The Good Shepherd

I've not posted in sometime, but I promise I haven't forgotten about you at all. I see my brothers here have been doing a splendid job though, so I'm sure I've not been missed!

As its Good Shepherd Sunday, I thought I'd talk a little about what this day means to me. Today, the Church invites us to committ to praying for vocations - yet it doesn't end there - Holy Mother Church also asks us to look deeply into our very selfs and ask some serious questions:

• What are we doing about the fact, that today, there are so few candidates presenting themselves for service in the priestly ministry?
• What would we say if one of our own has discerned that God is calling He/She to the priesthoold or religous life?
• Are we willing to let this trend continue, or do we want to do what God is asking of us and beg for Him to send Labourers into the Harvest?

The list of questions you could ask is endless, but these three are important because they get right to the heart of the problem. One of the major issues guys coming to the seminary find now is that people often look at them in a different light when they say, "I think God is calling me to be a priest". Instead of the person thanking God, immediately what comes to mind is the "Oh, that means you wont get married, have children," we dwell on the loosing out that we don't think God has blessed the person. We treat them as if God has cursed them. I don't deny that what we are called to is a sacrificial calling in so many ways, yet that calling is such a great gift from God.

That invitation to come and see or rather, come and experience is something to rejoice over. God is asking the person to consider further, the calling to priestly ministry. A calling to serve in the very person of Jesus Christ, feeding his people and bringing the "Good News" of the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Is that not a good call, is that not noble? I think its marvelous, but so many worry that we'll be lonely or over worked that they forget the joy of what the priesthood brings to so many people, including the priest himself.

Also, how many of you actively encourage people to think about the priesthood? I'm not saying throw guys into the seminary, but do you ever say to someone "Why don't you consider the priesthood" or "have you ever considered the call to serve as a priest". Both questions are gentle and they might get little reactions, but they plant a seed, which then allows God to nuture it and to make it grow. A lot of priests are so because of this kind of approach.

Another serious problem we have is the culture we live in. I believe the phone is ringing off the hook with God asking people to become priests, but I think in todays culture vocations can so easily die, because they are not nourtured in in a Christian or better Catholic environment. In a time of our local elections, we should consider the parties or candidates that will strive to bring back Christian values into families, schools and communities because ultimately, we need to ensure that our people are able to live and work and pray without being persecuted. At the moment we are, yet it seems to me as if we are happy to sit back and take the blows. Thats not right and its going against the spirit of the Church right through the ages. Those early Christians who were killed in the Collesium in Rome or throughout the persecutions went to their death singing because one they knew they were going to Heaven, and two because it showed the world the Christians were serious about the truth of their faith. They died so that we might be able to worship, live and work as we ought to be. Its an insult to let this trend of secularization go on without a fight. Its its up to every single one of you to take a stand!!

The Good Shepherd is not some mythical figure that is a nice image for the Church, it is Jesus Christ himself who invites us to lay down his life for his sheep. To stand at the Alter and to bring the creator of the world into our very hands so that His people may receive Jesus each day to bring nourishment and strength and the forgiveness of our sins.

Please pray for us all who are training, but also pray for those who God is calling, support them and give them the encouragement they need, so that they might be better prepared to say "Yes" to the Lord.

Pax

FLI Catholic Conference 2007

I don't know if anyone went to this as a result of my previous post advertising it but I just wanted to share with you all my experiences of yesterday.

It was an incredible day, there were five inspirational talks given by five inspirational speakers.

The first was Fr Linus Clovis the Spiritual Director of Family Life International and eldest of five Clovis boys who basically run FLI. Fr Clovis single-handedly fought pro-choice legislation in the Caribbean. His talk was 'Marriage: a reflection of the inner life of the Blessed Trinity'. It was so obvious when you think about it but you need someone to say it, the relationship between husband and wife should reflect the relationship of the Persons of the Blessed Trinity who are perfect Love, Life and Truth.

The second was the most inspirational for me, Professor Thomas Healy, a retired Anaesthiologist, gave a powerful personal testimony of his experience with modern medicine in this country and how it is geared toward anti-life ethics. His talk was originally called 'Abortion! The silent Holocaust' but he changed it at the last minute to 'The child who has no tomorrow and the mother who cannot take back yesterday'. This talk had such an effect on me I have given him a seperate post below.

Third was Antonia Tully, wife of Paul Tully and mother of their 6 children. She was talking to us about the work of SPUC in schools to fight against the modern sex education programmes which have even infiltrated Catholic catechesis in this area.

