interrogated by parliamentary committee on CNA.
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Prayer Vigil at Westminster

Having taken a very slow train down to Brighton, we were alerted to the advantage of taking a fast train up again to Victoria. Arriving in the Piazza at about twenty to seven, there were already some good people saying the Rosary and displaying banners with scripture texts. The concert singing the 99 names of Allah was subject to strict security with a mobile "airport security" style screening tent. The police kindly provided a corral for us to use for our prayers.

At 7pm we began by singing the Credo and it was immediately apparent that the participants in this prayer vigil wished to proclaim their faith in the Triune God with enthusiasm. As a priest, I was happy to provide leadership for this group whilst being prepared to recognise that many came under their own initiative. Many people said that they were pleased that a priest came to lead the prayers. We sang, prayed the Rosary, the Divine Mercy Chaplet, the Litany of the Holy Name, the Litany of Loreto, the Salve Regina …
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Seminary gives witness

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The University of Minnesota is currently staging the communist Dario Fo's play The Pope and the Witch. For background information, there is a good report at Catholic Online News: ‘Pope and Witch’ draws Catholic protests. The play is a mouthpiece for the usual evil anti-Catholic spleen (delusional Pope, Vatican involved in drugs trade, starving orphans protest against the Church's moral teaching, blah blah blah, you get the picture.)

Adoro te Devote from Minneapolis, who often comments on this blog, has a moving account of a Holy Protest against the play last weekend. She describes that feeling many of us have known when involved in a public protest: we wonder how people will react, worry about our small numbers, grit our teeth and chase away those thoughts that tell us to be sensible and go home. On this occasion, the cavalry arrived: 100 seminarians from St John Vianney Seminary, Minnesota, some dressed in white choir (cassock and surplice) to sing hymns and pray the Rosary.

Fr…
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Popular posts from this blog

Overcoming temptations with Christ

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The temptations of Our Lord by the devil in the wilderness are contemptible. The devil fails to understand who Christ is, and appeals to greed and pride. It is ludicrous for the devil to ask Our Lord to worship him, because Our Lord is truly God. It is stupid to offer Christ all the kingdoms of the world – Christ is the creator of the universe. Even His human nature, being sinless, is not vulnerable to temptations to greed and pride.

However the devil returns later “at the appointed time” to torment Our Lord with the weight of all the sins of the human race. This is at the time of the passion of Christ, beginning in the Garden of Gethsemane.

In His infinite love for us, Christ is overwhelmed by the disaster of evil as it has afflicted his beloved children. The anguish of this is even greater than the physical torture of the passion. St Luke tells us that Our Lord sweated blood, a graphic detail which shows the psychological and spiritual agony to which He was subjected. We sometimes …
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Bishop Budd on Summorum Pontificum

Fr Z has text and comments on the statement issued by Bishop Christopher Budd of the Plymouth Diocese.

I agree with Fr Z's comments and would add that Bishop Budd is a fair-minded man. I liked the last part of his statement:May I urge you to celebrate the present liturgy (the ordinary rite) of all the sacraments of the Church ‘attente et devote’. The quality of the parish celebration of the renewed liturgy is an important context for the permitted use of the rite now designated `Extraordinary’.The use of the older form of the rite should help and encourage priests in the proper celebration of the newer form. In fact, as Dr Hemming pointed out at the Merton Conference, the older form provides a necessary anchor for the newer form.
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Linacre Ethics Forum on post-abortion syndrome

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The Linacre Ethics Forum offers chance for junior healthcare professionals and students to explore and discuss Catholic healthcare ethics. Each month a senior practitioner or other expert is invited to give a 30 minute presentation, followed by discussion. The aim will be to understand the Church’s teaching, and explore ways in which we can present it sympathetically to patients, colleagues and managers. Medics, nurses, pharmacists etc. are all welcome.

This Tuesday (3 March) Dr Pravin Thevathasan will be talking on Post Abortion Syndrome. Tea and coffee are available at 6.30pm for a prompt 7pm start. The Forum meets at Vaughan House, Francis Street, SW1P 1QN (behind Westminster Cathedral, near Victoria tube station). For those who are interested, there is Mass at Westminster Cathedral at 5.30pm, before the talk

For more information please email Stephen Barrie.
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Bournemouth Oratory Appeal

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Over the past year, during the time that I have been recovering from illness, the Bournemouth Oratory-in-Formation has generously welcomed me to celebrate Mass in the beautiful Church of the Sacred Heart every day, and have become good friends in what is sometimes an isolated existence while I wait for accommodation in my own Archdiocese. They have recently launched an appeal which I am keen to pass on to you in case you may be able to help.

Bishop Philip Egan, a sound and courageous Bishop, has encouraged the Oratory, not only by giving them the Sacred Heart Church as a permanent home, but in supporting them in an ambitious plan to develop their work and become:
A powerhouse of prayerA focus for formation in the faithA hub for the community in the heart of Bournemouth The Community has increased the availability of daily Mass and provides regular daily times for confession, twice-weekly times for adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, as well as “Oratory”, the twice daily time of silent…
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How to make an act of perfect contrition

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How can you go from imperfect to perfect contrition? Gabriella D from Australia asked me this on Twitter today and I want to give an answer because I think that many people misunderstand what we mean when we talk about “perfect contrition.”

Perfect contrition is sorrow and detestation of sin arising out of the love of God. One way of exciting this contrition in our hearts is by considering the passion of Jesus Christ and making acts of love for Him. We can also think of the infinite love which God has for us, and express sorrow in our heart in the presence of this great love which we have offended.

Imperfect contrition is sorrow and detestation for sin arising from a consideration of the ugliness of sin or out of the fear of hell. Disgust at the ugliness of sin is more common today than fear of hell. That is because we do not preach enough, or with sufficient conviction about the four last things.

If a person commits an act of impurity, for example, perhaps by deliberately looking at a…
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