A Pastoral Problems

I don't know if this is the type of situation Pope Francis was trying to deal with in his recent telephone call, but this kind of situation is not unusual - this is a made up.

Mary has been living Sam for 14 years, he is divorced, they have three children. Mary has been assiduous in the formation of her children in the faith, she tells her priest that she desperately wants to receive Holy Communion. the priest reminds her what Jesus says about someone married to a divorcee is committing adultery. 
Mary says she accepts Jesus' teaching and that Sam, despite only being a nominal Christian, because of his love for her respects her and has agreed to try and live as brother and sister.
Mary despite her love for Sam is well aware of the sinfulness of her situation and has even considered leaving Sam but that would deprive their children of a father, but she too loves him. They do live as brother and sister most of the time but every so often Sam and Mary fall, often it is Sam's fault but not always.

May Mary go the Holy Communion, possibly in a Church where she is completely unknown, even occasionally?

A Phlegm Flecked Voice from the Past

I had the following from a priest who taught liturgy when I was a seminarian at Wonersh over three decades ago, I hadn't had any contact with him since, in fact I thought he left the priesthood, it is pretty obvious he has little to do with Christianity but that was always apparent. I apologise for the bad language. I have removed references to third parties and do not give his surname.

I think I was the only student who did him the courtesy of  keeping awake during his interminable contentless lectures. He was one of those sad individuals who had a succession of curacies which never quite worked out. He was a curate in my home parish for a few months, I remember the then Parish Priest complaining about his lack of pastoral zeal, finally the bishop sent him off to do a short course in liturgy at Notre Dame in the US, he then returned to teach Liturgy at the seminary. He must have been the only priest to have done so who appeared never to have read Sacrosanctum Concillium, he stayed for a couple of years, was hardly a success at that, he was dismissed following complaints from students. For a few years he was on the fringe of the liberal liturgy circuit, I think in the Portsmouth diocese and then dropped off the radar. In those days priests who couldn't cope with parish life often ended up teaching in seminaries.

I am publishing this, I hope not out of malice but because of his  threats, I hate bullies, especially clerical ones and partly because I think it is illustrative of a certain illiberal 'liberal' attitude prevalent in the Church three decades ago and is now having a resurgence, with the same, now old, men and women. I occasionally get comments or anonymous letters in a similar vein when I mention  ACTA, which rather than even being an ad hominen attack is just a spew of phlegm flecked invective rather than engaging in any argument about the propositions put forward.

I assure you that he is has nothing to do with anyone teaching liturgy or anything else at St John's Seminary, Wonersh now. Today it has staff who are far more carefully selected than they were in the past, they are expected to be men of prayer and faith, with a strong priestly identity, who have something worthwhile to offer those being formed them. This, as you can see was not always the case.

Keep this priest in you prayers.

You were a dumb idiot as a student at Wonersh - omniscient as typifies a convert  - always loving liturgy that was hooked in the past. glad I am consistent! Your pathetic blog is a disgrace and so are you. I have today asked X to terminate your moronic postings and your constant critical comments about Pope Francis. I thought I was rather supportive of the Holy Father, if at times mystified. You are an idiot, pathetically uninformed and with the mind of an amoeba. It might be better to shut up because the entire world regards you as an ignorant ass-hole. Ray Blake - you know shit-all about anything - you were a half-wit thirty years ago, and remain the same.
Instead of wasting hours on your shit blog it doesn't take that long  - why not engage on REAL pastoral work. nor does it detract from my work in the parish
Your moronic critique of 'liberals' is paper thin - the Conservatives have had the upper hand for the last 30 years - what did these morons achieve?Child abuse and cover up, a totally dysfunctional Curia with infighting, a desire to preserve the reputation of the Church versus Justice, Bishops who were living as despots. This is what I occasionally complain about, we have something in common!
I have asked X to close down your comic site - you are a total disgrace to the PRIESTHOOD.
Some one needs to tell you that you are an ignorant ass-hole -you always were, you always will be!                Fr John X

I hadn't realised even as a seminarian I had created a lifelong enemy, I suspect it might have resulted from asking this priest if he had actually bothered to read the documents of the Council he posed to be an expert on.

Unlike Pope Benedict he is definitely from the terrorist school of liturgy.

Conversations in Rome

Around those little restaurants and bars, in those hotels and guest houses throughout Rome huge numbers of bishops and priests have gathered in Rome, now there is not much attraction in a canonisation amongst wet liberals, especially of an old triumphalist camaura wearing Pope who got the majority of bishops of the world to witness the signing of Veterum Sapientia (On the Promotion of the Study of Latin) and that Polish one who was pretty bad, who heralded, the other one, they won't even name.