Fourth was Patricia Morgan who herself isn't Catholic but uses her position as secular journalist to promote Catholic Family Values. Her talk was entitled 'What's wrong with gay adoption?' and basically said the list would be shorter if the question was 'What's right with gay adoption?' She told us about the Gay Liberation Front Manisfesto of 1971, which at the time was laughed at but has now, under Tony Blair's leadership, become the norm and anything contrary to it is 'homophobic'. She gave an example of Patricia Hewitt who in the 60's and 70's was considered one of the most dangerous feminist activists in the country, now she's in government and we are wondering why feminism is spiralling out of control!

The fifth talk was the most inspiring spiritually. It was given by Fr Fidelis Moscinski, a Franciscan Friar of the Renewal, and he said all we need to do is read the Popes, especially Paul VI, John Paul II and Benedict XVI, obey them and pray. We can do nothing else! Without prayer and conversion pro-lifers will be quashed. You could tell how inspirational this talk was at the end when the compere invited any questions and there was silence!

FLI do a lot of fantastic work and provide these conferences every year. I urge you to visit their website www.flionline.org and to come to next year's conference.

Professor Thomas Healy

This second speaker at yesterday's conference was the most inspirational talk I have heard concerning practical bioethical issues.

He began with a personal experience he had when he arrived at work one morning to find two abortions on his list. He went straight to his computer and typed out his letter of resignation in the likely event he would be fired for what he was about to do. He went straight to his superior and said, 'I will not be available for these operations.' The Lord was looking down on him because she replied, 'That's OK, I'm free then, I'll do it!' Later he told a story of an interview he was taking of a young Catholic Anaesthetist in which he asked, 'How would you feel if you were asked to be available for an abortion?' The interviewee answered, 'I'd be fine, I'm not performing it I'm only providing the anaesthetic.' The Professor refused him the position.

Professor Healy went on to give some very interesting facts:

'If you think 6 million abortions in the UK since 1967 is bad, try over 47 million since 1972 in the States.'

'Fertilising the ovum of a cow with the sperm of a human isn't new! Since the discovery of IVF they have been testing the viability of human sperm by fertilising Guinea Pig Ova.'

'My brother-in-law went into hospital for a simple procedure during which it is expected that the patient will become unconsious. When my brother-in-law did become unconscious they immediately sedated him and wrote DNR (Do Not Rescitate) on his notes. If I hadn't discovered this and demanded the removal of the DNR threatening them with immediate national newspaper coverage I wouldn't have enjoyed a skiing holiday with my brother-in-law last month.'

He also commented on the latest news that doctors are refusing to perform abortions and abortionists do not talk about their job in public (see Fr Tim's blog for some very good posting on this) saying the reason for this is that performing an abortion just doesn't give the job satisfaction any other procedure does. When a surgeon has the choice between saving a life in a quadruple bypass and ending a pregnancy by murdering an unborn child he/she will choose the former.

Another story he told was when he was talking to a fellow medic about when life begins and his colleague said life begins at birth. The Professor's response to this was, 'Then you must be God! Last week you performed a Caesarean Section on a 32 week pregnant woman. Therefore at the moment you removed the child from her womb you created life because there are other women in the Maternity Ward who are 32 weeks pregnant who, according to your logic, don't have living humans in their wombs!'

I have saved the Professor's most important story for last.

He told us that whenever he entered a theatre after an abortion had just been performed he would automatically clean the equipment even if it had already been cleaned by the previous anaesthetist because of what it had just been used for. He also told us that whenever he entered the theatre he could feel something but couldn't quite put his finger on what it was. One day as he entered theatre the usual feeling went through him and his assistant asked, 'Professor, whenever you enter the theatre after a termination do you feel a strange sensation?' He replied, 'Yes, but I can't quite work out what it is.' She wrapped her surgical gown around her and said, 'Its cold, so cold, so very cold!' He told us 'That was exactly it, the temperature hadn't changed but it was freezing cold! Why? Because God wasn't there! The Holy Spirit had left to take the soul of the murdered child to Our Lady!' He continued, 'The only other time I have felt that sensation was just after the war in Belsen Concentration camp.'

Unique Interview with the Holy Father

See Valleadurni (third from bottom in blogroll on left) for this fantastic post!

Tough Times: Serious Prayer

Late last night I was speaking with a fellow seminarian and orthfully Catholic blogger. We were talking about the state of the Church and the state of morality in this country and in the world in general. I learnt alot from him about several issues, one of which was the situation with abortion and pro life issues. I won't tell you his story since he is going to share with you something very powerful and interesting. Suffice to say that what he told me last night about what is going on in this country left me very close to tears.

