Two New Papal Documents

It has come to my tired attention (I am currently on nights) that the Pope has released two important documents this last couple of weeks. The first, is his third Encyclical Caritas in Veritate which I think has a really nice catchy title. Charity in Truth. I have been interested in the deterioration of modern society's definition of Love, so am particularly pleased that the Holy Father has reiterated the reasons for this:

Truth needs to be sought, found and expressed within the “economy” of charity, but charity in its turn needs to be understood, confirmed and practised in the light of truth. In this way, not only do we do a service to charity enlightened by truth, but we also help give credibility to truth, demonstrating its persuasive and authenticating power in the practical setting of social living. This is a matter of no small account today, in a social and cultural context which relativizes truth, often paying little heed to it and showing increasing reluctance to acknowledge its existence. (Paragraph 2)

I am still only on chapter 2, but wanted to link to it now so that people can be drawn into the document's riches.

The second document I have come across is a shorter Motu Proprio called Ecclesiae Unitatem, which concerns the reorganisation of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei into the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. The reasons for this centre around the desire of the Holy Father to bring back into full communion with the Church, the Priestly Fraternity SSPX. It seems to emphasise the fact that negotiations are purely doctrinal and little to do with the Extraordinary Form of the Mass, which has since been released from special indults described by Ecclesia Dei.

Obviously the Holy Father is very busy. The Encyclical obviously has most relevance to the Church as a whole, but we must not underestimate the importance of trying to discuss Vatican II in light of increased rootedness in Tradition: I could not possibly say whether the talks with SSPX will be successful, but at least it shows a readiness on the part of the Church to debate the whole context of Vatican II as a pastoral council, and since liberals within the Church seem so determined to turn it into a super-dogma council, it is useful to have another perspective which challenges the status quo.

Te Deum

In thanksgiving for the coming beatification of Cardinal Newman:

Te Deum laudamus: te Dominum confitemur. Te aeternum Patrem omnis terra veneratur. Tibi omnes Angeli; tibi caeli et universae Potestates; Tibi Cherubim et Seraphim incessabili voce proclamant: Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus, Dominus Deus Sabaoth.

O God, we praise Thee, and acknowledge Thee to be the supreme Lord.
Everlasting Father, all the earth worships Thee.
All the Angels, the heavens and all angelic powers,
All the Cherubim and Seraphim, continuously cry to Thee:
Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Hosts!

Pleni sunt caeli et terra maiestatis gloriae tuae. Te gloriosus Apostolorum chorus, Te Prophetarum laudabilis numerus, Te Martyrum candidatus laudat exercitus. Te per orbem terrarum sancta confitetur Ecclesia
Heaven and earth are full of the Majesty of Thy glory.
The glorious choir of the Apostles,
The wonderful company of Prophets,
The white-robed army of Martyrs, praise Thee.
Holy Church throughout the world acknowledges Thee:

Patrem immensae maiestatis: Venerandum tuum verum et unicum Filium; Sanctum quoque Paraclitum Spiritum. Tu Rex gloriae, Christe. Tu Patris sempiternus es Filius.
The Father of infinite Majesty;
Thy adorable, true and only Son;
Also the Holy Spirit, the Comforter.
O Christ, Thou art the King of glory!
Thou art the everlasting Son of the Father.

Tu ad liberandum suscepturus hominem, non horruisti Virginis uterum. Tu, devicto mortis aculeo, aperuisti credentibus regna caelorum. Tu ad dexteram Dei sedes, in gloria Patris. Iudex crederis esse venturus.
When Thou tookest it upon Thyself to deliver man,
Thou didst not disdain the Virgin's womb.
Having overcome the sting of death, Thou opened the Kingdom of Heaven to all believers.
Thou sitest at the right hand of God in the glory of the Father.
We believe that Thou willst come to be our Judge.

Te ergo quaesumus, tuis famulis subveni: quos pretioso sanguine redemisti. Aeterna fac cum sanctis tuis in gloria numerari.
We, therefore, beg Thee to help Thy servants whom Thou hast redeemed with Thy Precious Blood. Let them be numbered with Thy Saints in everlasting glory.

V. Salvum fac populum tuum, Domine, et benedic hereditati tuae.
R. Et rege eos, et extolle illos usque in aeternum.
V. Save Thy people, O Lord, and bless Thy inheritance! R. Govern them, and raise them up forever.

V. Per singulos dies benedicimus te.
R. Et laudamus nomen tuum in saeculum, et in saeculum saeculi.
V. Every day we thank Thee. R. And we praise Thy Name forever, yes, forever and ever.

V. Dignare, Domine, die isto sine peccato nos custodire.
R. Miserere nostri, Domine, miserere nostri.
V. O Lord, deign to keep us from sin this day. R. Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us.

