tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52141804869131619612024-03-19T14:58:06.379-07:00HilariterHilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.comBlogger60125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-19898480183974942702009-11-14T14:23:00.001-08:002009-11-15T08:16:17.720-08:00Anglicans... Or Catholics...Well <em>Anglicanorum Coetibus</em> is out... Those who say it adds nothing terribly new have got the point but also missed it. It adds nothing too new because it is about welcoming not just those in the Church of England but also those who internationally have their source in the Anglican Communion.<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404097758608332450" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 245px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQlS32EoLKRZ9ciF1Rl9THHCCfSRx4gDFQo6l0EaOWJsbqBY4_hAGCivAfR1bgZjH4Cyg7dlHlSLYMHm8TMA3c-z4miBbfYDvLAT55pkNkqmPI1N-QB3dkA7e8BWWkuCRrYLwIbyMg76lf/s320/pope-benedict_jpg-2212.jpg" border="0" /><br />Where this is not new - and yet extraordinarily is novel in the experience of inter-denominational dialogue - is shown strangely enough elsewhere. This Response to the request of these groups to become part of the Catholic Church is in marked continuity and development with what the Second Vatican Council declared about Christians outside the visible confines of the Catholic Church - despite the uncomprehending negativity of The Tablet (a very Bitter Pill) this week. This is what the decree on Ecumenism of that Council says:<br /><br />"Moreover, some and even very many of the significant elements and endowments which together go to build up and give life to the Church itself, can exist outside the visible boundaries of the Catholic Church: the written word of God; the life of grace; faith, hope and charity, with the other interior gifts of the Holy Spirit, and visible elements too. All of these, which come from Christ and lead back to Christ, belong by right to the one Church of Christ."<br /><br />Therefore anything which is of the grace of Christ, developed perhaps in different ways from the manner in which the Catholic Church in its manifold rites and expressions (not just in terms of the Roman Rite) has grown and articulated the Faith, belongs to Catholic Unity and should be respected, accepted and nurtured. Hence the words of the same Council's Constitution on the Church: "This Church constituted and organized in the world as a society, subsists in the Catholic Church, which is governed by the successor of Peter and by the Bishops in communion with him, although many elements of sanctification and of truth are found outside of its visible structure. These elements, as gifts belonging to the Church of Christ, are forces impelling toward Catholic unity."<br /><br />In this Constitutuion the Pope has said, "All right. We have ecumenism, which is in itself a grace of Christ. But there are large bodies of Anglicans - for example, TAC - who want to return to full Catholic Unity. Rather than "swallow them whole" and bid them never again to hark back to any Anglican heritage, why don't we respect the way that the Holy Spirit, through the baptism of our fellow Christians, has nourished and developed their faith and allow them to enrich US with their own traditions and experience?" Such an approach should inspire ecumenism, not negate it. For it says that the Catholic Church does not want to invade, swamp and negate these real grace-filled traditions, but accept them and work with them and allow them to flourish. Thus, for example, the fact that this is clearly not a " one-generation arrangement by definition", as one commentator has suggested, and that married men may even be proposed for priesthood, within certain limits, is in itself a novel and massively generous proposition, given the Church's right insistence on the norm of celibacy for centuries.<br /><br />This then is not an obstacle to ecumenism but an exciting experiment which opens new vistas and takes seriously the Catholic Church's willingness to accept different forms of Christianity within her. It will have an impact. Perhaps this impact will not be very strong in England, where there is a studied and at times ferocious bias against Catholicism and the Papacy reflected and promoted in almost suffocating publication by the media there. It will be felt by TAC - and by us. For the rest of the Anglican Communion, in particular the Church of England, this is a slow fuse... It will take time. But the fuse will burn. I love the many forms of Anglicanism I have experienced in ecumenical work over the years. However, sadly, Anglicanism is beginning to experience even more deeply the practical reality of Truth: not all differences can be accomodated and some of these differences have the nature of contradiction and division. Christ wants us to be one, yes with difference, but not with all differences. There are differences of truth and falshood, right and wrong, which have the power to tear communities apart and to bring a deep unsettling sadness to the hearts of believers.<br /><br />Lastly, for now, I am glad we can get rid of the old approach of reception of converts to the Church which said that they must leave behind <em>everything </em>of their previous Christian tradition as if it had no value. Do we really want to discard their wonderful liturgy, psalmody, theological insights, insights of pastoral practice, their familiarity with the scriptures, their deep sense of the way in which Christinity can be incarnated in a local area or culture? No, it all has value. It will benefit the whole Catholic Church. Christ has been at work there. And this, in a very subtle way, is exactly what Pope Benedict has recognised and enacted with this marvellous intitiative.Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-12519055541829143342009-11-13T08:02:00.000-08:002009-11-13T09:11:29.302-08:00Another visit to AnagniI have become a kind of tour guide for Anagni for some of the American cousins. A couple of weeks ago I went there with Fr Tim Laboe and Fr Gerry Battersby. We were able to celebrate Mass in the Caetani Chapel of the Cathedral and then went to see the frescoes in the crypt. Once again I was struck by the similarity between the depiction of the death of local bishop-martyr St Magnus and the real events surrounding the martyrdom of St Thomas of Canterbury (Beckett). I have always believed that the artists who painted the frescoes in the early 1200s were using Beckett's grisly death as a template for telling the story of St Magnus.<br /><br /><div><div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403632165454170434" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXacCyHc2WpY2tJEMwAjcLU1Vw6ppTjGU7_1zyDJWiDrhpsg5XcdelhyvfoINDk_MpjgkDb4Krz0wcWal2M6-LHUJlm8lHJYgAS5Py9r0AzgqbnPoyDvwow1lsIRTN8J87xdSGE3u1L2kk/s320/IMG_1043a.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div>I asked the lady in charge of admissions if we could at least see the mitre of St Thomas in the Cathedral museum and the reliquary there as well. It musn't have been her best day as she was not so keen to accomodate us - admittedly because the museum had just been renovated and was not yet open to the general public. However, defeat was far from my mind and I spied a young Italian priest in the Cathedral: so I went and introduced myself and the two others to him, laid it on thick about being English and mentioned the mitre in the museum. I find that there are times when if you just hit that right note of positive supplication Italians become incredibly generous. The honey worked and he said he would admit us to the museum.<br />Then I spied another Italian priest, a little older, who was passing through. I decided that I would apply the same tactics (The Honeypot Ruse) and it turned out that he was a local historian and professor. He led us into the museum with the other priest and we talked a long time. I was of course most chuffed that he confirmed what I had always thought about the frescoes in the crypt (pride and vanity!). However, my next plan was that we should gain admittance into the Beckett Oratory, closed to the general public and situated just off the main frescoed crypt. The Honeypot Ruse was once more successful and we were able to get in. What is remarkable is that the depiction of Becktt in there, though much damaged, dates from ten to twenty years after his death - a near contemporary depiction.<br />So it was a good day, including lunch at a cheap but good trattoria, and a visit to the Papal Palace there - which involved a re-enactment of the famous slap of Anagni against Boniface VIII in the room where the event took place.