What we need more than ever is a real commitment to Jesus and His mission. That can only come through prayer. These are tough times.
I was in Medjugorje recently with this very seminarian. Whilst accepting the final decision of the Church I have to testify: It changed my life.
Over the past few days I have felt the message of Medjugorje slowly penetrating my soul: Be converted!
I also realised that what I received there, and it's just beginning to show, is an increased desire to pray. I now realise more that prayer is absolutely vital.
The strange thing is that when I was in Medjugorje I felt all lovely and nice. It's only now that the urgency of it all is hitting me right between the eyes: Pray, Pray, Pray! Be converted!

I trust the final decision to the Church. But I will say that I believe Our Lady in Medjugorje is urging us to convert.
This, my second pilgrimage, let that message penetrate more deeply into my heart.



Please look out for the articles that my fellow blogger is going to write. What you will hear is shocking, disturbing, powerful and urgent. These are tough times. As Karl Rahner said: The Catholics of the future will either be mystics or nothing at all.
So just how well am I striving to co-operate with God's grace through prayer?

Shocked response

I wrote an article yesterday on Liberalism and lacking love. Someone commented that their traddie friends are bitter too.

Well I have to confess something before I answer any of the comments I have received.
The original inspiration for the article was a homily that I heard from a priest here in the seminary. It was later re-triggered in my reflections when a friend of mine, a fellow Orthfully Catholic blogger bought a book: Liberalism is a sin.

In that homily the priest also said: If you are a Traditionalist you don't love Jesus.

I can see a few shocked readers now.
This is NOT meant to offend but to challenge. What the priest meant is quite simple: These people love their agendas far more than Jesus. He also said that if you don't love orthodoxy you don't love Jesus. What he said was very sound and balanced.

I have noticed that there is also a tendency to confuse the terms orthodox, traditional and traditionalist. In my understanding and usage they are NOT interchangeable terms.
An orthodox Catholic is one who strives to uphold all the teachings of the Church. Traditional means that you love Tradition and all connected with it. Strictly speaking all Catholics should be traditional in the proper sense of the word.

A Traditionalist Catholic strictly speaking is one who is wholly and entirely attached to Pre- Vatican II worship and devotion. Many (though not all) look askance at the Council itself. Some go further and reject it. Like liberalism it is a highly contentious position. And is a term frequently abused by the Catholic press itself. Especially when they harp on about "spin".
THIS is what the priest was talking about. I had intended to write an article about it.
This blog is dedicated to fidelity to the Magisterium and desires to be no more or less Catholic than the Pope.
I really believe that we must be careful with the terms we use to describe ourselves. I have been/am guilty of this.

What I was trying to say is: Are we in love with our own agendas? Or are we earnestly seeking to serve Christ's Church?

I, for one, would love the Holy Father to release a Motu Proprio. I pray for it. I think it would greatly aid a genuine liturgical renewal. BUT I also accept his decision. I EQUALLY rejoice in the new translation of the Novus Ordo in English. All I can cry out from the bottom of my heart is Alleluia, thank God!

All I care about is Christ and His Church. Within that I am passionate about fidelity. I am annoyed and frustrated at groups, traditionalist and liberal, who think they know better than the Magisterium.

I am sorry if people are offended. This is absolutely NOT my intention.
But we need to evangelise and help save souls. We are called to serve JESUS and His Church, not an agenda. Things go pear shaped when it all gets politicised. What we need, in my opinion, is a radical orthodoxy and fidelity to the Magisterium based on a radical dedication to Jesus through prayer.
If the Tridentine Mass coupled with a good translation of the Novus Ordo can do it: Yippeeee!

Love orthodoxy because you love Jesus. That's what I try to say to myself. Forget agendas. Souls need saving for crying out loud!

I don't want to spark a debate. These are my personal reflections and may or may not be shared by my fellow bloggers here.

As a final point: I have had very deep contacts with Opus Dei. They absolutely hated being called conservative, traditionalist etc. They kept on telling me: We are Catholics. We serve the Church. We live Her teaching and we love Her Lord. Nothing more, nothing less.

Liberalism: Lacking love and faith

A friend of mine bought a book recently called Liberalism is a Sin by Fr. Felix Sarda y Salvany. I have been reflecting on this recently. If you are a Catholic and call yourself liberal then you have little faith. You don't love Jesus as you should because you don't fully believe in His Church. Jesus said: "Whoever hears you hears me" (Luke 10:16) If you are a Liberal Catholic you don't believe that. You lack faith and you don't love Jesus as much as you should because you lack love for His Church.