I suspect the main subject of conversation won't be Francis' sainted predecessors but Francis himself and the direction in which he is taking the Church. Perhaps Francis isn't too sensitive to it but I suspect a large number of bishops are well aware of how fragile the Church is in Europe, North America, Asia, Oceania and Africa, even in parts of South America. The wounds of post-Concilliar confusion, poor leadership, of the abuse scandal, of the resignation of Pope Benedict, the drastic U-turn from Ratzinger's moral and theological absolutes to Bergoglio's moral subjectivism is inflicting severe damage on the Church and moving her back to a time of introspection, doubt and uncertainty, rather than giving her the courage to go out into the world to proclaim the Truth of Jesus Christ, which was of course the real purpose of the Second Vatican Council. The coming Synod, rather than opening up new vistas for the Church threatens to tear her apart and the Pope's apparent personal encouragement of dissent is causing difficulties many bishops and pastors aback home. Obviously the problem is not Francis but the way the media deal with him.

Tomorrow there is another meeting of the Council of Eight, in the light of the Jacqui Lisbona telephone call, and the concern it has raised, it will be unlikely for the Pope not to be confronted with some serious question about his personal style, or so I am told.

Change at the Tablet

Bobby Mickens won't be reporting from Rome anymore, at least not for his previous employer.

Visit of Bishop Athanasius Schneider

Bishop Athanasius Schneider, author of Dominus Est, is in England this May, below is his programme, he is a truly inspiring Bishop and well worth making the effort to go to meet and listen to.

I would draw the attention of clergy in particular to his talk on Wednesday evening at St Patrick's in Soho when he speak on "The Priest:: Image and Instrument of Christ". This talk is organised by the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy - contact Fr Richard Whinder if you intend to come. I suspect many of us need a bit of nourishment at some clerical company during this Easter season.

Bishop Schneider's schedule during his stay in England
Friday 16 May: arrival in England.
Saturday 17 May: LMS Pilgrimage to West Grinstead in Sussex. Pontifical High Mass at 12noon, followed by lunch, spiritual conference and devotions. Our Lady of Consolation, Park Lane, West Grinstead RH13 8LT.
Sunday 18 May: Pontifical Low Mass with the Fraternity of St Peter in Reading, 11am. At the Church of St William of York, Upper Redlands Road,  Reading RG1 3HW.
Tuesday 20 May: address to The Newman Society: the Oxford University Catholic Society. 'Catholicism in Russia: the Experience of the 20th Century.' Talk from 8.00-9.15pm. Open to members of Oxford University and their guests. At the Catholic Chaplaincy, The Old Bishop's Palace, Rose Place, St Aldates, Oxford OX1 1RD.
Wednesday 21 May: Address to the Conference of Catholic Clergy at 6pm, St Patrick’s, Soho Square.
Thursday 22 May: Address to the London Oratory,  'Living under Communism', 8pm.
Saturday 24th May: Latin Mass Society Conference, Regent Hall, Oxford Street, London, from 11am to 6pm. Book tickets here.Sunday 25 May: Pontifical Low Mass in the London Oratory at 9am. Bishop Schneider will attend First Vespers of St Philip’s Day, 6pm, and celebrate Benediction.
Monday 26 May: LMS pilgrimage to Ramsgate - Mass at the Shrine of St Augustine of Canterbury, for the Feast of St Augustine, at 12noon; procession with a relic at 11am. Bishop Schnieider will also preach at the 6pm Mass at the London Oratory for St Philip’s Day.

Easter Vigil Pictures

The altar during the Easter Vigil, more pictures here.


Ian's Reception and Confirmation


With the post-Mass distribution of Blessed eggs

The Pope's alleged phone call

People have been asking me about what the Pope has been allegedly saying to that divorced and civilly remarried Argentinian woman.

Jesus said, "Every one who puts away his wife and marries another commits adultery; and every one that marries one put away from a husband commits adultery". Now, I cannot imagine anyone who loves Christ and his teaching, saying to this poor woman, 'Jesus, says one thing but I teach something that is opposite to Jesus, follow me because I am greater than Jesus Christ'.

Now, simply, that would be anti-Christ and a diabolic blasphemy, so the poor woman is either mistaken or lying.

Perhaps someone in the Vatican needs clarify things and our beloved Holy Father needs to stop making these silly telephone calls that lead to confusion, and seriously damage people's faith. Vatileaks were bad enough but these phone calls are a thousand times more dangerous.