Briefing
From the Christian Legal Centre: Emily Mapfuwa has been denied the right to bring a private prosecution against the Baltic Flour Mills Visual Arts Trust for displaying a traditional statue of Jesus with a grossly oversized phallus. When the Crown Prosecution Service
(CPS) discovered Emily Mapfuwa was going to bring a private prosecution they considered the case for over a month and then decided to take over the case in order to drop it.
They base their decision on the following: there was a sign outside the exhibition warning that the content of the artwork might be considered offensive, that a defence based on freedom of expression was likely to succeed and that there was no public disorder.
This was a highly controversial exhibition which caused deep offence to the Christian Community and was offensive to many members of the general public. Freedom of Expression under Article 10 of the European Convention of Human Rights is not unfettered but is subject to restrictions which include the protection of morals and the rights and freedoms of others.
We believe that such a scurrilous, gratuitous and offensive attack on the person of Jesus Christ who is held in veneration by millions of British citizens as the Son of God, and whose teachings have shaped our culture and heritage over centuries should not be tolerated in a civilised society.
At the Christian Legal Centre we believe the CPS’s actions fundamentally breach Emily Mapfuwa’s statutory right to seek to uphold the rule of law where the State will not intervene by virtue of section 6(1) of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985.
It is inconceivable that the CPS would have intervened in this way had the exhibition portrayed leading figures of other religions in this manner. Why is it that Christianity is now the one religion that can be derided and vilified with impunity? This is a sad day for truth and justice in our society.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Crown Prosecution Service stops prosecution in blasphemous statue case
Gay fascists storm Californian church
Briefing: the gay lobby in California is furious that it lost the battle to stop 'Proposition 8', a referendum voted on at the same time as the Presidential election, which defines marriage as the union of a man and a woman. Proposition 8 became necessary when liberal judges in California decides that, although no one had noticed until now, the state constitution allowed gay marriages.
The reaction of the gay lobby is violence, notably death threats, violent protests, and the disruption of the services of churches which supported Proposition 8. Several other states have passed similar laws by referendum, either in the most recent election or in previous years. It is important to remember that what these laws are seeking to do is simply to maintain what has always been the case, that the legal definition of marriage refers to the natural institution of a life-long commitment between a man and a woman suited to the procreation and raising of children. This huge outburst of anger is at a set-back to the progress of their agenda. If they won this battle they would simply move on to the next item - insisting that home-schooled children are given more homosexual propaganda, say, or reducing the age of consent to below puberty.
One group whose support they can rely on is the US media - and no doubt the BBC as well - who are declining to report this fairly, or even at all. Imagine the outrage if these were white supremicists. All the pictures on news services seem to be of respectable-looking gays peacefully holding banners. And yet they are defacing Mormon temples and invading churches shouting 'Jesus was gay'.
H-t to Cathcon.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Blasphemy for sale at Waterstones
Briefing: we don't normally get involved in books, which are intrinsically less public than, for example, a statue in a public gallery, or a television broadcast. But there are a couple of interesting features to this.
The Welsh 'poet' Patrick Jones has published a book , 'Darkness is Where the Stars Are', which attacks Christianity and contains at least one blasphemous passage about sex and Our Lord. The Evangelical group 'Christian Voice' was planning to protest at a reading he was going to give in the Cardiff branch of Waterstones, and the event was cancelled. The PA of the Managing Director of Waterstones told them 'It is not appropriate for our stores to host events that are potentially disruptive'.
With this success won without a fight, Christian Voice are suggesting a number of options to thier supporters, including the boycotting of Waterstones. Here's another of their options:
One of the poems in the book includes the blasphemous line: "just like mary magdelene (sic), i f****d jesus"
You can find the book on the shelves at your local Waterstones, look for the offending words, which Patrick Jones has helpfully told me are in the poem 'Hymn', and if it causes you harassment, alarm or distress, contrary to Section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986, make a note of the facts and report the matter to your local police.
Yes, this sounds a bit mad, but the law is there, it has been made stronger and stronger in the context of harrassment to homosexuals and Muslims, the potential it has for persecuting Christians is immense, and possibly the best way to get it changed is to show how it can be used by Christians themselves.
