St Peter's Chair at Rome

[Or Antioch]

Pre-Mass Preparation

Babies watch the horses in Harvington

Birmingham in 3D on Google Earth

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Here is the Birmingham Oratory! I guess you may need the correct plug-in to see this, so I've done a freeze frame!

Funeral

Graeme le Monier, one time representative of the LMS in Birmingham and continuous supporter of the Traditional Liturgy, died last week.

His funeral will be Wednesday 16th February at 11.30am and may be a Missa Cantata. The coffin will be received into Birmingham Oratory the night before. Let's pray for him.

Requiescat in Pace

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'Job Changes'

http://www.birmingham-oratory.org

CHANGES AT THE ORATORY
Job Changes at Home
February is often a time for job changes in the Oratory and there will be one or two changes this year. These will come into effect straight away.
Fr Anton will replace Fr. Guy as Parish Priest. Fr. Guy has been Parish Priest for the last ten years and done a tremendous job. He now has a new task, to set up a school of liturgical music at the Oratory. We hope to be able to do this in conjunction with Maryvale. Care for the music and worship of the Church is a strong element of the Oratory’s mission and an area in which Fr. Guy has a particular expertise. Fr. Guy will also be spending some time researching a book as a part of this project. We hope this book can be turned into a doctorate.
Although Fr. Anton is relatively new to the Oratory he has considerable expertise as a Parish Priest and Hospital Chaplain in the diocese. He will bring many great pastoral gifts to his new role.
Fr. Paul will resume his work on the Cause of Blessed John Henry as the Vice-Postulator but Fr. Richard remains the Actor (promoter) of the Cause since that job goes with being the Provost.

Fr. Philip Cleevely
Fr. Philip has been resident at the Toronto Oratory since last September, teaching philosophy and spirituality to the students in the seminary run by that community. He has found this work very satisfying. Full use has been made of his intellectual gifts in the tasks assigned to him. He has in consequence asked for a definitive transfer from the Birmingham Oratory to the Toronto Oratory. The Fathers in Canada, recognising the contribution he can make to their community’s life and work, have agreed to his request.
We would like to thank Fr. Philip for his contribution to the life of the Birmingham house over the last twenty years. We would also like to thank the Fathers of the Toronto Oratory, their Provost Fr. Jonathan Robinson, and Fr. Martin Hilbert and Fr. Daniel Utrecht who were such a support to us in the preparations for the Papal Visit. Our two houses retain close fraternal bonds and we look forward to continued close collaboration in the future.

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New Catholic Ordinariate

Catholic Shrine of
Our Lady of Walsingham

Today marks a historic moment in the English Church. I have known for about six years of the powerful intercession of Our Lady of Walsingham; a pre-reformation medieval devotion which has been revived in the last century by both Catholics (left) and Anglicans. After a visit there as newly-weds, it had far reaching effects in our lives. Indeed, it led to my (then-Anglican) wife's conversion to Catholicism, and my own decision to believe in a personal God once again, and to practice the Faith of my childhood. It so happened that the weekend we decided to visit my cousin/aunt, was the same weekend Dr Rowan Williams was leading a Marian pilgrimage there!

So it is with great joy I learned today that the new Ordinariate for disaffected Anglicans has been named after Our Lady of Walsingham. This is a subject I have prayed for many times before. As an extra firm link to our Anglo-Catholic history, it has also been placed under the Patronage of the recently proclaimed Blessed John Henry Newman, which makes it look even more like his intercession has spearheaded this initiative. It came directly from the Pope, in answer to a plea from prominent Anglicans who couldn't see a way to continue in communion with Canterbury in good conscience.

Today's Ordinations (Offertory)

Today, en route to an LMS meeting, I absolutely had to pop in to Westminster Cathedral to see the historic event whereby three ex-Anglican-bishops were ordained to the Catholic Priesthood. They 'defected' from the Anglican church late last year, converting on January 1st this year, and have been fast-tracked to the Priesthood so that they can help establish the new Ordinariate, which promises  "will enable members ... to preserve within the Catholic Church those elements of Anglican ecclesial prayer, liturgy and pastoral practice (patrimony) that are concordant with Catholic teaching and which have nurtured and nourished their Christian faith and life." It certainly reflects how my wife found the journey to Catholicism; being drawn into a fullness of Faith rather than being repulsed by Anglican traditions.

I quote above a press release from the Bishops Conference of England & Wales (BCEW) which also mentions "The Ordinariate will not be a Ritual Church; that is, the Ordinariate will not be principally defined by the liturgical rites it uses." Of course this is a special interest of mine, since I am devoted to the traditional Latin Liturgy of the Church. It seems like they'll be able to use the 'Anglican Use' established in America, but also that "the Ordinariate will always be able to use the Roman Rite" which means, yes, the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite will be accessible and hopefully offered for the good of traditionalists in the Catholic pond. 

Better still, they will not be subject to the same sort of adverse pressures that Roman Catholic Clergy are, since the Ordinariate is a personal body of the Holy See and not answerable to the BCEW, but rather to a Governing Body (where at least half the membership will be comprised of new 'Anglo-Catholic' Priests). However, the press release does mention that £250,000 has been invested from the BCEW, and that the new Ordinary of the Ordinariate (mouthful? Basically means the office and power to govern, like a Bishop in his diocese) will be an ex-officio member of the BCEW, and expected to "take a full part in its discussions and decisions" and will "implement the resolutions taken by the Conference within the life of the Ordinariate". Sounds like the BCEW are being control freaks to me!