<br /></div></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403631554305747106" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 235px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD_-Wq9lcDsiMTivrro47K2vohCtsKkwmtipqAjIeeSPzGiBsvodKJW4ksRdSibkVaRWRk8kV_XifxtMLoWiyvMoYyirZtk5vkInZ-wfxqrmDK4kSv6Iy2H1QZ1f6wSat02qf64u0XWCHi/s320/schiaffo+di+anagni.jpg" border="0" /></div><br /><div>Of course I was forced to play the role of Boniface VIII - not, I am sure, because everyone wants to hit me. It's worth noting that as Cardinal Boniface VIII held a benefice in the area which is currently in my diocese - at Towcester (for non-English types, it is pronounced Toaster). He was also the Pope who declared the first Holy Year in 1300 and below you can see the frescoe of his proclamation of the Jubilee Year which can be still seen in St John Lateran's Basilica in Rome and is attributed to Giotto:</div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403633940331478770" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 245px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGeY5IrDG78GwAg0w14CBWA1HFsFzatHmJoa8XHyPLchnpOmig5UoHM2s6d1qMrsH1b3UpWjNP4EPrHHc1AF5x7tTqHSyirElMKC_4dpodQfcrpD-spvmuA01HVk5FctcGuercmZRr5r3N/s320/Pope+Boniface+first+Holy+Year.gif" border="0" /><br /><div>After being struck and probably tortured in Anagni in 1303, Boniface was taken back to Rome, a broken man and he died on 11th October, just over a month after the outrages he endured in his home city of Anagni. A beautiful tomb was built for him at St Peter's Basilica, designed by the great artist Arnolfo di Cambio, whose design inspired the baldachino over the high altar at St John Lateran's. Much of the tomb had to be dismantled at the reconstruction of St Peter's in the 16th to 17th centuries. What remains is still elegant and can be seen in the crypt of St Peter's:</div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403636509445620546" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlxZlhKCWa3oM-X7qBwAJQYJbagpfZ1ZMf7DuBN9JRsyV5VnqiSzRgvf19JUzVXa3O-CT0Iv0FC6O14WuLGGhtxlbgLbjBOviK1_viaRHbHhS5bL34dVf_nnz881uyGGCIe9gOEH87kh-m/s320/Pope+Boniface+VIII+tomb.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div></div><div>If you want to see Fr Tim's video of our day trip to Anagni, then go to his blog, the link to which you will find over there ------></div></div></div>Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-54420553063684192732009-10-21T17:08:00.000-07:002009-10-21T17:09:49.497-07:00topsy-turvyI found I had written some posts for the station churches this year...er... a bit late but they are up....<br /><br />That's the problem with time travel.Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-47324978200366039732009-10-21T16:20:00.001-07:002009-10-21T17:05:41.856-07:00BBC biasOh well, all that time travelling meant very little was done here...<br /><br />Yesterday saw the announcement of the Catholic Church's response the requests of Anglicans from different parts of the world to eneter into full communion with the Church. It is a very generous response, sensitive to their needs and difficulties. There has been a fair amount in the British press about this.<br /><br />This evening I wrote a complaint to the BBC concerning an on-line article written by Robert Piggott which can be found at <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8318663.stm">http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8318663.stm</a><br /><br />This is what I wrote:<br /><br />'The article suggests that what the Catholic Church has proposed is "fishing". It makes no reference at all to what the statements explicitly stated - that the whole proposal is a response to the requests of large numbers of disaffected Anglicans and their Bishops - for example, the worldwide group known as the Traditional Anglican Communion (TAC), whose numbers are in the hundreds of thousands, and also some Church of England bishops as well. Thus the article's emphasis rests on an assertion that this is just fishing, or we might say a kind of poaching. The very fact that it mentions the question of archbishop's representative in Rome, Bishop David Richardson who asks why such a proposal should be put forward at this time, suggests that this proposal is opportunistic in the midst of Anglican difficulties. The answer to this question really rests in the already publicised advances and requests of TAC and other Anglican bishops. The fact that this is not mentioned renders this article defective.<br />'The article suggests also that the language used would strike most people as "complete gobbledygook". But by saying this it suggests that the language is indeed gobbeldygook - but it isn't: anyone trained in Catholic canon law and many Anglican parish priests and those working in the military would see parallels in the Military Ordinariates that the Catholic Church already has for military chaplaincy. Furthermore, the Catholic Church already has groups of former Anglicans using Anglican-style rites in the United States (why wasn't this mentioned in a supposedly balanced and factual article?).<br />'Lastly the article ends with a most surprising, emotive and unsupported assertion: "It gave the misleading impression of institutions that were out of touch and irrelevant to the lives of the many unattached but spiritually hungry people whom the churches need to attract." Though it uses the word "misleading" this is a clearly biased statement. It could be argued that in fact the proposed provisions are indeed an answer to spiritually hungry people who are looking for a true home, a Catholic home, outside of the disturbing and upsetting divisions of Anglicans. Why wasn't this mentioned to show that indeed such an impression would be misleading?<br />'I would propose that this article by Robert Piggott should at the very least be substantially corrected and rewritten or, better, removed.'Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-20705005028423828182009-02-27T02:12:00.000-08:002009-10-21T17:19:32.804-07:00Reading Station to Station ChurchesThe Station Church yesterday -San Giorgio in Velabro - and that of today - Santi Giovanni e Paolo - have an interesting link, and it is John Henry Cardinal Newman. San Giorgio was the Englsih Cardinal's titular church from 1879 when he was made a Cardinal through to 1890 when he died. There is a plaque there which celebrates this great theologian and founder of Birmingham Oratory, but it noted that he was "before all else a Christian." Given that it is the church of St George, the Patron Saint of England, it is a good place to pray for the conversion of England, unless you are one of those who think that such an intention is no longer valid... Heaven forbid that an ecclesiastic should think such a thing!<br /><br />The church of Ss John and Paul belongs to the Passionists and it is here that the founder of the Passionist Congregation is buried, St Paul of the Cross. Here too there is a shrine to St Gemma Galgani who died on Holy Saturday April 11th, 1903, aged 25, after having led a life of great holiness and prayer. The narthex of the building was built by the one and only English Pope, Adrian IV, (we didn't get one at the last Papal election!). However, the link with the church of San Giorgio lies in the fact that at the house belonging to the Passionists beside the church Blessed Dominic Barberi lived. He had heard and felt a call to go to England, to work for the conversion of England (oops!), and he desired to go there all his life. Eventually he was permitted to go and the England he converted was none other than Newman himself at Littlemore near Oxford. Newman knelt before the rain-soaked priest in October 1845, asked to be a Catholic and made his first confession to him.<br /><br />He arrived in England in 1841 and was at first greeted with suspicion and ridicule. This was an England where Catholics had been emancipated only 12 years before and where the hierarchy had yet to be restored (this would happen in 1850, when Blessed Pius IX was Pope). Yet as Fr James Broderick says, the "Second Spring" of Catholicism really took form in this strange arrival of an Italian priest who spoke very little English: J. Brodrick S.J. in his work on the 'Second Spring' of Catholicism in England, says of Father Dominic's arrival;<br />"The second spring did not begin when Newman was converted nor when the hierarchy was restored. It began on a bleak October day of 1841, when a little Italian priest in comical attire shuffled down a ship's gangway at Folkstone."<br /><br />Yet it was a hard path. His English was so poor even his congregation at Aston would laugh at him. In his journey children would throw stones at him. Ridicule seemed to surround him. However, slowly his holiness, goodness and abundant sense of humour drew love from many who met him and got to know him and he began to have a large number of conversions. One of them was an ancestor of Francis Thomas: the family lived at Stone, in Staffordshire: Francis Thomas would eventually become the ninth Bishop of Northampton.<br /><br />He is said to have told some nuns who were instructing groups of people in the Faith and who were worried about the appropriateness of teaching men: "Have no fear, Sisters. You are all too old and too ugly." Luckily they understood his sense of humour!<br /><br />Blessed Dominic died on 27th August 1849 at the Railway Tavern near Reading.Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-72331148531989701482009-02-27T02:04:00.000-08:002009-10-21T17:10:39.391-07:00Hitchcock in RomeFr Tim Laboe has been at work as producer, director, editor, editor-in-chief and presenter of a series of videos detailing each day's Station Church here in Rome. They are worth a look. It may not be "24" or "The Shining" or even "It's a Wonderful Life", and certainly it is one step more than "The 39 Steps", yet it is good stuff and with the odd familiar face and place starring each day...<br /><br />See the link to his blog below --->Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-44108403278859658092009-02-27T01:54:00.001-08:002009-10-21T17:15:54.784-07:00Station Churches once againThis year's celebration (is that the right word??) of Lent has begun and each morning is marked by a trek to the Station Church of the day. Mass is at 7.00am and we have already been to Santa Sabina on the Aventine, San Giorgio in Velabro near the church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, and this morning's effort was at the beautiful church of Santi Giovanni e Paolo (Ss John and Paul).<br /><br />This year I am helping to organise the Masses and have got together a team of Masters of Ceremonies to assist and to ensure that things run smoothly.