Furthermore, the reaction of Waterstones indicates that the feelings of Christians cannot always be ignored. We shall see what happens if Christian Voice supporters report their distress to the police.
LiveSimply: dossier
We can choose to live in a way that puts us back in touch with what really matters.We can help create a world where human dignity is respected and people in developing countries have the chance to live their lives to the full. God calls us to live simply, sustainably and in solidarity with people who are poor.
Deus Caritas Est 28:
The Church is ... alive with the love enkindled by the Spirit of Christ. This love does not simply offer people material help, but refreshment and care for their souls, something which often is even more necessary than material support. In the end, the claim that just social structures would make works of charity superfluous masks a materialist conception of man: the mistaken notion that man can live “by bread alone” (Mt4:4; cf. Dt 8:3)—a conviction that demeans man and ultimately disregards all that is specifically human.
Spe Salvi 35:
... our daily efforts in pursuing our own lives and in working for the world's future either tire us or turn into fanaticism, unless we are enlightened by the radiance of the great hope that cannot be destroyed even by small-scale failures or by a breakdown in matters of historic importance. If we cannot hope for more than is effectively attainable at any given time, or more than is promised by political or economic authorities, our lives will soon be without hope. It is important to know that I can always continue to hope, even if in my own life, or the historical period in which I am living, there seems to be nothing left to hope for. Only the great certitude of hope that my own life and history in general, despite all failures, are held firm by the indestructible power of Love, and that this gives them their meaning and importance, only this kind of hope can then give the courage to act and to persevere. Certainly we cannot “build” the Kingdom of God by our own efforts—what we build will always be the kingdom of man with all the limitations proper to our human nature. The Kingdom of God is a gift, and precisely because of this, it is great and beautiful, and constitutes the response to our hope. And we cannot—to use the classical expression—”merit” Heaven through our works. Heaven is always more than we could merit, just as being loved is never something “merited”, but always a gift. However, even when we are fully aware that Heaven far exceeds what we can merit, it will always be true that our behaviour is not indifferent before God and therefore is not indifferent for the unfolding of history. We can open ourselves and the world and allow God to enter: we can open ourselves to truth, to love, to what is good. This is what the saints did, those who, as “God's fellow workers”, contributed to the world's salvation (cf. 1 Cor 3:9; 1 Th 3:2).
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Support for Obama from British Catholic clergy
Briefing: Catholic bishops and priests in the United States, who have risked the wrath of the liberal establishment by pointing out that it is wrong to vote for a man who has vowed to remove all legal restrictions on abortion in America, and will certainly appoint Supreme Court judges who are solidly pro-abortion, will be saddened to hear of the support for Obama from British Catholics whose liberal instincts seem to be stronger than their Catholic ones.
An American priest, David Cotter of St Aidan’s, Johnstone (Diocese of Paisley, Scotland) appeared on the radio to proclaim his support for Obama, dismissing the importance of abortion as an electoral issue, and ridiculing a recording of the Ave Maria at the same time. H-t to Catholic Truth, where there is more commentary. See the broadcast here.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Ofsted lies about demand for sex ed
Briefing: most children don't want more sex ed - but Ofsted are trying to get us to think they do.
From CFNews: The schools watchdog has been accused of deception after it claimed that a third of pupils wanted more sex education, while failing to mention that more than half did not.
The huge nationwide survey of almost 150,000 children aged ten to fifteen is designed to find out, among other things, 'if the advice they receive on matters like sex and relationships is sufficient.'
In a press release accompanying the survey, Ofsted simply said: 'Better information and advice about sex and relationships was wanted by more than a third of children and young people.'
But according to the figures released by Ofsted, 55 per cent of those asked said they didn't need more information. Ofsted failed to report this figure in the press release.
Ofsted recently announced plans to begin using pupils' opinions on the sex education they receive when assessing schools - a plan which has been denounced as 'lunacy' by commentators.
Since then, the Government has announced that sex and relationships education is to become compulsory across both primary and secondary schools.
Mike Judge of The Christian Institute said: 'Ofsted's own figures say that a majority of children don't want more sex education.
'It looks as though the schools inspectorate is trying to spin these figures in order to back up the Government's misguided plans for sex education.
