Good manners cost nothing

 Click on letter to enlarge

Fr Z gives an update on the Diocese of Madison, which I posted about earlier this month, where Bishop Robert Morlino is giving priests in his diocese criticised for being "too traditional" his firm support.  Fr Z writes that Bishop Morlino has now written to each person  - worldwide - to thank them for support he has received.

It struck me that this is another sign that he is a good pastor - as well as someone simply with good manners, responding to those who write to him.  I know for a fact of many people who have written to bishops here in this country who have NOT received ANY reply.  Of course, all those I know of have been writing IN SUPPORT of priests considered too traditional or asking the bishop to act in cases where the priest appears to be ignoring Church rubrics and rules.  To such people who have written and received no answer, please continue to pray for your bishops and continue to write - politely - to them.  The duty of care they have to ALL their flock (even the ones they consider mad, bad or trad) might eventually get through.

As my mother always taught me - good manners cost nothing.

Pentecost Birthday

Congratulations to Angela and Ernie whom I received into full communion with the Church today by receiving their profession of Faith and Confirming them.  They share their birthday into the Church with the Church itself by being received on the Feast of Pentecost.  We were not quite ready at Easter but the Feast of the Holy Spirit seems just as auspicious as the time for such things.  Thanks as well to the little group who have accompanied them on the course of instruction over these last weeks.

We are in the Lord's Squad

 

 Pius IX inspecting the Papal Army 1868

- All the baptised are all soldiers for Christ -

The Holy Father gave a lunch for Cardinals on Monday as an expression of appreciation for congratulations received last month for his 85th birthday (April 16) and seventh anniversary of election to the See of Peter (April 19).  It is only brief (in its entirety from Zenit below with my highlights) but two things struck me.

1. His mention of the necessity for friends in the struggle.

2. The military terminology in which that struggle is expressed.

***

Eminence,Dear Brothers,

At this moment my word can be only a word of gratitude. Gratitude first of all to the Lord for the many years he has given me; years with so many days of joy, splendid times, but also dark nights. However, in retrospect one understands even the nights were necessary and good, a motive for gratitude.

Today the word ecclesia militans is somewhat out of fashion, but in reality we can understand ever better that it is true, that it bears truth in itself. We see how evil wishes to dominate the world and that it is necessary to enter into battle with evil. We see how it does so in so many ways, bloody, with the different forms of violence, but also masked with goodness and precisely this way destroying the moral foundations of society.

Saint Augustine said that the whole of history is a struggle between two loves: love of oneself to contempt of God; love of God to contempt of self, in martyrdom. We are in this struggle and in this struggle it is very important to have friends. And, in my own case, I am surrounded by the friends of the College of Cardinals: they are my friends and I feel at home, I feel safe in this company of great friends, who are with me and all together with the Lord.

Thank you for this friendship. Thank you, Eminence, for all that you have done for this moment today and for all that you do always. Thank you for the communion of joys and sorrows. Let’s go forward, the Lord said: courage, I have overcome the world. We are in the Lord’s squad, hence in the victorious squad. Thanks to you all. May the Lord bless you all. And let’s toast.

Bishop Mark Davies sacks Diocesan Trustees

 
"The Tablet" reports that Bishop Mark Davies is making redundancies in the Curial Offices of the diocese of Shrewsbury affecting co-ordinators for Justice and Peace, Youth Ministry and Marriage and Family Life.  It often seems to me that many Curial offices are rather overladen with self-perpetuating bureaucracies, so well done Bishop Davies.  Several members of the diocesan trustees have opposed the proposed redundancies and seem to have been sacked by the Bishop!  The Bishop has appointed three new Trustees - all priests of the Diocese.

Here is the text of the report.  You can read it on the "Tablet" site here.

Five trustees of the Diocese of Shrewsbury have been dismissed by their bishop after they opposed planned redundancies in the diocese.

The five were sacked after they voted against a plan to make three members of diocesan staff redundant and voiced concerns about the way the diocese is being governed.