<br /><br />Unlike last year, Lent has commenced later and so although the mornings are still generally dark when we begin the rosary trek to the church of the day, yet slowly there is a sense of shadows being drawn up from allt he great buildings and ancient ruins of the city. It's a beautiful site and by the time the Mass is over there is rust-orange glow hitting the churches, slowly paling to yellow and gold.<br /><br />The first day was at Santa Sabina: the photograph below gives a sense of the colours of the church in the morning. <div><div><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395211291096827474" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyMjgy1l-6UPfwEJ4xs5WI2pt_vDK2Z4u4zYbooSil79D8sd9GjhcF2EUfvcGTiVYkiXTvbW8F4NYwwX_rYIkvjNgzXP_F7FyOh146-h67r3zzilyYvR0j_tA8FZ1u89MXLbuesOtpmILC/s320/IMG_2942.JPG" border="0" /><br />This is part of the choir area, the schola cantorum, which stands before the sanctuary area: the stoned carved crosses porbably date from the 5th century, when the church was constructed, though much reconstruction had to be done in the 9th century:<br /><br /><div></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395211030284859714" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNyAOG4cxiyq3lfLAiuhm_OA4FPcZyW9aAtS6yGCbXuukT9rd0Us_rc5DEvzG4trIF-Zr-2n67zbAmD9lNvcywugVbdViuC1h05aI_f8pPS1U_FcHYV-RDbG-4ltKEOvH2gCrdxQKWagUX/s320/IMG_2941.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div></div></div>Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-88345012594743077672008-12-19T05:40:00.000-08:002008-12-19T06:05:01.713-08:00Time Travel to MadridI had a good time in Madrid when I was there at the end of September: a long time ago I know, but worth mentioning nonetheless. I was very fortunate because it turned out that the priests I was to stay with were building a new parish in the north of the city: as a result they were staying in an appartment right in the centre of town, on the Plaza de Oriente. Below is a view from the flat: in the distance is the new Cathedral and to the right the Palas Real.<br /><br /><div><div></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5281499354211582450" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN8IcczllrXGCqfEnX3-nF4cLuYmzu_-E97NHRPlQKhswH9sIwgXzxLnk1aDyXjCj7Fs_FRsGzSus-dgTrCA__j4hPR1LM19ux6hT8-1KMEdLqV5lEuj4Zb2u880dKkDWwSMC6-Wrnd0n8/s320/IMG_2885b.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><div>As a result I ended up having to walk only 3 minutes to classes every morning, on the Via de Arunel, unlike the 20 or so minutes I had to travel for class in Salamanca. The classes were intense, one-on-one, but I learned a lot. Happily I ended up getting good marks at the Intermedio-Alto level. My reading of the language is much better - and it means I can read the works of my Director, Luis Ladaria, and other people whom he has directed in studies concerning St Hilary.</div><br /><div>Madrid is a fine city. I was able to use my Spanish alot and also do some sight-seeing. The Prado, with its fine collection of art, impressed me deeply. I spent some time looking at Velázquez, El Greco, Goya, Murillo and many others (including a tour in Spanish from one of my Spanish teachers of Picasso's Guernica). I especially enjoyed Murillo, and his intimate, gentle portrayal of scenes from the life of Our Lord and the saints, bringing out the humanity deeply, simply, while combining these sometimes with scenes of Divine glory. Amongst many I very much liked the picture below of the Holy Family:</div><br /><div></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5281501092235537586" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 238px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY1hYUxhMDxXJupYgX7bo8osB56rXh-E8dc_Xsr1FGOH0ORhbXuOe0WV-aH3_JObWrpDMwwVjLKDnBL1E-DESYAbZ0yDH_S9a9mSbKB_Pe0t7siRkzpaPH6QUcbO1FmfNuO1-znmCdoykr/s320/Holy+Family+Murillo.jpg" border="0" /></div>Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-49840811938898349882008-12-19T05:05:00.000-08:002008-12-19T05:39:32.921-08:00TiberThis picture, not exactly the best in the world, I took at the weekend when the river Tiber rose to its highest level in 40 years. The bridge in the distance gives some indication of how high it got - normally one can see most of the supports of the bridge.<br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5281495032275637026" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglNgPI4-i-nrnQc_gDq3NHdLByrATcKmAB9WoEq8U9Ecwk4QYqXdxPkD8WNOTkEKnbrv2ShbFkgf1e4GxE0j3DhsjKOjo_QlQcd831lHVSpc5KL2G3cPnuhN41MqBVFQ8QD5XzZhzylsNP/s320/IMG_2905c.jpg" border="0" /><br />Another fascinating aspect of this was the impulse of the Romans to take their passaggiata to see the spectacle and enjoy it. When something dramatic happens here, they all gather round, making it feel like a family event. There were streams of people, young and old, groups, couples and individuals, going to and fro to observe and record the river. I suppose it happens all over the world, but there is something distinctive in the festive manner in which they do these things here.Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-48413358969974877682008-12-18T14:18:00.000-08:002008-12-18T14:26:37.604-08:00Adveniet Christi NativitasBabbo Natale is Italian for Father Christmas. He is a tradition here in Rome too, with even young people dressing up as him and skating around the city.<br /><br />The city really does take on the sense of preparation for Christmas during Advent. Everywhere there are large Advent wreaths in churches and basilicas. At the church called Ara Coeli, there is a remarkable, rather trussed up statue of the Bambino Gesu (Baby Jesus), venerated by many Romans. At the Piazza Navona, the square is filled with stalls selling various goodies - from food and drink and gareish decorations to crib sets and impressive extras for these scenes of the Nativity. Most churches set up their own Nativity scenes - with mountains, houses, scenes of town and village and country life, animals, people, caves, flowing water, lights and many a variation thereof. The church of Ss Cosmas and Damian takes the biscuit: they are worse than even Sainsbury's or Tescoe's. Those supermarket chains start their Christmas display in November or even October. The church of Ss C and D have their crib scene up all the year around - but it is worth seeing!Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-9027732519451066012008-12-18T14:10:00.000-08:002008-12-18T14:27:31.025-08:00Aloh!Yes, hello. I haven't done this for a while. I have received numerous comments from friends concerned that I had never quite made it out of Spain. They are usually quite disconcerted to find I am not languishing in some dark Spanish gaol.<br /><br />I got back to Rome at the beginning of October and since then have been plodding away at my work. That's probably why I haven't been doing a lot on this blog! My laziness in that area hopefully is balanced by my industry in the other...<br /><br />I haven't been to many exciting places either so have not many splendid photographs to put on. However I did manage to take some photographs of the River Tiber in fuller than full spate. There has been a prolonged deluge of rain which raised the Tiber to levels not seen for 40 years. It was fairly dramatic. I will post some photos later. There were even large floating barges and bars which were dragged away, smashed, sank or wedged into the arches of bridges. Sadly, also a yound Irish man fell in and was drowned. Requiescat in pace: and may his family have the comfort and peace of Christ Himself.Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-67960916358134308082008-09-20T17:14:00.000-07:002008-09-20T17:55:32.107-07:00HOLAI am in Madrid at the moment, doing a course in Spanish (since my doctoral director told me that some of the literature I would have to read - necessarily secondary literature, but nonetheless important - would be in Spanish). It has gone well. I spent two weeks in the lovely city of Salamanca and now am stationed in the capital city.<br /><br />Spanish is an interesting language - much closer to Latin in many ways than, surprisingly, Italian. For example, the verb "to go" - IR - follows the same pattern in the imperfect tense/time as Latin: iba, ibas, iba, ibamos, ibais, iban. The same is true of the verb "to be" - SER - which is as follows: era, eras, era, eramos, erais, eran (I couldn't type the accent on the "e" of "eramos").<br /><br />Yet other differences occur. For example, the Spanish equivalent to the English word "too" is "demasiado" - where on earth did they get that?!<br /><br />Language is an interesting reality. So many different senses, tastes, approaches that are revealed in one word or verb in a particular language are hard to have translated into another, and yet we try to do exactly that - to translate. Despite the variability, there is a relationality to language that indicates the relationality of knowledge - otherwise Google or Microsoft could not function towards, in and from China. This shows us that when people say that knowledge is relative they do not realise that they are proving the possibility of truth and objectivitiy in knowledge. "Relative" is really another name for relational, and relational implies an objectivity that is translatable despite the inadequacy at times of the human intellect to do it justice fully - though even here instinct itself or intuition comes to the aid of mere rationality and thereby shows the objectivity of existence and the relational objectivity of human apprehension. At the same time the relative or relational nature of language and knowledge implies a real elasticity which corresponds to the elasticity of the evolution of the universe- an elasticity which is not, in the terms of a given reality, infinite, but historical and thereby finite, but nonetheless real and so opening up the forms of reality to further development and change.