'Has Ofsted jumped on the sex education bandwagon? If so, it should jump off again and get on with the job of improving schools.' [Christian Institute]
Holy Days: Bishops defeated by Rome
A victory for those attending the Traditional Mass, and a moral victory also for all those who opposed the transfer of holydays to the nearest Sunday, one of the very first campaigns joined by this blog.
Sunday, November 09, 2008
Ad orientem liturgical dance?
Briefing: in a thoughtful passage on the importance of focusing on God rather than on the congregation during the Mass, supporting the possibility of celebrating Mass 'ad orientem' (towards the East, ie the same way the congregation are facing), the Liturgy Office of England and Wales newsletter 'Spirit of the Season' (pdf) applies the same reasoning to dancing:
This even holds good where the occasional technique of sacred dance is employed in a time of prayer. For participants to lead others in prayer, it might be worth considering how the prayer can be made facing the Altar, so that the congregation is not so much an audience which receives the dance, but that dance is much more an act of prayer to God, that draws the congregation into it. It’s amazing how different things can be for those executing the dance when not preoccupied by who is looking at them, but knowing they can still be seen.
But dancing is NOT ALLOWED at Mass: this is simply a liturgical abuse. If you've not heard the video of Cardinal Arinze on the subject, watch it here.
The Liturgy Office is an organ of the Bishops' Conference: typically of these bureaucrats, they speak with the authority of the bishops but no one reigns them in. Well, one step forward, one step back...
Saturday, November 08, 2008
Mass 'ad orientem'?
Local action as appropriate: most priests don't need the hassle, even if they would like to change to celebrating Mass towards the East, in conformity to the Church's traditions, so please support them when they do.
Why? Just think about it: is Mass an act of worship directed towards the congregation, or by the priest and the congregation towards God? Who are we worshipping? God is represented by liturgical East (the altar end of the church), and the Crucifix (and also the Tabernacle, where this is present).
In his book The Spirit of the Liturgy, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI, said this:
The turning of the priest toward the people has turned the community into a self-enclosed circle. In its outward form, it no longer opens out on what lies ahead and above, but is locked into itself. The common turning toward the East was not a "celebration toward the wall"; it did not mean that the priest "had his back to the people": the priest himself was not regarded as so important. For just as the congregation in the synagogue looked together toward Jerusalem, so in the Christian Liturgy the congregation looked together "toward the Lord". As one of the fathers of Vatican II's Constitution on the Liturgy, J.A. Jungmann, put it, it was much more a question of priest and people facing in the same direction, knowing that together they were in a procession toward the Lord. They did not lock themselves into a circle, they did not gaze at one another, but as the pilgrim People of God they set off for the Oriens, for the Christ who comes to meet us....
(See a much longer extract here).
After that, one understands why Fr Z says Celebrating ad orientem is important. I think, as do others, that turning the altars around was the single most damaging thing that happened as a result of skewed ideas of liturgical reform.
Is it allowed?? Of course it is! Fr Z gives chapter and verse.
Pro-lifers to be classed as hate-preachers
Briefing: another consequence of trying to deal with militant Islam while trying to seem 'even handed'. While there is a lunatic fringe of violence in the pro-life movemnet in the United States, this legislation could catch a much wider group of people.
From CFNews: Pro-life activists could be included among the 'hate preachers' who would be barred from entry into Great Britain under new rules proposed by home secretary Jacqui Smith. The rules, introducing as a step to combat terrorism, would exclude anyone 'engaged in fostering, encouraging or spreading extremism and hatred.' The rules introduced by Smith would cover anyone whose views are deemed 'extremist,' potentially including outspoken opponents of legal abortion or same-sex marriage. [CWNews]
Friday, November 07, 2008
Catholic MPs: the roll of shame
Local action as appropriate: if your MP voted for the HFEA Bill, ie for hybrid embryos, that is something he or she should know you will take into account when deciding how to vote at the next election.