V. Fiat misericordia tua, Domine, super nos, quemadmodum speravimus in te.
R. In te, Domine, speravi: non confundar in aeternum.
V. Let Thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us, for we have hoped in Thee. R. O Lord, in Thee I have put my trust; let me never be put to shame.

St John Fisher

This is eternal life: That they may know Thee, the only true God,
and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent.

St John 17:3

A wonderful feast for England and Wales is that which commemorates the two great martyrs of the Protestant revolution under King Henry VIII: St John Fisher, who was Cardinal and Bishop of Rochester for 33 years; and St Thomas More, who was a layman, father, and High Chancellor of England.

The above quote was spoken by St John Fisher as his final words before being beheaded. It deserves particular meditation, and has pride of place in this feast's liturgy as the Alleluia. Both these saints were imprisoned in the Tower of London by the King when they refused to approve of his illegitimate marriage to Anne Boleyn. They were surely both a fine example for the many people who subsequently died for the Catholic faith in this country. Furthermore, they are a shining beacon for us too, in a time when speaking out in defence of our Faith is considered imprudent or downright dangerous.

In the new Calender of the Church, this feast has been moved to June 22nd to coincide with the date St John Fisher was martyred in 1535. But when the pre-1965 liturgy is used, an older calender is employed which places the date for the feast as July 9th (closer to St Thomas More's execution of July 6th the same year). Therefore this year, to mark the occasion in the most solemn way, I have helped organise a High Mass in the parish church of St John Fisher in West Heath. (Pictured on this post)

The interesting thing about this church is the modern architecture. It was built in 1962 - 1964 and was thus designed for the 1962 missal! There features a sanctuary with marble altar rails, an eastward facing altar, a pulpit, a baldachino and 'big six' candlesticks. The building is in a hexagonal shape with stained glass windows depicting Jesus as Good Shephard, Teacher, King and Redeemer. It also features several side chapels, a grand organ loft above the west entrance, and a double sacristy to accomodate servers and priests.

By the time the church was consecrated in 1972 the liturgy had changed a great deal, and I suppose the sanctuary no longer seems 'fit for purpose' in that regard. However, over the years the church has never suffered the unfortunate reorderings that many have, with only a moveable free-standing altar to give the game away, which means it is a perfect venue for the Traditional Latin Mass.

For more on this event on Thursday, see my LMS Blog.

RIP Michael Jackson

Let's pray for Michael's soul and for his friends and family....



We were born in 1982 the year of 'thriller', both danced and sang to his songs with our siblings!!
My brother Damian (RIP) used to write his own Michael Jackson lyrics as a young boy.
His songs have influenced so many.
May he finally be at peace.

High Mass in Birmingham Parish

Even before the council it would be unusual for there to be a full Solemn High Mass in the ordinary parishes. It is with eager anticipation that I therefore draw your attention to this event on Thursday July 9th at 7pm! It will be the patronal feast of the church of St John Fisher in West Heath in the old calender and therefore a fitting occasion.

Please see my LMS blog for more details.

Sacred Heart of Jesus

Cogitationes Cordis ejus in generatiónem:
ut éruat a morte ánimas eórum et alat eos in fame.

The thoughts of His Heart are to all generations: to deliver their souls from death and feed them in famine.

(Introit for today - Psalm 32: 11-19)

The Sacred heart is many things: It is an image, it is a feast, it is a popular devotion in Catholicism. But above all things, it is an indicator towards an important theological foundation of Christendom. In the encyclical Haurietis Aquas, Pope Pius XII asserts that;

It is altogether impossible to enumerate the heavenly gifts which devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus has poured out on the souls of the faithful, purifying them, offering them heavenly strength, rousing them to the attainment of all virtues.(Paragraph 2)

His predecessor, Pius XI, was even so bold as to say;

Is not a summary of all our religion and, moreover, a guide to a more perfect life contained in this one devotion? Indeed, it more easily leads our minds to know Christ the Lord intimately and more effectively turns our hearts to love Him more ardently and to imitate Him more perfectly. (Miserentissimus Redemptor)

Therefore it seems clear that this devotion is particularly relevant for thinking of our religion in this day and age. So what is this devotion all about?

The perfect way to visualise the basis of the devotion is through the Gospel accounts. St John records in his account of the Gospel (7:37-39);

on the last and great day of the festivity, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, 'If any man thirst, let him come to Me, and let him drink that believeth in Me. As the Scripture saith: Out of his heart there shall flow rivers of living waters.' Now this He said of the Spirit which they should receive who believed in Him.

