The Hermeneutic of Continuity

Fr Richard John Neuhaus, a faithful priest and hugely influential writer founded the journal First Things . His monthly essay "The Public Square" was always highly regarded and widely read. (He also featured in the "Notes from across the Atlantic" section for Faith Magazine .) He was a great apostle in the pro-life cause and an enthusiastic supporter of the papacies of Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI. Fr Neuhaus (72) died yesterday, 8 January 2009, from the side effects of the cancer he was suffering. He received the last rites of the Church from his long time friend Fr George Rutler. Shortly after he died, First Things re-posted Fr Neuhaus' February 2000 article Born Toward Dying . Tributes to him listed at First Things include those received from the White House, and major US dailies as well as Catholic sources. John Allen has a good piece in the National Catholic Reporter  as does Michael Novak ( A second brother dies ). Here is the notice from First...

The Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles is a traditional monastic community of women. Founded first of all under the wing of the FSSP in Scranton Pennsylvania, they are now located in the diocese of Kansas City. The Most Rev Robert W. Finn, Bishop of Kansas City invited the sisters to come to his diocese and has offered firm support and protection of their charism and their use of the traditional liturgy. He erected the Priory of Our Lady of Ephesus as an official novitiate in accord with Canon Law and ratified the superior, Mother Therese's profession of monastic vows on 18 May last year so that she could receive the vows of eleven other sisters the following day. At the moment, the community is in a temporary home and they are hoping to build a permanent monastery. Last Tuesday, one of the novices made her first profession of vows and four postulants were clothed as novices. The photograph above is from the Kansas Catholic blog which has two posts on the ceremony: Benedicti...

Last September, I reported on the Launch of "Usus Antiquior" , a new journal dedicated to the study of the Sacred Liturgy. Since then, there has been an open competition for the design of the journal. the results have now been announced and you can read the full story at the NLM: Winners of the Usus Antiquior Journal Design Competition Announced (and an Update on the Journal's Progress) . Here is the winning cover, designed by Mr Murray Dovey of Melbourne, Australia: And here are two images for the internal design from Mr Michael Carchrie-Campbell of Northern Ireland: Special commendation was given to Mr Matthew Alderman of New York in the United States of America for the quality of style of his design: Subscriptions for Usus Antiquior will open on 7 July this year when the contents of the first edition will be announced.

Patrick Benedict, a parishioner at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church (Diocese of Memphis in Tennessee) and the president of the Saint Michael the Archangel Organization, is organising a Novena of Masses for unborn babies from 13-21 January. Here is the full text of his notice: MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE (January 6th, 2009) - A total of more than 700 Masses has been scheduled as part of the 10,000 MASSES FOR UNBORN BABIES Novena(January 13th - January 21st, 2009). The Saint Michael the Archangel Organization(the coordinator of this Novena) will continue to gather information, but as of now: * At least 5 bishops and one cardinal will be offering the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for the unborn babies; * Masses will be offered in Australia, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, New Zealand, Philippines, Poland, Singapore, Trinidad, Uganda, and the United States; * The ordinary form of the Mass and the extraordinary form of the Mass will be offered; * Ma...

The photo above is from the Church of St Simon Stock in South Ashford. The new altar frontal was made by a parishioner. Fr Boyle has done a great deal to enhance the dignity of the sanctuary of his simple but devotional Church. For more information on why altar frontals are a Good Thing, see the excellent article by Shawn Tribe on the NLM last October: The History, Development and Symbolism of the Antependium, Altar Frontal, or "Pallium Altaris"

Yesterday in the post "Saviours are a dime a dozen" I made some comments on the characteristics of those Catholic groups and organisations for the young which are thriving. In an interesting article in the Nederlands Dagblad ( Nieuwe ordes weer in habijt ), the sociologist Theo Schepens is quoted on the pattern of religious life he has observed in the Netherlands today. The Netherlands has 700 buildings constructed as religious houses - only 150 are still in use. The Netherlands Conference of Religious last year wrote to the Bishops about their decline, saying that they had to be obedient to the signs of the times which seem to indicate that their way of life is coming to an end, that there must be a new form, less emphasis on priests, the embracing of differences as different aspects of God, emphasis on equality and diversity etc. It is true that we should be attentive to the signs of the times; but they do not necessarily tell us to close up and sell all the convents. The ...