I have come across a number of Liberal Catholic who state "The Church is wrong" on several issues and doctrines. My question is always the same: So who is right, you? Isn't that pride and arrogance, the antithesis of Jesus Christ?

If you are a Liberal Catholic you need to convert. You are disobeying Jesus, His Church, doing damage to your immortal soul and not helping with the current shortage of vocations.

There is a basic fact: The religious orders and seminaries that are beaming with vocations are the orthodox ones. Liberalism doesn't work. It empties out seminaries and convents and is old fashioned.

So get with it. Convert and be radical. Love and live the teachings of the Magisterium. Stop cherry picking. Put your hand on the plough and look ahead. You're doing damage to the Church and only shooting yourself in the foot.
And finally, if you obey the Church you'll get rid of that bitterness that liberals have from being constantly at war with their Mother.

God bless

Our Lady's Messages

After the warm responses to the news of our recent pilgrimage to Medjugorje I thought it would be nice to publish Our Lady's monthly messages on the blog. Her messages come on the 25th of each month and can be found on the shrine website, www.medjugorje.hr (where you can also see pictures of the Holy Week liturgies in which, if you look closely, you might spot us).

The message for 25th April is:

“Dear children! Also today I again call you to conversion. Open your hearts. This is a time of grace while I am with you, make good use of it. Say: “This is the time for my soul”. I am with you and love you with immeasurable love. Thank you for having responded to my call.”

Lending books

I often lend people books. In the past I used to be quite possessive about them, and hope to get them back, whereas now I generally resign myself to the high probability that I'll never see the book again (especially if I've lent it to a member of a religious order :P).

Increasingly now, books come in electronic format and I've been wondering about the legitimacy of lending people ebooks. Can I lend someone an ebook in the same way that I lend them a printed volume? Should I delete the file from my system while they have it? Am I more directly depriving the author of an ebook of legitimate income by making their book available to a friend?

A couple of recent examples: I have an excellent ebook that I've recommended and shared with several people. The author points out that the income from the sales of the ebook helps to support a single-income Catholic family with a disabled child. Should I encourage my friends to buy the book themselves to support her, rather than sharing it with them for free?

Another ebook was made available for free by the author when it was first published. Now, however, there is a charge to download it. Does this make a difference to the ethics of sharing the book?

Hmmm, perhaps not the weightiest of ethical dilemmas! Still, I would be interested in what people think...

Prayer

I am reading a book at the moment called Deep prayer, Deep conversion by Thomas Dubay (a priest). In it he basically states that most Catholics are too lethargic and lazy to grow and that we put up with venial sin too easily. This book could not come at a better time for me. I recently received a "spiritual" jab in the ribs to the importance of personal prayer. Gildas mentions in a previous post that he gets up early and prays. I really am coming around to the importance of this practice. Early morning is so still and mystical. This is especially so in the winter when it is darker. Pray and conversion go hand in hand. I must say that what I really need is a deeper conversion to prayer. It really needs to be radical or from the radix: root. We need radical prayer, radical conversion. Only in this way will Christ transform us and then the world around us.

God bless

Happy St. George's Day!!!

A very happy Feast day to all of our readers, most particularly to readers resident in England.

The homily given at Mass this morning in the seminary was amazing. The priest described the seminary as a training camp for martyrs. He emphasized that we need to be martyrs. We must be witnesses to our faith and we must stand firm in the face of persecution.

That is what St. George has to teach us today. Are we ready to follow Christ no matter what???

Easter joy

Last week, I was thinking about the transition from the exhilaration of Easter Sunday to the quieter joy of the Easter Octave and the rest of Eastertide. Perhaps also this is a question about how one maintains a profound joy in Christ throughout the struggles and tragedies of daily life.

In making the transition, I think the liturgy helps enormously.

Resurrexi, et adhuc tecum sum, alleluia:
posuisti super me manum tuam, alleluia:
mirabilis facta est scientia tua, alleluia, alleluia.

Domine, probasti me, cognovisti me:
tu cognovisti sessionem meam,
et resurrectionem meam.