If you have a Catholic MP, listed as such in the Catholic Directory, who voted for the bill, this is extremely serious and you should demand an explanation. Here they are (h-t to Fr Finnigan):
1) Des Browne
2) Andy Burnham
3) David Cairns
4) Rosie Cooper
5) Paul Goggins
6) Meg Hillier
7) Huw Irranca-Davies
8) Helen Jones
9) Barbara Keeley
10) Peter Kilfoyle
11) Thomas McAvoy
12) Pat McFadden
13) Anne McGuire
14) Ann McKechin
15) Jim Murphy
16) Paul Murphy (Papal Knight)
17) Mike O'Brien
18) Chris Ruane
19) Helen Southworth
20) Don Touhig (Papal Knight)
Sex Ed: Catholicmomof10 agonistes
Briefing: Catholicmomof10, Jackie Parkes, has been posting a series of very interesting items about sex education, the Connexions agency in Catholic schools, and the willingness of her local Catholic school to invite Clare Short, fresh from her voting in favour of the HFA Bill, to give out awards and deliver a talk. Here are a couple of highlights on the important issue of Connexion (see this post here):
A COMMENT defending Connexions:
Of course they also have to comply with the law, so have to provide a careers service, and no state school has the funding to create its own careers service - so Connexions has been the only realistic option.
If Governors have failed to prevent Connexions providing other material as well, that is a matter for parents to raise with the Governors of their schools. CES has no authority in this respect - it can only advise. It does so; and it has published a protocol which, if enforced by Schools, prevents Connexions from distributing unsuitable literature.
The experience at our school is that, when informed clearly of the issues, Connexions respect the protocol - the system put into place by CES works. We still, as Governors, overview materials they bring into school, as we do for any other outside agency; it is an agenda item at every meeting (six per year) of the relevant Governors' Committee.
If your school is not enforcing the protocol, take it up with the Governors: if they are not willing to act then take it up with the Bishop who appointed them. Get involved - most schools are short of Governors, or at least of potential successors to existing Governors.
This however is not true: it is perfectly possible to keep Connexions out of a school; once they are in they give advice 'in confidence' and are required to do so BY LAW. If a child wants an abortion, they will help. Eric Hester writes an illuminating letter to Mrs Parkes:
Dear Jackie,
Connexions.
The argument in favour of Connections seems to be: a school must have a careers service; Connexions is the only one; therefore Catholic schools must have Connexions; since it has a protocol everything will be fine and dandy.
As one that has been headmaster and/or governor of Catholic schools since 1975, I must say that there are a number of non-sequiturs here. A secondary school may decide to provide careers advice but many of them do this quite well from within their own staff. If a school wishes to involve an outside agency, then it can choose from several. The independent careers services will be quite happy to work in maintained schools and are not expensive. Connexions is, actually, a very poor career service, in my opinion.
It should be noted, too, that someone from Connexions, giving advice about where to go for sixth form education will not see it as very important to go to a Catholic institution.
However, even if governors were told that they would be fined if they did not have an outside agency, and even if Connexions were the best careers advisory service in the history of the universe, then Connexions should not be allowed in schools. This is, inter alia, because of its appalling advice given on its website to use the Family Planning Authority for sex advice. See
www.connexions-direct.com/index.cfm?pid=107&catalogueContentID=337
I do not blame heads and governors; they are hard-working and would rely on the CES to advise them. That trust has been betrayed. I challenge any Catholic to defend the Connexions website.
Eric Hester
Previous discussion here
Thursday, November 06, 2008
LiveChastely promise
Action: please sign up! This is an iniative of James Preece of Catholic and Loving It; we've been meaning to promote and well, finally we are.
"I will LiveChastely but I want 1,000 other people to join me."
Already 137 people have signed up; the success of this 'promise' will demonstrate that there are still Catholics out there who have a real interest in the Faith, and that they are actually much more active and committed than the ones who are concerned solely with Fairtrade chocolate.
Cardinal Schonborn lambasts the failure of bishops to condemn contraception
Comment: What Cardinal Schonborn of Vienna says is applicable all over the world. Although bishops in the UK did not issue a formal declaration undermining Humanae Vitae, as others did, they did soft-pedel the teaching, and encouraged their priests to do the same.
From The Tablet, 8/11/08: AUSTRIA'S MOST senior Catholic cleric has issued a blistering attack on his predecessors, accusing them of lacking the courage to speak out against birth control and blaming them for the declining birth rate in Europe, writes Christa Pongratz-Lippitt.
Cardinal Christoph Schonborn, the Archbishop of Vienna, gave his damning critique in a sermon at a Neocatechumenate meeting in Jerusalem on 27 March this year, the text of which was only made public late last month on his archdiocesan website.