This vision given by our Lord reaches its perfect fulfilment on the cross, where in the moments after His death the centurion pierces His side with a lance, sending forth a stream of blood and water. The symbolism behind this has been taken to reflect the waters of Baptism which cleanse our soul, and the blood of the new covenant given to us in the Sacrament of the Eucharist, which instils in us divine Grace, uniting us to Christ's sacrifice and atonement. Through His pierced side, the Holy Spirit thus flowed upon His Church.

But let me take a step back. For the Sacred Heart this year has been instituted as the beginning of a year dedicated to the Priesthood. Pope Benedict has chosen the feast of the Sacred Heart, today, to inaugurate this year. That is why I have chosen the image above: Jesus arrayed in sacerdotal vestments thus symbolising His Divine Priesthood. This consists of Him being the perfect mediator between God and Man, since He is God made incarnate, in the flesh. By sharing in our humanity, Jesus shows us a perfect example of Divine Love. The ministry of the Priesthood is closely connected to this for a variety of reasons which I'm sure we will learn more about in this coming year. From my point of view, the way the Priest makes present the reality of Christ, calvary, the real presence of Our Saviour in the Mass, on the Altar. Furthermore, the Liturgy shows us an image of the Priest in our everyday lives: feeding us with Christ's Love in a tender and sober way, especially evident in the distribution of communion on our tongues like lambs in his flock.

In the image above, Christ is represented on the Cross, for it is here that he makes manifest his Divine Love in the most perfect way, recalling that His institution of the Priesthood and the Eucharist began before the crucifixion during the Last Supper as part of one single act (see the way Mary Magdelene holds the precious Chalice at his feet). Christ is therefore crowned as King in heaven but also victim, the image of the suffering servant of Isaiah's prophecy, symbolised in St John's apocalypse by the lamb standing, as it were, slain.

Through His merits, which He has earned for us on the Cross, we partake in the Holy Trinity and become objects of a love which is constantly outpoured, ready to be received. As we are reminded in the classic image - his heart is burning with love for us, like the Just Father for his Prodigal Son. This love is without condition, and we cannot earn it. We can, obviously, partake by praising the Father for sending us such a gift. We resign our weakness and our failing to His Sacred Heart in confession. He urges us to reciprocate His love in this manner, but moreover by displaying His love in our own everyday lives. It all begins with Christ and His Sacred Heart.

Holy Father's Letter to Priests

VATICAN CITY, 18 JUN 2009 (VIS) - The Pope has sent a Letter to the priests of the world for the occasion of the Year for Priests, which has been called to mark the 150th anniversary of the death of St. John Mary Vianney.

Dear Brother Priests,

On the forthcoming Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, Friday 19 June 2009 - a day traditionally devoted to prayer for the sanctification of the clergy - I have decided to inaugurate a "Year for Priests" in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the "dies natalis" of John Mary Vianney, the patron saint of parish priests worldwide.

I still treasure the memory of the first parish priest at whose side I exercised my ministry as a young priest: he left me an example of unreserved devotion to his pastoral duties, even to meeting death in the act of bringing viaticum to a gravely ill person. I also recall the countless confreres whom I have met and continue to meet, not least in my pastoral visits to different countries: men generously dedicated to the daily exercise of their priestly ministry. Yet the expression of St. John Mary also makes us think of Christ's pierced Heart and the crown of thorns which surrounds it. I am also led to think, therefore, of the countless situations of suffering endured by many priests, either because they themselves share in the manifold human experience of pain or because they encounter misunderstanding from the very persons to whom they minister. How can we not also think of all those priests who are offended in their dignity, obstructed in their mission and persecuted, even at times to offering the supreme testimony of their own blood?

St. John Mary Vianney taught his parishioners primarily by the witness of his life. It was from his example that they learned to pray, halting frequently before the tabernacle for a visit to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. "One need not say much to pray well" - the Cure explained to them - "We know that Jesus is there in the tabernacle: let us open our hearts to Him, let us rejoice in His sacred presence. That is the best prayer". And he would urge them: "Come to communion, my brothers and sisters, come to Jesus. Come to live from Him in order to live with Him. ... "Of course you are not worthy of him, but you need him!". This way of educating the faithful to the Eucharistic presence and to communion proved most effective when they saw him celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Those present said that "it was not possible to find a finer example of worship. ... He gazed upon the Host with immense love". "All good works, taken together, do not equal the sacrifice of the Mass" - he would say - "since they are human works, while the Holy Mass is the work of God". He was convinced that the fervour of a priest's life depended entirely upon the Mass: "The reason why a priest is lax is that he does not pay attention to the Mass! My God, how we ought to pity a priest who celebrates as if he were engaged in something routine!". He was accustomed, when celebrating, also to offer his own life in sacrifice: "What a good thing it is for a priest each morning to offer himself to God in sacrifice!"

