Flat Corpus Christi

5/6/10 2330hrs


On the eve of the great feast of Corpus Christi, on my way to work, I got a flat passenger side front tyre. It was nice to encounter the kindness of a Taxi Driver, who offered to help. Strangely enough I have also been having in depth discussions on Religion, Faith, mental illness and even a bit of Christian Conspiracy theories! A busy day intellectually and practically.

Papal Visit Fundraising

Just now I tried to donate to papal visit online
but a run-time error. And I was feeling generous on this transferred feast of Corpus Christi. No wonder they're way off-target.

I hope that if the Pope won't go to Coventry Airport, then perhaps (flying there en route) to Birmingham or Oxford instead, closer to Newman's site of ministry.


I picture the Cathedral and Oratory filled with huge TV screens and services of Holy Communion. This would be an excellent service, if thought of, and reminicient of the installation of Archbishop Bernard Longley. I thought this a big success.

I would love to see the streets lined with Catholics and Non-Catholics, eager to catch a wave of the Holy Father.

Do continue to pray for the Oratory here in Birmingham.

NHS cuts

Cross posted from Catholic Physicians Blog
"They're starting to get results, [health] Minister!"
"Time to restructure!"

The photo above is from a mug of tea I was drinking at work today. It made me laugh, but also got me thinking about the worrying prospect of NHS cuts in light of the public deficit following the global recession. Quite how our new coalition goverment will handle this I don't know, but my worry is it will impact adversely on Mental Health Services.

Why? Because in this day of public pressure groups and political maneuverings, it is the group of patients with mental health problems who lack a strong and unified voice. It probably stems from stigma, a case which is made worse by the aggressive shift towards community care during '80s conservative days, meaning society has been suddenly and unpreparedly exposed to a fear which they have no idea how to handle or integrate into society. It is a prime target for cuts.

There are very few advocates, people fighting for this vulnerable sector. But politically and socially, think of the huge burden of psychiatric illness: which 1 in 4 people will suffer from sometime in their life. Loss in earnings and taxes. Loss in confidence and stable homes. Worse and untreated physical health. Reduced life expectancy and huge socioeconomic inequalities widening. To not make this a priority, both within specialist services and in primary care when the bulk of illness is treated, would therefore be a huge mistake!

I pray the new goverment can make the correct decisions to cut excess and waste, and prune the health service to make it more efficient, effective, satisfying and above all accessible.

Daily prayer for Priests

O Almighty, Eternal God, look upon the Face of Your Son and for love of Him, who is the Eternal High Priest, have pity on Your priests. Remember, O most compassionate God, that they are but weak and frail human beings. Stir up in them the grace of their vocation which is in them by the imposition of the bishop’s hands. Keep them close to You, lest the enemy prevail against them, so that they may never do anything in the slightest degree unworthy of their sublime vocation.

O Jesus, I pray for Your faithful and fervent priests; for Your unfaithful and tepid priests; for Your priests laboring at home or abroad in distant mission fields; for Your tempted priests; for the lonely and desolate priests; for Your young priests; for Your dying priests; for the souls of Your priests in purgatory.

But above all, I commend to you N. and all the priests dearest to me, the priest who baptized me, the priests who have absolved me from my sins, the priests at whose Masses I have assisted and who have offered me Your Body and Blood in Holy Communion, the priests who have taught and instructed me or helped and encouraged me, and the priests to whom I am indebted in any other way.

O Jesus, keep them all close to Your Heart, and bless them abudently in time and eternity. Amen.

Poem

Every substance
Every thing
All sustinence
Comes through Him.

Every creature
The smallest heard
In a day's stature
Were made by His Word.




Every person
Every race
Whatever is begun
At conception reflects His face.

Whichever virtue
Or Love that saves
It is given through
Grace; never fails to amaze



In Faith of Him
What his death has done
Will surely begin
Salvation which he has won

May Procession

It was lovely to attend the Marian procession today, which includes crowning of a statue of our Lady of Fatima with a garland of flowers. For the first time Maddy took a very special interest, walking with the other girls in their pretty white dresses. At one point Maddy picked some wild flowers en route and added them to the ones decorating the statue!

Fr Richard Duffield, the new provost of the Birmingham Oratory, led the procession, and asked everyone to pray especially for the success of the Pope's visit and the beatification of our Cardinal, which is beset with opposition. I must admit to my own failings and cynicism about the beatification ceremony, and hope that our family can be there to support our Holy Father.

The afternoon ended with a consecration to our Lady of Fatima, in the hope that we may have God's grace active in our lives using the Blessed Virgin Mary as an example of docility to the divine will.

Upper Echelons of UK Government Mock The Holy Father

The Foreign Office has publicly apologised after an official document suggested Britain should mark the Pope's visit by asking him to open an abortion clinic, bless a gay marriage and launch a range of Benedict-branded condoms.

The document, obtained by a Sunday newspaper, also suggested Benedict XVI could show his hard line on the sensitive issue of child abuse allegations against Roman Catholic priests by "sacking dodgy bishops" and launching a helpline for abused children.

The ideas were included in a paper titled "The ideal visit would see..." which was distributed to officials in Whitehall and Downing Street preparing for the historic visit in September. A cover note said the paper stemmed from a brainstorming session and accepted that some of the ideas were "far-fetched".

Many of the proposals appeared to mock the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church on issues like abortion, homosexuality and contraception and the difficulties which it is currently experiencing over cases of child abuse.

The Foreign Office, though, apologised for what it described as a "foolish" document and said the individual responsible had been transferred to other duties. Foreign Secretary David Miliband was said to have been "appalled" to hear of the paper.

© Independent Television News Limited 2010. All rights reserved.



-- Posted From Wend's iPod Touch WiFi (4.5Mb/s)
Virgin Media Broadband

Prinknash Abbey

Home of the world famous incense and Benedictine community of 12. There were over 70 monks here prior to the 1970s, requiring a brand new purpose built monastary. Here is the result:



Ironically vocations fell soon after, all part of the modern crisis in the Catholic Church. We had the opportunity of reliving the glory days with a 1962 Latin Low Mass in the old Abbey Church, where the monks now reside. The new 'prison-like' structure remains vacant.

Sleeping Babes

This photo is so cute I couldn't resist sharing it with you...

Family Retreat

We have just finished a wonderful retreat with Fr Andrew Southwell and St Catherine's Trust. This year it was at the Oratory School in Berkshire, which I must admit made us feel right at home!


Pictured are the two chapels in the school, which along with some of the classrooms and boarder's accomodation, were used by us this weekend. It was also the setting of the second Gregorian Chant training weekend who sung at Mass, Vespers and Compline. These were led by Nick Gale, who was my boarding room master at school!