After the publication of the encyclical Humanae Vitae outlawing the use of birth control for Catholics in 1968 [so says The Tablet: actually, it reiterated the constant teaching of the Church on the subject, expressed eg in the 1930 encyclical Casti Conubii], numerous bishops' conferences around the world - including those of Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, the US and later Australia - issued statements assuring the faithful that the issue was a matter of conscience.
But those bishops, said Cardinal Schonborn, were "frightened of the press and of being misunderstood by the faithful". Blame lay not only with the bishops responsible at the time - none of whom is still alive - but with all bishops for the fact that Europe is "about to die out". "I think that it is also our sin as bishops, even if none of us were bishops in 1968," he added. Bishops have not had, or did not have, the courage to "swim against the tide" and say yes to Humanae Vitae, he said. The cardinal, who is close to Pope Benedict XVI, particularly criticised two of the many 1968 bishops' conference declarations on Humanae Vitae, which all stressed the importance of the individual conscience.
He singled out the Maria Trost Declaration, whose signatories included Cardinal Franz Konig, the late Archbishop of Vienna, president of the Austrian bishops' conference and a Father of the Second Vatican Council, and the Konigstein Declaration, whose signatories included Cardinal Julius Dopfner, the late Archbishop of Munich, president of the German bishops' conference and another Council Father.
Cardinal Schonborn accused the signatories of "weakening the People of God's sense for life", so that when "the wave of abortions" and increasing acceptance of homosexuality followed, the Church lacked the courage to oppose them. There were a few memorable exceptions in 1968, the cardinal said, one of which was in Krakow, where a group of theologians led by the Archbishop and Cardinal of Krakow, the [future] Pope John Paul II, drew up a memorandum which was sent to Pope Paul VI urging him to write Humanae Vitae.
"I think this witness by a martyr bishop of the so-called Silent Church carried more weight than all the expertise Pope Paul VI had drawn up on this subject. It led him to make his courageous decision. I am convinced in my inner being, even if I have no historical evidence, that this text from Krakow helped to give Pope Paul VI the courage to write Humanae Vitae"
Cardinal Schonborn thanked the Neocat¬echumenate families for having so many children and producing so many new priests, and he thanked Popes Paul VI, John Paul II and Benedict XVI for discerning be-tween the different charisms and, following the example of St Paul in 1 Corinthians 14, saying which one is of God. He asked God to forgive all bishops and give them courage to say yes to life.
The Bishops of England and Wales want your money
Action: don't give it to them. As Damian Thompson says, they are supposed to be reforming the appallingly wasteful and self-indulgent bureaucracy of the Bishops' Conference, but have done nothing. The best and most exiting development would be the closure of the whole shebang, since as Bishop O'Donaghue told us it actually prevents good bishops doing good. As he says (see a longer extract, and anther extract here):
I must admit that during my 15 years as a bishop I have increasingly come to share certain concerns about the relationship between individual bishops and the National Conference:
Due to the division of areas of responsibility among the bishops, such as education, liturgy, healthcare, migrants etc, there can often be reluctance among the rest of the bishops to speak out on these issues, as if somehow they had handed over their competence in these areas to the responsible bishop and his particular committee. For example, there seemed some surprise in some circles that I had issued my teaching document, Fit for Mission? Schools.
From Damian Thompson, in part: The Bishops' Conference of England and Wales has drawn up an £8.4 million shopping list of "initiatives" that it wants wealthy donors to pay for. My advice to millionaires: politely decline, and give the money instead to better Catholic causes, such as the Westminster Cathedral appeal or the terrific charity Aid to the Church in Need.
Why? Because the Bishops' Conference has not carried out its promise to reform itself, making do instead with a bit of tinkering. So its "Faith in the Future" programme still prominently features quasi-political projects such as "promoting environmental justice" (£210,000), while the same old crowd are in charge of the bureaucracy.
The demand for £245,000 for "formation of liturgical ministry" sounds innocent enough - but my experience is that the only thing that does more damage to parish worship than a liturgical minister is a trained liturgical minister (i.e., a Tablet reader who has been given a diocesan licence to boss around ordinary Catholics).