There was a good congregation for last night's High Mass at Blackfen for the feast of the Epiphany. This was also the third consecutive Mass at which we have had ten servers and could therefore field the full complement of six torchbearers. Fr Charles Briggs and Deacon John Harrison assisted as Deacon and Subdeacon. Here is a photo of the chanting of the Gospel: Many thanks to the Mulier Fortis for taking the photos on her phone.

I am happy to pass on this notice from HGPI: Helpers of God's Precious Infants The next vigil at Marie Stopes abortion facility, 88 Russell Road, Buckhurst Hill, Essex IG9 5QB, will be held on 24 January 2009 From St Thomas of Canterbury Church, 557/559 High Road, Woodford Green IG8 0RB led by the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal with full police co-operation Times (approx.) are as follows: 8.45am - Holy Sacrifice of the Mass at St Thomas of Canterbury Church 9.30am - Prayerful and peaceful procession to Marie Stopes abortion facility, processing with image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, holy rosary and hymns 11.45am - Return procession with prayers and hymns 12.15pm - Break for tea and get together. Please bring packed lunch Directions : From London - Central Line Tube to South Woodford (Loughton, Debden or Epping train – NOT Hainault), cross to the westbound platform by the station footbridge (or via subway outside the station) for a W13 or a 179 bus at the stop outside the station...

Dominican Father Augustine DiNoia, undersecretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith gave an address in December which was reported by the Catholic News Service . I have just picked it up from Fr Michael Brown's excellent blog Forest Murmurs . In a strikingly relevant comment, Father observed: Saviours are a dime a dozen when one fails to grasp what's really at stake. We need to be delivered not just from error, or suffering, or desire, or injustice, or poverty... God desires nothing less than to share his life with us... [ Jesus is ] not just any Saviour. Fr DiNoia also wisely advised: In our conversations with young people, we have to avoid the temptation to fudge - to adapt the Catholic faith so as to make it palatable to modern tastes and expectations The good Dominican Father's wisdom is proved by experience. It is common nowadays for the question of the lapsation of young people comes up at various group discussions on how we should best rearrange the d...

At Stonyhurst for the Faith Winter Session, I was very pleased to meet Jane Teresa of the My heart was restless blog. Go over and take a look - there is a good variety of posts there. A worthy addition to your blogroll. Just before the conference, Jane posted her Conversion Story . It is very inspiring; in character, more "St Augustine" than "John Henry Newman". There is some hard-headed wisdom garnered from the experience of the emptiness of the world and the futility of a feelings-based Catholicism. St John of the Cross would surely nod sagely at this observation: I justified all kinds of sinful things to myself – not going to Mass, being unchaste, wild partying – because it felt right, and because I could sink into deep contemplation on closing my eyes to pray. Without an appreciation of the Truth, my faith was almost meaningless. Not all who cry “Lord, Lord” will see Him in Heaven. Childlike trust in God, zeal for the teaching of the Church, and consecration to...

In his Pastoral Letter for the Feast of the Holy Family , Bishop Crispian Hollis, of the Diocese of Portsmouth, spoke about the celebration of the family as something "we particularly need that at this time when, politically and often socially, family life is being undermined and diminished. Later in his letter, he wrote: But it’s not just family life that’s under threat in today’s world – we live today in many ways in what Pope John Paul described as a culture of death. Life itself has become cheap and, as a society, we have become careless and destructive of life, whether that life is found at its very beginnings, in the womb and in the unborn child, or in the old and frail as they approach natural death. To see such persons – for that is what they truly are – as somehow disposable or a nuisance or of no consequence, is to show a supreme disregard for the value and dignity of all who, like ourselves, are children of a loving God. As Catholics, we pride ourselves on being “pro-li...