Rather than an exuberant piece rejoicing in the triumph of the resurrection, the Easter Sunday Mass opens in a much more subtle and powerful way. Both the music and the words speak of the serene joy of the Trinity as Jesus recounts the accomplishment of His mission to the Father. There is also an echo of calvary, one that perhaps can help us see that Easter joy is not simply a superficial jolliness. It would be artificial and impossible to try to maintain the "high" of the Vigil throughout the year. Instead, ours is a joy that is there even in the presence of extreme suffering and pain, a joy that comes from our sure and certain hope of resurrection.

I also find the Scripture texts of the post-resurrectional appearances very helpful. There's a different quality to Jesus' appearances after his resurrection. There's a stillness and a sense of a more profound encounter, an encounter that often seems to take place very early in the morning, or as evening draws in. Even those who know and love Him the best seem to take some time to recognise Him.

My transition and sustenance come primarily through prayer, through a watchful attentiveness for His presence in the stillness of the early morning. It is this daily time spent with Him that sustains my Easter joy throughout the year.

Monastic Community of Bethlehem, The Assumption and St Bruno

Many thanks to Margaret Clare for drawing my attention to a fabulous new gallery of pictures of this community. If you haven't already seen it, do check out Emile-James' slide show of the community, which you can find on his blog, which has been recently updated with many more excellent new videos. More information on the community can be found in my earlier post. Also a list of the addresses of many of the monasteries can be found here.

Second Spring

A belated congratulations and welcome home to the authors of a couple of my favourite blogs - Mark and Kacy, both of whom were recently received into full communion with the Church. You remain very much in my prayers.

This is also a great excuse to include this image created by the Curt Jester.

A question for our American readers

I wanted to put this in a separate post as it is something which intrigues me.

I went to confession on the first day of my pilgrimage to Medjugorje and an American priest heard my confession. What intrigued me was the Absolution, the words of which I don't remember exactly but went along the lines of:

May Jesus Christ absolve you and by the authority He has given me I absolve you of your sins in the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

A fellow seminarian has suggested this is the Old Rite absolution. I do not doubt this but wonder if it is the form of absolution used in America in the New Rite.

Can anyone help?

Back from Medjugorje

When my fellow pilgrim saw that I had written a post about Medjugorje he almost broke down in tears, crying, 'No! We're going to lose our reputation and entire readership!' Hence the addition of a postscript emphasising our belief that what the Magisterium says goes. When I got there and experienced my first English Mass I could understand why though - the depression hit hard and not only did I refuse to receive communion in the aisle but I seriously doubted that Our Lady could grant daily apparitions to a place where the liturgy was not so much abused as slaughtered.

I vowed never to attend another English Mass for as long as we were there so we attended the Croatian Triduum (except the Good Friday liturgy as I didn't expect the 3:00 slot to be given to the English - that was the worst liturgy of the entire 9 days - it was so bad I didn't receive Communion again - and the veneration of the crucifix was omitted because they only booked the church for an hour! Did I actually fulfill my obligation?

Anyway, I decided to fast on that first day in reparation and received a beautiful experience at the hands of an amazing priest and my faith in Medjugorje was once again restored. The Croation Masses were out of this world, while I didn't understand a word there was Missa de Angelis on Maundy Thursday. It was in Croation but I joined in in Latin. The words of Institution were in Latin as was the Pater Noster. It was basically as Vatican II wanted Mass said only versus populum. At the Easter Vigil there were so many people we couldn't all gather around the Holy Fire but a priest explained to us what was happening outside, with the church in darkness, then just as he finished speaking the first 'Lumen Christi' rang out (in Croatian). The Paschal Candle (unfortunately oil) was carried by the youngest priest I have ever seen who placed it in the stand and went to the ambo to sing the Exultet. I was in tears! Again I didn't understand the words but I have never heard it chanted so beautifully in my life. We have been practicing it during Lent at the seminary and so to hear that familiar chant but in a new language was an indescribable experience. Our Lady also granted us a miracle as we sat in church waiting for the Vigil to begin. Twenty minutes before Mass we were suddenly hit with an overpowering scent of roses - Our Lady was very near to us. Later we discovered that 20 minutes before every Croatian Mass there is a pause in the Holy Rosary because it is at that point that Our Lady ebters the church to prepare for Mass.

During the Octave we went back to the English Masses as we had a child with us who was fed up with all the foreign Masses we were attending. Another miracle occurred! A number of American and Irish groups had arrived just after Easter all led by Trad priests who said the Masses. The music was still awful, if we didn't have happy clappy music we were tortured with the most horrific rendition of 'Faith of our Fathers' I have ever heard. However, that was forgiven by the way the priests said Mass and their incredible homilies which I have never heard before and may never hear again.