The biggest item on the shopping list is a £1.5 million project to support family life. No doubt it will do some good, but I've seen the promotional video accompanying the appeal and all we see is a family from Manchester trooping off to a meeting with other active lay Catholics to watch one of those bloody DVDs that the Church regards as almost miraculous tools of evangelisation.
See his full post.
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Questionaire about possible bishops
Comment: this has been published on a number of websites now; the Vatican can't send this out to dozens of people and expect it to remain secret. So you might as well see it. Perhaps the most revealing thing about it is the conflicting requirements: Does he have a devotion to Our Lady? - and is he 'up to date' in theology, and active in ecumenism (i.e., does he avoid having a devotion to Our Lady)? Is he loyal to the Holy See's teaching on the impossibility of women priests? - and does he 'appreciate' the 'collabortation' of women (i.e., does he sureptitiously promote women's ordination)?
This speaks volumes about the way the Church is being governed. Let us pray that Pope Benedict XVI promotes to the episcopate people who give the teaching of the Church more than lip-service.
H-T Damian Thompson.
I- PERSONAL Appearance, health, application to work. Family's condition. Any predisposition to hereditary illnesses?
2- HUMAN QUALITIES Intellectual abilities Temperament and character. Balance and Soundness of judgment. Sense of responsibility.
3- CHRISTIAN & PRIESTLY VIRTUES Prudence, Fairness, spirit of faith and charity. Piety: daily celebration of the Eucharist and Liturgy of the Hours. Marian devotion.
4- BEHAVIOUR Moral integrity. How does he relate to people and to public authorities in the exercise of his priestly ministry?
5- CULTURAL FORMATION Is he competent and up to date in Theology and other Ecclesiastical Sciences? General cultural attainment. Foreign languages. Works published.
6- ORTHODOXY Doctrinal orientation. Loyalty to the Doctrine and Magisterium of the Church. In particular: the attitude of the candidate to the Documents of the Holy See on the Ministerial Priesthood, on the Priestly Ordination of Women, on marriage, on sexual Ethics and on Social Justice. Fidelity to the genuine Tradition of the Church and commitment to the authentic renewal promoted by Vatican 11, and adherence to the "Statement of Conclusions, 1998".
7- DISCIPLINE Devotedness to the Holy Father, the Holy See and the Episcopal Hierarchy. Support for Priestly Celibacy and general and particular Laws of the Church. In particular: as to Liturgical and Clerical Discipline.
8- PASTORAL EXPERIENCE AND ATTITUDES Evangelization and Catechesis: preaching and teaching. Aptitude for public speaking. Readiness to administer the Sacraments. Promotion of Vocations. Interest in the Missions and Ecumenical activities. Formation of lay people in the Family and Social fields of apostolate: of young people, of workers, defenders of human rights?
9- QUALITIES OF LEADERSHIP Does he have a capacity for leadership: for dialogue, for evoking and accepting collaboration, for analysis and programming, for making decisions and ensuring that they are carried through? Does he appreciate the role and collaboration of religious and lay people ( men and women )? Is he able to delegate and share responsibility? Has be shown an interest in the problems of the Universal as well as the local Church?
10- ADMINISTRATIVE CAPACITY Does he exercise due care of the Church's property? Ability in administration. Sense of justice. Readiness to enlist the help of those experienced in such affairs?
11- PUBLIC IMAGE Has he gained the respect of his fellow clergy? Of the people and of the public authorities?
12- GENERAL OVERVIEW Give a comprehensive judgment on the personality of the candidate and of his suitability for the episcopate. Indicate, if affirmative, whether he is particularly suited for appointment to a residential See, or as an Auxiliary Bishop. Or for work in an urban, rural, industrial or in other social context.
13- CONSULTATION Please suggest the names of persons (ecclesiastic, religious, or lay) who can provide pertinent and useful information about the candidate. Please give names and addresses.
BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
1- a. Full name of the candidate.
b. Date and place of birth.
c. Names of parents.
d. Was he born in lawful wedlock?
2- a. Condition of his family: religious, moral, civil, economic; bodily and mental health.
a. In what Seminaries and other Institutes has he studied?
b. What were the results?
c. What academic grades did he achieve?
4- a. Is he the author of any publications?
b. If possible, indicate titles and editions.
5- a. Does he speak, or in any way know, foreign languages?