<br /><br />Anyway, enough of that. Below is a picture of the beautiful Plaza Mayor (Main Square) of Salamanca - something that Madrid certainly is unable to match.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5248269128471804066" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFee84-VUjgfwU7wvqLtJESI-hUDyTn6yQHJI5uXT4DrgA_DzJibeBJfxvbTOwrvnzl3Gg9ECwJPsJRkbVW4bh1QHNCzP50E0BiC3u61mJQCb9duFlhu7m3xsIzJ3Y-o9nDBxXKdbDWCYA/s320/IMG_2812d.jpg" border="0" /><br />As for my summer supplying in a parish in Scotland, another post will have to do...Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-87394399509848553202008-06-30T11:54:00.000-07:002008-12-11T11:55:08.786-08:00Onus on the thronusFr Jonathan Hill has an excellent post from 13th June looking at the comments of a Fr Daniel O'Leary in an article profiling him and his recently published book. Follow the link over there ---><br /><div></div><br /><div>As for Fr Hill's question at the end of that post about a picture of me on the throne at the church of Saint Gregory here in Rome, I am happy to publish the following picture</div><br /><div></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5217751876450014994" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTY66zbVP_5DWFPtMzgN1pGv28NOU-pe2n0Y1tTynEOILaecF_73ugJbGiNmWTd7JrpBiMFSWltX6dJOTTbaygPvbLFS_YdFHh5UrCIK6_0nMiaNNVhdMadpb-5u-UCVQsrquo-nZhHS2Z/s320/IMG_1374a.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div></div><br /><div>again.</div>Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-14509873259978454332008-06-30T11:35:00.000-07:002008-06-30T11:48:33.241-07:00Contra DictaFollowing my "counter-petition", I received a number of messages of support. I also received from the address of the petitioners a reply from a certain Simon Brook who decided I had some questions to answer! The parts in normal black type are the original counter-petition; the parts in red type are Simon Brook's questions and comments; and the parts in blue are my replies.<br /><br />From: DAVID BARRETT <david.barrett15@btopenworld.com><br />To: info@marriedpriests-ew.org<br />Sent: Friday, 13 June, 2008 2:00:46 PM<br />Subject: re Petition<br /><br />(This is my text with spelling mistakes corrected and clarifications)<br /><br />Dear petitioners<br /><br />As a Catholic priest ordained 15 years ago and now doing further studies in Rome I would like to:<br /><br />1. Affirm my wholehearted support for the ancient practice of celibacy for the presbyterate in the life of the Church<span style="color:#000066;"> </span><span style="color:#ff0000;">Voluntary celibacy is indeed a great gift to the Church, but has it been worth paying the price for the sexual difficulties of so many celibates in the last few decades, or can one justificiably question the value of an imposed discipline of this sort?</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">I think it is simplistic to make the link between celibacy and "the sexual difficulties of so many celibates in the last few decades". There are many reasons for these difficulties. The Church of England has many sexual and relationship problems with its clergy, many of whom are married. A married clergy therefore does not solve sexual/relationship problems amongst clergy. One could argue, for example, that because the average profile of a child abuser is a married man with some kind of real or legal relationship of kin to the victim, that a married clergy does not solve the deeper problems of child abuse either. I have been involved with child protection work in my own diocese and it is clear that the pathology of child abuse amongst clergy is not reducible to the question of celibacy, since the abuser is one who will abuse in or out of a stable relationship. I won't deny that there have been problems - but much of them has been due to a tendency to reduce clerical celibacy to an "imposed discipline" rather than the deepest expression of the heart of the priesthood as the spousal relationship of Jesus Christ to His one bride the Church. Perhaps what we should question is not celibacy but rather the deplorable lack of formation - theological, personal, human, psychological, spiritual and ascetical - that has characterised the liberalised form of seminary and clergy formation since the Council. Without such foundations celibacy is going to be harder to live; but the knock on effect is that this lack of formation and liberalism in doctrine has meant that many of our people have not been formed well for relationships and for marriage. The cultural crisis of sex and relationships which has characterised our modern era has had a very destructive effect in the lives of so many of our people and they have been ill-served by the Church whose clergy were not formed in the deeper catechism of Christian living and the ideals of Christian holiness in life. So I think it is too simplistic to situate "the sexual difficulties of so many celibates in the last few decades" within the context of celibacy as an "imposed discipline": one needs to address the profound doctrinal/spiritual/moral crisis since the Council and the sudden shift of culture since the 1960s - that's the wider and more complicated context for this question.<br /></span><br />2.. Affirm my wholehearted support for the maintenance of clerical celibacy as a necessary sign to the world of the priority of the Kingdom of God and the call of Jesus, of love for Him and for His Church over other earthly ties <span style="color:#ff0000;">How can an obligation (imposed on western rite clerics not previously employed as Protestant ministers) be a necessary sign of the Kingdom? </span><br /><span style="color:#ff0000;"><br /></span><span style="color:#000099;">"It was necessary for the Son of Man to suffer..." "I have a baptism to be baptised with; and how I am constrained until it is accomplished!" There is a deeper link between obligation and commitment and love than meets the eye. Christ did the will of the Father - He came not to do His will but that of the one who sent Him - and this is a missio, an "obligation" - which is also freely accepted. I am not sure your implicit view of human freedom really can make sense of the possibility of love with and through obligation: the sacrament of marriage imposes obligations in love. The Tradition of the Church has always been that once ordained a man was no longer free to be married - this is an obligation which does not necessarily inhibit freedom but manifests the priority of the heard and accepted call from God over one's own desires and aims in life. An obligation can indeed be a sign of the Kingdom - of the priority of God's call. Christ's call imposes obligations which manifest the free nature of His call and the free nature of our response while at the same time maintaining a necessary structure of consequences - so that it is possible to refuse absolutely the call to salvation, a decision God respects in freedom, but a human being is obliged to answer that call positively if they wish to be saved (I am not here excluding salvation for non-Catholics!).<br /></span><br />3. Affirm my support for celibacy not just as a discipline but as a practice grounded in the example of the Lord Himself, as a way of life that expresses the heart of the priesthood as a complete self-giving for the Church, as Christ gave Himself totally for His one bride - and so affirm that there are good doctrinal and theological reasons for this practice <span style="color:#ff0000;">But why then has the Church allowed married clergy in the Eastern rites for so long - or is their sacramental ministry characterised as second class? </span><br /></span><span style="color:#ff0000;"><br /></span><span style="color:#000099;">It has done - but there is a sense in which the Eastern churches recognise a two-tier system to their priesthood. The unmarried clergy are the ones who can become bishops. The implication of course is that only a celibate can fully represent the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders. The very fact that once ordained one cannot marry in both Catholic (in all the rites) and Orthodox Churches- a position I presume you would not accept - highlights the deeper understanding of the nature of the mystery of Holy Orders. The history is still being discussed and disputed - but as ever it is not simple, from those who would argue that mandatory celibacy was merely an 11th-12th century imposition to secure Church property from the hands of children of clergy, to those who argue that after ordination the married priest had to live a life of continence (no longer as husband and wife, but brother and sister) and that the Eastern practice of the priest abstaining from sexual relations prior to celebrating the Eucharist is a throwback to the more ancient practice.</span><br /><br />4. Affirm my wholehearted assent for the Church's definitive teaching concerning the reservation of the sacrament of Holy Orders to men alone <span style="color:#ff0000;">What is the difference between infallible teaching and definitive teaching? Why did the Church ordain women in the past? Was Paul III's teaching on slavery in his Motu Proprio of 1548 definitive? </span><br /></span><span style="color:#ff0000;"><br /></span><span style="color:#3333ff;">First of all, definitive teaching (i.e. teaching "to be held as definitive" ["tamquam definitive tenendam"] - Lumen Gentium 25) is infallible teaching. Lumen Gentium 25 presents the 3 levels, as it were, of guaranteed or infallible teaching - re matters of faith and morals, and truths needed to safeguard the revealed deposit of faith: a. a definition by a Council, united to the Pope; b. a definition by the Pope ex cathedra; c. teaching by the college of bishops united to its head (the successor of St Peter), though dispersed throughout the world, in day-to-day teaching. The first two are commonly designated exercises of the extraordinary magisterium and they require it to be clearly asserted that this is a definition. The last is the ordinary exercise of the teaching authority - magisterium - in matters to be held by all. A good example of this would be the descent of Christ into hell - never defined by Council or Pope, but held as part of the Faith by those who are in communion with the Successor of St Peter.