Rev Fr Keith Newton is the 'Ordinary' despite never being able to be a full Catholic Bishop (while his spouse is living): He was a married Anglican-bishop and received into the Church with his family this month and ordained today (Anglican orders are 'null and void' according to Pope Leo XIII's Papal Bull Apostolicae Curae in 1896). By Tradition, although it is known for Priests to be married, it is unheard of to have married Bishops. Today Fr Newton announced "I hope the Ordinariate will be a gift to the Catholic Church and that I, together with those priests and people who join the Ordinariate, will be of service to the whole Church." I hope this statement bears fruit, and that rather than marginalised or ghettoised, these new Catholics will teach us more about our own Faith than has been passed down to my generation.

Epiphany House Blessing

During what was once the octave of Epiphany, we took advantage of a passing Priest and had our first traditional Epiphany House Blessing. I thought I'd make the text available below.
Epiphany Blessing

Happy Christmas!

Wishing you a blessed Christmas

Today is unique in the Catholic Calendar, in that wherever you are, people's thoughts are on celebration. I suspect it is much the same everywhere in Europe, America etc. Indeed wherever Christianity has ingrained its identity on the culture and national identity. Whereas many Christians may despair on this day, that it has become secularised, materialistic and lost it's true meaning, I am seeing it differently.

I rejoice that people want to be with their families, perhaps avoid work, buy gifts for each other and display a general sense of good will. After all, everyone knows the origin of Christmas, which makes it all the more special that our country still observes it. It is but a small leap of Faith to put the 'Mass' back into 'Christmas'.

Today in Britain we are covered in snow. A rarity, to be sure. It's amazing the way it causes such disruption for us. But it doesn't come as loud or sudden or powerfully destructive; it falls gently, settled gradually and leaves such a beautiful sight that it almost comes as a surprise when it feels so icy cold! In that sense it stands as a memorable metaphor for the Word of God: speaking softly, falling where it will and settling amongst us in varying degrees despite the contradictory way it is born in a cold stable in seeming vulnerability and poverty.

I'm sorry not to have written more on my Blog recently. It is enough to say that today is a very happy time and all feels well.




Let us pray:
Grant, we beseech You, almighty God, that this new light of Your Incarnate Word which shines upon our minds by faith, may be reflected in our deeds.
Through Christ our Lord
Amen.

St Thomas

Tuesday, Dec 21, 2010
St. Thomas, Apostle:
So often we doubt, though Our Lord gives us so many graces. St Thomas- pray for us, that we may always say with true devotion "My Lord and my God!"







Gospel: John 20:19-29
20:19 Now when it was late that same day, the first of the week, and the doors were shut, where the disciples were gathered together, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them: Peace be to you.
20:19 Cum ergo sero esset die illo, una sabbatorum, et fores essent clausæ, ubi erant discipuli congregati propter metum Judæorum: venit Jesus, et stetit in medio, et dixit eis: Pax vobis.
20:20 And when he had said this, he shewed them his hands and his side. The disciples therefore were glad, when they saw the Lord.
20:20 Et cum hoc dixisset, ostendit eis manus et latus. Gavisi sunt ergo discipuli, viso Domino.
20:21 He said therefore to them again: Peace be to you. As the Father hath sent me, I also send you.
20:21 Dixit ergo eis iterum: Pax vobis. Sicut misit me Pater, et ego mitto vos.
20:22 When he had said this, he breathed on them; and he said to them: Receive ye the Holy Ghost.
20:22 Hæc cum dixisset, insufflavit, et dixit eis: Accipite Spiritum Sanctum:
20:23 Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them; and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained.
20:23 quorum remiseritis peccata, remittuntur eis: et quorum retinueritis, retenta sunt.
20:24 Now Thomas, one of the twelve, who is called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.
20:24 Thomas autem unus ex duodecim, qui dicitur Didymus, non erat cum eis quando venit Jesus.
20:25 The other disciples therefore said to him: We have seen the Lord. But he said to them: Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.
20:25 Dixerunt ergo ei alii discipuli: Vidimus Dominum. Ille autem dixit eis: Nisi videro in manibus ejus fixuram clavorum, et mittam digitum meum in locum clavorum, et mittam manum meam in latus ejus, non credam.
20:26 And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them. Jesus cometh, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said: Peace be to you.
20:26 Et post dies octo, iterum erant discipuli ejus intus, et Thomas cum eis. Venit Jesus januis clausis, et stetit in medio, et dixit: Pax vobis.
20:27 Then he saith to Thomas: Put in thy finger hither, and see my hands; and bring hither thy hand, and put it into my side; and be not faithless, but believing.
20:27 Deinde dicit Thomæ: Infer digitum tuum huc, et vide manus meas, et affer manum tuam, et mitte in latus meum: et noli esse incredulus, sed fidelis.
20:28 Thomas answered, and said to him: My Lord, and my God.
20:28 Respondit Thomas, et dixit ei: Dominus meus et Deus meus.
20:29 Jesus saith to him: Because thou hast seen me, Thomas, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and have believed.
20:29 Dixit ei Jesus: Quia vidisti me, Thoma, credidisti: beati qui non viderunt, et crediderunt.


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