6- a. Date and place of priestly ordination.
b. Diocese or Religious Institute for which he was ordained.
c. Diocese in which he was born.
d. Diocese to which he now belongs.
e. Diocese of actual residence.
f If a Religious, indicate the province for which he was professed and the date of profession.
7- a. Ministries he has exercised and offices (ecclesiastical, academic, etc.) he has filled (place and dates).
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Black vestments for All Souls and funerals
Comment: readers will have seen mostly 'violet' (purple) vestments yesterday for the feast of All Souls, unless they went to the Traditional Mass. Black is allowed in the New Mass: see Fr Z on the law. Since black vestments have been the Church's tradition for many centuries, they are surely to be preferred.
Black retains, in the public imagination, the association with mourning. It is precisely this association which put some people off it as a liturgical colour in the 1960s. It has this association partly because it was used for funerals for so long. So I suppose if white or violet continues to be used for funerals, and this sinks into the public imagination, the liberal liturgists of the future will have to change the colour again. But this is silly.
Black reminds us of the dead, of our need to pray for them, and of our going to join them in due course. It is part of the cultural patrimony of Catholicism, from which liberal liturgists want to divorce us. Let us join Fr Zulhsdorf's campaign: bring back the black! (And unbleached candles too.)
'Catholic Omnibus' no longer to be printed
Another victory for faithful Catholics! As we reported not long ago, Catholic Omnibus (the word 'Catholic' is printed in very small letters, of course), the official publication of the National Board of Catholic Women, is the mouthpiece of a clique of feminists, mainly from the group 'Women Word Spirit' (CWN) (see our dossier) which has been banned from the national Catholic Directory for its support of women's ordination and abortion. This clique has a vice-like grip on the National Board of Catholic Women, which is an official agency of the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales. The orthodox Association of Catholic Women resigned from the NBCW in protest a year or so ago, showing how, unfortunately, those who shout loudest, and are most intolerant, usually prevail when those in authority refuse to exercise it.
Clearly things are changing, so make sure your local bishop is not continuing to endorse the WWS in his diocesan directory.
Briefing: It would appear that one of the first casualties of the recession is Catholic OMNIBUS, the quarterly newspaper of the National Board of Catholic Women. The paper, which is edited by known members and supporters of extreme feminist groups like Catholic Women's Network/Women Word Spirit, has mainly reflected the dissenting and politically-correct concerns of such groups, and there is much relief that it is at last being pulled from our churches. Deo Gratias! The Autumn 2008 issue carries news of the demise of Catholic OMNIBUS on the front page:
"Unfortunately, NBCW works on a very limited budget we are unable (sic) to continue printing Catholic OMNIBUS, however, it will still be available and can be downloaded from the Web site. We passionately believe that the Church in England and Wales needs a national paper/magazine which encompasses and includes the breadth and depth of the prayer and work of the Church: the contribution of Lay people, Religious life and the Ordained ministry."
Monday, November 03, 2008
Liturgical restoration in St Peter's, Rome
Action: if you have one of these hideous things disfiguring your local church, perhaps now is the time to replace it with something more fitting. Ugliness, and things in discord with the traditions of the Church - liturgical, architectural, iconographic - have no place in our churches, and the Holy Father is leading the way in expunging them from St Peter's.
Here was an unfortunate experiment with modern materials and an aethetics designed to suggest the Church is 'with it' in a technological age instead of to raise the heart to God, imposed on St Peter's Basilica in the 1960s:
It has been replaced by this:
Hat-tip to Fr Zuhlsdorf.
Sunday, November 02, 2008
Claire Curtiss-Thomas must be sacked from the Pro-Life Group
Briefing: when is a Pro-Life Group not a Pro-Life Group? Presumably, when it supports abortion. We have written about this before, but Claire Curtiss-Thomas, a Catholic and one of the Vice-Chairs of the All-Party Parliamentary Pro-Life Group, thinks that the HFEA bill, aka the Hybrids Bill, is something which she can support: to vote against the bill, she told a constituant, would be to 'throw the baby out with the bath-water'.
What baby might that be? One of the babies who are going to to be created with animal chromasones, in order to be experimented upon and killed?
Here's a picture of her with her beloved bath-water apparently still in her hair.
See John Smeaton for more details.