<br />I presume you accept this teaching of Vatican II.<br />Women were not ordained priests in the past. Deaconesses did not have the same sacramental functions as Deacons. Epiphanius of Salamis tells us: "It is true that in the Church there is an order of deaconesses, but not for being a priestess, nor for any kind of work of administration, but for the sake of the dignity of the female sex, either at the time of baptism or of examining the sick or suffering, so that the naked body of a female may not be seen by men administering sacred rites, but by the deaconess" (Against Heresies 78:13 [A.D. 377]). And the Council of Nicea in 325 "Similarly, in regard to the deaconesses, as with all who are enrolled in the register, the same procedure is to be observed. We have made mention of the deaconesses, who have been enrolled in this position, although, not having been in any way ordained, they are certainly to be numbered among the laity" (Canon 19 [A.D. 325]).<br />There is no evidence for women as priests or bishops in the Catholic Church. I notice for example that http://www.romancatholicwomenpriests.org/ has a picture of a mosaic from the church of St Praxedes in Rome and says underneath</span><br /><span style="color:#6633ff;">"This archaeological photograph of a mosaic in the Church of St. Praxedis in Rome shows, in the blue mantle, the Virgin Mary, foremother of women leaders in the Church. On her left is St.Pudentiana and on her right St. Praxedis, both leaders of house churches in early Christian Rome. Episcopa Theodora, "Bishop Theodora " is the bishop of the Church of St. Praxedis in 820 AD."<br /></span><span style="color:#000099;">This is just not true and is a serious misrepresentation which no serious historian or archaeologist would maintain. There was one Bishop in Rome at the time - Paschal I. The depiction is in fact in a mausoleum built by Pope Paschal for his mother Theodora. She is the one depicted and "Theodora episcopa" really means "bishop's mother". No-one has ever seriously maintained that the Virgin Mary was appointed an apostle by her Son. Praxedes and Pudenziana - the tradition is that they were daughters to the senator Pudens who gave hospitailty to St Peter. They were not leaders of the Church in the apostolic/sacramental sense.<br />As for claims of ordination, St Augustine of Hippo tells us: "[The Quintillians are heretics who] give women predominance so that these, too, can be honored with the priesthood among them. They say, namely, that Christ revealed himself . . . to Quintilla and Priscilla [two Montanist prophetesses] in the form of a woman" (Heresies 1:17 [A.D. 428]).<br />We could go on and on. There is no convincing argument from Tradition re the ordination of women.<br />As for Paul III's Motu Proprio of 1548, you are probably referencing Noonan's article on his matter. A useful and nuanced response to this is found in A Response to John T. Noonan, Jr. Concerning the Development of Catholic Moral Doctrine, by Patrick M. O'Neil found in "Faith and Reason".<br />The history is complicated and, as you are well aware, there is not a common line of development in the teachings of the Popes: some of the teaching seems to be aimed at practical circumstances, some decisions are made in terms of punishments as a result of warfare, others seem to accept slavery as the lesser of two evils, others see it as a right of masters, others as a duty of masters to care for the children of slaves. So it is clear to me that the Motu Proprio isn't to be seen as "definitive": it isn't a formal definition; and it does not seem to lay claim to an enduring doctrine or truth. Naturally, therefore, I do not see all Papal pronouncements as definitive - just as Pope Benedict's latest Motu Proprio re the Tridentine Mass cannot be seen as an exercise of definitive teaching. It is clear from Lumen Gentium 25, that there are different degrees of teaching. The question of the ordination of women has a far surer pedigree - the Tradition goes back to the apostles. If you again look at Lumen Gentium 25, it gives the conditions for such definitive teaching. </span><br /></span><span style="color:#000099;"><br /></span>5. Affirm my wholehearted assent to all of the Church's teachings, not as "Vatican policies", but as the teachings of Jesus Christ who gave His teaching authority to the Church's Magisterium <span style="color:#ff0000;">Cardinal Hume said that the teaching of the Church on priesthood was confused (Foreword to Michael Richards People of Priests) so is there no a hierarchy of truths or are 'all of the Church's teachings' defined without room for doubt, confusion or development? Where can one find a definitive statement of all infallible pronouncements made since 1870? Why do you argue that matters of discipline demand the assent of faith - surely this belittles faith? On what authority did the Church reverse St Paul's acceptance of slavery? </span><br /></span><span style="color:#ff0000;"><br /></span><span style="color:#000099;">The hierarchy of truths does not mean of course that some teachings are "more true" and others are "less true": it refers to the relationships that bind the truths to each other and which centre in upon the foundations of Christian Faith. Here is what the decree on Ecumenism had to say about it at Vatican II:<br />"Furthermore, in ecumenical dialogue, Catholic theologians, standing fast by the teaching of the Church yet searching together with separated brethren into the divine mysteries, should do so with love for the truth, with charity, and with humility. When comparing doctrines with one another, they should remember that in Catholic doctrine there exists an order or "hierarchy" of truths, since they vary in their relation to the foundation of the Christian faith. Thus the way will be opened whereby this kind of "fraternal rivalry" will incite all to a deeper realisation and a clearer expression of the unfathomable riches of Christ."<br />Thus it is a confusion of terms to relate the hierarchy of truths to the issue of disputed and unanswered questions.<br />I do believe there are many controverted questions in theology; the Church has chosen not to speak on many matters. There is room for dispute, discussion and questions. My point is that this is very different from dissent. I would say that an authentically Catholic approach is willing to discuss and delve and make full use of one's critical faculties in the many, many areas of dispute and discussion; however, this does not presume ill-faith int he successors of the apostles and the Magisterium, and it also involves an attitude of reverence towards the teaching of those who are given the task of teaching the Faith as Bishops - as referred to in Vatican II's Lumen Gentium 25:<br />"Bishops who teach in communion with the Roman Pontiff are to be revered by all as witnesses of divine and Catholic truth; the faithful, for their part, are obliged to submit to their bishops’ decision, made in the name of Christ, in matters of faith and morals, and to adhere to it with a ready and respectful allegiance of mind. This loyal submission of the will and intellect must be given, in a special way, to the authentic teaching authority of the Roman Pontiff, even when he does not speak ex cathedra in such wise, indeed, that his supreme teaching authority be acknowledged with respect, and that one sincerely adhere to decisions made by him, conformably with his manifest mind and intention, which is made known principally either by the character of the documents in question, or by the frequency with which a certain doctrine is proposed, or by the manner in which the doctrine is formulated."<br /><br />There is no definitive list of infallible pronouncements. Again terminology is important: the only infallible definition since Vatican I was that concerning the Assumption by Pope Pius XII. There has been plenty of definitive teaching since - such as when the Bishops throughout the world united to the Pope proclaim the bodily resurrection of Christ. Indeed, the whole point of Vatican II's explanation of definitive teaching is that it happens all the time - not on an extraordinary occasion, but in the bishops' ordinary mode of teaching in dioceses etc.<br />I do not argue that matters of discipline demand the assent of faith. I carefully used the word assent. I wanted to include the notion of Faith where it is needed in terms of Revelation, but the notion of assent includes more in its embrace - thus referring to matters that require acceptance (e.g., matters defined infallibly that have not been directly revealed but are needed to safeguard the deposit of faith).<br />re St Paul's teaching on slavery: St Paul was responding to the fact of his time and giving pastoral advice. Again, we could go into this at great length. The real question is, do you accept that the Church can teach infallibly? Do you believe what Vatican II says on this matter in Lumen Gentium 25?