On the last day my brother in Christ and I met a couple and their 9 year old boy who wants to be a priest. Please pray for him and for all vocations as this is something Medjugorje has a habit of producing.

All in all we had a wonderful pilgrimage and prayed for you all. Please keep us and our vocations in your prayers.

God Bless

Scottish politics

Yesterday, I, along with the rest of Catholic Scotland, got a pastoral letter from the Scottish Bishops about the forthcoming elections. It was a powerful call to go beyond superficial issues, and vote in a way that supports the fundamental rights and dignities of the human person. With calls for the abolition of Catholic schools and the question of gay adoption looming large, I was very struck by the Bishops' timely intervention.

For those of you who don't follow Scottish politics, the Green party has pledged to withdraw State funding for Catholic schools, forcing them either to close or go into the private sector. This matters not just in itself but also because they could well end up as partners in a coalition. The SNP is, as far as I can see, the only party to say unambiguously that not only will they continue to fully support faith schools, but also that they would remain strongly committed to this in entering into coalitions with other parties. The SNP are also making encouraging noises over an opt-out for Catholic agencies on gay adoption. Admittedly, they voted down the amendment in the first place, and cynics could see this as simply an attempt to get the Catholic vote, but I'm increasingly drawn to them. I'd be interested to hear what others think.

Christus Resurrexit

Happy Easter to you all. I've actually become very used to only using the internet for essentials over Lent, an experience which I might extend…


The highlight of Easter for me was the Baptism of a close friend from university. He took the Confirmation name of Edmund after St Edmund Campion, and I had the privilege of being his godfather. It was a very powerful and beautiful time and he is really delighted. He also heard last week that he's been accepted onto a Graduate Medical Programme, so will be another great Catholic doctor.

As Easter gifts, I gave him a couple of books. The first, Living the Mysteries: A Guide for Unfinished Christians is brilliant. It's a series of mystagogical homilies from the early Fathers of the Church for the period from Easter to Pentecost. There's a homily for each day, with a question and thought for reflection. I heartily commend it.

I also got him a copy of the excellent Catholicism for Dummies by the fabulous Rev. John Trigilio and Rev. Kenneth Brighenti.

Easter and don't forget Divine Mercy Sunday

We hope that you all are having a wonderful Easter.

Proper posting shall start soon.
Meanwhile we pray that all our readers will soak up more Easter graces.

This coming Sunday is DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY.
We pray that our readers will benefit greatly from this most excellent feast!

God bless

More blogs

More blogs have been added to our blog list. Please take a look.

The Most beautiful experience EVER!

I went to Mass at St. Michael's Abbey, Farnborough yesterday morning. It was all done in Novus Ordo. But I must say it was the most beautiful Mass I have ever been to. I was so astounded that I said to one of the monks afterwards that I never knew that the Novus Ordo could be so beautiful! Nothing was spared. Everything was sung. The readings were done in English. The Passion (in English) was sung by the Abbot, deacon and a monk. The rest of the Mass was in Latin. The Roman Canon was used. The only music used was Gregorian chant. The Psalm was Gergorian too. The Abbot was in the most exquisite cope then Chasuble. It was versus Dominum ( you can't celebrate it any other way there!!!)

The Sanctuary was filled with incense. Oh the Glory!!!

I love the Tridentine Mass. I have always lamented that the New Rite seemed to lack "something". I came out of that Abbey Church totally lost for words at the utter BEAUTY of what I had seen. I know what Peter, James and John must have felt on Tabor!

At the end of yesterday I just kept saying to myself "I have been with God today!"

I know that I am repeating myself but yesterday was one of the most beautiful days of my life.

That Mass was what it is meant to be: Heaven on earth.

DEO GRATIAS!
Please take a look at their website: http://www.farnboroughabbey.org/

Easter Pilgrimage

Two of the Seminarians of this esteemed blog are off to Medjugorje tomorrow! I have wanted to go there since I was 10 years old and my Parish Priest (God Rest His Soul) gave me a model of the Holy Cross and told me all about it. I have heard so many stories since - two friends of mine have been a number of times and seen the sun dance - and my heart has been longing to go. Now the moment is here, a dream is coming true!

Dear readers, please keep us in your prayers that we might have a happy and holy pilgrimage during this most beautiful of Seasons.

God Bless you all and Happy Easter!

PLEASE NOTE: In all things Orthfully Catholic COMPLETELY accepts the final decision of the Magisterium of Holy Mother Church and COMPLETELY submits to her ruling.