Three new trustees - all priests - supported the redundancy plan and their votes enabled the motion to be passed. Within days of that meeting the five - four laity and one priest - received a letter from the Bishop of Shrewsbury, Mark Davies, telling them they were being "released from their duties". Another trustee resigned as a result of what happened.

John Mulholland, speaking on behalf of the sacked lay trustees, said they were "dismayed" at the planned redundancies affecting co-ordinators for Justice and Peace, Youth Ministry and Marriage and Family Life.

San Tropez Bravade

With Mgr Michael Hayes (centre) Curé of St Tropez with Fr Peter Watts (Curé of Grimaud) and other assistants during a break in the procession.

I was again fortunate to be in San Tropez for the Bravade this year, accompanying the statue through the town for an hour of its six hour procession through the town, ending with Benediction at midnight.  All the Bravadeurs (the remnant of the army and navy of the town) have to be born here to take part.  It's not just a once a year thing, though.  Every month many of them come to the monthly Mass for their patron, St Tropez.  They are not necessarily weekly practising Catholics but at least this popular piety built in to the life of the town keeps their connection to the church alive and active. This is particularly good as the Bravadeurs are all men and its good to see so many men at Mass, in these days when so many men seem alienated by the religion they experience in our catholic parishes.  (I think that the uniforms and guns must help as well!)  Most towns in the area have an annual Bravade (although St Tropez is one of the largest) always with the Church at the forefront and as the context for the celebration, focused on the patron saint of the town.

Some video footage of this years Bravade.

My thanks to the local priests whose hospitality made me so welcome and a part of things.  And to Bishop Mark Jabalé, Benedictine and former bishop of Menevia, who celebrated the main Mass this year and entertained us with some very amusing (but not shareable) stories of clerical blunders over lunch.
 Congratulations also to Mgr Hayes, who just  recently was installed as a Canon of the Cathedral by Bishop Dominique Rey - and yes, canons of Frejus-Toulon do get to wear a "pectoral cross"!

 

 

With Bishop Mark Jabalé

The Bravadeurs

 

 Mgr Hayes receives the salute.

The Procession

And the Saint himself!

Confusing

The purple of a Vigil Mass laid out ready for High Mass.

As I'm abroad at the moment, I was able, in preparation for today's feast of the Ascension, to offer High Mass in the Extraordinary Form, a Vigil Mass of the Ascension - "vigil" even though it was only 9am in the morning.  It seems to be to be a good tradition to keep vigils of the major feasts as a way of preparing and setting the scene for our thoughts and meditations.  They do exist in the Ordinary Form but seem to take the place of the actual feast, as in an anticipated Mass (often called the "vigil" Mass - as on a Saturday evening standing in for the Sunday). 

This brings me to a particular observation - namely I think that in the minds of many people when they hear the term "Easter Vigil" they somehow still think of it in the context of the usual anticipated Mass (so often called a "Vigil" Mass) that they might be used to in many parishes on a Saturday evening (even when the priest goes out of his way to explain that this is not the quickie Mass for those who can't be bothered to come on an actual Sunday (as opposed to those who really cannot get there for practical reasons).  I don't think that it's just me, as many priests tell me that they find it hard to get people along to the Easter Vigil.

A Vigil Mass in our tradition does have a specific meaning but we have applied it to something new and thereby lost the opportunity to give proper meaning to an actual Vigil - the greatest of all - the Easter Vigil.

I'm fortunate enough to be celebrating High Mass again today for the Ascension - forty days after Our Lord's Resurrection but I will have to do it all over again on Sunday in the Ordinary Form, forty three days after the Resurrection, since the transferal of the holy days in England.

Whenever you are keeping it - a blessed Ascension Day.  Our Lord goes ahead to await us!

Feast of Our Lady of Fatima

For the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima.

O Mary we crown Thee with blossoms today!

Thank you to Alice - who crowned the statue today.