<br /></span><br /><br />6. Affirm my prayers for those who have left the priesthood to get married, but my disagreement that they should be allowed back to active priestly ministry still married - such a move would be discouraging to those who have tried to maintain the promises they made at ordination and is a sign of a lack of respect to them <span style="color:#ff0000;">Should we therefore disapprove of the decision by the authorities to ordain for the presbyterate married ex-Anglican clergy?</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">The cases are very different. You mentioned the practice of eastern Churches. After ordination, a priest is not allowed to get married. To do so, violates his promise and the Tradition of East and West. The broken promise is a serious matter and it requires repentance and a change of life. Some men cannot do so and have received laicisations. I have known a few myself and admire them greatly. But to say that they could return to priestly ministry with no attempt to resolve the situation by which they broke their initial promise is failing to take promises seriously. It sens a bad signal to those who are divorced and remarried - that they cannot come back to Communion because they are laypeople; but a priest can do anything, not resolve his situation and still return to ministry.<br />I think it is disingenuous to imply that the situation of those priests who left the priesthood to get married, many in very painful circumstances, many of them fine men, is equivalent to that of married former Anglican clergy. A<br /></span><br />7. Deprecate this petition as an attempt to further the culture of dissent in the Church, a dissent whose real nature is a refusal to believe and so is opposed to the full act of faith, and so will do no good but will serve to encourage division in the Body of Christ <span style="color:#ff0000;">Are the faithful not encouraged by canon law to express their needs to their pastors?</span><br /></span><br /><span style="color:#000099;">Yes, but remember Lumen Gentium 25 referred to above.</span><br /><br />8. Acknowledge that there is indeed a crisis in the life of the Catholic Church, but this has been caused by dissent from the teachings of the Church, a lack of thorough Catholic catechesis, a lack of holiness and prayer in the life of the Church, an unwillingness to evangelise culture with the fullness of the Catholic Faith and a growing antagonistic secularism in the world which dissent actually promotes. <span style="color:#ff0000;">Are there not seriously devout Catholics who disagree with your condemnations among the lower and higher clergy to say nothing of the holy and prayerful laity? Were Galileo and Rosmini dissidents? Were those who criticised John Paul II's protection of Marcial Maciel dissidents, without the fulness of faith or seduced by antagonistic secularism?<br /></span><br /><span style="color:#000099;">There is always room for criticism and for correction of errant Pastors. Again, the questions of Galileo and Rosmini are more subtle than just, "I dissent from the Church's teaching." Galileo was not alone in suggesting heliocentrism - Copernicus did so too and even his patron the Pope was sympathetic to the idea, as was Cardinal Bellarmine. The reasons for the condemenations are various - and there were mistake and human pride involved too on both sides.<br />I am not judging anyone's holiness or lack of it in these matter's. I just do not believe that dissent forms part of the act of faith. Yes to criticism, yes to correction of pastors for weakness and corruption and delusion and worldliness and pride and bad decisions: but Catherine of Siena's amazing action was born not out of dissent but the act of faith and a real reverence for the role of the Pope. </span><br /><span style="color:#000099;"><br /></span><span style="color:#ff0000;">Is it all not, unfortunately, quite as open and shut as you suggest?</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">I think you will see that my position is far more nuanced than you would imagine me to be in your any caricature. The real question to be answered is: if the Pope decided tomorrow that women could be ordained priests, would we all have to accept it? Could I dissent from it? Would it have to be imposed throughout the Church? Would it be definitive? I have a sneaking feeling you would use all the authority of the Church to impose this, while at the moment you deny that the Church has the right to impose a decision which runs contrary to your opinion. I do not want to be uncharitable in saying this. Perhaps you believe that we could have an Anglican model where different dioceses could decide their own practice - but then the Catholic Church's foundation would be undermined at the very least. I do not see how one could operate such a decision without a requirement of assent (not necessarily of faith!), obedience and obligation. I am not against that, but you seem to be. Or is it just a political manoeuvre: dissent from the use of such means until dissenters actually have control of them?<br /><br />I have spent alot of time on this over the past hour. I have to study and so will not have time to go back and forth like this. Thank you for your correspondence. I wish you every blessing and grace.<br /><br /><br />Yours in the Faith<br /></span>Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-57134806005147385612008-06-13T08:08:00.000-07:002008-06-13T08:12:51.059-07:00Joy of the FaithAnd for a better perspective on the true nature of our Faith, with which the dissenters mentioned in the earlier post would not identify, have a look at http://www.catholicscomehome.org<br /><br />I am grateful to Fr Avram at Peregrinus (click to your right) for this recommendation. There is a good video on the site called Epic. Have a look... It's about the joy and good that our Catholic Faith really brings to our world.Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-76537033435678442102008-06-13T04:45:00.000-07:002008-12-11T11:55:09.361-08:00Church of Santa PrassedeThis week my good friend Fr Stephen Brown from the diocese of Leeds was visiting me here in Rome. I would study in the mornings and then we would do something in the afternoon. One day we made a pilgrimage to the Basilica of Maria Maggiore - Mary Major's or the Greater St Mary's, as a friend of mine dubs it. Afterwards we went to one of my favourite churches in Rome, across the street from the Basilica - Santa Prassede. Saint Praxedes was the sister of St Pudenziana - whose story I recounted briefly in my posting of 27th February. The mosaics in Santa Prassede are wonderful - dating back to around 822 when it was put together during the reign of Pope St Paschal I. The Pope is actually shown on the mosaic with a square nimbus behind his head, rather than a round halo - a sign that he was alive when the depiction was made. I forgot to take some photographs of this but I did take some of the chapel of St Zeno. This is the ceiling inside - showing Christ in glory surrounded by four angels:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7ewxbAEnyWktjc1Q-R9xmytnwiO3qTs6vhxVuatOJF5kNk3ZnWgdJ3I8Tnp8hVJuQsiK9fErxz4iP4xpIfnL77gvws5BJnV990NFvFktkY99WyiPObIq2VRNzt9dxWrwgWlDwuB4j20HC/s1600-h/IMG_1964c.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7ewxbAEnyWktjc1Q-R9xmytnwiO3qTs6vhxVuatOJF5kNk3ZnWgdJ3I8Tnp8hVJuQsiK9fErxz4iP4xpIfnL77gvws5BJnV990NFvFktkY99WyiPObIq2VRNzt9dxWrwgWlDwuB4j20HC/s320/IMG_1964c.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5211339632350436866" /></a><br /><br />The chapel was built by Pope st Paschal for his mother, Theodora, as a mausoleum. He was a thoughtful son: she is even depicted inside the chapel and the square nimbus behind her head indicates that she was alive while her mausoleum was being prepared...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ2ojqG-xu0G6gTibFgJgGfaN8Qp_TNN9SBf2mpwWYFlCp36_VPfOlvT6WschuOf1TCu0MqO89rNSO5VQcBWCoRav0HZduTzd9sSdQA1DJ0FpiS5VzhXflyyrb7S4xdr2Ia3MS_oCKLv_u/s1600-h/IMG_1962a.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ2ojqG-xu0G6gTibFgJgGfaN8Qp_TNN9SBf2mpwWYFlCp36_VPfOlvT6WschuOf1TCu0MqO89rNSO5VQcBWCoRav0HZduTzd9sSdQA1DJ0FpiS5VzhXflyyrb7S4xdr2Ia3MS_oCKLv_u/s320/IMG_1962a.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5211340014465094882" /></a><br /><br />Such a thoughtful boy was Paschal! The writing above and around her says, "Theodora Episcopa." This does not mean in this context "woman bishop" but "bishop's mum"! I want to clarify that for budding women priest dissenters out there.<br /><br />Notice above them the Lamb of God on a small hill with four rivers flowing from Him, from the Temple, and deer drinking in life from those fountains.<br /><br />Also inside the chapel, to the right of the mosaic above, is this vivid depiction of the harrowing of hell. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggHR1uQtBIOCRlKtzTZnoHMopDYe3-nR_YaCg-2rgcA2Kia9IIH7fNBc0VMGkbENmj7ARORtpsAFEd9zSi1PgCWCXwXAMmr3Ev2mJKl2ArUoqq6Ha6r-5m-hYsqzlJsqJeE8n7Ib7oJYR2/s1600-h/IMG_1961a.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggHR1uQtBIOCRlKtzTZnoHMopDYe3-nR_YaCg-2rgcA2Kia9IIH7fNBc0VMGkbENmj7ARORtpsAFEd9zSi1PgCWCXwXAMmr3Ev2mJKl2ArUoqq6Ha6r-5m-hYsqzlJsqJeE8n7Ib7oJYR2/s320/IMG_1961a.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5211340461545513170" /></a><br /><br />Christ in glory (pace Hans Urs von Balthasar) goes down to hell and leads Adam and Eve out of the infernal regions to share in His divinity. I cannot make out who the two others are depicted here - one with a halo and the other with what seems like a beard. Any ideas?Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-49646553521533645992008-06-13T03:56:00.000-07:002008-06-13T05:25:38.769-07:00Assent, not dissentI noticed in the Daily Telegraph that a group of organisations and some public figures have lent support to a petition calling for the ordination of women, married priests and the return to active ministry of those who left the priesthood to get married. They claim there is a crisis in the Church and that there are no theological or doctrinal reasons for celibacy among the clergy. They want this petition to be circulated in parishes on 29th June - just think, on the feast day of the Rock of Faith and of the Preacher of the Faith a petition which dissents from the Faith! <br /><br />The usual cabal of organisations are involved - you can see who they are from the members of their ad hoc committee: <br />Michael Winter (Movement for a Married Clergy), Valerie Stroud (We Are Church UK), Maureen Robinson (wife of a resigned priest, originator of the petition in the UK), Frank Pycroft (Catholics for a Changing Church), Ianthe Pratt (Catholic Women’s Ordination), Jackie Hawkins (New Wine), Jackie Clackson (Housetop), Simon Bryden-Brook (The Living Word Trust, European Network – Church on the Move)<br /><br />I decided to send them my counter-petition as follows:<br /><br /> info@marriedpriests-ew.org <br /><br /> Dear petitioners<br /> <br />As a Catholic priest ordained 15 years ago and now doing further studies in Rome I would like to:<br /> <br />1. Affirm my wholehearted support for the ancient practice of celibacy for the presbyterate in the life of the Church<br /> <br />2. Affirm my wholehearted support for the maintenance of clerical celibacy as a necessary sign to the world of the priority of the Kingdom of God and the call of Jesus, of love for Him and for His Church over other earthly ties<br /> <br />3. Affirm my support for celibacy not just as a discipline but as a practice grounded in the example of the Lord Himself, as a way of life that expresses the heart of the priesthood as a complete self-giving for the Church, as Christ gave Himself totally for His one bride - and so affirm that there are good doctrinal and theological reasons for this practice<br /> <br />4. Affirm my wholehearted assent for the Church's definitive teaching concerning the reservation of the sacrament of Holy Orders to men alone<br /> <br />5. Affirm my wholehearted assent to all of the Church's teachings, not as "Vatican policies", but as the teachings of Jesus Christ who gave His teaching authority to the Church's Magisterium<br /> <br />6. Affirm my prayers for those who have left the priesthood to get married, but my disagreement that they should be allowed back to active priestly ministry still married - such a move would be discouraging to those who have tried to maintain the promises they made at ordination and is a sign of a lack of respect to them<br /> <br />7. Deprecate this petition as an attempt to further the culture of dissent in the Church, a dissent whose real nature is a refusal to believe and so is opposed to the full act of faith, and so will do no good but will serve to encourage division in the Body of Christ<br /> <br />8. Acknowledge that there is indeed a crisis in the life of the Catholic Church, but this has been caused by dissent from the teachings of the Church, a lack of thorough Catholic catechesis, a lack of holiness and prayer in the life of the Church, an unwillingness to evangelise culture with the fullness of the Catholic Faith and a growing antagonistic secularism in the world which dissent actually promotes.<br /> <br />Yours in the Faith<br /> <br />Fr David B Barrett<br /> <br />Casa Santa Maria<br />Via dell'Umilta 30<br />00187 Rome<br />ItalyHilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-42975759957516572922008-06-11T09:49:00.000-07:002008-12-11T11:55:09.548-08:00FarewellsAt this time, lots of students here are finishing their doctorates after 3 years of steady study and others are completing their licences. They return home to their dioceses for different assignments - some to parishes, others to seminaries, chaplaincies, chanceries and other roles. Returning home is seen as very positive by the priests here - a chance to engage in the mission of the Church and to bring the Gospel of salvation to a world so in need of it.<br /><br />Fr Martin Edwards of the Archdiocese of Southwark spent time here this year studying for his doctorate. It was good to have him around. He does a lot of very fine work for the important charity Aid to the Church in Need, work which benefits the Church at a universal and not just local level. He takes the work with the charity seriously and I would encourage anyone to contribute to its fine work. He has been great fun here at the Casa and a good example of priesthood to us all. We took him to Castel Gandolfo in April as a farewell trip to wish him well. Below he is sitting in the square at Castel Gandolfo with Fr Larry Kozak and Fr Patrick Beidelman:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4anQIz6V9LVzVcXt3S-KVYbJkDudOd5PlS0vRAy3K9jChLttilcemQK5K8AAtYtz3YtuvJdSgxOxgPYa4srwiI9vtZjmGkZvmqx_jHoVVfOUYzznTfbaP5XJWL5aCBy3TugE1gB4XNvBu/s1600-h/IMG_1885a.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4anQIz6V9LVzVcXt3S-KVYbJkDudOd5PlS0vRAy3K9jChLttilcemQK5K8AAtYtz3YtuvJdSgxOxgPYa4srwiI9vtZjmGkZvmqx_jHoVVfOUYzznTfbaP5XJWL5aCBy3TugE1gB4XNvBu/s320/IMG_1885a.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5210668644402230994" /></a>Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-84406566774483520582008-06-11T09:33:00.000-07:002008-12-11T11:55:09.948-08:00Winner of "The-most-unfriendly-fountain-in-the-World" AwardI am proud to announce the winner of "The-most-unfriendly-fountain-in-the-World" Award. It goes to a fountain not far from the Basilica of St Francis in Assisi. This is it:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ8ExfpxbVD3sKUKfXwoKfzl-TYB4gkqel7dk2JRLxlLAJ-XfLR4vHquDRWa54BV4g-HMXaP62eVHuBZgPMelnCwBWQu6KNVM7qrodZIJc-2MFpzrdADzYsX1wXOeW-KyYDQ17r8fRkZ60/s1600-h/IMG_1924a.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ8ExfpxbVD3sKUKfXwoKfzl-TYB4gkqel7dk2JRLxlLAJ-XfLR4vHquDRWa54BV4g-HMXaP62eVHuBZgPMelnCwBWQu6KNVM7qrodZIJc-2MFpzrdADzYsX1wXOeW-KyYDQ17r8fRkZ60/s320/IMG_1924a.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5210664563999848386" /></a><br /><br />The notice in stone says in Italian, "Pena un scudo e perdita de panni per chi lava in questo fonte." Roughly translated, this means, "Fine of one scudo and loss of clothes for whoever washed in this fountain." To re-inforce its friendly message, the next notice underneath says, "Aqua non potabile" - "undrinkable water." <br /><br />And if you still don't believe that all this adds up to a very unfriendly fountain, look at the colour of the water below:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQZUeSsGlbed47e0EFQbSuONDN9DDm9aCRoxvLqLXwMN8eSs0tLvz0g5ZLrJ9TD0uuCWYgjehZtBNx0jkSD4BUiZBpOx4ofSZCitcpWu2vG0YSiexiZFuO0HEOFFBBPRFlUtcbYAEbypq3/s1600-h/IMG_1925d.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQZUeSsGlbed47e0EFQbSuONDN9DDm9aCRoxvLqLXwMN8eSs0tLvz0g5ZLrJ9TD0uuCWYgjehZtBNx0jkSD4BUiZBpOx4ofSZCitcpWu2vG0YSiexiZFuO0HEOFFBBPRFlUtcbYAEbypq3/s320/IMG_1925d.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5210665048688892866" /></a>Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-81075982641761077512008-06-11T08:12:00.000-07:002008-12-11T11:55:10.388-08:00Northampton in AssisiAfter plundering Rome, the Cathedral group marched up to Assisi (by coach). They invited me to join them. I took a day off from study on Friday and made the trip north to St Francis' home town. I had qualms whether I should take time from my studies but as one priest said here at the Casa, "It's always a good thing to spend time with St Francis in Assisi." He was right.<br /><br />I spent the night there and joined the group for various activities. They were staying at La Rocca Hotel - known to generations of English College students for its hospitality, good pasta and reasonable rates and rooms. <br /><br />I managed to offer Mass at the Basilica of St Francis in the evening. It's an impressive place: right down in the crypt is the tomb of St Francis. This was only discovered in 1818 after about two month of excavations: the grave had been most carefully hidden to escape being stolen or desecrated. On top of this is built two other churches, one on top of the other and it is this vast complex that forms the Basilica. It was built after Francis' death in 1226. By this time the Franciscans had already arrived in England (in 1224, in fact). One of their number was a priest, Richard of Kingsthorpe, a well-known and impressive preacher. Obviously because of his links (Kingsthorpe is now on the north side of Northampton), by 1230 a friary had been established in the town and it was at the Franciscan St Andrew's church there that Blessed Duns Scotus was ordained to the priesthood on 17th March 1291.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkavlezD5CF-m0KXwYSDjryHYelmNRV-q7C2c0n-2G-U_9NnEVcOMV8e-xZvEKQEi5SQqyaAiIg7_rxYXkXuUrLOdYvDN4TKBE29gjkUyuWrvzrG-6PlmZsIliC5DGmT468zr5Ezjh4NpM/s1600-h/IMG_1904d.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkavlezD5CF-m0KXwYSDjryHYelmNRV-q7C2c0n-2G-U_9NnEVcOMV8e-xZvEKQEi5SQqyaAiIg7_rxYXkXuUrLOdYvDN4TKBE29gjkUyuWrvzrG-6PlmZsIliC5DGmT468zr5Ezjh4NpM/s320/IMG_1904d.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5210649217342522994" /></a><br /><br />The present Basilica is the fruit of great medieval Italian architecture - its frescoes, particularly those by Giotto in the upper Basilica depicting the life of St Francis, are wonderful. I think my favourite place is the quiet crypt of San Francesco's tomb and the rest of the lower church - dark, colourful, tranquil.