To the Most Holy Virgin I entrust this Year for Priests. I ask her to awaken in the heart of every priest a generous and renewed commitment to the ideal of complete self-oblation to Christ and the Church which inspired the thoughts and actions of the saintly Cure of Ars. It was his fervent prayer life and his impassioned love of Christ Crucified that enabled John Mary Vianney to grow daily in his total self-oblation to God and the Church. May his example lead all priests to offer that witness of unity with their bishop, with one another and with the lay faithful, which today, as ever, is so necessary. Despite all the evil present in our world, the words which Christ spoke to His Apostles in the Upper Room continue to inspire us: "In the world you have tribulation; but take courage, I have overcome the world". Our faith in the Divine Master gives us the strength to look to the future with confidence. Dear priests, Christ is counting on you. In the footsteps of the Cure of Ars, let yourselves be enthralled by Him. In this way you too will be, for the world in our time, heralds of hope, reconciliation and peace!

Benedict XVI.

What's in a name?

I would like to link back to a good post on Joseph Shaw's blog about the vocabulary used for the extraordinary form of the Latin Rite. There are many people who react against the word 'traditional' for instance. The word 'tradition' is derived from the latin 'tradere' which means 'to hand down'. The best biblical precedent in the New Testament comes from St Paul, who uses this very same word in the Vulgate translation (1 Cor 15:3);

For I delivered unto you first of all, which I also received

The whole of this chapter is worth reading to grasp this aspect of Catholicism. Indeed, in this respect all Catholics should be 'traditional', in that the doctrine (the deposit of faith given by our Lord) has been handed down and preserved.

What most people acknowledge in various degrees is that in the latter half of the 20th century, there has been a widespread rupture in this process of 'handing down'. Nowhere is this more evident in the catechesis of Catholic doctrine. And visibly in most Catholic churches around the world, there has also been a rupture in the way Liturgy is conducted. These are the topics at the heart of those who are referred to as 'traditionalist', who adhere to the form of Mass which has been very much handed down, without artificial discontinuities.

On the other side of the coin there are 'liberal Catholics' who also acknowledge a discontinuity, but prefer a wholesale rejection of tradition. This will include doctrine and our public display of Catholic beliefs in the Mass.

So it would be nice if we all knew where we were, but when viewing the Catholic world as a whole, it can be a very confusing place where discord is rife! I think it would be far more easier to embrace the Faith of our forefathers, especially those who died in this country for their faith, rather than the modernists who would simply have the Church become 'updated' to the modern world, and eschew all notion of listening to the wisdom of the dead!

I suppose there is also another view that the Church is still in complete continuity. Perhaps the term would be 'neo-conservative' (ie conservative to the new state of affairs). This would probably be a group of Catholics who take an ultra-montanist view on papal infalliability and in my opinion leave the laity looking sadly deficient in intellectual stamina or a desire to progress at all. It must be a hard pressure on the Pope trying to please all these different groups, as well as the non-Catholics and secularists! Our prayers should always be with him, to discern the will of the Holy Spirit, and best safeguard the deposit of Faith, which is the best nourishment for his flock.

Update: A quote from Newman which has appeared on today's blog entry:

I allow, then, that the Church, certainly, does ‘insist,’ when she speaks dogmatically, nay or rather she more than insists, she obliges; she obliges us to an internal assent to that which she proposes to us … And I admit that she obliges us in a most forcible and effective manner, that is, by the penalty of forfeiting communion with her, if we refuse our internal assent to her word. We cannot be real Catholics, if we do not from our heart accept the matters which she puts forward as divine and true. This is plain.

Corpus Christi

Some photos of the latest High Mass at the Birmingham Oratory today can be found on my LMS blog. It was testament to the glory of Catholic liturgy for the greater glory of God, "then be the anthem clear and strong, thy fullest note, thy sweetest song, the very music of Thy breast" (St Thomas Aquinas, who wrote the Lauda Sion for this feast day, intended to more gloriously celebrate the institution of the Eucharist on Holy Thursday, just after the end of Paschaltide)

I'll Be Back

We're now back from an excellent holiday in sunny Devonshire coastline, hence the lack of recent posts. This month is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a devotion we are especially attached to. I hope to write more about this soon, especially since this time last year a Protestant pastor challenged me about what reparation to the sacred heart means. I was too preoccupied to answer this, and a little tired of Protestant rhetoric, so avoided it. But I must do so now in charity.

The title of this post fits in with the release of the fourth terminator movie, set in 2018. I love these movies, despite it all making more sense leaving the first film on its own! Anyway, it was incredibly enjoyable. There is even a computer generated mayor of California making an appearance (which was just as believable as the one in the flesh). The picture on the right is of T-X from the third(-rate) film, which I took at the Star Wars celebration in July 2007.