<br /><br />The tranquility soon vanished - that night the pilgrim group held a quiz night, which was loud and fun. But the beauty of Assisi had obviously touched everyone in the group. Many people said how peaceful and graced they felt the town to be. Its beauty stays with you for a long time.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTB2AV0y4L3nXeAXYnbWUFFj5zN08kbHTwsQJ2NDg6ZU2BFuC-_4szmyqXiqLkbNEMiiloy-K-A17xNfv8y39v15ldIOPZQqnK4IzhqXaNClBHxq2xgx_jxHCib1RxyTq3e8tDRxbYXztr/s1600-h/IMG_1943d.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTB2AV0y4L3nXeAXYnbWUFFj5zN08kbHTwsQJ2NDg6ZU2BFuC-_4szmyqXiqLkbNEMiiloy-K-A17xNfv8y39v15ldIOPZQqnK4IzhqXaNClBHxq2xgx_jxHCib1RxyTq3e8tDRxbYXztr/s320/IMG_1943d.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5210650135674581330" /></a>Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-20764002016041666202008-06-11T08:02:00.000-07:002008-12-11T11:55:10.683-08:00Northampton in RomeI haven't done much of this recently. <br /><br />The other week a group from the Cathedral in Northampton, led by Canon John Udris, came to Rome on pilgrimage. It was great to see them. On Sunday 25th May I joined them at the church of St Gregory the Great - I have mentioned it before on here. It was a lovely Mass, led by Canon John and with Deacon Philip Nash assisting. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRIQs6sBm2hlpCVnegUi0532tEZLpvQuQ6wyjtiu4HlEkWdp-TKsltC8aTfOgEyNZDhn27J3Kfh5OTKdU90TpEPO8ZitPOsIzsij4pYOcg6k3oQv8mwdwz-8Qt1Pg6V_C2q7rgduNfhqTG/s1600-h/IMG_1899d.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRIQs6sBm2hlpCVnegUi0532tEZLpvQuQ6wyjtiu4HlEkWdp-TKsltC8aTfOgEyNZDhn27J3Kfh5OTKdU90TpEPO8ZitPOsIzsij4pYOcg6k3oQv8mwdwz-8Qt1Pg6V_C2q7rgduNfhqTG/s320/IMG_1899d.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5210641694501501426" /></a>After Mass I showed to the people the famous Chair of Pope St Gregory from which he sent St Augustine to England. I managed to persuade the good Dean of Northampton Cathedral into the throne. He looks very apostolic...<br /><br />The group spent about 5 days in Rome. For some it was the first time in Europe, on an aircraft and in Rome. Lots of bravery awards!Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-50860716684636764732008-04-17T01:11:00.000-07:002008-04-17T01:23:28.678-07:00Deliciae LatinitatisThe other day saw another Latin class with Fr Reggie Foster. The course has been such a help and I have seen a marked improvement in my Latin. The classes, as noted previously, are always entertaining: firstly, because Fr Reggie's system for teaching is clever and brings out the challenge and the fun of the language; secondly, because his enthusiasm (and that's a weak word) is so evident and infectious. <br /><br />The other day, one of the class reacted to what seemed an odd facet of Latin by saying, "Ah! It's just perverse!" To which Reggie roared, "Perverse?! It's divine and glo-o-orious!" <br /><br />Later on he waxed ecstatically, "Latin is the best thing that ever happened to humanity, because without it we would be floating around like a bunch of ninnies."<br /><br />More Latin to come this afternoon...<br /><br />I saw the director of my doctorate today, Fr Ladaria. He seems happy with the progress of work and with the title chosen. He is himself an acclaimed theologian and expert on St Hilary. He is Spanish, originally from Mallorca, and has taught at the Gregorian for many years: I remember doing courses with him on theological anthropology, protology and eschatology when I was first here. He is currently a member of the International Theological Commission, having been nominated and appointed for it in 1992.Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-27098060022534087692008-04-13T11:10:00.000-07:002008-12-11T11:55:10.839-08:00Elevamini, portae aeternales, et introibitFor the past two weeks or so a number of us have been tracking Canon Michael Griffiths' progress on the RMS St Helena. The website for the ship has a function which shows on a map exactly where the ship is in the world, its speed, the height of waves and so forth. <br /><br />I am pleased to say that he has arrived safe and sound at St Helena. He arrived on Thursday evening. There is no port and so he had to climb off the ship into a smaller boat to be taken to shore. There the local Anglican bishop very kindly came to meet and welcome Michael and gave him some generous hospitality. I spoke with Canon Michael on the telephone the next morning and he sounded very well and very excited. He had had a good voyage and had already been given a good welcome by some of the islanders. God is good. <br /><br />In the circumstances, this is a very appropriate picture of the then Fr Michael visiting St Peter's: I took it with the great statue of St Helena herself in the background.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP8vkOz7ezIkI1g7Y6fQN6aoaLYUFW1yXh-m_TtI53IU8A23Luz7uuVRAyeic-L3tlhqT-0wr5-u6GWqOaOqSmlLNzB2RjYqDE7Dt7j4fepTpCy5bUjQmXjIfF7KyRX835nAun7iWe_QM0/s1600-h/IMG_0929d.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP8vkOz7ezIkI1g7Y6fQN6aoaLYUFW1yXh-m_TtI53IU8A23Luz7uuVRAyeic-L3tlhqT-0wr5-u6GWqOaOqSmlLNzB2RjYqDE7Dt7j4fepTpCy5bUjQmXjIfF7KyRX835nAun7iWe_QM0/s320/IMG_0929d.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5188796166490220290" /></a>Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-5299738979792995182008-04-13T09:47:00.000-07:002008-12-11T11:55:11.299-08:00Surrounded by historyI can't remember if I mentioned that I moved room in February. My new room is on the 3rd floor and is on the inside of the house, overlooking the garden, looking towards the Quirinal Hill. It is quieter than the other room and so I am getting better sleep than before - Deo gratias. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQNaWq2Vdo33TGSXYnz9A460zANr2x5DitBP5s9eIaXXYABNAlpjnOebBGaOYGalIUqxPKyanqij4EnWxmDNdqs4Cj0_GBUt2wNDWRItd4-MhDnyCofDmsagL_hEvD_yR82OHfC5tcfTGd/s1600-h/IMG_1882d.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQNaWq2Vdo33TGSXYnz9A460zANr2x5DitBP5s9eIaXXYABNAlpjnOebBGaOYGalIUqxPKyanqij4EnWxmDNdqs4Cj0_GBUt2wNDWRItd4-MhDnyCofDmsagL_hEvD_yR82OHfC5tcfTGd/s320/IMG_1882d.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5188775254294456034" /></a><br /><br />This building was given to the Americans by Pope Pius IX because he wanted them to be closer to him at his palace on the Quirinal. We are at the foot of that hill, not far from the entrance to Trajan's Forum. There must be a wealth of archaeology beneath this site and even in the garden there are remnants of ancient pillars and other assorted masonry. Everywhere in Rome there is evidence of this marvellously alive city's history amidst the teeming of tourists, pilgrims, Italians and varieties of immigrants. For example, on the ides of March some of us passed the statue of Julius Caesar on the way to a Station Church and noticed that some flowers had been placed there by some admirer to commemmorate the anniversary of his assassination. That event was seen by the perpetrators as the only way to secure liberty (or their own interests); it became the means ultimately of ushering in exactly what they had tried to prevent - an on-going royal/imperial style of government.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO1D_mBXVN0NksyzrkwJ_xeN1CiTX7vv8Kj5O-NV9z9cDpccXNSqZFx-Li2rWf50GYw6jzkEjVjphN_YjJ01j6YT4rCyg41TSSBbyXLN-K1kYV6rTLibtu-x-dJgiSaAUiA-rUyCOkTFNa/s1600-h/IMG_1703d.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO1D_mBXVN0NksyzrkwJ_xeN1CiTX7vv8Kj5O-NV9z9cDpccXNSqZFx-Li2rWf50GYw6jzkEjVjphN_YjJ01j6YT4rCyg41TSSBbyXLN-K1kYV6rTLibtu-x-dJgiSaAUiA-rUyCOkTFNa/s320/IMG_1703d.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5188804734949975826" /></a>Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5214180486913161961.post-65327831502124826362008-04-13T06:22:00.000-07:002008-04-13T06:44:12.747-07:00English MartyrsIf you want to know more about the Martyrs of England and Wales, then please do see Richard Marsden's blog "Bashing Secularism": he has been posting helpful biographies about many of the canonised martyrs. The link is down there ----><br /><br />In an age of relativism, the martyrs remind us that there are absolute values and truths that claim our adherence; and they remind us that the only martyrdom worthy of the name is undertaken for the objetive truth, not for what I think is my truth, and it is done in perfect love. Not so long ago I heard a priest preach that we could pray to the Anglican martyrs of the Reformation as well as the Catholic ones. Firstly, I wouldn't presume to have the charism of infallibility to canonise saints and encourage people under my pastoral care to pray to them: that's why we have a canonisation process, otherwise any priest could start getting parishioners to pray to all sorts of exotic people. Secondly, I would be cautious about saying that just because they persevered in their Anglican faith to the end, that means they are martyrs. Just because someone dies for their faith it does not make them a martyr in the proper sense - otherwise we would end up saying the 9/11 terrorists were martyrs: there has to be an objective criteria - that of faith, hope and love - and faith, hope and love are by nature ecclesial and thus Catholic (see Lumen Genium 8!). I hope and pray that those who died so horribly for their Anglican faith are indeed in heaven and that we might merrily meet there, as St Thomas More prayed - but to start equating what they endured with martyrdom in the proper Catholic sense ends up relativising the martyrdom of the Catholic saints. The Forty Martyrs didn't just die for <em>their </em>belief - they died for the Faith of the Church and they did so with an exquisite charity that continues to touch the heart and inspire it.Hilariterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07475641060260529371noreply@blogger.com0